Page 91 of A Kingdom of Magic and Rain

Tom, on the other hand, grunted in disapproval. “Of course he would be the first one to try to win your favor.”

“Why do you seem less than impressed with him?” I asked him as Inara returned with my coffee.

“Anything to eat, milady?” the maid asked.

The advisers had already finished their breakfast, judging by the mostly empty plates in front of them.

“Yes, eggs and toast. Thank you, Inara.”

After she had walked out again, Tom said, “Nobody likes Finnian because he gained his title by getting the previous lord of that province killed.”

“Killed?” I gasped, appalled.

“That was twenty years ago,” Thea chimed in. “Besides, Finnian didn’t kill Lord Warn; Sorin did because Warn was trying to stage a coup to overthrow him.”

“Finnian was the captain of Warn’s private guard. The lord trusted him, and he betrayed him,” Tom countered.

“For someone who has always been so loyal to the crown, you should appreciate that he exposed Warn’s plans against the king.”

“He only did so for his own personal gain. That male doesn’t do anything that doesn’t benefit him in some way.”

“Oh, just admit that you don’t like him.” Thea waved her hand dismissively. “He’s very handsome,” she added, focusing on me. “You will have to tell me everything about your time with him.” Her eyes became glassy as a wistful smile graced her lips.

Tom’s jaw flexed as he picked up his fork and began stabbing the leftover pieces of meat on his plate.

Thea seemed oblivious to the strange reaction. “What would you like to do today?” she asked me as Inara brought out my meal.

“Well, I was hoping that you and Tom would help me to learn more about Aubrielle,” I said, taking a bite of my toast.

Tom grumbled ‘about time’ under his breath before emitting a low grunt when Thea elbowed him in the ribs. “We would be happy to.” She beamed at me. “Tom, why don’t you go first? We can start with geography.”

He narrowed his eyes at me again as if not trusting that my request was genuine. I stared back at him in silence as I chewed my food.

“All right,” he finally conceded. “I will return momentarily.”

As soon as he had glimmered out, Thea leaned over the table and whispered, “It’s good to have you back.”

Tom returned a few seconds later with a scroll in his hand.

“This is a map of Aubrielle.” He moved his and Thea’s plates out of the way and unrolled the parchment before me on the table. “Our kingdom comprises four provinces, each one named after the ruling lord. We’re here.” He pointed at the capital of Tardor. “The Ariet Province, which is my father’s domain. It’s the only area that borders Emeraldia.”

“Your father… Lord…” I racked my brain for the first name.

“Elwood.” Tom gave me an indignant look. “You met him and my mother, Valynore, at the coronation.”

I pursed my lips, unappreciative of his chastising tone.

“That day was so hectic. It’s not surprising that you don’t remember.” Thea stepped in to mediate the conversation. Her voice was full of understanding. “Allow me to refresh your memory.”

She glimmered out, and while she was gone, I continued to study the map. The Ariet Province bordered the Riestral Province in the west, the Rolamin Province in the north, and the Dellari Province in the south.

“What’s this?” I indicated a small peninsula below the Dellari Province. The isles were surrounded by a body of water, which Emeraldians called the Celestaire Sea. On the Fae map, the waters bore a different name. “What’s this land in the Divided Waters? None of the Emeraldian ships ever made it there to find out. They all got lost at sea.”

“The Eclipse Isles,” Tom replied. “The Isles of Lumen and Nox. They cut themselves off from the rest of the Fae realm right before Oberon became the High King.”

The Eclipse Isles. According to Lady May, the binding spell, which was the cause of Silberium, had come from those lands. Had they cut themselves off because they knew what Oberon was planning to do?

“Here we go.” Thea reappeared at the table. She unrolled the scroll she had brought with her next to the map. The parchment revealed a series of miniature hand-painted portraits with names written underneath. “This is Lord Elwood.” Thea pointed at the portrait of an older man. “And this is his wife, Lady Valynore.”