He could easily send me to the whipping post immediately-he sees Renya right in front of him-but he instead takes a moment to admire the view and comfort me with a smile. His position allows him the constant choice between cruelty and mercy, and at this moment, he has chosen to be merciful to me. I know him well enough to understand that this act he’s putting on is for my benefit. “This is a gorgeous spot from which to view the city,” Arnaud says, as if we’re all out here to have a picnic and we’ve been waiting for him to spread a blanket on the ground. Who would dare argue with a man in a bloodred cape with a sword at his hip? Just behind him his daughter, Sir Millicent, appears.
His uniform as commander of the King’s Knights makes him appear just as intimidating, yet far more elegant, than the Asps. It’s Sir Arnaud, with a pleasant smile on his lips and a hard warning in his eyes. I think of that blue mixing with the red of my blood, as a figure emerges from behind the tallest Asp. My eyes catch on the hand of the Asp closest to me, and I notice the liquid in the vial, a cool blue color.
