She meant, Be careful and stay safe.

How I knew this, I didn't know. I just knew her eyes were troubled, even alarmed, and that freaked me way the h.e.l.l out.

"Madeleine, our sleigh is waiting," Apollo cut into these thoughts and I looked to him to see he had his hand extended to me.

"Remember everything...eh...vree...thing. We want to hear it all on your return," Loretta ordered, coming forward to fuss with the folds of my cloak as I moved to Apollo.

I had a feeling from Apollo's earlier look that I wasn't going to be having girlie time "on my return."

I was coming to love my girls. But from that look, I was good to wait until the morning.

I didn't share this with Loretta.

I told her, "I'll remember, honey, promise."

I got close to Apollo and he took my hand, lifted it and curved it around the inside of his elbow. Without delay, he moved us to the door.

Right before we went through it, I looked over my shoulder at Meeta.

She was watching me with a weird intensity that was unsettling, her expression clouded. Then, she strangely lifted up a hand, only a slim forefinger extended, and touched the tip of it between her eyes.

I didn't know what that meant. I just knew it meant something.

I obviously couldn't ask and I couldn't think on it either. Apollo was moving swiftly and I had to think about keeping up with him and not tripping.

Before I knew it, we were in one of his sleighs with the furs over our laps and he'd snapped the reins. The chill air bit at my cheeks and through the heavy (but not as heavy as fur) velvet cloak. I shivered for more than one reason as my eyes lifted to the torchlit castle.

Apollo must have felt it for he curved an arm around me and tucked me close to his side.

That felt better.

He then dipped his head and murmured into the top of my hair, "Your beauty tonight is unsurpa.s.sed."

That warmed me all the way through to the point where my toes curled in my beaded velvet slippers.

Because I knew what he meant and what he meant meant the world.

I looked exactly like his dead wife. But tonight, I knew I looked better.

It might be greedy and wrong to love that, but I had to admit, I did.

Then again, even I was stunned at how awesome I looked.

I had help and not just Loretta and Meeta's awesome skills with hair and makeup.

There was no other way to describe it, my gown was sublime. A dark green velvet that skimmed my figure to the bottom of my hips and flared out into a full skirt. The velvet led up to a strapless bodice but this was covered in a fabulous topaz lace which melted down my torso, disappearing at my hips.

The lace formed a Sabrina neckline and dipped a little at the back, which was kind of backless. The kind of part was that the velvet came only to the small of my back and up my sides, but that extraordinary lace covered my skin, providing an elegant, peekaboo back done up the middle with lace covered b.u.t.tons.

The dress was sleeveless so I wore long, bronze satin gloves that fit tight up to my mid-upper arm. My feet were covered in flat green velvet slippers with a thick suede sole and topaz beading at the pointed toe.

My makeup was heavy, smoky and fabulous (Loretta's doing).

And the neckline of the dress was so perfect I needed no jewelry at my throat. But Loretta gave me emerald and topaz chandelier earrings to put in my ears as Meeta linked chain after chain of emerald and topaz bracelets around my right wrist.

And last, my hair was swept loosely back to a smooth but large, lovely chignon Meeta fastened at the nape of my neck then, on each side close to the bun, she slid in extravagant combs that had ends which were large sprays of emeralds and topaz that glittered against my hair.

I had not, for some reason, perused the entirety of the jewelry collection Apollo had given me. But once my girls had outfitted me, I decided to rectify this error at my earliest convenience.

That said, it gave me a niggle of unease, for it was very clear not only the dress and shoes, but especially the jewelry, were costly and it was yet another thing that Apollo gave me that made me feel strange. Like our relationship was lopsided-he the giver, me the taker.

But I didn't have time to think on that too much either, what with my transformation from just me to Glamor Girl Me.

And Apollo liked Glamor Girl Me.

And as ever, when Apollo liked something, I liked that.

I pressed closer, put my cheek to his shoulder and admitted, "Every time I look at you, I think your beauty is unsurpa.s.sed."

He clearly thought this was amusing and I knew this when his arm gave me a squeeze and he chuckled.

"I'm being serious," I told him, tipping my head back to look at his jaw. He looked down at me, still smiling, and I went on. "The best, though, is when you're with your kids. I don't know exactly what it is, but there's something seriously gorgeous about a hot guy being a loving dad."

He stopped smiling at my words, his arm tightened further so he could pull me up as his head came down and he did this so he could kiss me hard.

And also wet.

Totally ruining my lip gloss, I was sure (yes, they had lip gloss here, and all kinds of makeup; the containers and applicators were a bit rough, but it worked).

I didn't care even a little bit. Lip gloss could be fixed. It would be a crime if that kiss had been missed.

When he lifted his head, I blurted, "I've no clue how to dance."

That got me his smile back and he relaxed his arm so I could again relax into his side as he looked ahead. "Matters not. I detest dancing and don't do it. So if others invite you to the floor, I'll be there to ward them off."

Thank G.o.d.

One thing on my list of things to fret about that night that I could tick off.

"Maddie, please remember what I told you this morning."

I stifled a sigh.

