37. Harlow
HARLOW
T he parental scrutiny starts before I’ve even had my first sip of wine.
Instead of sitting at opposite ends of the grand dining room table, my parents sit across from me, making it clear this is an interrogation, not a reunion.
The candelabras have been moved to the sides so they have a clear view of me and my aura.
I try not to be flustered, but being the youngest, I’ve so rarely borne both of their attention at once.
There’s one other place set at the table, but I don’t expect Henry to return until after dinner.
A young servant fills my glass and then rounds the table to top off my mother’s and father’s.
She rushes out of the room so quickly, her blonde braid flies out behind her like a tail.
I wonder if he notices all the servants are afraid of him.
My father waits until the door closes behind her before he speaks. “Henry has an unusual aura.”
I lower my glass, trying to hide my annoyance. “I’ve noticed.”
I’m tempted to tell them why I think it looks different, but admitting my magic doesn’t work on him would mean surrendering my chance at getting the tunnel key.
If they realize that Henry is basically invincible, I’ll never have a chance to escape the city or the fort.
I’ll be stuck spying on my husband forever, while Aidia withers away to nothing, locked away in North Hold like a hostage .
My father leans back in his chair, taking a long sip of his wine as he stares at me.
He’s reading my aura like I’m reading his.
He has more years of experience, but my survival has relied on knowing every flicker in his field, so we are not as outmatched as he thinks.
I wait for any sign that I’ve given something away.
He hums and sets down his glass. “How was the ceremony? I’ve heard their customs are barbaric.”
“It was fine,” I say flatly. “Different than here, but still respectful of the Divine.”
He nods. My father is satisfied with any surface-level answer.
The less work I create for him, the more I will be appreciated.
My parents have always made a point to celebrate my independence and my helpfulness.
I grew up believing there was nothing worse I could do than inconvenience them with my feelings—or, Divine forbid, my ailing body.
My episodes were treated as a personal failing, which makes it even more maddening that they might just be a result of visiting the well so often. I spent years hating my body for its relentless agonies, of hating my mind for not being strong enough to ignore the ache.
When my parents started to give me important tasks, it felt like penance. They trusted me to follow through despite my obvious physical shortcomings. I thought that responsibility must be the same as love.
It didn’t take me long to learn how wrong I was. I’m not sure I know what love is, but I recognize the lack of it.
If there has been any estimation at all of it in my life, it’s Aidia’s protection.
Servants bring in the first course in a clatter of commotion as Able shoves past them into the room. His aura hits me like a shock of lightning. He stalks to the head of the table rather than the place set beside mine.
My father shoots him a disapproving glare, either for his lateness or for choosing the seat of honor at this more intimate dinner instead of sitting beside me.
I’m relieved to have something to focus on other than the interrogation my parents were gearing up for.
Everyone waits for the servants to leave. They won’t be back for twenty minutes; Gaven and the rest of our bodyguards are posted outside to ensure none of them listen in. This is a family-business-only dinner.
“We were just discussing your sister’s wedding at Mountain Haven,” my father says.
Able laughs and pours himself wine. “You must have been thrilled to be the center of attention for once. I’ve heard their ceremonies have public sex. Did you enjoy getting fucked by that animal?”
“Sad you weren’t there to watch?” I taunt.
Able wrinkles his nose, but my mother clicks her tongue. “Enough, you two! We have important matters to discuss.”
“I’m just wondering how Harlow is going to make this mission all about her,” Able says. “Meanwhile, we’re here trying to keep the city out of Rafe’s hands while those new beasts are stalking through the street.”
“Are you quarreling with Rafe? And here I thought the two of you were the best of friends,” I sneer.
Able scoffs. “I keep my enemies close. If he thinks I’m a soft moron, he’ll underestimate me.”
I hum dismissively. “What new beasts were stalking through the streets?”
This is the first time anyone in my family has acknowledged that they know the Drained have evolved.
My father pinches his brow in annoyance but remains quiet. If Able were smart, he would, too. This silent version of my father, where his royal-blue aura swirls slowly, is the most volatile and terrifying.
