A man approached from one of the stables, bowing before taking Odin’s reins. If he spoke, I didn’t hear him. If he looked up at us, I didn’t see it.
I felt like I might be sick.
I didn’t protest when Ash dismounted first and lifted his hands to help me down. I barely felt the touch of his hand on my lower back or the soft straw under my feet as he led me outside and toward a side entrance to the castle, tucked behind a staircase.
The windowless door opened to reveal a man with golden-red hair and the same rich, wheatish skin tone. He looked at me with dark brown eyes—eyes that carried a silvery glow behind the pupils. A god. Those luminous eyes shifted to Ash and then back at me. “I have so many questions.”
“I’m sure you do,” Ash answered dryly, looking down at me. “This is Rhain. He’s one of my guards. Like Ector and Saion.”
I forced my lips to move as I looked up into Rhain’s dark eyes. “I’m—”
“I know who you are,” Rhain said, startling me. He raised a brow at Ash. “Which is why I have so many questions. But I know. They have to wait.” He paused as Ash guided me into a shadowy interior stairwell. “Theon and Lailah are inside,” the god added quietly as he followed us.
Ash sighed. “Of course.” He stopped in the narrow space, facing me. “I’d hoped there’d be time before anyone realized you were here. Very few people have…known of you. The ones you’re about to meet, don’t. And I’m sure they will have questions, too.”
“Most definitely,” Rhain agreed.
“Questions that will mostly go unanswered,” Ash stressed, shooting the god a look. “You will be introduced as my Consort, and that is all. Okay?”
Any other time, I would have asked many questions. Instead, I nodded. My hands were trembling slightly as Ash reached around me and pushed open a second door.
The unexpected, intense light caused me to take a step back. I blinked until my eyes adjusted. The light was as bright as sunshine, and for a moment, I thought it had been Ash glowing again with power. But it wasn’t.
I looked up at a glittering chandelier of cascading glass candles hanging in the center of an entryway. There was no flame. The candles glowed a bright yellow, nonetheless, as did the sconces on black pillars that stretched upward onto the second floor.
“It’s Primal energy,” Ash explained, seeing what I stared at. “It powers the lighting throughout the palace and Lethe.”
Speechless, I dragged my eyes from the lights. A curved staircase sat on each side of the space, facing one another. Their railings and steps were carved from shadowstone. Beyond the staircases and through a wide, sharply pointed archway was an expansive room.
“Come.” Ash nudged me forward, and I took a tiny step when two people drifted out from the room and walked under the arch.
What I saw stopped me from moving another step and had me really considering if I had, perhaps, unintentionally smoked the White Horse.
A tall male and female stood before me, dressed in the same clothing style as Ash, except their silver-brocaded tunics were long-sleeved. The male wore his hair in neat, braided rows along his scalp, and the female’s was braided straight back and cascaded beyond her shoulders. They were of the same height and shared the same rich black complexion and wide-set, golden eyes. Their features were nearly identical. The male’s brow was broader, and the cheekbones on the female were more angular, but it was clear they were twins. I’d never seen twins before—not even fraternal twins—but it wasn’t them I stared at.
There was…a purplish-black, winged creature about the height of a medium-sized dog beside them, flapping its leathery wings as it nudged the female’s hand with its head.
They stopped when they saw me.
I knew my mouth was hanging open. I couldn’t close it because there was a tiny draken standing between them.
“Hello.” The female drew the word out as her widened eyes flicked to Ash. “Your Highness?”
Ash’s hand remained on my lower back. “Theon. Lailah. This is Sera. She is a guest.”
“I sort of figured she was a guest,” Theon remarked. “Or at least I hoped you didn’t decide to start following the family tradition of kidnapping mortal girls.”
Wait. What?
Ash’s jaw hardened. “Unlike some, nothing about that is appealing to me.”
“Is she a special friend?” Lailah asked.
“Actually, yes. She is…” He seemed to take a deep breath and prepare himself. “She is to be my Consort.”
