Camille and Instructor Robin weren't the only oo uedly plicate Natalie's life. Immediately after her first academic css of the day and headed for her , Natalie found her passage through the halls blocked by a familiar face.

  And not familiar in a good way.

  Elida. Natalie nearly walked straight into the woman, she appeared so suddenly. She even started to apologize for almost running into her, but that bit of politeness dried up the sed her braiered the woman's features. The long, straight red hair, green eyes, and the faux-friendly, arrogant expression on her face. Any of Natalie's lingering good mood disappeared.

  "Now that's a scowl if I've ever seen one," Elida said approvingly. "You must have been thinking of me, this past week. I'm fttered."

  "Elida."

  "Natalie," she replied, tone filled with false sweetness. "Mind if I steal a moment? We o talk." Her eyes flicked to Jordan and Sofia. "Alone."

  "About what?"

  "Oh, just friendly chit-chat." She smiled, and, while ostensibly friendly, there was something about the expression—maybe the amount of teeth she bared—that genuinely made Natalie feel uneasy.

  Natalie looked at Jordan and Sofia, and while both of them looked wary, her had expressions that suggested she should ighe woman. Natalie would love to tell Elida to fuck off on principle, but that didn't seem smart. Plus, her curiosity had been piqued. What would Elida o talk to her about?

  "Guess I'll catch up," Natalie said. Jordan, iurn, gave her a signifit look that could only mean 'be careful'. Natalie would know; she'd gotten that one about a million times before.

  "See you in css," Jordan said. After a brief hesitation, she and Sofia kept walking, leaving Natalie and Elida alone.

  Elida's calg green eyes followed them as they went, which aggravated Natalie with surprising iy, even if Natalie didn't see any hostility, there. She just hated the snake's attention being directed at Jordan and Sofia in any capacity. Several times more than herself.

  "So," Natalie said tersely. "What do you want?"

  Elida calmly faced back to Natalie. "Oh, e now, Natalie. Is that any way to speak to a cssmate? Where are your manners?"

  "Stop ag like we're friends ao the point."

  "Maybe not friends," Elida said musingly, "but we are colleagues. Truly, the hostility is unnecessary."

  "You're kidding, right?"

  Elida rolled her eyes. She folded her arms and gave Natalie a patronizing look. "Don't tell me you're still g about that altercation in the dungeon. How long has it been? It's water uhe bridge."

  Natalie stared at the woman, a mix between impressed at her audacity, and, obviously, infuriated. She had inteo moderate herself in this versation—heeding Jordan's advice—but, unsurprisingly, she failed to keep that vi.

  "Just w," Natalie said, "but are y to be a giant bitch, or does it just happen?"

  The woman's eyebrows went up, though, unfortunately, she didn't seem offended: just surprised at Natalie's bluntness. She ughed, even seeming amused by it.

  "Did you really just call a Parda-Halt a bitch, and to her fao less?" Elida asked. "My, my. I mean, you're right, of course, but what a terrible idea. You wouldn't st a day in court. I suppose it's refreshing, if nothing else." She waved her hand dismissively. "No, but really, we aren't enemies, Natalie. Or, rather, my hostilities Elizabeth. And iensioeam. But not you."

  "I'm oeam."

  Elida quirked an unimpressed eyebrow, as if ahat Natalie didn't uand her point. And while Natalie did, she also found it unbelievably stupid. Jordan herself had been the first to suggest that Elida wasn't necessarily their enemy, and that the whole event in the dungeon didn't involve them personally, however much it teically, literally had. But the crazy part was that Elida expected Natalie to be okay with getting caught in the crossfire. To accept she'd been colteral damage of the feud between House Beaumon and House Parda-Halt and not think twice about it.

  Natalie shifted from side to side, her agitation growing. She tried to keep Jordan's advi mind. Because however annoying this enter was, being a target of Elida's would be much worse. The Parda-Halts were dangerous. And not iuck-up, snide, irritating way of most arrogant nobles, but genuinely dangerous.

  Unfortunately, logid keeping a cool head had never been Natalie's stro suit. Something about the smug, patronizing expression on Elida's face really got under her skin. In a way even Sofia couldn't.

