Chapter 45 #2
‘Sana.’ Reynard’s voice vibrated with tension, and I paused without turning around.
His footsteps approached me slowly and deliberately.
When he paused behind me, Rey inhaled as if he wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words.
Finally, with a defeated huff, he said, ‘Tell Irsha to come to see me, please.’
‘As you wish,’ I answered, heading away. A weight that hadn’t been there before the council meeting was now crushing my shoulders.
I didn’t go to the Chapter House or even my own home; both places felt strangely alien right now. The first lacked the presence of my father, and the second, because I didn’t know if I could face Tova knowing he’d modified the cubes for Rey’s scheme.
I wandered around the city, letting the familiar noises calm me.
I wasn’t sure why knowing he used the void cubes as his bogeyman bothered me so much, but it did.
Still, Rey was fighting an arduous battle, navigating a political landscape that was shifting with each breeze, while a hurricane was brewing on the horizon.
My path, just like my thoughts, meandered between merchants and travellers until I ended at the door of the House of Lillies. The place was quiet. It was still open, but without its heart, the owner who looked after its affairs, the previous sense of calm and elegance was gone.
The doorman let me in without question, and no one tried to stop me when I walked up the long spiral stairs to Lily’s private rooms. Her door was closed, and as I stood before it, one hand on the handle, I tried to convince myself I shouldn’t have come, but my curiosity and worry were too strong.
‘What if I’ve missed something?’ I pressed the door handle, and the lock clicked, revealing a neat, clean room that felt so very wrong.
Lily kept her room clean but never tidy.
There were always scattered dresses, vials of perfume on the table, or half-empty bottles of wine. This time, the place was spotless.
‘Servants!’ I shouted, and a young girl with tousled brown hair ran up the stairs.
‘M’lady, what’s the matter?’ she asked, gasping for breath and looking at me with round, frightened eyes.
‘Did anyone clean the mistress’s room?’ My attempt to sound calm scared her even more.
‘No, milady. No one entered after Mistress Lily was taken,’ she whispered, shaking like a leaf.
‘Go to the Brotherhood, to the Chapter House, and tell the Grand Master I want to see him. Now.’ The girl didn’t question my order; she simply turned and ran as quickly as her legs could carry her.
I entered the room, closing the door behind me.
For a moment, I just stood there analysing my surroundings.
If Lily had been taken by force, there would have been signs of struggle.
If she were lured away under false pretences, the room would look normal, ready to host its owner.
Yet despite the thin layer of undisturbed dust, it looked painfully spotless.
‘What are you trying to tell me?’ I whispered, touching her wardrobe.
My fingers slid over every nook and cranny as I searched.
It was a slow process, but I pulled her dresses out, tapped and prodded the back of the wardrobe, searching every little niche and drawer before putting everything back in its place.
Her vanity came next, then the desk, but despite a thorough search, I found nothing.
‘Sana, what’s going on?!’ Irsha burst through the door with such force that it banged against the wall.
‘Lily’s room,’ I said, and when his gaze swept over the space, I added, ‘It’s spotless… or it was, before I ransacked it.’
‘What do you mean spotless? Lily never…’ Irsha stopped, realisation and anger setting on his face. ‘Fuck, what did I miss?’
‘I don’t know yet. I tried looking myself, hoping we could avoid bringing in the Observers. Whatever we find, the fewer people who know, the better,’ I said, sitting heavily on the bed, watching Irsha tap the walls, searching for a hidden compartment.
I grabbed one of Lily’s favourite pillows.
It was a small square she’d embroidered with a spray of Lily of the Valley.
‘Give me some clue, Ice Queen, something, anything… Just help me remember,’ I muttered, pressing the pillow to my chest while trying to recall if she’d ever said or done something to give me a hint where she would hide a message.
Something hard poked my ribs, and I yelped, pulling the pillow away and patting its cover.
I found it easily – a piece of paper neatly folded and hidden behind a freshly stitched seam.
‘Irsha, I need your dagger,’ I said, wiggling my fingers when he rushed to sit beside me. Together we pried the stitch open, and I pulled out the small letter sealed with the imprint of Lily’s ring.
‘What does it say? Read it aloud,’ Irsha said, his body vibrating with tension.
Dear Sana,
I knew you’d find this. I chose to leave. Don’t search for me and stop Irsha from doing anything. Niersen knows about the Wey Gates, and if I’m right, he discovered a way to replicate the fae power of translocation and gave it to Tivala.
He must be stopped. I have no love for Lumivitae, but I won’t let innocents die if I can stop my poor excuse for a husband.
Tell Irsha I love him, that he is the only one I’ve ever loved.
You, him, and that crazy dwarf were the family I thought I’d never have. Keep everyone safe, and remember, there’s no greater power than life itself. You are the one who holds the key to creation.
Yours forever,
Lily
‘Fuck.’ Irsha snarled beside me. ‘I’m going to Lumivitae.’
I grabbed his hand when he leapt up and pulled him back onto the bed. ‘No,’ I said firmly, the muscles of his jaw tightening. ‘We’ll stick to the plan.’
‘How are you so sure he’ll bring her? That’s a massive gamble, and I won’t gamble my woman’s life.’ He was determined, but I held firm.
‘I am sure they’ll come,’ I said, and he looked at me sharply. ‘The man I love is a ruthless bastard who threatened half the continent with a magical weapon. The Light fae monarch will ensure his herald’s compliance even if it’s to see the end of Rey’s kingdom.’
Irsha huffed, but his body relaxed while I was as tense as a bowstring. Rey had set the pieces on the game board, but the play wasn’t complete. As Dagome’s army marched south, I had my own game to play, a family to bring back home, and a man to kill.
And the stepping stone to all of this was the royal ball.
I stood up, pulling Irsha with me. ‘Come on, Blade, we need to go.’
‘Where?’ he asked shortly, and I gave him the calculated Nightshade smile.
‘To the palace. It is time to prepare for the queen’s gambit.’