Chapter 21
Twenty-One
SENAN
The burrows are…beautiful.
Cramped, yes. Small, certainly. But they’re homey and quaint and far more practical than having to fly half a realm for dinner.
Each home has been built around stones, dirt, and the roots of trees, boasting circular windows fashioned from bent willow branches. These abodes do not insist; they follow the lay of the land, blending in with nature instead of trying to stand out.
As far as I can tell, there doesn’t seem to be any sickness here, which makes no sense. We’ve always been taught that the wasting spreads quickly when living in close quarters. These are some of the closest quarters I’ve ever seen and yet everyone looks perfectly healthy.
Pale and gray, all right, but laughing and smiling and going about their days as if there is no place they’d rather be.
How many times have I heard it preached that the Tuath are jealous fae, that they would overtake our towers in a heartbeat if given the chance?
No one here appears jealous.
If anything, I am jealous of them.
The children run freely from one house to another, kicking a leather ball in the dirt streets. There is more joyful laughter in these caverns than I have ever heard in the halls of Kumulus Castle.
Unlike in Scathian towers, isolating and tall, these neighbors greet each other with conversations about more than the weather or the latest fashion at court.
The Tuath have created a beautiful life here in the ground, with no sun and no magic required.
Allette’s dark curtain of hair sways as she turns in a slow circle, golden eyes scanning the dwellings built into the ground. “This is stunning.”
“It is,” I agree, relief settling in my bones that we won’t be fending off the wasting while we’re searching for Jeston. Not sure my body could handle much more fighting.
Aeron looks angrier than usual, and I think I understand why.
We have been lied to, not only about the source of our magic but also about the Tuath themselves. They’re not helpless and desperate to serve in our towers. They appear content.
“Come on. This way.” Braith waves for us to follow her up the incline, toward where the bulk of the houses have been built. Every single person who passes us stops to speak with Braith, asking after the young woman’s mother and father and so many other names of what I assume are either siblings or cousins that I can barely keep track.
They look at us with interest, but not malice, which makes me like every single one of them. Up the hill we go, past a pub and apothecary, a bakery, and a cobbler.
Who knew such a haven could exist beneath the ground?
The home where Braith stops is the same as all the others except for the green holly wreath nailed to the red door. “Mum? Dad?” she calls, throwing the door aside.
We follow Braith into a cramped living room with a sofa, a worn wing-back chair, and a bevy of large pillows tossed haphazardly in front of a stone fireplace.
A portly woman with cheeks as rosy as the berries on the holly wreath bobbles out of a small kitchen. “Oh, Braith, my girl. What brings you home—” Her gaze lands on us, and her jaw drops.
I wish Aeron would stop scowling for once and try to look amiable. We need these people to help us, not hate us.
“Is that Braith I hear?” A man’s deep voice rumbles from a hallway to our right. The moment he sets foot in the living room, he stops dead, the book in his hand tumbling to the ground.
“Mum, Dad.” Braith steps forward cautiously, taking Allette’s hand and pulling her closer. “This is my friend Wynn. The one from the castle, remember?”
“It’s so good to finally meet you, Wynn,” says the older woman, although her gaze is still bouncing between my brother and me. “I have heard such wonderful things about you. Our Braith was so worried when they took you away. Such an awful thing to happen.”
Allette’s open, friendly smile seems to set Braith’s mother at ease. “It was awful but ended up being a terrible misunderstanding.”
With a deep breath, Braith reaches for Aeron. Although he scowls down at where she grips his wrist, he steps forward. “And this is my friend… Terrence.”
Ha! Terrence! Brilliant. Looks like Terrence is not impressed by the sudden name change.
Come to think of it, he kind of looks like a Terrence.
Braith turns to me. “And this is?—”
“Simon,” I say, holding my hand out to Braith’s father before she can come up with some terrible name for me like Anton or Filben.
The older man takes my hand with obvious reluctance, giving me the slowest shake in the history of fae kind. “It’s nice to meet you, Simon.” He nods to Aeron. “And you, Terrence. What brings you to the burrows?”
“They need to speak to Jeston,” Braith says. “Have you seen him?”
“I saw him with his aunt this morning,” Braith’s mother answers, bending down to collect her husband’s book with a groan. “Poor Cynthia. She’s in an awful way after losing her Glenn. Such a tragic tale. You know, Glenn Warnick used to be the House Master at Kumulus Castle. What am I saying?” She takes Allette’s hand, giving it a sympathetic squeeze. “You worked there, of course; you already know about him getting fired. Anyway, that’s when the drinking started, you see.”
Braith’s father shakes his head. “Josie, they don’t need to hear the man’s life story.”
Josie pays him no mind, continuing as if he hadn’t interrupted. “As I was saying, the only place hiring were the mines on the other side of the river—you know the ones. They’re not nearly as stable as the ones my Harold oversees here on the eastern bank. Anyway …” She takes a deep breath—which is a good thing since her face is starting to turn blue. “My sister’s husband’s best friend Leonard told her that Glenn was drinking on the job, got lost in one of the ancient shafts, and the roof collapsed right on his head. Killed him stone dead just like that.” She snaps her fingers.
At least now we know who to ask if we need any information. Gods, this woman could talk down a stone wall.
