Ash’s warningbells hadn’t stopped clanging since they’d entered the palace kitchen.
Vaesarra clung to Attor, tears streaming down her striking face, and he patted her back. She looked like she’d suffered—maybe she had—but something felt wrong.
Sounds of fighting reached them. Yells erupted in the corridor, and Ash froze.
“Rhaedra, they’re yours to protect,” Attor said, already drawing his sword from the sheath at his back and pulling away from a clinging Vaesarra. “My Lady, I must take this fight elsewhere.”
“Yes, yes, of course,” she whispered, her lips trembling.
Oh, for heaven’s sake.Ash wanted to roll her eyes.
With a bow at Ash, Attor sprinted off.
“We don’t leave here unless absolutely necessary,” Rhaedra warned, shutting the door and standing guard there.
Vaesarra dabbed delicately at her eyes with a shredded part of her gown. “I don’t know how I’ll ever forget what h-he did for me…” Her voice trembled. “After all this time, Eracier came back. He f-freed me.”
Ash stiffened. Her palms tingled, her gaze locking briefly with Rhaedra’s perplexed one.
“It was your brother who freed you,” Rhaedra pointed out.
“Yes, but Eracier made it possible. He still cares.” The woman’s lashes lifted, her expression so joyous.
Rhaedra laughed and flipped her dagger.
“Why do you laugh?” Vaesarra demanded, face flushed, looking like she would stamp her feet. “Did he not prove this?”
Irritated to her skull, Ash said, “For whatever you endured, I am sorry. But he is not yours.”
Vaesarra’s red-rimmed eyes narrowed. “Skaldr said Eracier has a female now. I just didn’t realize it was with a weak…it’syou.” She sniffled. “I…I only wanted to thank him for saving me. Forgive me if my gratitude offends.”
She shuffled to the window and stared outside, her spine stiff.
Weak?Lightning flickered in Ash’s fingers at the insult, but Rhaedra shook her head in warning.
“She’s still consort,” she murmured, so low only Ash heard. “We’ve come too far to mess up. Masks, no matter how fixed, will slip when the focus isn’t on them.”
Ash nodded, tucking her clenched fists beneath her folded arms. Rhaedra had surprised her, proving more supportive than she had expected.
Vaesarra began pacing the length of the abandoned kitchen, her gown whispering over the tiles.
Rhaedra sank onto a chair at a cluttered table strewn with half-prepared vegetables and utensils.
Her nerves tensing with every passing second, Ash dragged off her parka, dropped it over the chairback, and crossed to one of the massive arched windows to stare at the dark ocean beyond the palace.
In the sky, her storm clouds hung low and dark over Caelvyrn, bound by her powers. She could feel their continuous tug on her energy as more vapors rolled in.
Muted dragon roars echoed through the distance.
Was Braxion’s squadron holding the line?
Had Race killed the usurper yet?
She could pick up nothing through their mate bond, just his warmth, and she rubbed her chest. Being inside those dark places—dear God, she hoped he was okay, knowing his nightmares still haunted him.
Exhaling, she turned and found Vaesarra watching her. Nothing showed on her tear-smudged, stunning face. But Ash’s unease returned.
“Breathe, Vaesarra. You’re safe now,” Rhaedra said, sounding almost kind.
