11. Raelyna
RAELYNA
Tonight wasn’t the first time I’d stood in this particular room, performing for one of the king’s absurd festivals. And with my luck, it wouldn’t be the last either.
It had been four days since Kira’s Marking Day—four days of performing for the Solis Court until my toes bled and my will to live vanished.
And four days since I had unintentionally run into the higher-ranking guard .
. . not that he is who I should have been thinking of at that moment.
And yet, here I was . . . thinking of him.
Just like I had been for the past four days.
Gah! I shook my head, trying to clear the image of stunning, piercing amber eyes as I looked around the throne room that had been set up for the Festival of Brumalis.
You heard that right. The throne room.
Because, of course, it would be the throne room, not the grand ballroom, which was located just on the other side of Solis Court, and meant to hold the vast number of citizens who attended such lavish parties.
No, King Lucanus had to show off the throne room as he sat upon the dais, overlooking the celebration.
I had been informed only minutes prior to our team starting our routine that we were to provide entertainment for the first half of the festival, and I swear that three hours had never felt so long.
Which said a great deal, considering I had over a century’s worth of years to compare these past three hours to.
My legs were ready to give out near the third hour of the festival. My brown hair fell in loose waves against the bare expanse of my back, the emerald green dress I’d chosen for today dipping low on my naturally sun-kissed skin.
I turned to my right and caught a glimpse of Emberly beside me. As expected at any royal performance held by the king, our wings were entirely on display, their charcoal gray and onyx-hued feathers glimmering in the low lighting.
This rule, of course, made dancing to our typical routines all the harder. Not that it mattered to Lucanus.
A small part of me, the part I wouldn’t let out, agreed that with our wings out, it added an element of excitement to our routines, seeing as we could add in advanced aerials halfway through the performance.
I prayed to all five gods once more that we would soon be done with our portion of the festival, and could enjoy the rest of the night .
. . preferably not in the presence of anyone else.
The bargain mark burned on my arm as I stayed true to my word, performing for Lucanus—only a small portion of the agreement we’d made in exchange for my sister’s freedom from the temples.
Glancing around in-between numbers, I took in the large banquet tables on the far side of the throne room that seemed to constantly have lines as the citizens of Solis clamored to get some of the delicacies that were only available during the festivals.
Flashes went off as angels captured images of the food displays.
The amount of food in this room alone could feed my entire section of The Wall.
Small drone cameras whirled around the room, capturing the entire festival as they live-streamed the event across the Quarter. I nearly stiffened as one drone in particular whirled far closer to our crew than I’d like, the minuscule camera zooming in on our performance.
Lights flickered along the ceiling, held up by those with fire affinities.
I watched as the different hues of red, yellow, orange, and blue flickered across the ceiling, lighting up the space in various patterns.
Those with fire affinities truly were astonishing, and I couldn’t help but wish that I had been graced with fire as well, as opposed to only having the weak, pathetic level of a water affinity that I did have.
Still, it’s not like I could do much with what the gods had given me.
The intro to the next song came on, and I sighed, taking my spot as I began to whirl around to yet another number. I pushed aside the pain in my feet, even as my entire body mentally protested any form of movement.
Because when you think about it, why would the king of Solis Quarter be fair in any sort of way?
It’s not as if we just had to dance our number for the performance. We had also been called upon to entertain a brunch earlier this morning for those of royal standing who were celebrating the Festival of Brumalis.
So, yes, I could confidently say that I loathed Luc with every fiber and muscle in my entire being, and I didn’t see that changing anytime soon.
Not that I could ever voice that aloud, because that would be treason.
So here I was, once again dancing for the stars-damned king of Solis Quarter, in his own throne room.
We exited the platform and were heading through the back door when one of the royal staff members stopped me, announcing that our team would be expected to stay on Solis Court grounds until the end of the festival later this evening.
“You can’t be serious,” I protested as I stared at the female before me, her wings flaring slightly at my tone, while she looked at me without any form of pity or remorse.
