(JASPER'S POV)
He came in behind the shattered doors and stopped dead, blinking at the mess of the door, and then at the frozen guards arranged around the room like statues in a garden, and his brow furrowed in mild confusion. He clearly had no idea anything was wrong yet. He had walked in expecting laughter and music and people glad to see him, and he was looking around for a drink and a seat.
Then his eyes swept the room.
Then they found Blue.
And every drop of color drained out of Elias's face — out of that smug, pale, spoiled face — like water leaving a cracked cup. He went gray. His hands, still raised as if for a goblet, hung in the air and began to shake. His mouth opened, and nothing came out.
He had recognized Blue.
