She expected Valorre to respond with approval, for it had been weeks since Cora had snuck out for a forest ride. Instead, a ripple of hesitation moved through their energetic link.I don’t think you should.
She frowned as she pushed open the door at the top of the staircase.Why not?
Well…because?—
“Prince Teryn has arrived.” Master Arther, steward of Ridine Castle, practically sprang before the doorway. He wrung his gloved hands as exasperated relief eased the furrow between his brows.
Several emotions shot through Cora one after the other. Shock, panic, excitement. “He…what? He wasn’t supposed to be here until tomorrow. When did he arrive?”
“Less than an hour ago, while you were…downthere.” He said the last part in a whisper as he cast a glance at the door Cora had emerged from. Not that there was any reason for secrecy here. No one entered the halls leading to the dungeons aside from Cora, her guards, and approved staff. Now the only other people in the hall besides Cora and Arther were two members of the royal guard who’d stood sentinel outside the door.
Cora shifted her mental focus from her steward to Valorre.Did you know? Is that what you were about to say?
Yes, came Valorre’s reply.
Why didn’t you warn me?He could have. While her guards had been ordered not to interrupt her while she was in the dungeon, Valorre hadn’t been given such a restriction.
You were busy, Valorre said.Didn’t want to distract you from scary men in the dark place.
The dark place was what he called the dungeon. While their connection was strong enough to give each other impressions of their current locations or environments, Valorre didn’t always understand the impressions he received.
Cora returned her attention to Arther as she realized he was speaking again. “—King Larylis and Queen Mareleau will be here in just two hours.”
She frowned. “Teryn arrived separately from them?”
“Yes, he said he rode ahead.”
Her lungs constricted. “Was something wrong? Was there an emergency?”
“No, it seemed more like he grew tired of his retinue’s slow pace.”
That was a relief. After everything that had happened last spring and summer, Cora’s mind was often quick to go to the darkest places when anything seemed out of the ordinary. But Teryn’s actions made sense. Mareleau’s retinue was moving slowly due to her pregnancy and the precautions required around travel. She couldn’t blame him for taking off on his own. If only he’d sent word ahead of time, she’d have been there to greet him.
“Where is he now?” she asked.
“He said he was tired after his ride, so I escorted him to his guest chamber to rest.”
She was about to ask why Arther had taken him to a guest room and not her own chambers, but she stopped herself. Even though she and Teryn would share the royal suite once they were wed, they couldn’t be seen sharing quarters before their wedding.
A troubling thought occurred to her.
She took a step closer to Arther. “He said he was tired? Did he seem unwell?”
“He seemed…fine,” Arther said, brows knit with confusion.
Just fine? Her lungs tightened all over again. She cast the same question at Valorre.
I didn’t see his face, he conveyed.I saw him riding but he wore a head blanket.
A cloak, Cora corrected.Then how did you know it was him?
Smelled like him.
He has a smell?
Like strength and moonbeams.
Cora nearly snorted a laugh. She could have taken comfort in Valorre’s insistence that he smelled like strength, but she couldn’t take him seriously with the part about moonbeams. Valorre had always had a bit of a crush on Teryn. Of course he’d smell like strength and moonbeams to him.
