“I’m just about to start up the switchbacks now.”
“Meet me in the Imperial Library.” Vi paused, remembering what day and age she was in, now. Vhalla was present in the castle. Her chest tightened in a way that begged avoidance at all costs. “On second thought, the servant’s entrance, the one not far from the water gardens.”
“See you soon.”
Vi released the glyph and did one last sweep of Baldair’s room. Wherever the prince had hidden the crown, it wasn’t here. Vi pursed her lips and left, heading down through the castle to meet Deneya.
The servant’s entrance was busy at all times of day. Boards lined the main entry with schedules and memos. Someone was always coming or going, and no one paid Vi a second glance in her palace robes.
She perched herself on a bench just outside, watching the night fall as she waited. Soon enough, the silhouette of a woman cut against the watercolor sky as Deneya crested the hill.
“You’re a sight for sore eyes.” Vi stood.
“I’m marvelous, I know.” Deneya smiled down at her. “It’s good to see you, too.”
“Let’s find a place to board the horse. I doubt we’ll get to use the palace stables again.”
“Unfortunately.” Deneya dismounted.
“I think I know a place.”
“Lead the way.” Deneya walked alongside Vi as she headed for an inn with a long row of stables that were usually unoccupied. “Any issues up here?”
“No, your end?”
“None.”
Vi glanced at the pack the woman had over her shoulder, then to the saddlebags. “You have it?”
“Of course.” Deneya patted her backpack and Vi could imagine the shimmering crown inside. “You find the real deal yet?”
“No, but we only just got here a few days before you.”
“I know, that’s why I thought you would’ve certainly found it by now.” Deneya grinned.
“We need your help, clearly.”
“Yes, you’d be lost without me,” she proclaimed loftily.
“I did miss you.” Vi nudged her shoulder against her friend’s.
She snorted. “I doubt it. You’ve had a few days with Taavin all to yourself and judging from the glow around you, the alone time did you well.”
Vi laughed and didn’t even bother with a denial. “Yes, but now that you’re back, it’s nothing but work again. We must find the crown soon.”
“What’s the rush?”
“I’m not sure… a feeling?” Vi looked over her shoulder, feeling as if someone was following her. No one was there. The memory of the Tower—of Victor watching her movements without her realizing—was an unexpected companion in the castle. “I know Victor is usually the one to find it. And knowing what I know of him, once he finds it, he won’t let it go.”
“So we have to beat him to it,” Deneya surmised. The statement brought Vi’s thoughts to Baldair’s empty room.
“Yes. But my fear is that we’re already too late.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Vi,Taavin, and Deneya broke the palace into segments in order to search for the crown.
Vi continued to search the royal quarters. Baldair might not have hidden it in his chambers, but he’d have access to every room in the Imperial wing of the palace. There were plenty more secret locations that were all potential hiding spots, and lots of locks for her to try the key on.
