“And have you come here to speak with me about Reyna?”
“I have come to apologize for my past actions. I cannot change them now, but I can say I am sorry for any pain I have caused.”
She stared at him. Based on what Reyna had told her about the Battle for the Shard, he had certainly meant it at the time. “Your apology has been heard. However, that does not mean I will agree to be your wife.”
“Of course not,” he answered, far more kindly than she expected. He turned his attention back onto the books, gazing around the library as if it were a strange curiosity he had never before seen. “The servants say you spend a great deal of time here. I expected to find these shelves packed full of fiction, but I see a number of historical tomes instead.”
“Yes,” she answered stiffly. “I am researching our past in order to save our future.”
He cast her a strange glance. “How do you mean?”
She gestured at the walls of books. “Somewhere, there must be information that can provide answers about the Ruin. I maintain that this strange, destructive magic came from somewhere. If I can find the truth in these pages, perhaps I can save this kingdom.”
“Ah.” He gave her another kind smile. It unnerved her. “And you could save your sister.”
“My sister has rejuvenated my search.”
“How many of these books have you read so far?” he asked. “And have you found anything useful as of yet?”
She winced and turned away. “I have read them all, and I have not found a damn thing.”
“All of them?” He strode further into the circular room, surprise in his golden eyes. “And you have found nothing?”
“Nothing that offers hope,” she said with a sigh. She held out her book and scanned the words on the cover.The Realm of Ashes by Juzeth Dubh.It specifically spoke of the dark magic that had destroyed the Fire Court and left it in smoking ruins. Eislyn had been so thrilled when she had found this book in a market on the eastern shores of the Ice Court. She had been certain that whatever had destroyed the fiery kingdom had found its way into the Ice Court’s lands. Ash and ruins, unseen flames and blackened husks.
But the tome had provided very few answers. The author had written it fifty years after the horror and did not know the truth of it either.
If she could somehow find a survivor…but she knew she couldn’t. The Fire Court had been destroyed five hundred years ago, and fae no longer lived as long as they once had. Without magic to prevent ageing, their world was fading fast.
“I may be able to offer you some hope,” Thane said, pulling Eislyn out of her troubled thoughts. He had wandered back over to the center of the library and had tipped back his head to gaze up at the glass ceiling. Overhead, the clouds had scuttled into the darkness and brilliant starlight cast a silvery glow onto Thane’s upturned face.
“You?” She frowned. “Because you will pledge to send your armies here to tackle the problem? I do not think brute strength is the solution to destroying the Ruin. Its nature is of magical origin. We need our own magic to return to us. We do not need swords.”
“I do not speak of swords,” he countered. “Have you not heard of the great libraries of the Air Court? In our capital city alone, we have twelve.”
Her eyes almost bugged out of her head. “Twelve libraries in a single city?”
“Yes, Eislyn. Twelve.” He gave her a broad smile. “Each one five times larger than the one you have here. If it is answers you seek, then answers you shall find.”
“In the Air Court,” she said, frown deepening. “I suppose you are trying to dangle your libraries in front of me, hoping I will agree to become your betrothed.”
“That is how matches are made,” he replied. “There is something that you want, and I happen to have it.”
She arched her brows. “Ah, but what is it thatyouwant, Prince Thane?”
He cocked his head. “An alliance with your court.”
“Yes, but why?” she probed further.
“To combine our strength, put an end to the war between all of the kingdoms, and rule over all of Tir Na Nog.”
She drew herself back and lifted her chin. “That is what I suspected. You are everything I thought you were, Prince Thane.”
“You do not approve of ambition?” He glanced around. “Tell me, do you not wish for your name to be written in books, celebrating your accomplishments when you rid the realm of the Ruin?”
“No,” she said fiercely, curling her hands into fists. “I do not want to end the Ruin for my sake. Do your people mean nothing to you? Does peace not matter? Or is it all king, king, king? Power and status and wealth?”
He flinched and stepped back. “Of course I wish for peace.”
