Didn’t know where they were, didn’t know how to get word to them.
She had simply failed.
Again.
Blindly, Lenna threw herself back into the Prism’s depths, the only escape from the troubled thoughts in her mind. She let the threads swallow her, wanting to get lost in them, fumbling through the dimmer strands to find something bright, something, anything, to dig into.
A brilliant thread near hers, only briefly intersecting, caught her eye. Without much thought, she flung into it, ripping through time so quickly that she couldn’t make out the flashes of visions that flickered through her mind’s eye. As her travels down the past’s timeline began to slow, she dove.
Bright light streamed in from massive floor to ceiling windows, overlooking a beautiful courtyard. Shoes clipped abruptly against white marbled tiles. “Your Highness,” a familiar female voice called out, “your sister was looking for you.” Lenna turned, eyes wide as she beheld a young Sparrow dressed in what Lenna could only assume was Opal Palace fashion. A pale green gown fluttered around her ankles, cinched in at the waist with a braided belt. Small gems, arranged to look like flowers, twinkled with each swish of her skirt. She looked younger, as if she was only in her mid-twenties, the shining face of a wealthy female growing up in court. Heracathad already appeared, theharsh black ink so contrasted against the soft gown.
Lenna turned to see who Sparrow spoke to, as Adara stepped out from behind a large opal pillar. If Sparrow wore the attire of royals, Adara was dressed as if she, herself, was a goddess. A pearl white gown swept behind her with tiny diamonds threaded through the silky material. Adara looked to be around the same age as Sparrow, her face rosy and pink, her brilliant blue eyes vibrant, though they narrowed onto the fae. Adara raised a perfectly groomed brow. “What does Esmeray want?”
Sparrow shrugged a delicate shoulder. “She just told me she was looking for you, and to tell you she was heading up to your rooms.”
Adara looked down her nose at Sparrow, drawing herself up straight, her immaculate white wings snapping shut behind her. “I do not have time for Esmeray’s whims. Didn’t you hear? I’m going to sit in a council meeting with my father.” With a glare, Adara sidestepped Sparrow and proceeded down the hallway, past marble statues of Kings and Queens past. “Tell Esmeray if she deigned to act like a Princess for once, I’ll see her in the council room.”
With a prim sniff, Adara departed down the grand hall, throwing a mocking glance back towards Sparrow. Sparrow’s lips thinned as she bowed her head to the Princess.
As Adara disappeared, her expression changed from innocence and piety to mischievous. She straightened, throwing a sneaky smirk over her shoulder, making her way to a set of double doors that opened to an intricately carved balcony. “She’s gone,” Sparrow chirped, leaning over the banister precariously, tilting her head up to whomever she addressed.
Lenna watched as a young Esmerayswept down from above, wearing leather pants and a baggy black tunic. “Gods, Adara is such a bore these days,” Esmeray complained, hooking a booted foot onto the railing.
Crinkling her nose, Sparrow shot a glare at Esmeray. “Why do you smell like dragons?”
Esmeray feigned outrage, clutching a hand to her chest. “Sparrow, if my parents didn’t want me hanging around the dragon lairs, they wouldn’t have made the entrance to said dragon lairs so easily accessible.” Esmeray tipped her chin to a marble statue of a Queen long dead across the hall. “If you want, I can show you. The hidden entrance is behind that statue.” Esmeray leaned closer to the fae and whispered conspiratorially, “There’s a magic pathway that connects the Opal Palace to the Obsidian Palace. It’s supposed to be super-secret. Only my parents and a few of the higher up council members know–so naturally, I like to sneak through and explore the catacombs beneath the Obsidian Palace whenever I fancy.”
“I have no interest in talking to beasties that want to eat me,” Sparrow blanched, causing Esmeray to laugh, the bright sound tugging the corners of Sparrow’s lips up into an uneasy smile.
“Well, fine. Did you get to chat with my boring sister?”
Sparrow grinned fully, canines flashing, eyes shining with mischief. “Adara’s going to the council meeting, so we have a few hours to spare before anyone truly realizes we’re gone.”
“Let’s go,” Esmeray crowed, hopping onto the balcony. “I’ve been itching to get out of the Palace for days. I want to go wander around a different city. Ooh, let’s go to Baubble–the barkeep there will let us drink at his tavern for free.” Noacatgraced her arms, and Esmeray’s skin looked so odd without it. Sparrow giggled, reaching her hand out to her friend. Esmeray gripped it, and the pair wanedin a flash of green light.
Lenna eased out of the Prism, her thoughts still rattling incessantly though the raging, the screaming, had dimmed. With a heavy sigh, Lenna placed the Prism on the nightstand, burrowing down into the plush bed. Lost in swirling emotions and heavy grief, Lenna closed her eyes and succumbed to sleep.
Chapter forty-one
Esmeray
Thenapwasmuchneeded after diving into the Prism, but my body and my heart still felt heavy. I searched through the drawers, finally finding the sweater I had been thinking about since resurfacing from the past.
It was old and well loved, the black knit stretched out at the hem. The back was open, roomy around my wings, with a strip of fabric that connected the base of the sweater to the nape of my neck. But the scent on the sweater was why I needed it. It still smelled like Keerian. I bundled the extra length of the too-long sleeves into my hands, bringing them up to my face to inhale his scent. Leather and dew-covered forests. I couldn’t stop the tears blurring my vision.
Keerian’s sweater came down to the middle of my thighs, so I added some soft black leggings underneath. My hair was a mess, the normally straight locks tangled. With some effort, I tamed the flyaway pieces from the curls of my horns and wrapped my hair into a bun on the top of my head.
The smells coming from the kitchen were divine, and I could hear Sparrow’s lively chatter drifting into my room. I wiped away the tear that escaped before it made its way down my cheek. With a deep breath, Iheaded towards the motley of voices coming from the kitchen. It was time to begin planning. But I already knew what I had to do.
And it didn’t involve risking the lives of any of the beings residing in Sparrow’s home that I found myself growing closer and closer to.
“Itwouldbestupidto all go in at once. Adara’s probably waiting on us to do just that. It would be suicide without the proper precautions.”
We sat at the yellow dining room table. Dinner had been consumed in its entirety an hour ago, and the talk had turned to next steps.
We couldn’t be sure if Adara was aware that I had Merrick, Laurent, Sparrow, and the Oracle on my side. For the sake of the plan, we assumed. My uncle had seen me with them, and I knew his sniveling self would immediately crow that information back to Adara.
“Infiltrating the Opal Palace without knowing what spells Adara could have in place would be stupid.” Merrick nodded his agreement to Laurent. Forgoing a wine glass entirely, the gargoyle was drinking straight from the bottle.
