Chapter 45
Wolfe
“Beauty Before the Storm”
Imade my way down the wide decorated hallway of the palace. The place I grew up.
I was heading to the ballroom. Tonight was Dreynthor's name day celebration.
My mind churned with frustration. We'd spent the last two days investigating the rebels' new trickery to no avail. Every lead had died cold with time bleeding through my fingers.
I needed something concrete, a new definitive approach. One that didn't rely on scraps of information the desperate bartered in exchange for mercy.
Even worse, the spell to locate the ring continued to elude me. Hours of refinement had yielded nothing but failure. And now, I had to abandon everything for tonight's celebration.
The celebration alone I could endure, but the added burden of hosting the King of Thalyrius and his daughter made my jaw clench.
Had it not been for them, I would have skipped the entire thing. A prince’s absence during an allied king’s visit would be a grave insult. Nevertheless, taking a break to celebrate anything while so much teetered on the edge felt like madness.
But what truly gnawed at me was that I hadn't seen Elariya since the other night. My duties had consumed me so completely that time had slipped away.
This was the first time since bringing her to Galaythia that I'd let anything come before her.
Garrick and Arielle's reports assured me she was safe, had visited Hyxian, and was learning more about her powers. But reports were just words on paper.
She'd be arriving soon with Garrick and Arielle, but since I had to play host I wasn’t sure how much time I’d get to spend with her.
My temper flared at the thought of watching her dance with Garrick, then him taking her back to Vyrenth Hollow while I could only look on from afar. As if I wasn't one of the most powerful beings in the realm.
Garrick was nicer than me and had that charm women liked. I didn't do nice or play with charm. I was villainous, fucked up, and psychotic at best. Calling me rough around the edges was laughably tame and made me sound like a saint.
None of that mattered though. I was still screwed. If ever there was a time to suppress my feelings for Elariya, it was tonight. My uncle was already on to me, knowing she meant more than just the apprentice I made her out to be.
Gods be good, listen to me. Was I an idiot for wanting more?
Maybe. But that wouldn't stop me.
I'd never been good at walking away from what I wanted.
Before I reached the doors, Bastian phased in at my side, stepping out of thin air. Like me, he was dressed in his formal court attire—a midnight blue doublet with intricate gold braiding and the royal sigil of the dragon embroidered in gold thread across the chest.
“Ready for tonight?” He raised a brow and fell in step with me.
“No.”
“Thought you might need some moral support.”
The offer was no surprise. I'd been on edge all day, and he'd probably picked up on my suggestion to visit the archivist alone earlier.
We were still trying to determine what the herbs Marcus was found with were going to be used for.
They were called buckweed bulbs, and they were a key ingredient in at least three hundred spells.
Discovering which spell the rebels intended to use them for was like searching for mermaid tears in the ocean.
“Everything's a fucked-up mess, Bastian,” I grunted.
“Yeah. It's been a while since we've encountered this sort of complication.”
“It has.” The last time we'd experienced anything this tumultuous was when my father died. Everything that had happened since had been an extension of that terrible night.
Bastian tugged on my arm, signaling for me to stop.
“What are your thoughts about tonight with the princess?” Only he and Alaric knew about Dreynthor's marriage plans. I wouldn't have told anyone, but they'd overheard him talking to me after a council meeting.
“I'm just going to play host and hope that will be enough.”
“I hope so, too. Your uncle can be one spiteful piece of shit.”
“You can say that again.”
“Have you spoken to him yet about the rebel camp?”
“No.”
I’d kept the essentials from Dreynthor, and even Marcus' identity. Since my uncle would not have understood my leniency, I’d told him I killed the spy.
That was all he needed to know. No names were given.
As for everything else—the dark magic, our suspicions about a powerful ally—I needed more time.
Time to investigate and time to figure out how Dreynthor was involved. Or wasn't.
“Not sure how long you can keep things from him.”
“I know. Depending on how things unfold, I might need to share enough to get him to back off.” I sighed. “The one thing the situation showed is that a simple marriage union between Galaythia and Thalyrius is never going to fix things.”
