Chapter 36
Chapter
Thirty-Six
“Congratulations to you both.”
Elias smiled at King Alaric Drachen. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”
“Yes. Thank you, Father,” Gerard said.
Elias and Gerard sat at a special table set up for them at the front of the banquet hall. They’d just finished their meal.
“I am pleased with how the ceremony went. Thankfully there were no difficulties or complications.” The king cleared his throat.
No doubt he was thinking about the first wedding, where Princess Lantana of Botanial had attempted to kill the king, the queen consort, and Lord Barrett Morton. Back then, Elias had assumed that Princess Lantana had not colluded with anyone else.
But since the attack on Luther and Onyx, Elias had wondered a few times if there could be a connection between her failed attempt and Warden Flint’s betrayal. After all, both had despised the dragons and the peace treaty.
However, if they had been working together, there’d been no evidence of it. The letters belonging to Warden Flint had not mentioned Princess Lantana or her attack. And of course, the correspondence had continued after her death, so he wasn’t writing to her.
As a result, Elias could not see how they would have been working together. Still … he could not help but wonder.
The queen consort smiled at them. “I’m sure you both will be very happy together.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty,” Elias said.
The king and queen consort left them. But Elias and Gerard remained seated as Elias’s father and stepmother approached.
Elias took a deep breath and forced a smile.
Emperor Hugo grinned. Apparently, he’d pushed aside the negative interaction they’d had the previous night. His father had a short memory regarding unpleasantness. He never liked to dwell on anything. Like his first wife’s death.
“What an excellent union.” Emperor Hugo looked around. “And what a wonderful wedding banquet!”
Empress Emeline smiled. “Yes. Prince Elias has found someone who—” She paused, gaze fixing on Gerard’s scars and his eye patch. “—appears so well suited for him.”
Gerard tensed. Elias placed a hand on his.
“You look perfectly matched for each other together,” Empress Emmeline said.
But Elias would not engage with her thinly veiled and honestly rather pathetic jab. He would not make the same mistake again so soon after last night.
Elias turned to face Gerard. “I am pleased too.” He smiled, not even looking at the empress. Thankfully his father and stepmother then departed.
Shadow King Lament and Shadow Queen Rue glided towards them. The shadow queen wore a long black dress of lace with silver along the hems. A veil covered her face. The king wore a long black coat with purple buttons. Shadow Prince Wraith and Shadow Prince Harrow came up behind them.
Not for the first time, Elias wondered if the necromancers intentionally tried to be as off-putting as possible to others. Their names, clothing, secretive nature, and of course their magic all made others want to avoid them.
Did the necromancers want others to avoid them? Elias could almost imagine meetings where the necromancers gathered and discussed how best to go about deterring others from getting too close. He suppressed a smile at the thought.
Personally, Elias found them fascinating. He’d learnt practically nothing from reading about necromancy, and he’d had few opportunities to seek necromancers out and speak to them. And when he did manage to talk to a necromancer, they did not open up readily.
But Shadow Prince Wraith was to marry Prince Konrad. That would mean that Elias and the shadow prince would live in the Castle of the Dragons together. Elias might finally have someone with whom he could talk about necromancy.
And maybe the shadow prince had books on necromancy too. Elias doubted the man would lend them to him. But perhaps Elias could find a way to “borrow” one or two without his knowledge.
Tall and lean, Shadow Prince Wraith appeared almost … fragile. Beautiful, but deathly fragile. Like a swift wind would cause him to fall over. He wore a silver metal corset over semi-translucent black robes. His dark clothing and long black hair contrasted with his thin pale face.
“Congratulations, Prince Gerard and Prince Elias,” the shadow queen said, voice almost a whisper.
“Yes, congratulations,” the shadow king added, speaking slowly and smoothly.
“Thank you. And I believe we will soon be celebrating Shadow Prince Wraith’s betrothal to Prince Konrad.” Elias smiled at the man. Although it had been decided, it had not yet been announced.
It would be the final marriage to seal the peace treaty, and they wanted to make a big deal of it.
Whilst Elias and Gerard’s, and all the couples’, courtship rituals and marriages overlapped, the betrothal announcement and courtship period for the final wedding would not take place until the seventh wedding had occurred.
“Thank you.” Shadow Prince Wraith bowed. And as he rose, his gaze flicked behind Elias, right over his head. He stared and tilted his head slightly, long black hair sliding against his shoulders. His eyes narrowed.
The shadow king, the shadow queen, and Prince Harrow left. But for several seconds Shadow Prince Wraith stood unmoving. He kept staring behind them as if frozen in place.
Elias and Gerard glanced at each other and then looked behind them.
A simple tapestry, with a pattern of gold and white, hung on the wall several feet back. But otherwise, nothing of note stood behind them. Elias and Gerard shared another look.
When they turned back, the shadow prince stared straight at Elias, black eyes focused and piercing. Elias sucked in a breath. He had to stop himself from leaning away.
The shadow prince opened his mouth. His gaze flicked behind Elias once more. Then he closed his mouth. He turned away and left without another word.
“Well, that was fucking strange,” Elias muttered.
“Hmmm.” Gerard shivered. “He makes my skin crawl. I feel sorry for Konrad. Not that I’m convinced that Shadow Prince Wraith or the necromancers are trying to destroy the peace treaty. But they are odd. And creepy. And I would not want to be married to one of them.”
Elias watched the shadow prince walk away. “And unfortunately for Konrad, Shadow Prince Wraith seems odder and creepier than most of them.”