William stared into the prince's eyes until he caught a flash of understanding in those sky-blue eyes. Thanks to the spirits! And perhaps this time the prince would truly trust him, instead of trying to protect him at all costs.
William was a broken man, wounded and filthy, but he was not useless. Especially when the prince stood at his side.
"So, Your Highness," the merchant said, "do you want to save your mage?"
"If I beg you, will you let him go?"
"Of course! I am a man of business, after all."
The prince grimaced in pain and pushed Sven aside. "All right."
"Your Highness, you can't!"
Cox lifted his boot from William's face and straightened his back. A cruel smile twisted his lips.
"So you accept, then?"
The prince bowed his head, then nodded. "Let him go, please."
He took a few steps toward the merchant and dropped to his knees. He bent forward until his forehead touched the floor.
"Please, give William back to me."
Cox burst into laughter.
"Look at him! The future ruler humiliating himself for the ass of a foreign whore." He pressed his boot into the prince's head. "Prince Alexander is forced to lick the floor of a humble merchant just to get his precious mage back."
William pressed his lips together, rage burning through his veins. The urge to tear him apart tingled in his palms, but he couldn't do it. Not yet.
He flexed his fingers, testing his body's response, and a magic circle took shape around his hands. Good, he could use magic again.
Everyone was focused on the prince and the merchant; not even the mercenaries would notice the spell.
Not until it was too late.
The merchant's laughter rang out again, cruel and sharp. "Is he good at fucking, Your Highness?"
"You're a disgusting coward," the prince growled. "You're not even worthy to look at him."
William's heart clenched in a spasm that was painful and pleasant at the same time. He looked back at Alex, and guilt seized him again.
The prince was defending him even as Cox humiliated him. And William hated seeing him on his knees before men who didn't possess even a tenth of his honor and selflessness.
Seeing him trampled simply because he wasn't a bastard like all the others.
Simply because he was a better man than all of them.
The merchant would pay dearly.
Cox removed his boot from the prince's head and grabbed him by the chin.
"Maybe he isn't worthy of me, but is he worthy of you? Of a man so weak that he grovels before one of his own subjects?"
"Maybe not, but I've never treated him like an object. Never. Not even once."
"And that's why you're the one crawling in the dust. Powerful men don't need people; they need tools." Cox let go of his face. "You aren't truly powerful, Your Highness. It's a shame you can't learn a lesson from this."
He straightened and raised a hand. The mercenaries on the balcony lifted their crossbows.
The prince went pale. "If you kill me, my father will raze Narea to the ground."
"He never will. The entire kingdom depends on this city. That's the difference between me and you, Your Highness. I am a powerful man despite not a single trace of nobility in my veins. You, on the other hand, are nobody despite the crown on your head."
William clenched his jaw, rage surged through him. That bastard… how dare he?
He curled his fingers, and a section of the balcony exploded. Splinters of wood shot into the air, a couple of mercenaries fell over the edge and smashed through several crates. Screams of pain filled the air.
Cox jerked and spun toward him.
"Fucking whore!" he shrieked, but Alex drew his sword and severed his arm at the elbow.
The mercenaries loosed their arrows, and William flicked his fingers, deflecting them with a gust of wind.
The prince hurried at his side, helping him to his feet.
"Are you all right, Will?"
"No. Not at all. But you're here."
And now William was going to kill them all.
He flicked his fingers, and the chains fell with a metallic clatter. He drew on more magic, and an icy, razor-sharp gale rose out of nowhere. A cacophony of screams filled the air, mingling with the cracking of the balcony as it broke apart under his fury.
Magic coursed over his skin, along with a blind rage that demanded blood and lives to be appeased.
When was the last time he had felt like this? When he had let magic wrap around him like a second skin?
He had always been careful to restrain that dark side of himself, but now he was simply too angry. Caedos would not have approved.
William wove a spell and slammed a pair of mercenaries against the far wall of the warehouse, flung three others into the ceiling. One choked to death as William tore the air from his lungs.
Cox crawled into a corner, leaving a smear of blood behind him. "Kill him! Bring down the Xianese!"
William flexed his fingers, and a gust of wind sharp as steel tore the remaining mercenaries to pieces. Their blood traced dripping arcs across the wooden walls of the warehouse.
Cox went pale and pressed himself against the wall.
"Stay away from me, monster!"
"You didn't feel the same way before. When you chained me to a bed and touched me."
"I should have raped you! Cut off those damned hands and your tongue. Gouged out your eyes!"
"You should have, yes—but you didn't. And now you made me angry."
William curled his fingers again, and more magic surged through his veins.
A massive magic circle formed behind the merchant, and thin silvery chains pinned him to the wall.
"You can call me a whore, rape me, and tear me apart, but don't you ever disrespect His Highness again! You're nothing but a pig, unworthy even to lick the sole of his boot."
"At least I'm not a monster like you."
"You are far worse than I am. I will tear you apart inch by inch until you bleed out—and you'll wish I'd kill you."
William raised his hand, but the prince stepped in front of him.
"That's enough, Will."
"Move aside!"
"No. You've done enough. Stop now."
William stiffened, rage coiling in his gut. "How can you ask me to spare him? After what he did to me! After what he said to you!"
Alex took a step toward him and clasped his hand. "Will, please. Don't stain your hands with someone like him."
"He insulted you! Humiliated you! And he touched me!"
"I know."
He gently guided William's hand down, and the magic circle shattered into silvery fragments.
William clenched his fingers. "He doesn't deserve your mercy."
"But you do." The prince brushed his cheek and gave him the gentlest smile he had ever seen. "You don't deserve to stain your hands with more killing. Your soul deserves much more."
"My… soul?"
The prince pulled him into an embrace, his warm hands stroking the back of his neck and his spine, soothing the anger that still lingered.
"William, you are a man who cares for others. Blood-red is not a color that suits you."
William bowed his head, guilt and relief intertwining in his chest. "He almost raped me. He chained me to a bed and made me feel like I was nothing more than an object."
"I know."
"I… don't want to feel like this anymore. I want to be happy."
"You'll be, I promise you."
William clutched at the prince's clothes. "I'm sorry… I didn't want you to see me like this…"
"You're human, Will, and humans sometimes act on impulse." He kissed his temple. "But you're here with me, and that's all that matters right now."
William loosened his grip on the prince's magic, and the wind around them faded away. Silence settled over the warehouse, and despite the rage, the pain, and the shame, the mage felt at home again.
"Bastards!" Cox struggled to his feet, the stump still bleeding. "Do you think you've won? Just wait until the court finds out the prince is fucking a foreign psycho mage! I—"
The dull thud of an arrow cut him off. The merchant raised his hands and brushed the shaft protruding from his throat, gurgled a few broken words, and collapsed to the ground.
Alex spun around. "Who the fuck did that? I ordered him captured—"
He brought a hand to his forehead, a grimace tightening his features. He leaned against William, his complexion drained of color.
"My head…"
His eyes closed, and his legs gave way.
William caught him by the shoulders before he could fall and helped him sit down. "Your Highness, are you all right?"
But the prince didn't answer: he was unconscious, face pale and breathing faintly.
Panic seized the mage's heart. Was it his fault? Had he drawn on too much magic?
"Your Highness!" Sven rushed to their side. "What happened? Is he hurt?"
William shook his head and forced the fear back down. "It's my fault. I'm sorry, I… He just fainted, but it's my fault."
"All right." The captain squeezed his shoulder. "Stay with him. I'll take care of the rest."
William sighed and looked again at the prince's gaunt face, the long dark lashes casting shadows over his cheekbones.
And for the first time in a long while, he wanted to kiss him and it didn't feel wrong.