“I’m happy to be here for the beginning of the High King Contest,” she replied evenly.
“I’m sure you are. And not to forget that history has been made recently.”
“What do you mean?”
His honey-coloured eyes shone with fascination. “I was speaking about the cure His Majesty has provided for the humans. There hasn’t been contact like this in twenty-five years, since the last human and fae treaty meeting took place. It could be the start of building a new relationship with them.”
Lora was taken aback by his opinion. “Do you think we should?”
“Of course.” A friendly smile grazed his lips. “It’s such a shame to let history keep our worlds apart when we could benefit from each other.”
“They were enslaved. It’s not something you get over.” His eyes sparked intrigue. She hastily added, “If I was in their place, I would have a hard time not holding a grudge.”
Tarnan nodded. “I see Turosian is lucky to have you, Princess Loraine. Empathy is an overlooked trait in politics.”
“Thank you. Call me Lora.”
“Well, Lora, it was a pleasure meeting you. I won’t keep you any longer, but I do hope we’ll speak again. Begone in fortune.” Tarnan bowed before walking back to the dining table.
This time, her smile came without force.
* * *
Lora quickly got lost when she left the dining hall. She wasn’t sure where to go or even what to search for. Frustrated, Lora asked a servant to help her find the way back to her room. The palace was much bigger than she’d first realised, which was not surprising considering she’d been locked in a room for over a week.
Back in her room, Lora sat on her bed restlessly. Her conversation with Tarnan had been interesting. Did Eyden know anything about him? She cursed herself for thinking about him. She wished she could talk to him even though she had told him to leave and not come back. Would he listen to her?
She needed to dosomething.Rhay’s invitation lingered in her mind.Eyden won’t be there,she told herself. But what if he was? Or what if she ran into someone else who could give her some intel, some kernel of hope?
Sighing, Lora crossed her room and opened her closet. Rhay had filled it with an abundance of dresses. One in particular caught her eye. It was a strapless, dark emerald dress, and it reminded her of the one Eyden had offered her before they’d gone to Caligo. She hadn’t chosen that dress then as it would’ve been the bolder choice. But something made her choose it now, some distant will tolivewhile she still could.
If Eyden did show up, she had to be there. At the very least to tell him to leave again.
Trying not to overthink her decision, Lora hurriedly dressed, unmade the little braids she had in her dark-blonde hair, and left her room.
She asked the first servant she saw for directions again and soon found herself in a spectacular room: a huge ballroom, not that different from the one she’d been in the previous night, decorated with a mix of the colours of all the kingdoms combined.
The ceiling was covered in the crystals of the kingdoms, their shine reflecting on the glass floor. Turquoise, carnelian, rose quartz, amethyst, sapphire, emerald, and obsidian all blended together beautifully. The only missing crystal was ruby—Rhay wouldn’t include Rubien, the abandoned, cursed kingdom she’d seen too much of.
The thought made her think of Eyden again.You told him to go,she reminded herself.She stopped scanning the room and focused on the sparkling glass beneath her feet.
Lora saw his reflection first. Even surrounded by sparkling crystals, his striking blue eyes stood out. She’d recognise them anywhere. Eyden’s gaze met hers in the reflection on the mirror floor, and the world seemed to stop.
Forcing herself to lift her head, Eyden followed her move. His eyes burned into her, yet he made no move to come closer. Was he not here because of her?
Against her better judgement, Lora tilted her head and moved away from the crowd. She looked over her shoulder, unsure if Eyden was following her. He hung back, surveying the room, but then followed. Relieved, she kept going, scanning the crowd for Rhay or Karwyn—she saw neither of them. But they couldn’t stay out in the open.
Noticing a door at the back, Lora picked up speed. Opening it, she found a small room meant for storage. There was a shelf with bottles and food on one side. She went to the bare wall and waited for Eyden to close the door behind him. As he entered, he moved a heavy box filled with wine bottles to block the door.
Goosebumps travelled over her skin as she became aware of the fact that they were now locked into this small space.
Together.
Alone.
“I thought I told you to leave,” Lora said.I thought I wanted you gone.
Eyden stayed by the door, providing her as much space as he could given the small room. “I don’t want to be here,” he replied, making her freeze all over. His tone didn’t hold any of the emotion it had last time.
