Abigail stilled, and Eric leaned away from her, his nerves frayed by her pain. With almost all of her skin covered and his hands gloved, there wasn't a connection between them when he wasn't kissing her. 

He ached to sense what she was feeling and thinking, unable to read her expression as she closed in on herself. 

"I should go," she said, stepping away from him. "I need to get home."

"Please, stay with me." He placed a hand on her arm, hoping she'd turn to face him. She didn't.

"I can't. I need to get back to Reed. He'll wonder where I've gone."

"Reed?" The name felt like a punch to the gut, and Eric sucked in a breath. "Who in the hells is Reed?"

She turned to look at him, lifting her chin defiantly. "The most important man in my life." 

Eric closed his eyes, not sensing a lie in her words. He struggled to find words - any - that wouldn't come out in rash anger. "Do you love him?"

"More than my own life."

Nodding, Eric looked away, finding it difficult to swallow. "I suppose you should go then." 

Abigail let out a derisive snort that surprised him. When he looked at her, her eyes shone with new tears. 

"You don't even care, do you? You profess to love me, but you give up without any effort. I hope you and Aundreya are very happy, Ares." 

She was out the door before he could react. His heart hammered in his chest as he forced himself to follow her back into the ballroom.

How'd she know that name?

"There you are!" Aundreya appeared at his side, her mouth tipped into a smirk. "I thought you'd run away from me."

"I've been looking for you," Eric replied, smooth as silk even as the lie twisted in his gut. "I thought I saw you sneak off with one of your many admirers."

A blush crept into Aundreya's cheeks, but she smiled winningly at him. "The only man I admire is you. You know that. I love you, and you love me."

"Yes, that's true. Isn't it?" He gritted his teeth against both their lies, scanning the crowd for Abigail. 

She was gone.

#

Noelle hauled a chair from Maverick's sitting room into the bedroom, sweaty with the effort by the time she situated it by the bed. Pushing damp hair away from her face, she settled down, unsure of what to do.

Maverick and Gwen slept on, neither of them making a sound anymore. The night had grown late, far past midnight, and Noelle's eyes drooped against her will. She fell asleep curled up in the chair.

- 

When she woke, her mouth felt dry, like cotton, and her eyes felt grainy. She forced her lids open, thinking she ought to see what time it was or where Finny had gone, and let out a little shriek.

Maverick's eyes were wide open, staring back at her.

Scrambling up to her feet, Noelle  placed her hand on Maverick's chest just above his heart. Feeling the beat, she relaxed, even as his eyes continued to stare into nothing.

"It's been like this for a few hours," a voice said behind her. Noelle jumped, whirling around.

The banshee woman who had attacked them, Canya, leaned against the doorway. Noelle  turned her back on Maverick and Gwen, not taking her eyes of the woman with the wild blonde hair and crazy grey eyes. 

"What are you doing here?"

"Tick tock. Tick tock," sang Canya, not looking at Noelle, her eyes fixed on the two in the bed. "Time's running out. But who is running? Not fast enough. Too late, too late, run away from your fate." 

"I thought you were in the dungeon," Noelle said, trying to sort through the woman's ramblings. Fate?

"What they don't know won't hurt them," Canya said, jerking her head back toward the front room. "They don't know what I do. What I see." 

"Did you send Gwen to poison Maverick?" Noelle asked, bending her knees to reach for Maverick's dagger, which had been dropped by his bedside at some point in his agony. 

"I wouldn't poison them. I know what it's worth." Canya turned her cold eyes on Noelle, who froze. "I'm not the one running the madness. The traitor will kill them, in the end, if they don't run fast enough."

"The traitor?" Noelle took her chance and snatched up the dagger, holding it out in front of her the way Roman had taught her to. "Who is the traitor."

"The one who is fallen. Betraying the Ancients. Time's running out, and the traitor wants the throne. Tick tock. Tick tock." Canya stepped closer. "Your time runs to an end. If you follow them, she'll get you. Just like she's always wanted."

"Who?"

Canya started humming, still closing in. "Only children we shall be, when the twins cease to be."

A shiver ran down Noelle's spine. "Aundreya? Do you mean Aundreya is the one who will come for me?"

Canya leapt forward, grabbing Noelle by the arms, her eyes wide and shining. "Don't let them go. They go--they die. You die. We all die. The traitor will win." 

Before Noelle could react, Canya ran from the room. Noelle stood still, heart hammering, trying to find reason in any of it.

"Noelle?" Someone had entered the room, standing only a few feet from her. She jumped again, waving the dagger, but Roman caught her hand. "Whoa there! What's wrong?"

"Mygel's mother--Canya--she was here. She's not in the dungeon anymore."

"What?" Roman shouted something, and Noelle realized Youlden had entered with him. Chaos moved around her, but she couldn't shake the words bouncing around in her brain.

Tick tock. Tick tock. Tick tock.

It was morning before she heard anything else. According to Roman, the guards had found Canya in her cell, sleeping. Though Noelle insisted Canya had been there, she was met with disbelieving frowns from the Guardians and guards of the castle.

"Might it have been a dream?" Helena asked, biting on her lower lip as she tried to mediate the situation. "You said you were asleep when she came in?"

"It wasn't a dream," Noelle said, folding her arms. "Canya was there. In the room."

"But His Highness didn't wake up?" one of the generals asked, his tone sarcastic. "And what exactly were you doing in his room?"

Helena hadn't told the generals of Maverick's health, and Noelle clamped her mouth shut to keep from saying anything.

"If Noelle says it happened, I believe her," Roman said, moving to her side. "She's not a liar, nor a sleepwalker." 

"Still doesn't explain why she was in his room," the general said.

Roman squared his shoulders, glaring the man down despite being two inches shorter. "I don't believe it's your place to question the future king or his companions on their goings on. I don't question the maids I see coming in and out of your room each night." 

The general paled, rage twisting his face. "How dare you--"

"How dare you!" Roman shouted back. "You might be a military mind, General Lup, but you aren't going to be the one running this country." He turned to Helena. "I think it's best, considering the circumstances, to postpone the meeting with the generals and His Highness until further notice. He wouldn't like to meet with them after they've treated his friends so."

Noelle saw the tiny hint of pride in Helena's suppressed smile as she dipped her head. "I think you're right, Roman. I'm sorry, gentlemen, but the future king won't be seeing you today."

She shooed them off as Noelle and Roman returned to Maverick's rooms. 

"That was amazing," Noelle said, elbowing him. "How did the meeting go last night with them, by the way?"

Roman rolled his eyes. "Pathetic. None of them can agree on anything. But I think I was able to create some sort of unified plan in Maverick's absence. Once he's awake, I'll see what he thinks. If he approves, we could be gone as soon as next week."

"Gone? What do you mean, gone?"

"To Osha. To war."

Noelle stopped in her tracks feeling as though icy water had been dumped over her.

Tick tock. Tick tock. Tick tock.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE!

My life has been crazy and exhausting and I forgot what day it was. Shout out to @awkwardlyoblivious for reminding me! 

What do YOU think? Of what Noelle saw, of how Canya got out - or did she get out? Did Noelle dream the whole thing?

WHAT IS HAPPENING?

Also, hit the star! Thank you!