Page 34 of Ruin of Revenants

No one ever questioned us when we returned in the royal carriage and sauntered through the halls. I charmed every servant and guard we passed with my brilliant, false smile. They thought I was fun and entertaining, vain and empty, ridiculous and frivolous.

They’d never guess I was sneaking out to disobey my father’s orders—they probably imagined I’d been relieved when he’d pulled all his forces back into the capital. Not meant to be a soldier, I’d overheard some nobles mutter about me, as if they’d ever seen a day of battle in their lives. But they didn’t really judge me for it, not when they were pleased to be in the protected capital, enjoying the revels and pleasures of life as much as me. Instead, they talked about what an entertaining reign I would have when I took the crown, what magnificent parties we would have. They looked forward to the idea of excess without any truly important political matters to concern themselves with.

I swallowed back my disgust and loathing. Of them. Of myself. Of the stunning, confusing female at my side.

When we reached my quarters, I bid Owen and Lily a good day, and, without waiting for the fire demon to join me, threw open the door and vanished into the haven within.

Maybe, the god of death would finally be willing to answer me again.

Chapter Eighteen

Isoria

Archer disappeared into his wing without a backward glance.

With a sinking feeling as I imagined how easy it would have been to escape—if not for our accursed bond—I moved to follow. Lily seized my arm, her touch gentle but desperate.

“Take care of him, Isa,” she murmured. The nickname was unexpected but not unwelcome, like she already accepted me as a friend, even if we had only just met. “He will blind the world with his charm all day and night long, but it’s a mask. He needs you.”

I swallowed back the bitterness rising in my throat, forcing a smile instead. “Of course,” I said, which was the perfect non-answer that allowed me to speak without actually telling her anything. I laid my hand over hers, soft but firm, a silent signal that I understood and needed to leave.

She released me, dipping her head with a sad smile as she met my eyes. Unspoken horrors and pain swam in her look, one that I was sure mirrored my own. Owen glanced between the two of us, his usually somber expression darker than ever. He offered Lily a hand, an uncharacteristically soft look in his brown eyes, and her shoulders sagged in relief as she took it.

His fingers twined with hers, letting her lean against him as they bid me goodnight and walked down the hall.

For a moment, I watched them go, an ache cracking open in my hollow chest. What would I have given for comfort like that? To feel Mama’s warm embrace and listen to her sing in her sweet alto tones? To hear my brother tease me and tell me everything would be all right?

Instead, I entered Archer’s quarters. Each time I blinked, horrible visions flashed through my memory, haunting and terrible.

If there was one thing I could agree upon with Archer, it was that Emberglade needed to be saved. If he had one redeeming quality, it was that he fought for and grieved alongside his people, something his father didn’t seem interested in doing.

But he’d happily watch you and your family burn, I reminded myself.

The anger and hatred didn’t carry the same sharpness it had earlier, but perhaps that was because I was too drained. Too sad, too weary, too horrified. Instead, an overwhelming numbness filled all the places where I should have felt hatred, sorrow…anything.

A part of me was beginning to wonder if, somehow, the death plaguing the kingdom by an unidentified necromancer was also cursing the phoenix shifters’ magic. Maybe, if one problem could be solved, it would help everyone.

After scrubbing myself clean in my tub, I dressed in a light, comfortable nightgown, one of the numerous articles of clothing Orchid had filled my closet with. I longed to search for answers, for a way to save my people. I wasn’t sure if Archer’s library was large enough, but given how weary I was, I couldn’t muster the strength to leave his quarters yet. His would have to do for now.

When I approached the library, Onyx greeted me at the entrance, rubbing against my legs and purring. I scooped him into my arms, pressing my forehead to his and inhaling the sweet scent of his soft fur. He smelled of cozy fires and hope, and the rumble of his belly helped fill some of the hollow spaces in my heart.

Outside the windows, the morning had turned the sky a vibrant blue, but the distant rainforest visible on the outskirts of the city were still wrapped in curling fingers of mist.

Archer ruined the peace of the moment by speaking, warning me that the library was, sadly, occupied already. “I thought you’d gone to bed.”

I stiffened, clinging to his cat while wishing that Archer had remained in his own bedroom. Though it was unreasonable, considering these were all his rooms, I’d come to think of the library as my retreat, and I desperately wanted to be alone.

Though I wanted to snap at him, I didn’t have the energy. Instead, I asked breathlessly, “How can anyone sleep after that? I’m tired, but now that I’ve recovered some strength…” I trailed off, my words trapped in my throat.

He was leaning back in his chair before his writing desk, muddy boots propped up carelessly on the surface beside stacks of books on necromancy, dark magic, and phoenix shifters. His jacket lay across the back of the settee by the fireplace and the top buttons of his shirt were undone, giving me a glimpse of the lines of his throat as he swallowed, drinking deeply from a glass of bloodred wine.

You’re staring, he said into my mind.

Onyx stretched and I set him down, letting him wind between my legs lovingly one more time before prancing back to his master, leaping onto the desktop to settle near one of his boots. I’m wondering why you didn’t choose something more potent, like gold wine.

He snorted. “This is what I had on hand, and I didn’t want to call for a servant. They already find it odd, the hours I keep. Father doesn’t want anyone in Rainsong worrying too much about the troubles outside our barrier.”

“He’s disgusting.”