“I assure you, I am absolutely serious. And as I am the higher ranking affinity, you would do well to remember not to talk back when spoken to, especially when I’m conveying King Lucanus’s direct orders for your team.” Her tone brooked no argument as her beady eyes narrowed on me with contempt.
“Very well,” I grumbled with a weary sigh as I turned back to look at my friends and share the news with them.
“Don’t even bother repeating the words,” Finn rumbled as he caught my gaze. “We already heard enough to know that we’re stuck here with you until the end of the night.”
“For the love of Astara,” Emberly cursed with a sigh as we began moving through the back halls of the court.
“I—Just who does he think he is?” I muttered while Finn jabbed me in the rib cage hard enough for me to protest and proclaim, “Fuck you. That hurt.”
“Yeah, well, you can’t be saying things like that around here, darling.” He gave me a pointed look, his green eyes piercing mine. “Wouldn’t want some suck-up to overhear and blab to King Lucanus now, would you?”
I turned to fully face my best friend, realizing he had a point, even though I really, really did not want to listen to his words.
“Whatever. I suppose you’ve got a point, although I wouldn’t really say it’s a good one. But it is a point nonetheless.”
“Let’s just go enjoy a very, very wealthy festival. On the bright side, there will be free booze,” Emberly chirped in a forced cheery voice as she grabbed hold of my arm and dragged me through the door so that we could enter the throne room from the non-performing side.
“How much alcohol can we really ingest in the presence of our ever-loving, wonderful king?” I questioned as she dragged me begrudgingly along.
“Well, you know, it is his money, his alcohol . . . we may as well get drunk, courtesy of yours truly,” Finn replied as both he and Emberly dragged me back into the throne room.
I let out a deep breath as I took in my surroundings once more, only this time, from the viewpoint of an attendee rather than a performer.
I noted the throngs of wealthy merchants standing in one corner of the throne room, clearly uncomfortable with their attendance, although they were all higher-ranking affinities and certainly made more than every member of my dance crew did . . . combined.
However, it didn’t matter, because even among those with higher affinities, a class system existed, and those who worked were not nearly as respected as those who could simply gossip and socialize in the temples.
My eyes hooked briefly on one guard in particular, a guard that stood out to me for the same reason he had at our last encounter in the Solis Court. While every other higher-ranking guard insisted on displaying their wings to the fullest extent, this male did not.
I had yet to see his wings.
Perhaps he truly was hiding them for a particular reason.
Perhaps they were just that small.
Whatever the reason, it didn’t stop my traitorous heart from fluttering and skipping a beat as my eyes skimmed over his form.
I didn’t know why he refused to display his wings, but I did intend to find out before the night was over, that much I could guarantee without a doubt.
And then I could dismiss the lingering thoughts about his wingspan .
. . Yes, I definitely needed to get those thoughts out of my head.
He was a Solis Guard for Astara’s sake. And I certainly didn’t need to be getting involved with anyone who answered to Luc, even if I felt inexplicably drawn to him.
With a nudge to Finn on my side, I asked, “Have you ever seen another high-ranking Royal Solis Guard not choose to display their wings? I could have sworn that it was a requirement of every member of the guard.”
“It’s not a requirement. It’s just something the boastful bastards like to do to show that they’re above everyone else, so they display their wings at any opportunity they can.” His own line of sight followed mine as he looked across the ballroom. “I wouldn’t worry about it.”
“You’re right,” I answered with a sigh before I walked away, heading toward the bar.
A drink . . . that would help, right?
“What’ll it be?”
I glanced up, startled to find I was already at the front of the line. The bartender stared at me impatiently, his fingers tapping in an off-kilter beat as he waited for me to speak. I heard the familiar hum of a drone flying overhead, filming the festival as I stood by the bar.
“Well?”
“O-oh,” I stammered. “Um, just a glass of ambrosia, please.”
The male nodded, turning his head as he reached for a glass. Amber liquid splashed into the cup, then he handed the wine glass to me.
Thank Astara.
