“I mean, don’t you usually sleep in my brother’s room?”
Rude. “What areyoudoing here, Oleander?”
“Putting these in your wardrobe.” She waltzed into my dressing room. I slouched out of bed and followed, in time to see her hanging gowns with hems of thunderous blue and sleeves of roaring violet. All the colors of dusk, picked out in silk thread and staggering skill.
“Did you make all these?” Wonder lit my voice.
“Designed them.” Her eyes skimmed a neckline for some invisible imperfection. “I had help with the sewing.”
“You really didn’t have to—”
“I didn’t have anything else to do,” she said, brusque. “Besides, these colors suit you much better than your little Sun Heir outfits. Dusk unveils the luster of your eyes.”
A laugh escaped me. I didn’t think Oleander had ever complimented me before.
“Thanks. Although my Congrès will be furious I’m not dressing the part.”
“Compete with Gavin if you want.” She made a complicated face. “But when it comes to looking like the Scion’s light shines through you, he seems to have more practice.”
“What if my dusk serves only to make his light shine brighter?”
“You’ll just have to find your own light.” She turned abruptly toward me with a revolted expression. “Why are you so dirty?”
“I found the Oubliettes.” The words sounded absurd out loud.
“The Oubliettes are a myth. A tale told to frighten credulous young courtiers.”
“I’ve only heard the song. Is there more to the story?”
Oleander sighed. “Hundreds of tides ago, when the Sabourins were provincial kings and the Amber Empire was barely an idea, a smaller château supposedly stood where Coeur d’Or now stands. A citadel, built to withstand siege rather than inspire awe. When the Sabourins gained enough wealth and power, they built a new palais. But instead of razing the old château, they covered it with dirt and rock and built directly on top of it. And the ghosts of Meridian’s long-dead heirs haunt those forgotten halls.”
“They’re real,” I said. “I found a door, in the dungeons, leading below the castle. There’s a network of tunnels, I think, although I didn’t go far—”
“You’re serious.” Oleander’s eyes glittered with excitement. “An old château, lying beneath the new palais! I can’t wait to throw a party down there, can you even imagine—”
“Severine’s journal implies she hid Relics down there,” I reminded her.
“Even better.” Oleander’s red mouth twisted into a shrewd smile. “So let’s go look for Relics. You already have one. Find the others, and you’ll be the true Sun Heir. They’ll have to accept you as empress then—even Sainte Sauvage and his stupid Red Masks.”
“My thoughts exactly.”
“What are you waiting for? Get dressed.”
I rolled my eyes, but obeyed. Then I remembered: “I told Lullaby I’d explore the Oubliettes with her.”
She lifted an eyebrow. “So?”
“So—” Surely this wouldn’t come as a surprise. “So Lullaby hates you.”
“If people like you and me avoided everyone who hated us, we’d be hermits in the Dusklands.” Oleander’s eyes gleamed. “And just think how dull that would be.”
Lullaby answered her door with a cautious look.
“I found the Oubliettes,” I said, without preamble.
“I thought we were supposed to look for them together. Did you forget? Like you forget everything?”
Hurt and guilt writhed through me. “I found them by accident.”
