The Betrothed (The Betrothed #1)(25)

Thirteen




BY THIS POINT IN THE night, I knew the moon would be shining through the stained-glass windows of the Great Room. I passed corners where couples whispered and giggled, and I was bowed to by guards and servants working at even this late hour.

In the Great Room, the fire from the wide hearth was down to glowing embers, and a lone servant was stoking it, getting the last bits of heat where he could. I stood in the middle of the archway, looking at the explosion of color on the floor. Nothing, of course, could match the way the colors danced in the roaring light of day, but there was something other, something almost sacred about the way they fell by moonlight. Still the same designs, the same patterns, and yet quieter, more deliberate.

“Is that you, Lady Hollis?”

I turned. The person I’d thought was a servant at the fire was actually Silas Eastoffe.

Of course he was here. In the moment when I was wondering if it would be worth abandoning my king, I ran into someone who’d done something similar to his. And who could say which of us was a better criminal?

He might be the worst person I could have come upon. Not just because he too had been tempted to the life of a traitor—tempted and succumbed—but because there was something about those blue eyes that made me think . . . I couldn’t even say what they made me think.

I tried to look dignified, as if my night robe was the same as a gown in my eyes. It was difficult under the weight of his stare. “Yes. What are you doing up at such an hour?”

He smiled. “I could ask the same of you.”

I stood taller. “I asked first.”

“You really are going to be queen, aren’t you?” he said in a teasing tone. “If you must know, someone thought it would be a good idea to make two matching pieces of metalwork for two great kings in a single day . . . Sullivan and I only stopped working about twenty minutes ago.”

I bit my lip, my attempts at being aloof vanishing before my guilt. “I’m so sorry. When I said that, the date of the visit had completely slipped my mind. It’s taken me by surprise as well.”

“Has it? My mother said you were quite a willing student today.” He crossed his arms and leaned sideways against the wall, as if this were an everyday meeting, as if he knew me so well.

“Willing, yes, but good? That remains to be seen.” I pulled my robe a little tighter. “I’ve never been the brightest of the girls at court. If I ever forget that fact, Delia Grace reminds me. Or my parents. But your mother and Scarlet were quite patient with me today. I may need them to come by again tomorrow. I mean, today, I suppose.”

“I can tell them if you like.”

“You’ll also have to tell them I’ve moved.”

“Moved? In a day?”

“In an hour.” I brushed my hair back and swallowed, trying not to sound as irritated as I felt. “King Jameson moved me into the queen’s apartments tonight. I don’t think my parents even know about it yet. I have no idea how the privy council is going to take it once the news becomes public.” I rubbed at my forehead, trying to smooth the wrinkles of worry away. “He wanted me to look the part before King Quinten arrives. I have jewels coming. He mentioned some new dresses. And suddenly, I have new rooms. . . . It’s all a bit much,” I confessed.

“Isn’t this what you want, though? You will be the best kept woman in the kingdom.”

I sighed. “I know. So I’m not sure what . . .” I paused. I was telling this boy far too much. He was a stranger and a foreigner. Who was he to ask about my life? But in that same moment, I realized I’d rather talk to him about my troubles than anyone else, even the people who were truly meant to know everything about me. “I suppose it’s not the gifts I’m receiving, but the pace at which they’re coming. You’re quite right, I have everything I could ask for and more.”

His smile didn’t seem as genuine as it had before. “Good.”

I could sense an ending coming that I wasn’t prepared for, so I quickly changed the subject. “How are you settling in? Are you enjoying Coroa so far?”

He smiled. “I knew the food would be different, and the air would smell different, and that the laws are different. It’s just, in the past, when I’ve visited, I’ve always known I was going home. I don’t mean to seem ungrateful. I’m thankful His Majesty let us stay for more reasons than I can even list. But there are times I’m sad, knowing I won’t ever see Isolte again.”

I bent my head down and softened my tone, coaxing him to be more positive. “Surely you’ll go back to visit. You have family there still, yes?”

He gave me a very thin smile. “I do. And I’ll miss them. But when we see King Quinten tomorrow, I hope, with all of my heart, it will be the last time I ever lay eyes on that man.”

Something about his words sent a chill through me, and I realized they were strangely similar to what Jameson had said.

“If he’s so awful, then I shall wish for that myself. And for your family’s happiness for as long as you live in Coroa.”

“Thank you, my lady. You are the gem everyone says you are.”

I wanted to tell him that, to my knowledge, no one but Jameson thought I was a gem. But it was such a kind thing to say, I didn’t want to spoil it.