  "Okay, look, bitch," Natalie said. "Maybe I'm not your enemy, but after what you did, you're mine. And you know that. You read it on my face. So do we really o py games and pretend otherwise?"

  Natalie knew she wasn't saying anything surprising to Elida. She had no doubts those calg green eyes were taking in far more than just how annoyed Natalie was: Elida could see the animosity there, the truth in her words. House Parda-Halt had a reputation for being clever shey'd literally tried to overthrow the at one point—and Natalie got the impression Elida aragon of her house. Those scrutinizing eyes flig across Natalie's face felt a bit like scalpel incisions. Like she was being dissected. Elida did, holy, creep her out.

  She was so damiful too. Somehow that made it worse. That Natalie couldn't help but pay attention to the woman's perfect cheekbones only further aggravated her.

  "Yes, yes," Elida said smoothly. "I tell you're angry. Too much so, in my opinion, but as—I suppose it doesn't matter what I think. That said, surely you're not irrecibly so? To decre us enemies ht? I wouldn't be so hasty."

  "Even if I ignore what you did to us," Natalie said, "if you have a problem with Liz, then you have oh me. It really is that simple."

  Elida's expression shifted. Her ciliatory behavior—if it could be called that—melted away.

  "Ah," Elida said shortly. "So that's how it is? You've bee a Beaumon dog? Bought and paid for? For some reason, I assumed you hadn't."

  "Beaumon—?" Natalie started. "I couldn't give a shit about the Beaumons." She said it maybe a bit too bluntly, sidering she eaking about the literal royal family. Even Elida blinked in surprise. "No," Natalie said. "Liz. My teammate. My friend. If you have a problem with her, then you do with me." Natalie snorted. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised that the cept of loyalty fuses you."

  "Oh," Elida said, seeming, for a sed, actually put off-foot—and like usual, ign Natalie's insult with total imperviousness. Was there anything Natalie could say that would get under her skin? "Well, isn't that sweet?" she eventually said. "You do realize it's an act, though?"

  "What?"

  "Oh, please. Dearest Elizabeth. Nobody smiles that mud means it. Nobody's that …" Elida's lip pulled back, and she waved her hands in an exaggerated way that, oddly, made Natalie uand what she was getting at. Liz was aic, sociable person, to a sometimes amusing degree. "Much less a Beaumon," Elida said. "No, she's as much a schemer as any of us. You'd be a moron to think otherwise. Seriously. She's a Beaumon." Elida ughed. "Not that you uand what that means. I'm almost jealous of ynorance."

  Agitation appeared on Elida's face, ing surprisingly fast—almost out of nowhere. Her wrew hot, too.

  "And even if it wasn't an act," she sneered. "It's because she's just been handed everything. Do you know what I've had to do, to get where I am? To get approval from my family? That bubbly bitch is just waltzing through life. No wonder she smile so much."

  In the wake of the outburst, Natalie just stared at Elida. The words were pretty revealing. Though in ecific ways, Natalie wasn't pletely certain.

  "So, what, you're jealous of her?" Natalie asked.

  That finally got a rea. Fury fshed across the woman's faatalie took satisfa in it, if she also almost took a step back. But just as quickly, the anger morphed: Elida burst out ughing.

  "Jealous? Now that's a theory." She shook her head, as if politely amused at the cept. Then, she brushed past all of the insanity that'd just e from her mouth, and the unhinged shifting of her emotions. "I didn't e here to trade insults, however eaining your plete disregard for tactfulness—and, some would say, your safety—is."

  "And why did you want to talk?" Natalie asked impatiently, unfazed by the not-so-veiled threat. " you please get to that, already?"

  "Sure," Elida said. "Straight to the point." She smiled, and even if Natalie despised the woman, the expression did mao make her heart skip a beat. Elida really was unbearably geous. Though, the idea of getting into a bed with her felt vaguely the same as crawling into a of vipers. "You've been impressihese past few days," Elida said. "Especially sidering your team's recovery from our … friendly intervention. I have an eye for spotting talent—call it instinct. Us Parda-Halts, we notice things before other people do." She tapped underh her eye. "We see things," she said, with emphasis, "that others don't. With that in mind, I have an offer. I want you to join my team."