Chapter 7
The wide doors open into the Great Hall, and I do everything I can to keep my jaw from dropping.
The black marble floors are adorned with silver and gold lines, resembling a metallic river.
The ceilings are high and arched, with dark wooden beams steadying the tallest windows I’ve ever seen.
The stars in the night sky blend with the room, and I feel like I’m standing in the dark clouds for a moment.
Silas stands next to me with Maines and Oak on my opposite side.
Fen and the others confidently move into the room, proving they’ve done this many times before.
I glance at my oldest friends, both sending a holy shit look in return.
My eyes cut to Silas, but his gaze remains focused ahead, a bead of sweat forming on his brow.
He grabs my hand, giving it a hard squeeze, before entering the room.
He leads me toward a long, wooden table in the middle of the room, always with his body in front—as if protecting me from something I can’t see.
The table is situated under a dark chandelier with high-backed chairs surrounding it.
The large room is punctuated with intimate sitting areas along the far walls, each lined with small couches and tables for post-dinner drinks.
Place cards line the table, indicating our exact placement for the evening.
Scanning the seating chart, I’m near the head of the table next to Silas, with Larkin on my other side.
Across the table sits a name I’m not familiar with, and next to that sits Fen.
Oak takes a seat next to her, followed by Warrick.
Maines sits on the opposite side of Larkin, followed by a large empty table after her.
“Where is Hux?” I lean into Silas.
“He’s near the cliffs. Someone has to keep watch while we endure this evening’s torture,” he whispers, moving his chair closer to the table. “He rarely attends these things.”
“Lucky him,” I whisper back.
The head of the table, followed by the seat immediately to its left, remains empty. I can only assume for Silas’s parents. My stomach churns with anticipation, and every sound has me on edge.
Fenmore and Oak have a hushed conversation sitting next to one another, and Warrick and Larkin talk across the table. I lean around Larkin to find Maines sitting alone, glaring at Oak, speaking quietly with Fenmore.
“Maines,” I hiss.
She snaps her head in my direction, and her cheeks turn a light pink. She knows she was caught glaring. “Yeah?” Maines replies.
“Are you alright?” I stretch my neck further in her direction, earning a huff from Larkin.
“I’m fine,” she snaps.
Larkin turns to me and nearly bites my head off. “I’m sitting here.”
My brows raise. “Oh, are you one for politeness now?”
My response catches him off guard, and he shifts in his seat. “You don’t know anything about me.”
“Now,” I whisper. “That isn’t all true.”
He nearly snarls.
“What is your problem with me?” I snap.
Silas hears our exchange and places his hand on my leg under the table.
“Be nice, Spiridon,” Warrick snaps at Larkin from across the table. “You are being ruder than normal.”
My body tenses at the surname, and I glance at Warrick, who gives me a reassuring smile, confirming he has my back at this moment. I return a grin and settle into my seat, feeling victorious at flustering Larkin. Two can play this game, and I’ll win.
Larkin places his open palms on the table and opens his mouth to speak, when two doors in the far corner—I didn’t notice them before—open slowly, causing a creak to echo around the room.
A tall woman enters the room first. Her black, flowing hair peppered with gray cascades to her waist. She wears a dark green gown—the same shade as Fen’s—which flows gracefully with her.
Her shoes click resoundingly against the smooth floor as she strides purposefully toward us.
Piercing eyes that mirror Silas’s meet mine momentarily, and that’s when I realize his mother, Aerona Nastronde, has just entered the room.
She’s stunning, clearly aging gracefully.
She smiles at Fen, taking a moment to remain standing to meet the stares of everyone around her, thin lines forming around her eyes as she does so.
A bright jade amulet hangs from her neck, catching my attention.
It’s beautiful and seems to suck in all the light that dares twinkle around it.
I glance beside her at Fen, noting it’s the same necklace that adorns her neck, with similar features in the stone that are hard to miss.
Fen definitely inherits her looks from her mother, although I can’t help but notice the slight differences between Silas and his family.
“Good evening,” Aerona says, her voice floating around us.
I only stare as the others nod in her direction, smiling without speaking, except Silas.
His face remains hard and focused on the double doors that seem to pulse in the darkness.
Warrick quickly stands, brushing his hand over Fenmore’s shoulders, and walks to pull out the large wooden chair for Aerona to take a seat.
