The room was dark when Idella slipped through the secret passage back into the bedroom two hours later. Frustration burned through her. Coldhouse was nowhere to be found. It was as if he had vanished from the palace.
“Innovative,” Tarek’s quiet voice greeted upon her entry.
She stiffened before relaxing. “It is. The engineer deserves a medal. Even inside them, they can be tricky.”
Tarek stepped into a sliver of moonlight coming in through the window. All he wore was a pair of black exercise trousers that sat low on his hips, but his state of undress couldn’t distract her from the glitter of anger in his eyes.
“Tarek….” She knew this was coming from a place of fear and worry, she just didn’t know how to help.
He stood ridged, his shoulders stiff and his mouth pursed. She walked over to