The two stared at us.
Several long moments stretched while the small draken’s head swung side to side.
“I have a question,” Lailah announced as she scratched the draken under the chin. The creature let out a trilling purr. “Well, I have several questions, starting with why does your Consort look like she was thrown from the mortal realm into ours?”
Did I look that unkempt? I glanced down at myself. The hem of my cloak ended at my calves, exposing blood-stained feet. Through the halves of the cloak, the night rail hung limply. I didn’t even want to know what my hair looked like or what might cover my face.
“I didn’t throw her into this realm,” Ash grumbled. “There was an incident before we arrived here.”
“What kind of incident?” Rhain asked from where he leaned against one of the pillars.
“One that is no longer an issue.”
Interest sparked in Lailah’s eyes. “Do tell.”
“Maybe later,” Ash answered.
Her brother now raised a hand. “I have questions, too.”
“And I don’t care,” Ash replied. Rhain coughed under his breath. “Do you two have nothing to do? If not, I am sure there is plenty you could be doing.”
“Actually, we were about to take little Reaver-Butt here out for some airtime.” Lailah grinned as the draken let out a squawk of agreement.
“The draken’s name is Reaver-Butt?” I blurted.
Lailah laughed softly as she sent me a quick smile. “His name is Reaver,” she said, and he hopped on his hind legs. “But I like to add the butt part. He seems to enjoy it, too.”
“Oh,” I whispered, fingers itching to reach out and pet the small draken. At this size, it was nowhere near as frightening as Nektas.
“Then why don’t you two get on with that?” Ash suggested.
Grinning, Theon bowed his head. “As you wish.” His sister joined him, strolling forward. As he neared me, the god bowed once more and spoke, lowering his voice. “Blink twice if you have been kidnapped.”
Lailah grinned and sent Ash a long, sideways look. “Or just blink.”
I almost blinked because it was clear they were teasing Ash—a Primal who had gods strung up on the walls outside his palace.
“Go,” Ash ordered, and I turned as they moved on, my attention focused on the small draken teetering on Lailah’s shoulder.
“That’s a baby draken,” I said.
Ash looked down at me. “Draken don’t hatch the size of Nektas, and Reaver would be highly annoyed if he heard you refer to him as a baby.”
“I would hope not, considering that would be one hell of a large egg,” I retorted. “I just…” I trailed off, shaking my head and folding my arms over my waist. I felt like my head was going to explode.
“Seeing any draken, large or small, must be a shock,” Rhain commented, and I peeked over at him. His golden-red hair was a flame against the darkness of the pillar. “I imagine it will continue to be a shock for some time.”
I nodded tentatively. “I think it will be.”
The god smiled faintly.
Ash shifted so he halfway blocked Rhain. “Why are you still here?” he demanded of the god.
“I figured since Saion wasn’t here, I would undertake the honor of annoying you,” he replied, his tone flat.
The Primal let out a low rumble of warning. My breath caught. Rhain had to know about the gods on the Rise, as did the twins. Would any of them really want to annoy Ash?
<
br /> “I actually have a valid reason for hanging around. I need to talk with you.” Rhain pushed off the pillar as I peeked around Ash. His face was set in taut, drawn lines. “It’s important.”
And, obviously, it was also something he didn’t want to speak about in front of me.
Which was annoying.
Ash nodded and looked down at me, about to speak, but he narrowed his eyes. He moved quickly, folding his hand over my biceps. I jerked at the contact. He turned my arm slightly. “What caused this bruise? I meant to ask about it earlier.”
“What?”
“This bruise. It’s an older one,” he stated, and I looked at my arm. Tavius. Gods. I’d forgotten about him and the bowl of dates. “How did this happen?”
“I walked into something.” I tugged on my hand.
“You don’t strike me as the type to walk into things.”
“How would you know?” I demanded, pulling on my arm again.
Ash lowered his chin. “Because you’ve appeared very sure-footed and precise in your movements.”
