But I managed to keep it mostly to myself.
Edric gestured toward a pair of velvet settees. “Please. Sit.”
We all sat awkwardly, unsure of what to expect. Quinn stood tall, chin high, her gaze sharp and steady, but I saw the strain in her stillness. This wasn’t a conversation; it was a stage, and the king had already set the scene for what I was sure was going to be quite a performance.
“I suppose proper introductions are in order,” Edric said. “Of course, you all already know who I am.”
My eye twitched. I couldn’t help myself. “Yes, King Pee-dric, right?”
“It’sEdric,” he corrected.
“Ah, of course. Well, I’m Mav, this is Thistle, Branrir, and Vesper,” I said, pointing to each of them in turn. “It seems you already know?—”
“Yes, my Quinnie.”
Hearing the word ‘my’ from his mouth in connection to Quinn filled my head with a fresh batch of assassination fantasies.
Edric turned to Quinn, posture softening as if we’d stepped into a casual parlor rather than a temple to his vanity. “I owe you an apology,” he said. “A long overdue one.”
My jaw tightened.
Quinn didn’t answer.
He rambled on. “When the spell was cast, I was young andkept deliberately uninformed. My parents didn’t tell me their plans, and by the time I’d learned the truth, it was already done.” Edric rebalanced the enormous crown on his head. “No one would tell me where they’d hidden you. I sent scouts countless times, but could never find you.” He looked at her, searching for sympathy, or worse, forgiveness.
Quinn’s eyes narrowed. “You sent scouts?”
His cleft chin quivered. “I did, but you were well hidden. I searched for decades. Well…I sent scouts for decades.”
My eyes rolled.
What a heroic effort. Several decades are nothing in the span of three centuries. And not even attending the search party yourself?
Pathetic.
Edric reached forward, taking her hands in his. “I thought of you often, Quinnie,” he said, silk woven through every syllable. “More often than you’d believe. I had no way to undo what had been done. But had I known where to find you—even the faintest whisper—I would have come. I swear it.”
Then came the smile. Practiced. Polished. The kind of smile made for mirrors, not people. It didn’t reach his eyes.
My fists curled at my sides.
Let go of her hands.
“I’d like to make amends,” Edric said, finally glancing at the rest of us, as though remembering we were still here. “You must stay at the castle while you’re in Aurillion.”
Quinn shook her head. “We could not?—”
“No!” Edric snapped, making the group flinch and me reach for my sword. He smoothed his tone before adding, “I insist.”
He released Quinn’s hands and clapped twice.
A servant appeared so quickly that Vesper hissed and arched his back in surprise.
“Our guests are staying at the…” King Edric let the silence stretch expectantly.
Branrir supplied flatly, “The Moonwake Inn.”
“Have their belongings moved to the guest tower,” Edric ordered. “Prepare four suites immediately.”
