15
Eislyn
Eislyn gazed out the window, tears rolling down her cheeks. She crumpled the letter in her hand, and the parchment scratched against her fingers. The late afternoon Tairngire skies were slate grey, devoid of all color and light. Just like her heart.
She whirled toward Reyna, who stood solemnly in the center of Eislyn’s private drawing room, Wingallock perched on her shoulder. Despite the weeks spent in the company of air fae, Reyna had never looked moreReynathan she did now. Most of the air fae courtiers preferred to wear their hair up and away from their faces, to highlight their many jewels, but Reyna still let her strands be loose and wild around her shoulders. The silver mane even seemed defiant in the way it moved. She wore a gown, just as she did every day at court, but she had stuck to silver and blue hues instead of yellows, golds, and oranges.
“How has Glencora gotten worse?” Eislyn asked, indicating the letter they’d received from Father only moments before. “She survived the Ruin. If it didn’t kill her, shouldn’t she improve?”
“I do not know, Eislyn,” Reyna said softly, her own eyes glassy from unshed tears. Eislyn knew her sister was trying to be strong, for her.
“What can we do?” she asked, her voice rising. “How can we stop this? We’re stuck inside this castle, forced to carry on as if nothing is wrong!”
The two of them had been heavily monitored since the moment they had stepped foot inside of Dalais Castle. They were constantly surrounded by servants and guards and required to attend daily mass and court. Eislyn had managed to beg out of a few days spent inside the Great Hall with the rest of the courtiers, including the first morning when she’d felt far too overwhelmed, but there had been little relief.
“I don’t know.” Reyna scowled and absently reached up to ruffle Wingallock’s feathers. “I asked the High Queen for assistance today. She denied me.”
Eislyn bugged out her eyes. “Shedeniedyou? But…that was part of our agreement. They were to help us with the Ruin as part of the alliance.”
“The prince was to be wed to Glencora as part of the alliance as well. It seems that while the High Queen approved of our perfect eldest sister, she does not approve of me.”
Eislyn’s heart dropped. “Please. Do not tell me that means…”
Her time spent on the Rowan Road had convinced her that Thane wasn’t quite the monster she had once thought he was. A cruel, terrible male who wished to burn down the world he was not. But that didn’t mean he wasgoodeither. And the idea of the betrothal transferring from Reyna to her gave her dread.
Reyna crossed the room and took Eislyn’s trembling hands into hers. She was so calm and steady, like a patch of ice amidst a desert. Wingallock hooted and lifted into the air, settling comfortingly on Eislyn’s shoulder. The owl pushed his soft face against hers and rubbed her cheek with his feathers. Eislyn’s racing heart immediately began to steady.
“Listen to me. We will make this work. I came here to marry the prince, regardless of his mother. And you came here to find answers about the Ruin. We can still do that. Have you begun your search of the castle library?”
Eislyn shook her head. “Our days are so full. Every time I mention it, my lady’s maid bustles me off to another event. I have begged out of court on a few different occasions, but then they make me rest inside these chambers. If I’m too weary for court, then I am too weary to do anything else, according to them.”
With a grim smile, Reyna nodded. “I have not wandered the castle freely either. Even in a walk through the castle gardens, I am watched.”
“They don’t trust us,” she whispered.
Reyna cast a glance over her shoulder at the door. “We need to get you inside that library.”
“Yes, but how?” Eislyn knew at least one guard stood outside. Perhaps even two, since Reyna had come.
Her sister smiled. “I will go into the corridor and create a distraction. You run in the opposite direction, quickly. They’ll never know that you have gone.”
“Reyna,” Eislyn gasped. “You will get me thrown into the dungeons.”
Her sister gave her a frank look. “They cannot throw you into the dungeons for exploring your new home. You will be searching for a library. That’s hardly scandalous. Or illegal. In fact, it’s so innocent that I wish we had thought of it before now.”
“But I don’t even know where the library is.”
“My guess is that it is in one of these six interior towers. Not this one, as it appears to be exclusively private chambers. Perhaps the next one over. Aurelian Tower.”
Eislyn’s heart began to pound hard as she stared at her sister’s calm and unaffected face. She truly was serious about this. What was worse, Eislyn was even considering it.
“Shouldn’t you be the one to do this?” she asked. “Sneaking around, avoiding guards. This leans far more into your strengths.”
“My dear sister, you are the one who has spent years in research. You will know where to look in the library and what to read far better than I would.” Reyna held out her arm, and Wingallock flew to her side. And then her sister’s smile turned wicked. “Come. There is no time to waste.”
Eislyn watched her sister rush to the door, and her heart went wild inside her chest. Fear tumbled through her. A roar filled her ears. She did not do things like this. Distracting guards, rushing into danger. Eislyn preferred to stay inside, where it was safe, where the world couldn’t tear her apart.
But she had left her home behind to come to this strange court. To get access to their libraries. For her people. For the fading life of her sister.