“That doesn’t mean I don’t have moments of clumsiness.”
“Really?” He held on for a moment longer but then let go.
I folded my arm back to my waist. “Really.”
“This is entertaining,” Rhain commented.
Ignoring the god, Ash’s piercing stare remained fixed on me. “You must have walked into it pretty hard to create that bruise.”
“Must have,” I muttered, nervously taking in the large entryway. There were no statues, no banners or paintings. The walls were as bare as the floor, cold and desolate.
And this was to be my…home? For how long?
As long as it took.
A bone-deep weariness settled into me, and I became aware of the ache in my temples, which seemed to match the steady throbbing in my shoulders and back. I had no idea if my legs had felt this weak for a while, or if that was something new. It took everything in me to remain standing.
“Hey.” Ash’s fingers pressed under my chin, startling me.
“What?”
“I asked if you were hungry.” His gaze searched mine intently. “You must not have heard me.”
Was I hungry? I wasn’t sure. I shook my head.
His regard was so singularly focused on me that I wondered if he could see beyond the surface. “How is your back feeling?”
“Okay.”
He continued staring and then nodded as he hooked a finger around a wayward curl that had fallen forward before carefully tucking it back. The tender act reminded me of the lake, and I didn’t understand how his touch could be so gentle when he impaled gods on the Rise.
Ash tilted his head back and then turned to the archway. “Aios?”
I turned as a woman stepped out from beyond the archway. I blinked, yet again feeling as if I were hallucinating. She was…good gods, she was beautiful. Her face was heart-shaped, eyes a bright citrine with thick lashes, plump lips, and high and full cheeks. She crossed into the entryway, smoothing several strands of vibrant red hair back behind an ear before clasping her hands over the midsection of a long-sleeved, gray gown cinched at the waist with a silver chain.
Aios stopped before us, bowing slightly. “Yes?”
“Can you please show Sera to her room and make sure she has food sent to her and a bath readied?” Ash asked.
The desire to tell him that he didn’t need to speak for me died on the tip of my tongue. He’d said “please” to who I assumed was a god. But maybe she was a household servant of some sort. To many, the use of the word seemed like a common courtesy, but growing up around nobles and the wealthy, I knew that too few ever spoke it. And I honestly didn’t expect it to come from the lips of someone who had impaled gods on his wall as a horrific warning.
Then again, I would never have expected such a sight from Ash.
“Of course. I’ll be happy to.” Aios turned to me. She blinked rapidly and then her expression cleared. “Yes. Definitely a bath.”
My lips pursed, but before I could say a word, she hooked an arm through mine. The same strange jolt of energy nearly overshadowed the ease with which she touched me.
Aios’s brows lifted as her gaze flew to the Primal. “Nyktos…”
“I know,” he said, and he sounded weary. I glanced at Ash, wanting to hear what he knew, but he spoke first. “I’ll return to you in a little bit. You can trust Aios.”
I didn’t trust any of them, but I nodded. The sooner I was alone to think, the better. Surely, this ache in my temples would fade by then. Ash remained there for a moment, his eyes deepening to the shade of a thundercloud. He turned stiffly, joining Rhain. They headed beyond the archway.
“Come,” Aios insisted softly, leading me toward the staircase.
The stone of the steps was cool under my feet as we climbed and then headed to our left.
“The room has been readied for you. Well, it’s been ready for quite some time and dusted frequently just in case. I think you will find it most pleasing,” she said, and my head jerked to hers. She appeared as if she were my age, but I knew that could be incredibly misleading. “It has its own adjoining bathing chamber and balcony. It’s quite a handsome room.”
Several things occurred to me at once. “How did you know I was coming?”
Aios’s gaze flicked away from me. “Well, I didn’t know for sure. I just knew there was a chance.”
For her to have expected me, she must have some knowledge of the history. “You knew about the deal?”
“I did,” she said, smiling brightly as she ushered me beyond a second flight of stairs.
