Lesana nodded and then strode away, heading to Hanno. I watched her touch his shoulder, offer him a wide smile, and then he stood, following her out of the lounge. I didn’t miss the way Hanno looked back, however. Not at me. His eyes were settled on theKyzaire.
“Who are you?”
The High Lord of Erzos’s voice was nothing more than a rasp. Like a harsh whisper dragging across my flesh.
There was a tight band slowly constricting around my chest when I looked up into his eyes. Shockingly blue. Bright like crystal stars, they weretoobeautiful. There was such a thing astoobeautiful. Because they almost hurt to look into.
“My name is Millie,” I said, grateful my voice sounded no different than it had when I’d spoken with Hanno. “I’m honored to serve you tonight,Kyzaires. If you need anything at all while you’re at RaanaDyaan, please let me know.”
I didn’t know how I did it, but I managed to break Kythel’s gaze to look at his brothers, inclining my head in respect. It didn’t truly dawn on me that these males were responsible for a large portion of the Kaalium. Perhaps later it would, but for now, I kept that knowledge locked away in case it threatened to choke me.
I looked down at the table and took note of the Drovos wine. From the blue hue in the silver goblet, I knew they were drinking the R-09 variant, possibly R-10 from the western region. Kythel’s was nearly gone. But the other two goblets were virtually untouched.
To his brothers, I asked, “Would you like something different to drink tonight?”
Kaldur of Vyaan and Thaine of Kyne. It took a while to place their faces, but I remembered seeing a portrait of them in Erzan’s archives. I’d wanted to learn everything I could about Krynn, more than what my father had told me.
Kaldur’s gaze was on his brother, careful and watchful. Thaine’s was on me, the sudden intensity of his stare making me want to look down to the floor.
“Brew,” came the sharp word from Thaine. Then he seemed to make an effort to soften his words when I jumped slightly. “For my brother and me. Anything from the South. For yourKyzairehere, he will continue with the wine.”
I feared Lesana and I had interrupted a strained moment between the brothers because the tension pouring off each one of them was extremely palpable.
“I’ll get those straight away,” I assured them, my smile beginning to feel like a wide caricature-version of itself. “Anything to eat from our kitchens? Draan is—”
“Are you a blood giver?” came the words from Kythel. My gaze flitted to him, pulled, shocked. His tone was strange—oddly lifeless and controlled except for the way he was looking at me. There was nothing lifeless aboutthat.
It was my turn to be confused, my brows furrowing. My heart was a frenzied little thing in my chest, beating out a pulsing, erratic rhythm.
“No. I’m not.”
“Then what do you do here?” he asked next, slight frustration dripping into his tone.
“Kythel,” came Kaldur’s deep voice, cutting through the thick air like the whistle of a blade.
It was his brother’s interruption that finally seemed to shake him. He blinked, then took a step back, his wings finally relaxing.
“My apologies. I’m being abhorrently rude,” Kythel murmured, a mask falling into place. A part of me was fascinated as I watched the subtle transformation—the smoothing of his features, the careful way his eyes watched me, the deepening and strengthening of his voice—and I wondered how often he needed to wear that mask. “You were out in the courtyard when we arrived.”
“Yes,” I said, my neck craned back to meet his eyes. The lounge seemed ten times smaller with him in it. “Yes, I was. And to answer your question,Kyzaire, I am not a blood giver here. I help wherever I am needed.”
Kythel’s swallow was palpable. A little knot in my chest loosened when he finally took a large step away and sank back into his chair, tucking his wings comfortably in the cutouts along the high spine.
He looked away from me, his gaze going to Thaine across the table. Silence dropped into place.
“Well,” I chirped, my voice hitching too high with my nerves, “I’ll go get your drinks.”
“Loretoo,” came Kythel’s harsh tone. I stilled. “K10092 if you have it.”
I processed the number. “We do.”
“And something from your kitchens. I don’t care what,” he finished, still not meeting my eyes.
“Of course,” I said, my smile widening. I knew when I was dismissed, but here, I needed to act happy about it.
Quickly, I strode away, through the steel doors that separated the lounge from the entrance hallway, done up in gleaming silver and gold, its quiet hall a wonderful reprieve.
Lesana was waiting for me at the end of it.
