The night was silent, the stars pinpoints of light littering the darkness of the sky. It stretched on forever, until I couldn't see them, anymore. I stared at them almost wistfully. I could return home, to Velaris, whenever I pleased, but I wasn't done. Until I'd broken Tamlin and his Court, I would not be done.
I looked away from the sky and turned away from the window, leaning against the pane. Tamlin was asleep, tired from negotiating with Hybern's pets all day. His blonde hair was sprawled out over the pillows like a halo around his head, and my lip curled in disgust. Some Angel he was, allying with Hybern and allowing him to bring chaos to the Courts.
I glanced down at my arm, where a night-colored tattoo was inked on my skin, and smirked. His biggest mistake was telling me about his plans-- ignoring that little voice in the back of his head that warned against it. That voice that could still sense that somehow, Rhys was with me, even after being separated for months. Little did Tamlin know that I reported every little thing to Rhys as I learned them.
The hollow pain in my chest throbbed, and I exhaled sharply, clenching my jaw. No. I would not let that pain have its way with me tonight.
Tamlin shifted in his sleep, and his voice mumbled, "Feyre?" He opened his eyes, staring through the darkness to look at me.
I wiped my face of expression and threw the glamour over my arm again. "Right here," I whispered back. "I didn't mean to wake you."
"Why are you awake?" He blinked blearily at me. "Are you alright?"
He'd begun to constantly check up on me as I revealed more horrors about my time in the Night Court. It was a bit too easy to spin those stories after seeing the Court of Nightmares, after seeing what they were like. Some of the lies I'd told him had tasted like poison, and I was a bit horrified by the fact that I'd come up with them in the first place. The idea of Rhys and the Inner Circle doing any of it had been awful, but some of these crimes... Mother forgive me.
I forced a smile on my face. "Yes. I just couldn't sleep, that's all." I approached the bed and forced myself to keep a neutral expression, instead of grimacing like I wanted to. I slipped under the blankets and breathed through my mouth so I wouldn't have to breathe in his scent.
Rhys. I missed Rhys. The gaping hole in my chest yawned like an abyss. I should be laying beside him. I should be smiling at him. Revenge may be sweet, but the path to it is hard.
Tamlin fell asleep again quickly, but I continued to stare at the ceiling, wishing that sleep would pull me under and take me away from this nightmare.
It didn't.
And so the High Lady of the Night Court suffered through another night of pretending she was someone she wasn't-- and so the game continued.