40. Don't take one step away from me

The bodyguard Lias personally handed us over to the president's first secretary, reported back and disappeared. He was lucky he didn't have to spend the next few hours wearing an impenetrable expression and trying not to yawn five times a minute.

“We put plugs all around to prevent unwanted magical excesses,” Mirk informed us, taking the chain from my collar and putting it in his briefcase. “I won't be able to tie you together with a thread today, so don't move more than five metres apart.”

“Thank you, Anaris,” Grant nodded to the secretary, bade him goodbye and gave me a hand.

“Wait,” I stopped the young man almost at the door of the hall. “Stand still.”

The uncomprehending Circul turned to me and raised an eyebrow in question.

I lifted my palms to his neck and ran my fingertips along the satin bow on his collar, smoothing it. “Okay, I fixed it. That's better.”

He smiled warmly back at me, and so many different emotions flashed through Grant's eyes, from astonishment and disbelief to fleeting admiration and gratitude, that I felt a subtle tickle under my heart that made me want to look at the world with a smile.

The footmen opened the doors and the shadow of the couloir gave way to the light of lamps, the gleam of champagne in glasses and the sparkle of jewellery in mirrors. The scent of expensive perfume and the faint, delicate fragrance of freshly cut flowers wafted over us.

The music was louder, the bustle of the hall contrasting sharply with the awesome silence of the corridors we'd just passed through, and all my senses immediately tensed, irritated by the sudden change of scenery. I exhaled quietly, trying to get used to the people again.

“Don't take one step away from me,” Grant whispered in my ear.

“Why such a speech?” I moved back because it was unseemly to stand so close.

“At least for tonight. Stay with me.”

His dark gaze was pleading and I lowered my head, afraid of drowning in the depths of his black eyes. Grant's hair, his posture, his confident voice, his tailored suit, the precious cufflinks on his shirt sleeves, the aura of maturity and seriousness – it all came over me suddenly, as if I'd seen him for the first time, and now, like a thirteen-year-old girl, I inwardly admired and idolised him.

My heart was beating fast and erratically, and somehow I was worried about the future, about this party, about the whole evening I was going to spend with the son of my sworn enemy. My emotions and thoughts were a mess and I suddenly remembered my childhood dream of being a princess and going to a ball with a handsome prince.

‘No, no, no, Siri, stop being nostalgic. Don't you dare let down the defences around your heart, you don't need any more problems and feelings. You have a purpose, remember?’

“Okay.”

I looked up at the crowd and saw Rizor Circul almost instantly. The president was staring straight at me, his gaze unreadable, but the anger rising from deep within me helped me to come to my senses.

I didn't care what the head of the country thought of me, I didn't care what others thought of me, I didn't suffer from regret that the guy next to me was about to lose his father, my mind was clear, I saw the meaning of my life so vividly. I was going to kill a man in the name of revenge and justice, that was all that mattered.

I smiled coldly and greeted the nation's leader, who grinned back at me ironically and walked towards the platform.

“Are you hungry?” Grant asked and without waiting for an answer he led me over to the snack tables.

“I have good news for you today, my guests,” the president seemed to be a couple of years younger at the beginning of his speech, his eyes were shining.

I stared at the colourful, beautifully decorated dishes with anticipation.

“My only and beloved son is about to get married...”

I hovered for a few moments, unable to get a piece of food to my mouth.

Wow, that's news. Who will be the third in our chain slavery? Why did I learn this now? It seemed that Circul Junior had an arranged marriage, for I had never seen him show any sympathy for a single living female soul.

“This girl has been in contact with my son for a long time, recently they have become very close, they practically do not leave each other even a few steps,” the president ‘joked’, many guests laughed and I... almost choked on my canape.

I chewed the olive thoroughly, put the plate of delicious food down and turned to face the stage. “What?” came from my lips in a whisper.

And then I heard my name and loud applause – it was like a dream. I watched myself from afar, as if I wasn't the girl in the white dress with sparkling stars in her hair, as if I wasn't the centre of the universe and everyone's attention.

Grant leaned over and smiled, pushing me towards the platform where his father was standing. The young man was saying something, but I couldn't make out a word. Glad to have discovered my acting skills in time, I stood next to the black-haired guy, holding his hand and pretending I'd known the news since birth.

Grant was smiling, I wasn't. I looked at the president and tried to figure out what kind of party he was playing. What was he up to? He'd cruelly deprived me of one game and brought me into another.

“Good words, my son, and I hope you will be true to them for the rest of your life. Come here, I'll give you a hug,” Rizor said emotionally, tears welling up in his eyes.

But I didn't believe him. Only now did I realise that the magic wasn't working, that our wrists weren't bound by an invisible thread, that I could run away and kill everyone here.

But against the crazy and desirable thought, I embraced the president like an obedient puppet and then stood next to Circul Jr, a smile on my lips, until the photographer stopped blinding us with flashes.

The congratulations didn't stop for long. I just remembered Taehee coming over to me and giving me a big hug.

“I'm so happy for you and I wish you all the best,” she chattered sweetly, wishing us mountains of wealth, years of life and many children, which made me shiver from head to toe. “Oh, I have to run,” the girl looked anxiously behind me, “that guy is chasing me again. How many times do I have to tell him I don't like him?” And my friend disappeared into the crowd with the grace and dexterity of a seasoned spy.

I looked round and saw a young man with white hair in a braid coming towards us.

“Congrats,” he patted the president's son on the shoulder and turned to me.

“And you…?”

“Have you forgotten me? I'm Non, best friend of Dav Asanor, your future cousin-in-law,” his clear blue eyes sparkled mysteriously as they rested on my collar. Or was it just a trick of the eye, the glare of the chandelier lights?

Grant held my hand tightly the whole time, not allowing me to take a step away from him, one part of my mind understanding what was happening, the other refusing to accept or comprehend any of the impressions I had received that evening.

In my worst dreams I could not have imagined such a thing. The very thought of being related to the president, of joining the family of the enemy, disgusted me.

I could have run around screaming and denying the truth of the president's announcement, swearing that I knew nothing about the engagement, but common sense told me it would be better to confront the situation in a less public place.

“I want to go home,” I said in a weak voice.

“Okay,” Grant said. He hurried to lead me away.

But even outside the building, at the porch in front of the car, they were waiting for us. The crowd of journalists wanted to hear the official statement first hand and would not let us go without a fight, even though the president had brought an army of bodyguards. The endless camera flashes blinded our eyes and annoyed us immensely as we made our way to the exit.

“Smile, you don't want the news to say that the prince is marrying an ugly duckling, do you?”

I looked glumly at the guy and turned away, wishing I'd never seen that insolent, contemptuous grin on his lips again.

I was silent the whole way, trying to come to terms with the fact that I now had a fiancé against my will, and all of Unica knew it. I had never been so stunned in my life that I couldn't find the words to describe the most ridiculous situation I was in. An engagement? To the son of the enemy? It was the last thing I could have expected from fate.