I took a large gulp, letting the sweet, amber taste coat my tongue as I walked away from the crowd.
“Planning to get drunk tonight?” A low tone rumbled from behind me, and my heart leapt in my chest as ambrosia sloshed against the rim of the glass.
“For the love—” The words faded on my lips as I turned and met the male’s gaze. “Are you stalking me?” I asked the guard in question, who seemed to have the unfortunate habit of appearing out of thin air.
“Stalking you?” he asked, his amber eyes narrowing as they swept over my face, studying me with an intensity that had my skin tingling.
“If I were stalking you, I’d be doing a pretty piss-poor job, don’t you think?
Seeing as you’ve easily spotted me both times.
” His voice was a low whisper across my skin as I stared up at him, and for a second, I felt like stepping closer to him.
Instead, I took a step back, creating space between our bodies.
“All right, so not stalking, then,” I bit back as I stared back at him, my lips forming a thin line. “If you aren’t stalking me, then why do you keep appearing everywhere I am?”
“Perhaps you’re stalking me,” he answered. “Or perhaps you just simply can’t get enough of me, and you just have to keep appearing anywhere I could be, seeing as I’ve been in the court for awhile and you are not often here.”
Stars-damn him. He had a point, not that I was going to say that aloud.
But since his job involved being a member of the RSG, it made sense that he would be in the court more frequently.
Only . . . I hadn’t seen him before these past few weeks, and for someone to rise up in rank that quickly was fairly surprising.
Not that I consider myself an expert on all of the guards in the Solis Court, but I could say that I had met a fair share of them, and he certainly wasn’t one of them.
Because by the stars, I would remember a face like that. A body like—
“Well, seeing as I seem to have stunned you into silence, I suppose we will just have to agree that we both just crossed each other’s paths by the luck of the stars,” he replied with a slight grin.
I stared at him in disbelief. “Luck? Really?” The words nearly squeaked from my lips in a mortifying way. “That’s what we’re chalking it up to? All right, then. If you say so,” I replied. “Perhaps you could run out of luck in that case, and see me a bit less,” I said, with a forced grin.
He took another step closer, his frame towering over me as the heavy scent of amber and leather wrapped itself around me for the third time in one week.
Tilting my head up, I studied the angel before me.
His presence was foreboding and daring as he filled my personal space, consuming the very air around me.
He reached out, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear in a movement that had everything in my body focused wholly on him .
. . on his touch. I could only stand there, hardly daring to breathe as his fingers lingered for another second, before his hand dropped.
Amber eyes twinkled with dark amusement as he held my gaze, and I felt my cheeks heat.
Stars-damn the male.
“The name’s Blackwood.” His voice was a low whisper in the crowded throne room.
“W–what?” The word stuttered from my lips, my thoughts clouded as I found myself trapped in his space.
“We haven’t officially been introduced.” A soft chuckle sounded as he spoke. “Figured I’d take it upon myself to do so since you’re so insistent on stalking me.”
I narrowed my eyes at him, the delusional fantasy I’d been painting in my mind vanishing at his words.
“Raelyna,” I stated, giving him my name.
“Raelyna.” My name rolled from his lips in a husky tone, and every fiber of me was centered around this male—fixated on my name falling from his lips. Gods, he could say my name like that anytime.
A loud laugh sounded in the distance, followed by the rapid flash of a camera, and I remembered where I was.
What are you doing, Rae? Get it together . . . he’s just another stars-damned angel in a uniform.
“Well, as thrilling as this has been, I’ve got to go,” I stated once words decided to reform in my head.
“I’m sure I’ll see you around, Raelyna.” His eyes lit up as he spoke, the golden flecks brightening toward me.
“Don’t count on it, Blackwood,” I stated as I whirled on my heel and started to walk away.
I so did not have time for royal guards. Not tonight, not tomorrow night, and definitely not anytime in the foreseeable future. Not even the really attractive ones who made my insides melt and had no business sneaking into my dreams. I absolutely did not have time for those.