“Yes, the Drained have evolved. They work in teams now. They have enough focus to slip past our defenses and they have some new appetites,” Able says.
“Oh?” I say, stalling by taking a long sip of wine. I feel suddenly and violently angry that they let me go into the Drained Wood without this information.
I wish Gaven were in here so I could look at him and know if he told them about the Breeder back at Mountain Haven. Nervous energy buzzes through my limbs, and I know my aura is pulsing a little bit too quickly to match my calm exterior.
“Is that what happened last night? They stole women?” I ask.
“They also broke the gates and shredded some guards, but yes,” Able says. “While you were busy getting mounted by your animal husband, we were here fighting to keep our people safe.”
My father pounds his fist on the table. “Enough.”
“Was anyone important hurt?” I ask, edging around the question I want to pose and trying to speak their language.
“It was just a few whores. I think we’ll live,” Able says.
I almost flinch. They were our people—they very well could be the friends who helped me keep the women of Lunameade safe.
“Is that why so many women have gone missing recently? If the Drained have evolved, why do they only want women?” I try so hard to sound curious and confused instead of accusatory, but I can tell my father isn’t buying it.
“The Drained have evolved to develop a taste for flesh to go with the blood. We have made a careful study of their changes in behavior, and we have found that they seem to have a use for the women,” my father says, tapping the edge of his spoon on the side of the bowl.
“Alive? For what?” I ask.
“For breeding,” Able answers before slurping a spoonful of soup.
My stomach turns over when I think of the beast and its fathomless eyes. I should be quiet. I should just go along to get along, but I can’t.
I don’t know if I fight because I like the feeling of making a scene or because I’d been taught the only way to be taken seriously in this family is to show my teeth.
I set my glass down too hard on the table, and everyone jumps. “How long have you known about this? It would have been valuable?—”
“We tell you what you need to know,” my father snaps.
I cross my arms and stop trying to control my aura. “Well, this is a thing I needed to know when I was face-to-face with one.”
All three of them go still. The anger in the room dissipates in an instant.
My mother sits up straighter, her expression shifting into her best approximation of concern. “What do you mean?”
I run my finger around the rim of my glass.
I can’t tell them the truth. While directing the horde of Drained toward the fort ten years ago might have been done out of necessity, this particular piece of information in the wrong hands could see Henry’s family removed from power there.
As much as my husband annoys me, he’s a much more reasonable heir than Stefan Laurence.
I’m a practiced liar, but my father is just as practiced at detecting lies; any indication of my deception will stoke his paranoia even higher.
I steady myself with a bracing breath. “I mean that in my travels, I encountered an evolved Drained one, and it was clear immediately that its behavior was different. Fortunately, Gaven was able to take care of it swiftly.” I cock my head to the side.
“Our agreement was that you share information with me and I will share it with you. If you don’t share a known threat, I can’t be prepared to meet it. ”
My father’s jaw ticks as he stares through me. “They are more cunning, and you should be careful out there and stay close to Gaven.”
I would love to lay into him, but I need this dinner to be over soon because I’m exhausted. I want to get back to my room as soon as possible so I’ll be ready in case Aidia sneaks out after getting Henry’s message.
“I’m quite tired after our journey, so I will give you the basics quickly and you can tell me why you’ve summoned me,” I say.
“The deal that the Havenwoods made with us seems to be their true purpose, though I doubt it’s their only one.
From what I can tell, they are stretched very thin with able-bodied guards.
Many men died in the attack ten years ago, so they have older fighters and younger ones, but the generation between has been decimated. ”
“Kellan seems to think the same,” my father says.
“Yes, well, Kellan suggested that there might be a reason why you’re so nervous about the Havenwoods showing up. That there might be a reason for them to blame us—” I lick my lips. “To blame you for their misfortune.”
My father’s aura sucks in close to his skin. “He shouldn’t have told you that.”
“Is it true?” I ask.
I take a long sip of my wine and watch my father over the rim of the glass. His reaction to this information will tell me a lot.
I lick the excess from my lips before speaking again. “I assume it had to do with their well.”
My mother drops her spoon, and Able pauses with his wine halfway to his mouth.