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- “Roses,” he said wistfully. He meant the magic. Kell never noticed the faint aromatic scent of Red London clinging to his clothes, but whenever he traveled, someone invariably told him that he smelled like freshly cut flowers. Some said tulips. Others stargazers. Chrysanthemums. Peonies. To the king of England, it was always roses. Kell was glad to know it was a pleasant scent, even if he couldn’t smell it. He could smell Grey London (smoke) and White London (blood), but to him, Red London simply smelled like home.
- He was clearly taking his time in an effort to spite Kell, but Kell didn’t mind. He occupied himself by drumming his fingers on the edge of the gilded table. Each time he made it from pinky to forefinger, one of the room’s many candles went out. “Must be a draft,” he said absently while the Prince Regent’s grip tightened on his quill. By the time he finished the note, he’d broken two and was in a bad mood, while Kell found his own disposition greatly improved.
- Some thought magic came from the mind, others the soul, or the heart, or the will. But Kell knew it came from the blood. Blood was magic made manifest. There it thrived. And there it poisoned.
- At that, Rhy had punched him in the face. For a week after, Kell had two black eyes instead of one,
- Rhy sighed. Kell watched him try to answer several ways before he finally said, “There is nothing I would not give you.” Kell’s chest ached. “I know.” “You are my brother. My closest friend.” “I know.” “Then put an end to this foolishness, before I do.” Kell managed a small, tired smile. “Careful, Rhy,” he said. “You’re beginning to sound like a king.” Rhy’s mouth quirked. “One day I will be. And I need you there beside me.” Kell smiled back. “Believe me. There’s no place I’d rather be.” It was the truth.
- babies *heart-eyes emoji*
- The strong sometimes gave birth to the weak, or the other way around.
- The way they swooned and leaned on men, feigning weakness to savor their strength. Why anyone would ever pretend to be weak was beyond her.
- but Lila knew how to use a knife, knew where to cut to hurt and where to cut to kill.
- she smiled at the figure in the broad-brimmed hat and mask staring out at her beneath the word WANTED. The Shadow Thief, they called her. They’d drawn her even taller and thinner than she actually was, stretched her into a wraith, black-clad and fearsome. The stuff of fairy tales. And legends. Lila winked at the shadow before going in.
- Below a gleaming silver belt, she wore fitted pants that tapered into tall boots (rumor had it that a man once spat at her for refusing to wear a dress; she’d cut off his lips).
- well, i can't imagine if he had told her to smile
- Astrid Dane was a serpent, slow only until she chose to strike.
- “The bodies in my floor all trusted someone. Now I walk on them to tea.”
- A life worth having is a life worth taking.
- His gaze began to focus, and Lila reached for the nearest thing—a book—and struck him with it.
- omg lmao how much of a threat was he? he's early dead already god lila
- When Kell came to, he was tied to a bed.
- well that's always nice
- Lila knew what it felt like to want something, knew the way it whispered and sang and screamed in your bones.
- “Give me the stone,” he said, “and I’ll let you come.” Lila bit back a sharp laugh. “I think I’ll hold on to it until we’re through.” “And if you don’t survive?” challenged Kell. “Then you can raid my corpse,” she said drily. “I doubt I’ll care.” Kell stared at her, at a loss.
- then turned to find Lila waiting, her back purposely to the tavern, as if her present were already her past.
- “You’re sure you have the stone?” pressed Kell. “Yes,” said Lila, lips quirking. “And if you’re thinking of stealing it back, I would advise against it, as you’d have to search me, and magic or no, I’m willing to bet my knife could find your heart before your hand could find the rock.”
- “I’m not going to run into myself, am I?” asked Lila, breaking the silence. Kell glanced her way. “What are you talking about?” She kicked a loose stone. “Well, I mean, it’s another world, isn’t it? Another version of London? Is there another version of me?” Kell frowned. “I’ve never met anyone like you.” He hadn’t meant it as a compliment, but Lila took it that way, flashing him a grin. “What can I say,” she said, “I’m one of a kind.”
- (Royalty, thought Lila. Of course. It was a different world. A different king and queen. But there was always royalty.)
- Something flickered through his eyes when he touched her, but she didn’t think it was her touch that moved him. The stone gave a strange little shudder in her hand, as if it felt Kell and wanted to be with him. Lila felt vaguely insulted.
- Here English is a tongue used by the elite, and those who wish to mingle with them. Your very use of it will cause you to stand out.” Lila’s eyes narrowed. “What would you have me do? Not speak?” “The thought had crossed my mind,” said Kell. Lila scowled. “But as I doubt that’s possible for you, I’d ask that you simply keep your voice down.” He smiled, and Lila smiled back, resisting the urge to break his nose.
- “You poor thing,” said Lila coldly, pushing him away. “What do you want? Pity? You won’t find it from me.” Kell clenched his jaw. “I didn’t—” “You have a house if not a home,” she spat. “You have people who care for you if not about you. You may not have everything you want, but I’d wager you have everything you could ever need, and you have the audacity to claim it all forfeit because it is not love.”
- “Love doesn’t keep us from freezing to death, Kell,” she continued, “or starving, or being knifed for the coins in our pocket. Love doesn’t buy us anything, so be glad for what you have and who you have because you may want for things but you need for nothing.”
- And for the first time, Kell saw Lila. Not as she wanted to be, but as she was. A frightened, albeit clever, girl trying desperately to stay alive. One who had likely frozen and starved and fought—and almost certainly killed—to hold on to some semblance of a life, guarding it like a candle in a harsh wind.
- “For hitting,” explained Lila, as if Kell couldn’t grasp the meaning of the metal knuckles. “You can stab them, or you can knock their teeth out. Or you can do both.” She touched the tip of the blade with her finger. “Not at the same time, of course.”
- “Some people steal to stay alive, and some steal to feel alive. Simple as that.”
- Delilah Bard looked like a king. No, she thought, straightening. She looked like a conqueror.
- “You look more ready to storm a city than seduce a man.”
- “You know so little of war. Battles may be fought from the outside in, but wars are won from the inside out.” She gestured down at Rhy’s body. “Kingdoms and crowns are taken from within. The strongest fortress can withstand any attack from beyond its walls, and yet even it is not fortified against an attack from behind them. Had I marched upon your palace from the steps, would I have made it this far? But now, now no one will see me coming. Not the king, nor the queen, nor the people. I am their beloved prince, and will be so until the moment I choose not to be.”
- “I told you once, that I would own your life.”
- “Never presume to know your enemy.”
- “I have a closetful of kings.”
aug 9 2016 ∞
aug 9 2016 +
aug 9 2016 +