My old room, with the window draft that we could never seem to fix, and the floor that creaked in different places, making sneaking out a game.
The room I shared with them.
It’s a kind offer. But I can’t look at him. “Somewhere else is fine.”
“Then we’ll find you somewhere else.” I stay silent as he leads me up the old stairs. Callan’s eyes burn into my back, but when I glance over my shoulder he’s staring at the ground, his brows furrowed.
Everything looks the same when I had expected it to be changed beyond recognition. The walls are surprisingly bare. Matthias follows my eyes. “We lost most of our belongings during the Shift, since the storage ships went down. Anything worth keeping from Boreas.”
So much waste, lost to Hala’s void.
“You’ll find that the layout is the same,” Callan says behind me. He still sounds on edge. “The kitchens, for example.”
Where we met for the first time.
Matthias pauses at the top of the stairs, finger tapping against his lips as he twists to look down the halls that stretch out to his right and left. More stairs are opposite us, leading up into the other floors that look much the same as this one, or used to. Solid double wooden doors line the white walls at regular intervals, each holding a living space behind it. My bedroom was on the next floor, and I find myself grateful that I won’t have to face it.
“Left,” Callan says tightly.
“I’m sure that was full—”
Callan shrugs past us. “This way.”
Matthias looks amused, Sol as though he’s praying for patience. But we all follow as Callan strides down the hall. He pauses just before the hall reaches its end, and my eyes seek outthe familiar stained glass. Two figures entwine beneath a blanket of stars. “Hala and Endymion.”
“I’d thought so.” Matthias opens a door and ushers me into the room. “Here.”
It’s basic, comfortingly so. A bare, dark wooden bed frame sits in the middle of the room, covered with a feather-filled mattress. Two small matching tables rest on either side, each with an unlit lantern, the wick already trimmed. A small armoire stands against the wall. “Are the bathing rooms still used?”
Some of my favorite times had been down there, despite the aversion most of us had to being under the ground. I had happily floated for hours in the underground cavern with my hair spread around me, lounging in the hot springs until I was more prune than faeyte.
“Only for leisure.” Sol pushes open the door to my right. My eyes widen at the iron tub, the intricate pipework that sits above it. He gives me a genuine, small smile. “I thought you might appreciate this.”
I crane my neck inside the room. “What are those pipes?”
Sol pulls a lever, and I feel my mouth drop open as steam gushes and water falls into the tub.
Hotwater. The heat is perceptible even from where I stand an arm’s length away.
Sol’s cheek dimples when he laughs. And I notice Matthias’s eyes on him, the heat there enough to bring my own cheeks to a flush as I back out. “How is that possible?”
“The Metallurgist. One of his many creations.” Sol pulls the door closed again. “You’ll meet him at some point, I’m sure.”
He doesn’t sound enthusiastic. My mind shifts to shadows, and eyes of purple. “He’s a peristi.”
“That was him in the throne room, yes,” Callan says shortly. He leans against the wall, crossing his arms. “Avoid him if you can and make the encounter brief if you can’t. He has Petyr’s earand strong maegis. He specializes in metals, but any knowledge attracts him. He’ll be very interested in you.”
A shiver dances across my shoulders. Matthias leans back against the wall. “Smee shouldn’t be long. We’ll wait with you until she gets here.”
“Esme?”
“She’s getting herself assigned to you as your maid. Since she’s in and out often, she has no regular duties.” Callan sighs. “I’d feel better if it was one of us.”
“I don’t need a maid.”
“We’ll need to work out a rota.” Sol scratches his chin, his eyes on me. “Reckon we can get Rio reassigned?”
Matthias snorts. “You’d have more chance of persuading Tobias to strip naked and dance at the hearth. But he owesmea favor, since I healed him of something I probably shouldn’t mention in the presence of Hala’s scion. You’re welcome.”
