“If I wake, the shape of that could all change. It depends on a few factors…” He rubbed the back of his neck and paused. His intense stare beckoned me to respond.
Instead, I rose abruptly. “It’s getting late, pet,” I said and bit my cheek. “I shouldn’t keep you.”
Dream Ryn had been wrong. Emmerick deserved the exact shape of his greatest desires.
“Wait. Stay and talk a while?” he asked. Hope coated the question.
“Of course. I’ve nowhere I’d rather be.”
I stayed with him well into the light of morning. By the time I excused myself to begin my day, the tension in my chest had given way to laughter and my anxiety had melted into joy.
Chapter 14
Elsedora
Summer meant warm days, but in the North Corridor no one avoided cool nights. In the parlor, I curled up under a wool blanket on the leather sofa. This remained my favorite room in the house—its viewpoint of the orchard was unmatched. Even at the height of winter, dark-pink blossoms dropped into the pristine snow, creating a magical sight to behold.
Lamoreaux sat nestled between two mountain peaks. The breeze tunneled through the trees and rattled the windowpanes. Darkness blanketed the hillside, obscuring the landscape.
The hearths had roared to life hours ago. I’d grown better with my charms and could light all the fireplaces at once when the temperatures dropped.
I didn’t wish to keep the estate staffed, preferring the quiet respite. Asterie had helped me charm the kitchen to cook on its own. She and my brother had turned the Central Tower into a school for Source-wielders.
I’d never been an outstanding student; I could tell she grew frustrated with me when she had to explain things over and over again.
The flames danced, and I willed my mind to think of anything other than that dreadful dream and the words I’d left unspoken that morning.
Instead, I remembered a time when I’d returned to the fire after a long day playing in the snow. My mother had pulled up a chair behind me and silently combed and braided my frost-tangled hair. The scrape of her fingers against my scalp had soothed away all my young worries. A war grew closer to home. And no matter how hard they tried to hide it, I could feel my parents’ tension heighten. They had stopped allowing me to play past the orchard’s tree line, worried that Phynnic soldiers might pass through the woods.
Lost in my memories, I toyed with my father’s old pocket watch. The gentle tick in my palm, gears turning, calmed me.
Lark popped into the doorway. “Are you alright, Aunt Lora?”
It had been some years since she’d called me that. I’d place a sizable bet that Krait had warned her that I might be withdrawn or need checking on.
I sat up and forced a cheerful tone. “Of course.”
She frowned. “Did you visit the North King today?”
She held something behind her back. I’d noticed some of the romance novels had gone missing from the shelves; she was approaching an age where love likely seemed romantic.
I sighed. “No. Not today.”
Well, technically, Ihad—though telling my niece that I’d snuck off to the King’s beside in the dark hours of morning would only earn me a knowing smirk.
The spitfire took after her mother. Meddlesome creatures, the two of them.
The idea of returning to Luz that afternoon had tempted me. It always improved my mood to see Emmerick’s face, to hear his voice… That felt selfish now.
Sulking here had won out.
Cass and Wyeth had kept Lark busy most of the day, and then she’d gone up to her room to study for the past few hours.
“I quite enjoy reading to him still. We can go tomorrow,” she offered.
“I’d like that very much. Why are you up so late?”
She shrugged. “I got caught up in a new spell book and couldn’t put it down.”
