Page 111 of This Prince Is Not Charming

I swallowed thickly, knowing he was right. “How did you find me?” I asked. “All those times I was outside of Fairwitch Isle getting my tonic, you were there too. Watching me.”

Lor shot me a sad smile. “The first time was a coincidence. One of the brotherhood members spotted you in a town, getting drunk and playing cards. They came back to our camp and said they thought they might have found the High Prince of Fairwitch Isle. I immediately volunteered to confirm your identity, and they let me. I watched you all night. Playing cards and drinking with women draped all over you.”

I hated the picture he was painting in my mind. I detested my life so much that I’d done those things, all to keep myself as numb as possible.

“Then I watched you amble out of the tavern, and I followed you all the way to the local apothecary, where I saw you get that tonic. You were so drunk you didn’t even notice me coming up behind you and planting a small tracking bug on the bottom of your boot. Magic,” he said with a shrug. “It tracked your every movement outside of Fairwitch Isle and showed me where you were on a map of the continent.”

Fuck. It had been so easy for Lor to find me and track me. If he had been any other brotherhood member, we’d all likely be dead right now. They’d have easily found us and breached our city. I’d been so lucky and so unbelievably reckless.

Lor scratched his stubbled jaw. “I didn’t know what that tonic was or what it meant, but I had a bad feeling about all of it, and I wanted to keep an eye on you. I went back to camp and told everyone it wasn’t you. Just someone who looked like you. That was that. But then one night, I woke up to the map glowing, and I looked at it, seeing that, sure enough, you were outside Fairwitch Isle again.”

I swore. “How long have you been watching me?”

Lor shrugged. “About five months. I never meant for you to see me, but I knew you were in pain. Struggling. I couldn’t figure out why until I heard you drunkenly talking to some random old man about your best friend who you could never be with. You didn’t give him any names or details. You were very careful. But I put the pieces together. I realized you were taking that heartstopper to numb yourself so that you didn’t feel all the pain of being kept away from the woman you loved.” He swallowed. “I was worried for you, but I didn’t know how to help you.”

My throat grew thick. “That makes sense.”

“Recently, I realized you were getting worse. Coming outside Fairwitch far too often. Someone was going to catch you if I didn’t help, and then I found you in that field after you overdosed. I decided then and there that I was going to go back to all the spots you’d been visiting and buy out all the heartstopper.”

“Wait a minute,” I said. “I had a faerie to portal me. How did you so easily appear in places all over the continent?”

He gave me a look.

“Right, with magic the brotherhood has stolen.”

“We have a lot of magic at our disposal, yes.”

“And the magic helped you into Fairwitch Isle?” I asked. “How did you know to come? How could you have known I was dying?”

Lor grimaced at my use of the word. “After I returned you to Fairwitch Isle, I was worried. You’d taken a lot of heartstopper. A dangerous amount. I wanted to check on you, and I found you unresponsive, writhing. I called for Margaret, remembering the sentient painting and how she could move around the castle. When she arrived, I was already gone. She didn’t see me. I just hoped me calling for her would get you the help you needed.”

“It did. She got Ceri and our healer.”

Lor swallowed. “You’re looking so much better.”

“I’m getting the help I need. Finally. Thank you for looking out for me. I’m . . . I’m mad that you left us. I’m mad that you didn’t try to escape and come home. I’m mad that we lost all those years with you, thinking you were dead. But I’m also so, so proud of you.”

His thick eyebrows shot up.

“So is Wolfe, for the record. And Father will come around. So will Nevan. They’re both taking it hard. Mother is just glad you’re home.”

“I know,” he said with a quiet laugh. “She’s visited me every single day, filling me in on everything I’ve missed.”

“I’ll see about having Leena released. As for Ronan . . .”

“Let me handle him,” he said. “When I’m finally allowed out of here.”

I nodded.

“Will you let me talk to Leena?” he asked. “I need to give her instructions, to keep her safe when she goes back to the brotherhood. They’re going to have a lot of questions about what we were doing and how Leena escaped. I need to help her create a good story, one that the brotherhood will believe.” He took off his maroon cloak. “And I need to give her this.”

I took the fabric through the bars and stared at the little golden patch on the chest that signified Lor’s high ranking. “I’m going to have to convince the council. But I think it can all be arranged. Just give me some time.”

“We don’t have a lot of time before the brotherhood comes looking for us. They sent us to scout this area, to find Fairwitch Isle. If we don’t return soon, they will be here themselves.”

I smiled. “Well, that’s one thing we don’t have to worry about.”

Lor raised a brow.