“Exactly. Now that we have evidence to connect rebel involvement in your father’s death, we know this is a bigger problem than we initially thought. War is coming, friend. A union with Thalyrius won’t be enough to control or stop them.”
“Indeed.” I exhaled slowly. “But at least for now, that gives me back some control of my life. This new evidence is good enough reason to turn down Dreynthor’s marriage plans.”
I had no doubt he would still be an asshole and try to force me with his threats but now he knew he wouldn’t have a leg to stand on. There was no fucking way I’d do anything just to please him.
“Maybe that gives you more room to be with Elariya,” Bastian said in the cut-to-the-chase manner that only a best friend could get away with. I was certain that was the main question on his mind, but he smoothed it over by asking about the princess and Dreynthor first.
Bastian cocked his head. “Arielle told me you took Elariya to the Luminar. That's a giant step for you.”
“It was.”
He squinted, assessing me, seeing too much again. “And something happened between you two?”
“Not exactly.”
“Those sound like the sort of asshole words you use when you don't want to talk about something.”
I smirked. “What do you want me to say?”
“Did you at least kiss her?” He chuckled, crossing his arms and waiting, clearly enjoying my discomfort.
“Yes.”
He smiled wide, his eyes brightening with ideas. “Good. Even you can admit you needed a break from life.”
I couldn't argue with him. Being with Elariya was exactly like that—a break from life. “I did need that.”
Bastian seemed pleased that I agreed. “What are you going to do?”
“That's the question of my life. There's so much I need to figure out. I’m not sure how many breaks from life I can take.”
“There is a lot happening to fuck with our minds, but we can’t do anything about it right now.” He flicked his palms over, but gave me a pensive stare. “Since you have to be here, perhaps you could just focus on one thing tonight.”
“One thing?” I bit the inside of my lip, deciding not to argue.
“Yes, friend. Your mage.”
“Maybe.”
He tsked and rolled his eyes at me. “Just do it, Wolfe. You know you want her, so how about no maybes.”
He had me there so there was no point denying it. "No maybes then." I gave him a curt nod, then decided to turn the focus on him. "What about you and your so-called trip to the outlands with Arielle?"
He grinned wide. “So-called trip?”
“Oh, please. It was completely obvious. When are you two going to stop playing games?”
“Tonight.”
Few things stunned me. This did. “What does that mean?”
“My mage is setting a trap for me and thinks I don't know.”
That sounded like such an Arielle thing to do. “What kind of trap?”
“She thinks she can kiss me in public to make a statement.”
I bit the inside of my lip, silently commending her bravado. “At least she's doing something.”
“Except it won't work.”
A deep frown creased my brows. “Are you seriously going to turn her away and embarrass her?”
“No. I'd never do that. But I also won't share our first kiss in public. Especially not at Dreynthor's name day celebration. I can do better than that. And it shouldn't be her making the first move. It should be me.”
A genuine smile tugged at my lips. Arielle had loved him since before any of us even understood what love meant.
She deserved to have him make the first move, to be courted properly instead of having to chase after him.
And Bastian... while the rest of us hooked up and got up to all sorts of mayhem with females over the years, I knew he hadn't been with anyone since he realized his feelings for Arielle. That was years ago.
“About damn time.” I nodded.
“Yeah. I think so. Maybe I realized I needed a break from life, too.”
“Or you just needed to start living.” While he shared our grief and loss, Bastian was the only one in my Veythral who still had living parents and relatives he hadn't lost to war or disease.
“Living sounds good.”
“It does.”
“Come on, let's head into the viper's lair.” He motioned to the door ahead of us.
I nodded and we proceeded down the hallway. Moments later we entered the grand ballroom.
The usually sparse space had been transformed into something from a dream.
Thousands of floating orbs of light drifted beneath the high vaulted ceiling, casting a warm golden glow over everything they touched.
Garlands of midnight-blue roses and silver ivy wound around the tall marble columns, while the floors gleamed like polished obsidian, reflecting the enchanted torches that flickered above the long tables lining the walls.
The soft music playing in the background created the perfect ambiance.
The setup was reminiscent of events of the past that my mother would host. She would have loved this.
The ballroom held perhaps two hundred guests, all adorned in their finest court attire.