She offers him a soft smile, and a nod as he pushes her against the table.
Fenmore watches with a look of pride in her eyes and winks as he sits back down beside Oak.
Everyone continues speaking in hushed tones, all a bit too casual for how I feel inside.
Silas’s hand stays on my leg, and for a moment, I feel it tremble slightly.
I move my hand down to squeeze his tightly, just to let him know I’m here.
Aerona leans over, gently kissing Fen on the cheek, and whispers something in her ear.
Fen tilts her head back with a laugh, and I watch their exchange.
The queen leans around Fenmore and says something to Warrick, who nods with a dazzling smile that creases his dark eyes.
I keep watching them, glancing back toward Silas now and then, but nothing has changed.
His brow tightens, and he only seems to focus on the doors, as if he’s on high alert, unable to pull himself into reality.
His mother flashes a look across the table, noticing my stare. “Briar Blackbyrne.”
The entire table pauses.
I sit taller in my chair. “It’s nice to meet you, Aerona,” I say, dipping my chin in respect.
“You as well,” her regal voice responds.
“Thank you for hosting us.” I shift in my chair. “Your home is stunning.”
She narrows her gaze. “You are polite.”
I angle my head and notice the tension pulse around the room like a heartbeat as the others stop breathing to observe our exchange.
“You expected otherwise?”
“Your reputation has followed you across the sea.” Her gaze looks me up and down. “I wasn’t sure what to expect, if we are being honest.”
I smile. “I always prefer honesty.”
“Your eyes are quite stunning.” She tilts her head as her gaze bores into mine. “Beauty, confidence, and eliciting fear—the three deadly qualities a woman can possess.” She pauses. “Among other things.”
I pause momentarily, letting the words wash over me like an ice bath.
“Those are three things I care nothing for,” I snap back.
“You should.”
I angle my head in curiosity. “And why is that?”
She smiles. “Power.”
“Believe it or not,” I huff a laugh, and the table tenses around us, “I’m not interested in that.”
“Well, what is it that you care for then, Briar?” Aerona angles her head. “My son?”
I glance in his direction, and he stiffens, anticipating my response. I let the silence fill the air for a moment, thickening it with tension, before turning my gaze back to Aerona.
“I care about peace. I care about the people of Daramveer, Eddris, Cammon, and Brinkym,” I say, placing my visibly stained hands on the table.
Her eyes shift to my hands. The black veins are ever-present against my sun-kissed skin.
I lean forward. “I care about the people of Andorwood, which means everyone at this table. And yes,” I pause, letting every ounce of the deserved tension build, “I love your son. Deeply.”
A hard breath leaves Silas’s lungs, and his grip around my knee tightens.
Aerona cuts her gaze to Silas before quickly reverting her attention back to me.
“You two would be extremely powerful together,” a soft smile curls her lips. “Dare I say, lethal.”
My brow raises. “It seems, apparently, that it’s only power you care for.”
Larkin clears his throat at my abruptness while Warrick nearly stands. The others seem shocked by the words I’m brave enough to speak, but I remain unfazed and stern.
She grins, glancing down to pick at her nails. “It would be no good for us to be on each other’s bad sides.” She straightens in her chair. “I fear the world may implode.”
I nod. “I believe that is something we both can agree on.”
“I look forward to getting to know you better, Queen,” she says, relaxing back in her chair.
Everyone’s eyes are on us as our conversation falls silent.
Silas’s grip loosens, and I feel his gaze burning into my side. I don’t look at him at first, but focus on Aerona, who has returned to speaking quietly with Fen. Silas and I haven’t said those words yet. Declaring them in front of an audience may have been a mistake.
Against my better judgment, I look at him. It’s as if his presence is pulling me in. Our eyes meet, and his piercing green eyes bore into mine. He slowly blinks, as if still processing everything since arriving, and I open my mouth to speak, but stop as my gaze is pulled to the large double doors.
The room goes cold, and our breaths quickly fill the air with a white fog.
The doors we entered open with force, and four women rush in dressed in black silk that doesn’t leave much to the imagination.
They carry long gray, silver, and black fabrics behind them that flow from their arms and across the floor like black rivers.
“Tonight’s entertainment,” Fen states, leaning over the table toward me. “An Andorwood tradition.”