Page 3 of Veil of Night & Flames

I grimace. I mostly slept through my freshman history lectures, but I read enough to know that being a queen is all about power. The power she has—and the power others want to acquire.

Which means it would probably be wise to avoid corridors that pop up in places they didn’t use to be. A solid rule of thumb for the newly-almost-royal, right?

But I’ve never claimed to be wise. I mean, how can I just walk away when I’m certain I saw my mother? When she might be down this hallway, tucked into bed. Or, for that matter, maybe I misread the situation, and she’s Kali’s prisoner. It wasn’t as if I could hear what they were saying. And if that’s the case, I need to help her.

Except I know perfectly well that she’s not here. She’s dead. This may be a Nightmare Realm, but it’s not the home of the walking dead.

All true, and yet I pay my errant thought no mind. Instead, I take a step into the corridor, then another and another. I continue, growing bolder with each step. After all, I’m pretty sure a queen can go where she pleases.

Torches line the polished stone walls, illuminating the corridor and also casting eerie shadows that seem to be thrown from nothing at all. Nightmare Realm, I remind myself, then soldier on.

The corridor curves, finally ending at an ornate door made of dense, dark wood with a silver handle cast in the form of a sleeping dragon. The wood itself is ornate, carved with a mish-mash of symbols, none of which means a thing to me. Runes, maybe?

I step closer, overcome with the urge to know what’s beyond that door. I tug on the silver dragon, then shift gears and push, but it’s locked tight.

Frustrated, I press my palm against the largest carving the way I’ve seen Adric open doors in this place.

Nothing. Zip. Nada.

I’m about to pull my hand away when I feel it pulse. A hint of warmth. And then—oh, holy hell—the ring on my finger flares hot, and I yank my hand back, certain my skin must be charred.

But no. It’s fine. The pain is already gone, leaving just the pressure of the metal band around my finger. Exactly the way a ring is supposed to feel.

I rub my thumb across the band, thinking. Maybe I brushed my hand over a plant that humans shouldn’t touch? Weird Nightmare Realm nectar? Something normal—or normalish—like that?

Must be. Because the ring’s just a ring. I was there when Mom made it, after all. And it’s the only tangible thing of hers I have left.

I glance back down the strange corridor. Time to pack it in. I’ve definitely reached my snooping quota for the day. And, honestly, I want to get back to Chase. Because even though I want to add Adric to the list of folks I trust, he’s still the Nightmare King, with all the baggage that comes with that title. Which means that my spaced-out and captive uncle and sexy mare-hunting boyfriend are the only people in this entire castle I really, truly, and completely trust. And right now, Chase needs me.

More than that, I need him, too.

Chapter

Two

My pace is brisk as I head back to the suite I’m sharing with Chase. Or, rather, the suite I’m sharing for one more night.

I grimace, pushing down an uncomfortable combination of regret and longing. Regret because I know Chase will be hurt by the betrothal. Longing because it turns out I’m a total slut-puppy who really and truly wants both these men. And I need to quit dwelling on that and just deal with the new reality that is my life.

Right, I think, forcing both men out of my mind and turning to more practical thoughts. Like getting familiar with the castle, even though I fully intend to get the hell out of here after tomorrow’s ceremony. Like the Beatles, I want to get back to where I belong. To Tia and college and my normal life.

As I walk, I glance around, taking in the high ceilings and the massive hearth with a roaring fire. From what I can see, there’s no actual wood in the fireplace, so there’s a question. And the shadows that twist along the floor before getting lost against the dark walls don’t seem to be cast from anything solid. For that matter, they seem strangely alive.

Okay, then…

I take a step away from the shadows. Then another one, just for good measure.

I take another look around from this new vantage point and see the tapestries hanging above the hearth, some looking like battle scenes, others like maps. The largest shows a dragon mid-flight, its wings spread wide.

Tears prick my eyes as I recall the night I’d witnessed Adric saying goodbye to his favorite dragon, a beautiful creature who’d flown away to wherever it is that ancient dragons go to die. It was, I think, the first real moment of humanity I’d seen in Adric, and that memory still lives in my heart.

Goodbye Soren, I think, only then noticing who’s standing beneath the dragon’s image.

Kali.

Oh, joy.

She’s giving orders to a woman in the crisp, black uniform of the castle’s security staff, and I hurry toward the hallway that leads to my suite, hoping I can get there before she notices me.