“Can you tell me how long you knew there was a chance?”
“A couple of years,” she announced as if that meant nothing, but it said a whole hell of a lot.
We continued to the fourth floor. From there, she steered me toward a wide hall lit by sconces with frosted glass globes. The walls were otherwise bare.
We passed a set of black-painted double doors with some kind of silver, swirling design etched into the center. Aios stopped at the next set of double doors, ones that were identical to the only other set I could see in the entire hall.
“Are there no other rooms on this floor beside the one we passed?” I asked as she fished a key from the pocket of her gown.
“There is only one room in the other wing, but most guests stay on the third or second floors.” She unlocked the door, and I glanced over my shoulder at the doors down the hall.
“What about the staff—you?”
A look of confusion briefly pinched her striking features. “I am not staff.”
“I’m sorry.” I could feel my face reddening. “I just assumed—”
“It’s okay. Anyone would assume that. There is no staff.”
“Well, now I’m confused,” I admitted.
A faint smile appeared. “There are those of us who help out because we choose to. We’ve sort of…forced our assistance upon Nyktos,” she said, and it was a little jarring to hear her use his real name. “Otherwise, Haides would be a mess, and he would probably never eat.”
I could only stare.
“Anyway, I tend to be around during the day.” She laughed. “I know. It doesn’t look like day outside, but you’ll see that the skies do tend to darken as the hours pass.”
“Wait.” I needed to make sense of this. “You help, acting as household staff by choice, but you’re not paid?”
“We don’t need to be paid. Nyktos provides for those who see to Haides’ functionality. Actually,” she said, her brow pinching, “everyone you will come across here and in Lethe are well provided for, even if they do have more official responsibilities.”
“Well provided for?” I repeated those words as if they were a language I didn’t understand.
“Shelter. Food,” she said, lips parting as if she wished to add more to the list but then changed her mind. Her smile turned a bit brittle. “But to answer your other question, no one else lives here.”
“Not even the god downstairs? Rhain?”
“No, he has a home in Lethe.”
“What about the men and women near the wall—I mean, the Rise? The draken?”
“The guards? They have their own quarters—a dormitory of sorts between here and Lethe,” she explained, gripping the handle. “The draken also have homes.”
Only Ash lived in this enormous palace? Normally, the core staff and a set of guards resided within a residence. “Why does no one else live here?”
Aios’s smile finally faded away. “It wouldn’t be safe for them to do so.”
Chapter 23
Icy fingers trailed down my spine. “What do you mean by it wouldn’t be safe?”
“Well, Nyktos wouldn’t want—” Aios’s eyes widened as she twisted toward me. “I’m sorry. I just realized how that sounded.” She laughed, but there was a nervous quality to it. “You see, all manner of people need to speak with His Highness, and some of them can be a bit…unpredictable. Of course, you are completely safe here.”
“Really?” I said doubtfully.
She nodded emphatically. “Yes. It’s just that Nyktos likes his privacy, and it’s…it’s better this way.” Turning back to the door, she pushed one side open and then motioned me inside before disappearing into the darkness.
I didn’t believe for one second that she had misspoken, but I took a tentative step inside as light appeared from another stunning, glass chandelier hanging from the center of a massive space.
A couch, a settee, and two armchairs in what appeared to be a lush, cream velvet were on one side of the room. A small, circular, low-to-the-floor table sat in the middle of the sitting area. Behind it, near curtained doors, was a table with two high-back chairs and a clear vase full of some kind of blue and gray stones. A chaise was positioned in front of an enormous fireplace, and it looked as if it were made of the finest, luxurious material dyed to a shade of ivory. A plush rug sat under the chaise. There was even a basket full of rolled blankets.
I turned slowly, my heart dropping upon seeing a four-poster, canopied bed that would’ve made Ezra’s appear fit for a child. The room had a large wardrobe against the wall by a window. There were three more sets of double doors: one beyond the sitting area, a set near the table, and another past the bed.
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