37
Adara
Idrummed my fingers on the arms of my chair as I sat in the council chamber, waiting with Lady Axlya and Prentis for the others to arrive. A small selection of pastries, fruit, and coffee sat out on the table, but I wasn’t even remotely tempted despite the fast. My stomach felt like it had been transformed into a lump of lead, and I had a feeling that if I even attempted to eat something, I would throw it right up.
“Adara,” Lady Axlya said, a hint of censure in her tone. “You’re going to drill holes in the chair if you keep that up.”
“Sorry.” I buried my hands in the folds of my skirt instead. “I just… the last time I saw General Slaugh, he tried to kill me. I’m not looking forward to meeting him again.”
Lady Axlya laughed a little at that. “My dear, we havealltried to kill each other at some point,” she said.
“You have?”
Her expression softened a little, but I wasn’t sure if it was pity or sympathy she felt for me. “I sometimes forget that you weren't raised at court,” she said. “If you’re asking whether Lord Oren or Lady Mossi have physically tried to harm me, the answer is no. But we have absolutely been undermining and attacking one another for centuries, even during the dragon wars when we were all supposedly aligned against a common enemy. We may all be part of the same kingdom, but we are not friends, Adara. You need to put this silly notion out of your head that you have to like your allies in order to treat with them. That’s not the way the world works.”
“Well, it should be,” I shot back, crumpling the fabric of my skirt in my hands before I could think better of it. “Maybe the world would be a better place if everyone was honest with each other, and communicated with the intention of trying to understand and empathize, instead of trying to one-up each other all the time.”
“In a perfect world, yes,” Axlya said. “But we don’t live in a perfect world, and the sooner you realize that, the sooner you’ll be able to convince the others that you deserve to sit on the throne.”
Prentis opened his mouth, looking torn—I wasn’t sure if he was about to defend his aunt, or offer words of sympathy—but before he could say anything, the double doors opened. We all turned our heads to the entrance to see Lord Oren and his advisors stride in. Lady Mossi glided in behind him, and my entire body went still at the sight of General Slaugh walking arm in arm with her.
I expected to see the same male who’d captured me and brought me to Kaipei—the angry, sallow-faced warrior with shadow-blackened veins running up the sides of his neck and down his forearms. But the fae who walked into the room today was somber and reserved, no trace of the shadow magic he’d wielded either on his skin or clinging to his aura.
“Lady Axlya, Lord Prentis.” He stopped in front of the table and inclined his head before his eyes met mine. “Adara.”
I said nothing as I stared back at him, trying to peer past the serious, war-scarred soldier façade to the evil I knew lurked within. But the mask didn’t waver as the others exchanged their greetings, then took their respective seats at the table.
“I must say,” Lady Axlya said, “I’m surprised you didn’t arrive yesterday with your aunt, General Slaugh. After all, we are here to discuss the subject of succession, and you have very publicly thrown your hat into the ring.”
“I apologize for my tardiness,” General Slaugh said gravely. “But as you know, Kaipei Castle has been in a state of chaos ever since Adara murdered our king. I was forced to pick up the pieces after she fled, and wasn’t able to get away until yesterday.”
I clenched my hands beneath the table—the bastard was sitting right here in front of me, talking about me as if I wasn’t even here! My gaze flickered to the wall where Einar had stood yesterday, but I already knew he wasn’t there. We’d both decided it would be for the best if he wasn’t present for this meeting—instead, he stood guard outside the doors, where he could hear perfectly well.
“Too true,” Lady Mossi said. “The entire country has been thrown into disarray by the king’s death, not just Kaipei. That’s why it’s important that we install a new monarch as soon as possible, one who has the knowledge and experience necessary to lead our people.”
“And you think that you’re the best fae for the job,” I said flatly, addressing Slaugh. “After everything you’ve done.”
Everyone in the room turned to look at me, but I ignored them, keeping my gaze trained on my enemy. “It’s true that I have done terrible things in the late king’s name,” General Slaugh said as he finally met my gaze. He was the picture of humility—his head slightly bowed, shoulders curved in, hands clasped almost as if in prayer. “But I was acting under the influence of his shadow magic, my will not my own. That is no longer the case, and now that I am free, I want to use my unique position and experience to undo the damage my predecessor has wrought.”
“It seems contradictory for you to accuse Adara of murdering King Aolis, while indirectly acknowledging that without her interference, you would still be a slave to King Aolis’s machinations,” Lady Axlya said. The sharp glint in her eye belied the almost lazy way she spoke the words, and irritation flickered in Slaugh’s eyes.
“Perhaps ‘murder’ is a strong word,” Lady Mossi allowed.
“I disagree,” Lord Oren said. He directed this comment at Slaugh, his brows drawn together like thunderclouds preparing to unleash a rainstorm. “I think murder is the perfect word to describe what happened to my daughter at your hands, Slaugh.”
“At my hands?” General Slaugh raised his remaining eyebrow. “I don’t know what you mean, Lord Oren. Tempest made a run for it during all the commotion, and she did not return to the castle. I’m very sorry she hasn’t made it back to Angtun—I thought for certain that she would have tried to return home.”
“Well, she didn’t,” Lord Oren seethed, “and she was in your care. That makes you responsible for her death!”
“I must agree that restitution is required, General Slaugh,” Lady Axlya said primly. “And also that it is highly irregular that you sent all our daughters home without escorts. I realize you lost a number of soldiers during the attack on Kaipei castle, but surely you could have spared a few for such precious cargo?”
“That isn’t the only thing that is irregular,” I interrupted, before General Slaugh could spin some lie to cover his ass. “You all keep saying that shadow magic has disappeared from Ediria, but if that’s true, then where is my mother, Gelsyne? Why haven’t you brought her with you? You seem to forget that I was there that night, Slaugh—I saw the shadow demon take over my mother’s form, saw it giving you orders. You’re not fooling anyone, General Slaugh—you’re just as under her control as King Aolis was when he was alive.”
Pain flickered across Lady Mossi’s features, and Slaugh sighed heavily. “Gelsyne was too weak after all the torture I subjected her to,” he said. “Her body wasn’t able to withstand Nox’s occupation, and she perished.”
His words slammed into me with the force of a hurricane, crushing my ribs and flattening my lungs. “No,” I rasped, gripping the arms of my chair. Ice crept up the grains of wood, but I barely noticed as spots danced in my vision. I’d hoped that he would tell me otherwise, that Cascada had been lying when she’d told me my mother had been killed.
But even as I spoke, doubts crept into the dark spaces of my mind. Slaugh and Cascada had every reason to lie about this, but the pain on Lady Mossi’s face was genuine. She might have been a manipulative bitch, but I remembered the way she’d talked about Gelsyne during our first meeting in the arboretum. She obviousy loved my mother, so much that she’d tried to trade me to King Aolis for both GelsyneandAvani.
