Page 82 of Tides of Shadows

I could not bear another word. I withdrew silently, the corridor spinning around me. My father and Cassandra. White City had its own histories, twisted like roots and buried deep beneath marble floors. But now that my father had arrived, it was he who held the Veymaris vote, and Cassandra knew it. I shook off everything I had heard, pushing her words from my mind.

I moved through the palace. By now I knew the palace corridors well. I slipped through the side wing, up the stairs, until I reached the heavy door. I knocked lightly against the shelf to announce myself.

Aidenar lay upon the bed, a fresh bandage wrapped about his wound. He must have been in pain still, for he had not moved from his bed. But when he saw me, a smile touched his lips.

He pushed himself up slightly, resting against the pillows. I sat in the chair by the bed.

“You dress like that,” he rasped with a crooked smile, “and plan to sit so far from me? You don’t need to fear me,” he added, one brow raised. “As you see, I am wounded and quite defenseless.”

“That’s when you are the most dangerous,” I replied with a smile, forcing myself not to stare at his bare chest.

The heat of White City never waned, the nights were heavy and warm, and the candlelight danced across his skin. The play of light on his shoulders and chest made it almost impossible to look away. I remembered the way he was holding my body when we kissed in the garden. The passion, the fire, the desire. But he was hurt and I wanted him to heal, so I shook those thoughts from my mind.

Aidenar told me tales of his youth. At some point, we decided to play cards, and I remembered the night in the gambling house. Perhaps that was the first time he had ever looked at me differently.

I took the deck from the table and joined him on the bed. I taught him the sailors’ games from Thalrock and the strange sayings that came with them.

We played for a long while. I told him of my childhood on the islands, of my father, who made me gut my first salmon, of tempests on the sea, of the trouble I was always finding. I showed him scars from my old adventures.

“I do not know,” he said with a half-smile, “how someone so beautiful can be so brutal. Maybe that’s how you lure the unfortunate men into your nets.” I rolled my eyes at that, though my lips curved despite myself.

Our talk dwindled. Aidenar’s eyes closed more often, weariness crept upon him.

“Stay a while longer,” he whispered as I tried to get up.

He slid lower on the bed until his head rested against my stomach. I froze. His hair brushed softly against my skin.

Slowly, I laid my hand upon his head and stroked his hair. I don’t know how long we lay there. It was as if the world beyond the door didn’t exist. It was strange. We had kissed before, yet this moment felt deeper, as though time bent around us. No pretense, no masks. He was tender and calm. And I… I was surprisingly vulnerable. I had never allowed myself to be so defenseless with anyone before. I felt safe with him.

He took my other hand, kissed its back, and held it against his chest. We lay there in silence until his breathing grew even, peaceful. I waited until he had fallen asleep, then gently slipped away and left the room.

Peter was waiting in the corridor. Without a word, he led me back to my chambers. I didn’t know what he thought of me. But it didn’t matter. Not that night.

Chapter

24

The next day my father came to me with good news. He and his scholars had found on old maps the place where the first settlement once stood, somewhere near White City. There was a chance we might discover a temple of the elements there. In ancient times, there were many such sanctuaries, scattered through every great city, but the centuries had buried them beneath time and forest.

Father decided we would travel there, and he wanted me to come along. He hoped we might sense a trace of power. I couldn’t refuse. We gathered a small group, Kael, Brenn, and a few guards. And set out at dawn, on horseback, while the mist still drifted among the trees. The forest felt endless. Shadows moved between the branches, and now and then I glanced to the side, feeling the echo of that day when the wolves attacked, the memory twisting my stomach. Still, I kept my hands near my daggers, just in case.

After a few hours of riding, father turned in his saddle, a too innocent smile curving his lips.

“So, have you found yourself a suitor yet?” he asked, as though inquiring about the weather.

I nearly fell off my horse. Kael cleared his throat, and Brenn began to cough so hard he nearly cried.

“Father, please,” I groaned. “Can we not talk about this?”

“Not talk about what?” he muttered. “You are my daughter, of age already. I would like to know whether I will live to see my grandchildren.”

“And what if the world is swallowed by darkness and we all die?” I asked solemnly.

“Then it will hardly matter,” he replied calmly. “But if it does not end, I would rather not have my daughter remain in the saved world… an old maid.”

“Father!” I hissed.

“What?” Father shrugged. “I heard about your little story with young Dorthal. I am glad the training did not go to waste.”