"She will like you," he told me, patting my hand in the curve of his arm. "Greatly."

"Awe..." I started, stopped and finished more appropriately, "Well, that's just grand."

"Am I to set a course where Kristian cuts off his sister's allowance?" I heard Apollo ask and I turned when I felt his hand come to rest on the small of my back.

In a sweet changing of the guards, Norfolk uncurled my hand from his elbow but gave it a squeeze before he let it go as he replied, "You may wish to give Franka some time to dress her wounds. Our Lady Madeleine proved her knives are sharper and she has greater skill in using them."

Apollo looked down at me, his hand gliding along my back so he could curl it around my waist and pull me close. "Indeed?"

"Amateur," I murmured, and he threw back his head and burst out laughing.

Norfolk added his chuckles.

Apollo stopped laughing and leveled his eyes at Norfolk. "I owe you a debt."

Norfolk threw out a hand. "Not at all." He looked to me. "It's been a pleasure."

Aw, that was sweet.

"You're very kind," I murmured.

"And you are a delight," he replied, smiling. He turned to Apollo. "I will leave you to your charming company."

Apollo inclined his head.

Norfolk dipped his chin to me and moved away.

After he did, Apollo moved me from the wall and started us walking slowly through the crowded s.p.a.ce.

I took a sip of my champagne and muttered, "What now?"

"Now, we socialize."

Ugh.

"That's it?" I inquired.

"Well, to quench your need for excitement, I could challenge someone to a duel, but outside of the Drakkars, there's no one here whose blood I'd relish drawing."

I stopped and looked up at him and he stopped with me.

"You duel in this world?" I asked quietly.

"Indeed," he replied. "But only when honor is at stake."

"I don't suppose women engage in duels," I remarked.

He raised a brow, his lips twitching. "Wanting another go at Franka?"

"She's not very nice," I said by way of answer.

"If given the opportunity, I'd prefer observing you besting her with her own weapons," he murmured.

"Then I hope she's stupid enough to make another approach."

He shook his head, grinned and started us moseying again.

"Did you get anything out of Eirik and Valeria?" I queried.

"Dove, they'll hardly admit to conspiring during a trivial conversation at a gale," he replied.

"Of course not," I returned. "But they don't have to admit it straight out for you to get something from them."

He stopped this time, exchanging my half-drunk champagne gla.s.s with a fresh one and getting one of his own.

"My role this evening is to be here and keep an eye on Franka, Kristian, Eirik and Valeria as Remi and Hans find maids, charm the information out of them that would lead to the rooms of those particular Drakkars and search them."

Interesting.

"Just those Drakkars?" I asked.

"Alas, our informant was quite cagey about who was doing the conspiring. But only those Drakkars would be foolish or spiteful enough to court the wrath of a man who commands elves and dragons."

I nodded, putting my gla.s.s to my lips and searching the crowd until I found Kristian.

"Kristian?" I murmured into my champagne before taking a sip.

"He would be the foolish one," Apollo replied.

"Hmm..." I mumbled, looking from Kristian to Apollo. "I must say, Lo, that this world is a whole lot more intriguing than mine."

His eyes warmed when I used his nickname but his lips warned, "Intrigue always has consequences, poppy. We just need to ensure that those who deserve them are the ones who get them."

"Well, I'll keep track of Franka and Kristian and you keep an eye on Eirik and Valeria. Does that sound like a plan?" I offered.

His look got warmer as he started us moving again, murmuring, "And she gives me more reason than just that gown not to regret introducing her to a den of vipers."

"I aim to please," I replied quietly, scanning for and locating Franka.

But as I did, I suddenly felt Apollo's lips at my ear.

"You do, Madeleine, always. And tonight, we'll be exploring new ways for you to accomplish that."

Something to look forward to after we left Creepy Castle with its (mostly) Foul Family.

And I so looked forward to it, when Apollo moved his lips away, I caught his eyes from under my lashes and gave him a small smile.

He one-upped the promise made by my smile by staring at my mouth while he ran his tongue along his lower lip.

My c.l.i.t pulsed and my lips parted.

His gaze came to mine and he whispered, "Come, dove, I'll introduce you to Sinclair, Draven's uncle."

A diversion.

I nodded and gave him a different kind of smile.

He tucked me close, moved me through the crowd and introduced me to Walter Sinclair, who, like Norfolk, was also kindly and older. And, I found when I shared it openly with him, he was a man who very much appreciated the fact that I cared deeply for his nephew.

Chapter Twenty.

Hewcrows Creepy Castles and (mostly) Foul Families aside, as I moved down the front steps of Brunskar hours later, Apollo guiding me to our sleigh, I was pretty pleased the night went so well.

Actually, intrigue was kind of fun (though I wouldn't tell Apollo that since he obviously didn't enjoy it much).

And I noticed he had steered me clear of a variety of people just as he steered me to closer acquaintances who would not be unkind or inappropriate.

Always looking out for me.

Always.

It was a weird sensation.

But once I got over the weirdness, it was a sensation I liked.

We made it to the bottom of the steps and I pulled my cloak closer around me, noting, "Tonight was fun."

He moved ahead of me, reaching out to open the door of the sleigh, but looked back at me, smiling a bemused smile.

"You have an interesting idea of fun, poppy."

I stopped moving at the bottom step and tipped my head to the side. "I do?" I asked and didn't wait for him to answer. "Champagne. Good food and lovely company. And you looking hot and me looking fabulous in a gorgeous dress. Isn't that everyone's idea of fun?"

"I may take this neck cloth off, guide the sleigh to a cliff and throw it over," he said by way of answer and I giggled.

"Can I take it from that that you don't like neck cloths?" I asked the obvious.

He lifted a hand my way, and chuckling, replied, "You can indeed."

But I wasn't paying attention to his words, his hand or his humor.

This was because I was trying to lift my foot but it seemed frozen to the step.

I looked down. It was freaking cold there but to have your foot freeze to a step?

It didn't matter. I saw when I looked down that the black stone steps were cleared of snow and ice so this couldn't be.

"Maddie, cease your play. It's cold and I'm keen to get to the inn and get warm, but mostly get you warm," Apollo urged, saying things I normally would like very much.

But this was lost on me because I tried lifting my other foot and that wouldn't budge either.

Something was not right and that not right was really not right.

Panic surged inside me and I lifted my head.

"Ap-" I started but didn't get it all out.

He was dissolving.

No.

Fear shot through me because he wasn't.

I was.

I heard him roar, "Madeleine!"

Then I heard nothing. I saw nothing. I felt nothing.

I was surrounded in black mist.

Oh f.u.c.k.

Suddenly I was falling.

Falling through nothing.

Oh f.u.c.k!

I hit snow, the abrupt impact jarring my entire body, shooting pain through my legs and knees. Both crumpled and I landed heavily on my side in the snow.

Quickly, I lifted my head and looked around to a.s.sess the situation.

Moonlight.

Snow.

Trees.

Nothing else.