Before we left bed to have breakfast with the kids (and after, for me to hang with them outside while they did their thing and Apollo went off to do Apollo things), he'd been very clear about how tonight was going to go. As in very clear, giving bossy orders and pressing me to promise (out loud) to heed them.

"I remember," I told him.

"The men are already there, except Laures, who follows this sleigh. You will not see any of them all night. But they'll always be close."

I put my cheek back to his shoulder and nodded, knowing, for whatever reason, he had to reiterate himself so I was going to let him do it.

"I am not out of your sight the entire evening," he continued.

I made a mental note not to drink too much, thus necessitating the chamber pot, and snaked my arm across his belly in order to give him a squeeze to indicate I heard and understood.

"And this means you are never far so, if needs be, I'll be at your side within seconds."

"It's going to be okay, honey," I a.s.sured him quietly.

He said nothing.

I again tipped my head to look at his jaw. "You have a bad feeling," I guessed.

"We're in Brunskar," he told the horses, not giving me his eyes.

I cuddled into him again, aiming my eyes at the castle and this time I said nothing because, seriously, we were in Brunskar and I was getting that that was enough said.

I watched the castle get closer and closer and spent the time I did doing my best to hold back the foreboding that got greater when suddenly, Apollo spoke.

"Do you love wearing that gown as much as I love seeing you in it?"

There it was again.

And I liked it again.

He didn't like my gown. He didn't even seriously like my gown.

He loved it.

And I loved that.

So much, it made me feel squishy inside, but still, I answered hesitantly, "Uh...I think so."

"I hope so, my poppy. I hope you love wearing it very much. Enough to make wearing it worth whatever comes this night."

Oh boy.

"Just to say, you're freaking me out," I shared.

"Good," he replied immediately. "This means you'll remain aware and cautious."

"Now you're really freaking me out," I told him.

"Excellent," he stated. "This means you'll remain really aware and cautious."

I decided to shut up and continue my freak out in silence.

And I did this while I watched the castle get closer.

Within half an hour of being at the gale, I learned a number of things.

One was that Houses had colors. This was why Karsvall was decorated in a lot of greens, browns and golds, because those were Apollo's House's colors. And this was why anyone who was at the ball who belonged to a House was wearing matching colors to their mate, like I was with Apollo. And I learned this because Apollo whispered it to me when I asked him what the deal was with that.

I also learned that the inside of the castle of Brunskar was way creepier than the outside. In fact, it was so creepy, it was a miracle of creepiness.

This was because the colors of the House of Drakkar were blood red and black and they decorated liberally in both. It looked like the home of Dracula's way more evil brother. The one they couldn't write books about because he'd scare the beejeezus out of even the most hardcore horror fan.

I further learned that the Drakkar's didn't like light. At least not inside. The outside was lit like they were hoping to make it seen from s.p.a.ce. Once I'd hit the gloomy inside, I figured this was because they wanted it seen, and feared.

But inside, although there were tons of people milling about, it still had only the minimum of lamps and candles lit to help guide your way.

And last, I learned that Apollo and Draven were right.

Quickly upon arrival, Apollo found Calder Drakkar and his wife Melba to give them his greetings and introduce them to me.

Incongruous to the surroundings which were her home, Melba was sweet with kind eyes, and when we met, she gave me a cheek touch. Calder was very handsome and only showed a moment of shock when he looked at me before he hid it and lifted my hand to touch his lips to my knuckles. We chatted with them briefly, it was warm and welcoming, then Apollo let them go so they could see to their other guests.

Shortly thereafter, he found Garik Drakkar who was also very handsome and who also only allowed a brief moment of his surprise to show before he hid it and lifted my hand to his lips.

He and Apollo spent much more time talking. Through this, I noted they might not have been best buds but they clearly had respect and regard for each other. Both men smoothly included me in the conversation in a way that I knew, if given time, I would have respect and regard for Garik too.

But after Garik moved away, Apollo wasted no time moving me through the crowd and pointing out the other Drakkars, noting the ones I should be most wary of.

He didn't have to.

The minute I laid eyes on them, I knew it. I hadn't lived with Pol for years not to be able to read evil.

"Kristian," he'd muttered, having given me a gla.s.s of champagne he'd grabbed off a pa.s.sing tray and drawn me toward a wall with a vantage point to most of the enormous ballroom.

He'd turned my attention to another somewhat good-looking man (though, not nearly as handsome as Calder and Garik).

Kristian Drakkar.

"Frey's cousin, brother to Franka," Apollo went on "He's not near as clever as the rest, and thus is often a target for all. But even the most simpleminded of animals, if they have claws, will strike when they've been played with enough."

Apollo turned me slightly and gave an almost imperceptible jerk of his head toward an older man who had Drakkar written all over him. A man I knew at a glance I would not like, mostly because my flesh started to crawl the instant I laid eyes on him.

"Eirik," Apollo stated. "Frey's father. He's vain and vulgar. At his side is Valeria, Frey's mother."

I turned my attention to her. She was older but still very beautiful.

And she knew it. Yes, it was that obvious that I could read it across the room.

Apollo kept talking.

"She, too, is vain. She's also greedy. And lastly, she's conniving." He moved closer to me and dipped his head so his lips were at my ear. "If they conspire, it will have been her idea."