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not have seen me leave the ballroom. He had not been at my side but had been moving among the crowd, alert for signs of trouble.
    Reveling in my unexpected freedom, I turned to walk past the Meeting Hall and toward the rear of the palace, intent on seeking sanctuary in the garden. When I reached the back entry, the guards drew open the heavy oak doors and I stepped outside. In accordance with procedure, one of the guards announced my presence to his peers who patrolled the area’s perimeter.
    My father had often warned Miranna and me not to enter these grounds without a bodyguard. He feared the garden was an ideal target for enemy infiltration, as access to the palace estate could be gained by scaling only one barrier, the garden wall that was also the northernmost wall of the city. This concern was counterbalanced in part by the wildness of the forested and mountainous terrain that lay to the north of the city, and in part by the fact that this portion of the city’s barrier rose ten feet higher than the rest. In any event, I had never believed there could be danger amidst such beauty.
    It was now fully dark, and only the moon and the torches anchored to the stone walls of the garden provided light. I took a deep breath of the scented air and walked forward into the shadow land, glad for the opportunity to savor the quietude of the evening alone.
    â€œDon’t think I didn’t see you leave the ballroom.”
    I jumped and spun around to find London leaning against the palace doors with one eyebrow cocked. He was dressed, as always, in a brown leather jerkin layered over a long-sleeved white shirt. Leather bracers covered his wrists and forearms, and twin long knives hung from his belt. He wore tall leather boots folded down below the knee, and I could see the handle of a dagger extending from one of them. An unusual silver ring shone on the first finger of his right hand.
    â€œI was—I was just going for a walk,” I stammered. “I didn’t want to bother you with something as trivial as that.”
    London smiled in genuine amusement. “Nice try. It’s my job to protect you and make sure you don’t go off and do something foolish—like this. I’d like to see you try that excuse on your father.”
    â€œYou’re not going to tell him, are you, London?”
    I felt a rush of panic, for years of war had left my father extremely paranoid, which was the reason Miranna and I were almost constantly accompanied by our bodyguards. I knew only too well how displeased he would be if he learned that I’d deliberately slipped away from the man charged with my protection, for I had been bruised by his anger in the past.
    â€œNo, I won’t tell him.” London laughed. “I only made the comment because I knew you’d lose your nerve if I did.”
    I fixed him with my most withering glare and turned to stalk down one of the pathways.
    â€œI suppose you’ll have to come with me then,” I tossed over my shoulder. “Just drop back to the extent you’re permitted and don’t say a word.”
    â€œWhatever you say, Princess.”
    â€œI mean it, London.”
    â€œOf course. I can appreciate your desire for some peace.”
    I walked along the path, soothed by the rustle of the plantsand the trees in the soft breeze. Crickets chirped around me, and I found myself enjoying the sounds of the night as much as I did the garden’s fragrance. True to his word, London was silent, to the point where I wondered if he was even behind me.
    I turned a corner and gasped, barely stifling a scream. Eyes—luminescent green eyes—stared at me from the darkness. I struggled to focus, fear coursing through my veins, not wanting to believe what I was seeing. A figure stepped toward me, and the sinister outline of a man clad in black took form, a glint of moonlight off metal telling me he held a sword in his right hand.
    â€œPrincess,” he