“Someone’s here.” She grips the brush like a weapon and creeps to the dressing room door.
I ease along behind her, and we both let out a breath when we see Brunilla and Tritus in the sitting room.
“What are you two doing here?” Lucidia sits in one of the chairs. Actually sits. I haven’t seen her do that the entire time I’ve been here. She must be truly exhausted.
“We heard about the seeker.” Tritus pushes his shaggy hair from his eyes with an ink-stained hand. “Is it true?”
“Yes.” I hug myself. “I saw it. Or, him, I guess. I saw him.”
“Sophina ran off to assist the king, Caltinius is working himself ragged to help the nightlings, and—”
“Nightlings?” I turn to him.
“Tritus!” Lucidia barks.
“Sorry.” He shakes his head. “Right. Not supposed to speak of that.” He cuts a glance to me, then looks away.
“You saw the seeker with your own eyes?” Brunilla comes closer. “In the sun?”
“Yes. Black webbed wings, white skin, black hair, cruel eyes. He’s here in the day realm.”
“Did he give a name?” Brunilla taps a finger on her chin.
“No, but Solano may have gotten it out of him by now. He, Bladin, and Brock intended to …” I may as well say it. “Torture him for information. And Grimelda is eager to assist.”
“This is a turn I didn’t see coming.” Brunilla whirls and hurries to the door.
How could anyone see a seeker in the day coming? “Where are you going?”
“Painting to do,” she calls as she leaves, though I don’t think she intends to paint at all.
Lucidia stands and motions to Tritus. “Come, take me to my room. If I leave you here, I have no doubt you’ll overspeak your place and make an even bigger mess.”
I hurry to her and contemplate blocking the door until she spills. I’d do it if she weren’t so worn, her body fragile. “Lucidia, tell me about the nightlings. What’s going on?”
“That’s for the king to explain.” She shakes her head, her eyes drooping with fatigue.
I don’t press her again, even though I’m desperate to know what’s going on. But I worry for her, even her horns are peculiarly pale in shade, her body more frail now than it was only a few moments ago.
Tritus gives me an apologetic look as he takes her elbow and leads her from my chambers, leaving me alone with the unrelenting feeling of dread I’ve had ever since I saw the seeker.
* * *
Solano doesn’t appear at resting hours. I toss and turn in his bed, unable to sleep, my mind churning as I think and rethink what I intend to do. Last time I walked around the palace alone, Lord Caroldon ambushed me. This time, I won’t go without a weapon. I pull the dinner knife from beneath my pillow. It’s quite dull and not flashy, but I could hurt someone with it, stunning them as I made my escape.
After another hour of restless thoughts, I’m done waiting. Dressing in my pants and a cream tunic, I grab a white cloak and throw it on. Darkness can’t hide me here, so I have to try to blend in with the light.
It’s deep into resting hours when I creep from my chambers and down the hall. The guards are gone, likely in the throne room with Solano, if he’s still there. I don’t know if they’d stop me, but it’s definitely a plus that they’re busy elsewhere.
I hurry through the maze of stone, the spire overhead sparkling here and there when the ceiling opens. The directional stones guide me, though I make a few wrong turns and have to double back. I hurry past the room where Caroldon cornered me, speeding my steps as I wander deeper and deeper into the palace. At each intersection, I choose the southerly path based on what Dilrubin told me about the infirmary’s location.
Eventually, I catch the scent of strong herbs, the sort we use for healing in the night realm. I continue my path, peeking around corners and hurrying along the empty corridors. The smell grows as I turn another corner and ease down the hall. A wide set of doors is open to my right, and I hurry inside, stepping as quietly as I can.
White curtains flutter in a light breeze, and a fire crackles at the back of the room. On my left, a high set of shelves is loaded with every sort of herb and tincture, the sheer variety of it amazing me. I move closer and see each one is neatly labeled, the vials of sourwart, nightruby, and tinted ginger marked with a dark lid. These grow only in the night realm. Whoever collected this dispensary traveled the realms, many times, it seems.
But I’m not here for this, so I steal quietly across the stones and twitch the nearest curtain to the side. To my right, someone stirs. I pause and stare at a cot that I thought was piled with linens. But there’s a lesser fae lying on it, his eyes closed, his light brown hair a mess. This must be Caltinius, Tritus’s mate, and he looks just as tired as Lucidia.
I creep forward, moving the curtain around me like another cloak. Beyond the white fabric, two cots are set up near the fire as light streams in from windows high above. My heart stutters as I rush forward. Lysetta and Rala lie asleep, their eyes closed, their bodies relaxed. But they aren’t the same as when I last saw them. Thinner with dark circles beneath their eyes, they look as if half of them has already gone to the Ancestors.
