She knew that if she were there in the council meeting, they wouldn’t actually share what was going on. Spying on them seemed like a better idea.
Eventually, Thalia stopped before a marked wall, the brick worn with use. Thalia glanced at the map. Behind the wall was the council room, a place Thalia hadn’t ventured to yet. She tucked the map under her arm and pushed.
The stone moved and Thalia held her breath, peeking through the crack. She nearly sagged with relief when she realized the wall was hidden by a large tapestry, no doubt put there to ensure no one realized someone was listening in. Despite the tapestry being in place, it was thin enough that Thalia could see through the threads of the woven fabric.
It seemed that all the leaders of the Houses were present.
They sat around a large, circular oak table in high-backed chairs. The banners behind them indicated the Houses they belonged to.
Cassius sat at what would have been the head of the table, speaking quietly with Keegan on his left, while Lord Damien was to the right of Cassius. Camilla was seated on the lord’s other side next to a woman whose dark skin and features matched the shifter’s—perhaps a distant relative?
Cassius’s head jerked up suddenly, his nostrils flaring. Thalia tensed, holding her breath. Shit. He looked around the room, his eyes settling on Camilla for a second. Thalia prayed her scent could be attributed to spending the afternoon with the shifter.
After a moment, he shook his head and went back to speaking with Keegan.
Thalia let out a sigh of relief. She squared her shoulders, leaning closer to hear.
Lord Damien cleared his throat, drawing the attention of the room. “Members of the Houses, welcome. On behalf of His Highness, we want to thank you all for traveling such a great distance to discuss the matters of Vaccarium. While His Highness isn’t here, he is represented by his own inner circle.”
Lord Adrian sneered, but Lord Damien ignored him, continuing. “As you are all aware, the humans have kept their end of the treaty. We received word just this morning that the springs are fully filled. We are hopeful that in the next few months our forest will again be thriving.
“In turn, the humans have received the ore from our mountain. Labor has been slow due to unforeseen circumstances. The humans’ reserves were far more depleted than we thought, and they are pushing to receive more ore soon. Given the amount of effort and the tentative peace we have with them, House Lorenzia turns to you all to see what men might be spared to go into Lorceium to harvest more.”
Her mother had been in contact with the Vampyrs? Had Cassius lied to her? The news had her stomach twisting. She didn’t want to consider that the queen might have ignored her letters.
Thalia picked at the nails around her thumbs. The knowledge sent a pang of hurt spearing through her. No, it seemed evident that her mother had been talking to the Vampyrs this whole time andhadn’t even bothered to see how her daughter was faring. If she even still breathed.
Thalia suddenly regretted sending word to her mother at all. If only out of spite.
“House Olvectus is closest to the mountain; why can’t they be used?” someone from House Santorien asked.
“Because we are currently dealing with theothersituation happening at our borders,” the woman next to Camilla said.
“Oh yes, Lady Decima,” Lord Adrian sneered. It clicked that this was the leader of House Olvectus, the only female leader in the room. “You and the Mages, I’m sure.” His green eyes flashed, much like his son’s. Thalia wondered if the leader of House Gallinus knew what his son had done and that he’d been banished by Cassius.
“Yes,” Camilla snapped, butting in, her golden eyes blazing. “You yourself have witnessed this blight upon your own lands. It is of the utmost importance.”
“But so is keeping the humans appeased.” Lord Amadeus spoke. The leader of House Santorien nodded to Cassius. “Our forest has gone too long without nutrients. Our springs were nearly dried. What happens if the rivers are cut off once more? What happens once the trees are dead? When the creatures who live within its shadowed border cannot find enough food? Then they will come out of hiding—they will come for our homes, our people. We’ll be fighting more than just one blight at that point.”
What blight are they talking about?
“And the prince continues to ignore this problem.” Lord Adrian directed his hateful gaze at Cassius.
Cassius leaned back in his chair, the portrait of arrogant grace. “The prince is well aware of the problem at hand. He is working up north with the Mages as we speak.”
Lord Adrian’s lip curled. “Those damn Mages aren’t doing shit against the blight.” Both Camilla and Lady Decima stiffened as he plowed ahead. “He has done nothing as his people have succumbed to this madness. He has disappeared, despite you trying to cover for him. He’s probably fucking and drinking his way across Vaccariumwhile we all suffer. While you”—Lord Adrian pointed an accusing finger—“do just the same thing.”
Cassius raised a brow, letting the insults fall at his feet. “I can assure you, we are doing everything in our power to stop this madness.”
“Are you?” Lord Adrian snarled. “It seems that you all have become more distracted of late. Especially you,Hand. In fact, I’d say that human bitch is why you’ve all done nothing as the blight against our kind grows.”
“Be careful how you speak about the prince’s bride,” Keegan said softly. “She is part of House Lorenzia now. Any insult you make of her is an insult cast on us all.”
“The human princess,” Cassius bit out, “is none of your concern. She has no idea about the creature in our woods, no idea about the madness it causes.”
Thalia sucked in a sharp breath, but with so much tension rising in the room, no one heard her.
A creature in the woods … madness.