“That is tragic,” Allette says with a somber nod, shooting me a meaningful glance.
I should feel guilty for my role in the man’s downfall, but he brought this upon himself the moment he raised a hand to my girl.
However, this could pose a bit of a problem in convincing Jeston to help us find my missing wife.
“So tragic,” Braith’s mother agrees with a sniffle, dragging a finger beneath her dry eyes. “We’re on our way down to the house now if you’d like to extend your condolences.”
“They don’t know Cynthia, Mum,” Braith says with a sigh. “Can you ask Jeston to come here when he’s finished? I’d like to speak to him without an audience around.”
The older woman’s smile lights up her whole face as she pats her daughter’s cheek. “I’m sure he will appreciate that, my dear. I know how close the two of you have always been, and sometimes grief brings us even closer.”
“Josie…” Braith’s father pinches the bridge of his nose, the ghost of a smile playing on his lips as well.
Braith goes rigid as a post, her expression slipping into a grimace. “Would it be all right if my friends stayed here for a few days? They’re only passing through.”
Aeron’s head whips toward her. If looks could kill, Braith would have expired on the spot. She blinks innocently at my brother like he’s an adorable puppy instead of a snarling wolf in a cage.
Makes me like the woman even more.
“Oh, we wouldn’t want to impose,” Allette says, her hands twisting as she falls back next to me.
“It’s no imposition at all,” Braith’s mother assures. “Simon and Terrence, you boys can stay in Evan & Vaughan’s room. My twins are away for their first year at Devin Academy, you see. The house feels so empty without them.”
It’s been a long time since we were referred to as “boys.” I sort of like it. Makes all the trouble that comes with being a “man” feel a little further away.
“Devin is a good school.” No wonder she looks so proud. Although I wasn’t aware they opened enrollment to Tuath. Good for them. Segregation is such an archaic and asinine practice. Why it still exists in this day and age, I’ll never understand.
“It really is,” Josie agrees. “Wynn, you can have Lettie’s room. She won’t be coming back here with the new baby for a little while. My first granddaughter—of many, I hope.”
By the time Josie finishes speaking, I feel like I need another nap. Braith urges her parents out the door and then ushers us down a dark hallway that smells suspiciously like cabbage.
The last thing I want is to share a room with my brother, but I say nothing out of respect for these people who have so kindly given us refuge.
Braith opens a door at the very end. Here I thought this might not be comfortable.
Boy was I wrong. There are bunk beds attached to the wall! I’ve always wanted bunk beds.
“I call top bunk.”
Aeron shoulders past me, tossing his pack onto the top mattress. “Fuck off with that shite. You’re younger, so you’re on the ground.”
“That’s hardly fair. I called it first.”
When I go to grab the knobby wooden ladder, the prick slides it out of reach so he can climb up instead. “Stop acting like you won’t be sneaking down the hall to your mate every chance you get. At least this way I won’t have to listen to you going up and down the ladder all fucking night.”
A valid point. Wonder where Allette’s room is? Must check it out when I get a chance.
Like the other rooms in the house I’ve seen, this one is small but cozy. Blue quilts on the beds, a matching rug in the center of the stone floor, and two desks along the far wall beneath two round windows. Someone painted the ceiling to resemble the night sky, complete with golden stars that look like they’re made of tiny crystals and a crescent moon. As stunning as the mural is, the constellations are all in the wrong places.
I throw myself onto the bottom bed. The mattress is a little firm, but I can make it work. When I’m tired, I can sleep anywhere. One time, I fell asleep in the middle of dinner. Granted, I was about four or five, but still. “I like it here.”
Aeron snorts. “You would.”
I kick the underside of his bed, biting back a laugh when he curses. This is going to be fun. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means you live in a fantasy world where you think what we want matters.”
“I wish you’d stop grumbling for two minutes and admit you like it too.” I saw the want in his eyes as he took in the simple furniture. This isn’t a tower, nor is it a house. It’s a home .
A home in a nice cozy hole.
“I’d like you to shut the hell up so I can sleep. Some of us didn’t take a nap.”
As if he’ll be in a better mood when he wakes up. He’s as grumpy in the mornings as he is in the evenings. He could sleep for an entire day and still wake up like a briar.
I give the top bed another kick. “What does your wife think of all this?”
“You think I told my wife? I haven’t seen her since I came to town for your wedding. And before you call me a heartless bastard, I did send word that I would be staying to help with diplomatic relations. She’s busy decorating the nursery and probably doesn’t even realize I’m gone.”
How…sad. What should be the most joyous time of his life, and he talks about it as though he couldn’t care less. No doubt, if I were stuck with Leeri, I’d feel the same.
Silence falls between us, and I try to close my eyes, but they keep popping back open.
It’s cold down here.
I miss Allette.
I bet she misses me too.
I roll off the mattress and consider doing something to my now-snoring brother, but figure he’s earned a reprieve since he saved my life.
Leaving him to his slumber, I tiptoe down the hallway, passing the tiny kitchen, the wooden counters overflowing with baskets of veg. There is only one other door closed on this end of the hallway, so I assume it’s where Allette is staying.
When I open the door, I find my girl curled on a white bed beneath a mural of an exquisite rose garden. I slip in next to her, wrap my arms around her, and promptly fall asleep.