I frowned. “Not until I’m twenty-one.”
“Yes, but surely your uncle will include you more in court proceedings after your coronation.”
“You would think. Two months from now, we will find out.”
Taelon turned so he could lean his back against the balcony ledge. “At least celebrations have returned to the realm. You have already sparked change.”
I turned to look at the packed ballroom and the realm’s elite dressed in their finest. “Yes, look at my progress. I’m downright revolutionary.”
He snickered at my sarcasm. “Well, you have to start somewhere.”
“I would prefer to start with the starving and oppressed. Not extravagant parties and weeks of bum-kissing.”
“That reminds me, Gunter has been pulled away for a while. There has been... some unrest in the north. The Cavolia have gone to see what’s amiss.”
“The north? Tenovia?”
He shook his head. “Heprin.”
The wind whooshed out of me, and I fell back against the balcony too. “What sort of unrest?”
Taelon’s expression flattened, but he offered only a small shrug. “I’m not certain. We have no contacts that far north and have never had the need to plant spies. The Ring of Shadows has thus far avoided the farthest kingdoms. But... Gunter has a woman. A pagan. She’s... She’s been having dreams.”
My mind flashed with gruesome images of my own dreams. “A witch?”
Taelon didn’t acknowledge my question. To do so would invite all manner of trouble. “Does she read pagan? This woman?”
He lifted one shoulder. “I don’t know. Why do you ask?”
I thought of telling him about the spell book, the words I could not read.The old way is the true way.But I knew he would want to see it. And that would require me handing it over so he could look through it in private.
“The chapel,” I explained instead. “From our excursion the other day. We had all assumed it was a Temple to the Light. But just before we left, Oliver found signs that it might have been a pagan chapel. There were images not connected to the religion of the Light. I thought she might be able to say for sure. And then we might better know whom the initials belonged to.”
Taelon’s blue eyes darkened with interest. “Do you think that’s important information?”
His question was sincere. He was not dismissing me but genuinely asking if that was a mystery we needed to solve. My spirit swelled near to bursting. I had not felt validated in such a way since before I came to Elysia. Taelon’s small show of confidence meant more to me than I knew how to convey. And while I regularly fought to give my love to him entirely, when he said things like that and showed how much he trusted and cared for me, it was impossible to withhold any of my heart.
“I can’t explain why,” I told him honestly, saving my useless declarations of love for another time. “But... I have this feeling I’m missing something. A key to unlocking a door. And it’s found in those initials.” I smiled sheepishly, a burn heating my cheeks. It sounded so silly now that I had said it out loud. “There are, of course, bigger matters at hand. I just thought if she accompanied Gunter when he returned, maybe she could show us something we’re missing.”
“Like why the palace grounds would have use for a pagan chapel?”
I nodded. “Yes, exactly.”
His pinky finger reached out and caressed the line of my own. His expression changed from businesslike and stern to soft and sorrowful in the span of that one discreet touch. “Tessa, I have missed you more than words can say. It has been too long since we’ve spoken so freely.”
I mimicked his pose against the balcony so we stood side by side, our arms less than an inch from touching. “Can I invite you to stay? To be my special guest? Once the rest of the monarchs leave, my life here will screech to a halt. No meetings, no luncheons, no balls.”
He stared at the ground. “I received a missive from Gunter late last night. He’s asked me to meet him in Heprin. I’ve delayed my leave so I could be here tonight.”
“You should not have done that.”
His touch moved to the center of my palm. The feeling of his fingers there, his light caress, made butterflies soar through my chest and belly. How long would it be till we could be alone again? How long would it be till I could be myself around him again?
Dragon’s blood, I had missed this man. And now he was leaving again. After we’d just been reunited.
“How could I have done anything else?” he asked in a low murmur. Leaning closer, he whispered, “I will write to you from now on. I have placed a guard in your personal service. He’s loyal to Arrick. His name is Finch. If you have anything you’d like to say to me, see that he receives the letter. No one but me will read it.”
My spirit soared with his promise. I lifted my head, and our gazes clashed. So many unsaid feelings, so many choking fears. But now I could share them with him. I could hear his thoughts and get his opinions and read words he’d written with his own hand.
