Page 67 of A Veil of Gods and Kings

Two tired but happy young men.

Bathed in a dip of dimming light.

“Maybe,” I whispered, “the same is true for me too. You’ve surprised me as well.”

He lifted his face again, and an expression as delicate as jasmine petals fluttered across the surface of it. For a moment, I saw him. Really saw him. Not the veneer, or the deity, or the roles he played. But his soul. Something about it shined.

I leaned in towards him, the tang of sweat biting into the air. I parted my lips to speak, but his expression faltered. He jumped out of his seat. “I like your friends as much as the game. Turns out all high lords aren’t complete assholes.”

I rose, crossing my arms. “Like me, you mean?”

He grinned, the sparkling charm so alluring, so fake, swelling around him again. “I’m afraid I’ve already captured that title. You’ll have to pick something else.”

We trailed along the path, our feet crunching. “Such as what?” I said.

“Harbinger of terrible fashion.”

I clicked my tongue. “I think you’re jealous.”

“Even your friends believe your clothes are awful.”

“They do not.” The soft material of my shirt brushed over my fingers.

“They definitely do.” He bumped his shoulder into mine, and sparks flew through my limbs. “Don’t worry, in some strange way your outfits suit you.” We reached an entrance, and he cocked his head to the side. “Well, today has been better than I expected. We’ll do it again tomorrow?”

“Sounds good.”

He disappeared behind the door.

But I remained outside, staring at the moon and attempting to shake off the blood coursing through my veins, brushing away the way my heart had pattered when he’d said the clothes suited me.

No, Cyn. Get a hold of yourself.

But my shoulder still tingled where he’d knocked against me.

22

Epiphany

“We have one more issue though,” I said, kicking my feet from my perch in the hayloft, dust fluttering up with the motion.

Valerian’s expression pinched. He leaned against a beam, his arms crossed. Temi sat cross-legged beside me, a knife balanced on her fingertip. She snapped her wrist, tossing the blade and catching it before sheathing it. “What is it?”

“How are we going to get me out of the palace? It’s not like the guards will let me traipse through the gate.”

Temi clenched her jaw, tracing her finger over the grain of the wood by her foot. “I’ll think of something.”

Valerian’s eyes had darted between the two of us while we’d talked. He pushed up off the beam and sighed. “That’s an issue I can help with.”

“It is?” I said.

He winced but nodded. “Are we planning to go tomorrow morning?”

“Ideally, yes,” Temi said.

Val clomped over the floor to the ladder and descended until just his face peaked over the edge. His gaze darted between the two of us but landed on me for a lingering heartbeat before he spoke again. “Meet me at the south servant’s hallway at first light.”

Temi inclined her head. “All right.”