Chapter 20
CHAPTER 20
D usk stole into the way station ballroom. It began in the blue shadows among the fronds and vines of Lila’s decorations and slowly crept across the room. Candles bloomed and flickered along the tabletops and tiny stars scattered the ceiling and nestled like brilliant blossoms among the greenery.
Rafe watched the fading daylight from one side of the room, where he stood shoulder to shoulder with a long line of fae servants. He had been issued the same gray uniform and stood in the same alert posture, his chin high and his eyes straight ahead. The one difference between him and his fellow servants was the silver bracelets. Though their magic held, with his shirtsleeves acting as a buffer, they no longer burned his skin. The lack of pain had made the head server’s endless instructions much easier to follow.
“Do you know what you’re supposed to do?” the fae next to him asked without looking around.
The male was shorter than Rafe, his hair a few shades darker than Lila’s. He had a pointed nose and a curved lip that made him appear to be always smiling. The servants were less uniformly perfect than the fae nobles—which made them easier to pick out of the crowd. This one had been part of the pair who had escorted him from the guest room to his cell earlier that day. Rafe had given him no trouble. In return, the fae had been reasonably polite.
“I understand the assignment—more or less,” Rafe replied. “Play waiter. Don’t spill on the guest of honor.” He wasn’t worried—he’d watch the others and copy what they did. Years in the Silent Wolves had exposed him to many environments, including those where salad forks mattered.
They stopped talking as the cross-looking head server stalked by, checking every uniform. He paused before Rafe, giving him a long look, but could find nothing wrong with Rafe’s dress or posture. He moved on with a sniff, his short indigo cape swirling.
“Why am I here?” Rafe muttered.
“Tradition,” the fae replied. “Make the prisoners of note serve guests. It’s an old school power play to show off the host’s standing.”
“In other words, I’m an exhibit.”
“Exactly,” the fae replied, keeping his voice low so that the official in charge of the servants did not hear. “If the lady of the house is putting on that much of a show, tread carefully. When the courtiers start posturing, they lose common sense. It’s like dancing around a roomful of rabid squirrels.”
Rafe shot him a glance. “That’s descriptive.”
“That is life in the service of the great and good. I am Asus.”
“Rafe.”
“I know. I’ve been instructed to see that you put on an adequate show. Grovel slightly, but not too much. They like their enemies humbled but still worthy of conquest.”
“We aim to please?” Rafe replied.
The fae’s mouth quirked at one corner, but he didn’t say more. At that moment, the last ray of sunlight faded, leaving the room in spangled night. The muted light played over the long tables loaded with silver and gold dishes, touching the rims of goblets studded with rainbow gems. Then, like embers flaring to life, the candle flames brightened until the space was suffused in a warm glow.
As if someone had opened an oven door, the scent of savory spices flooded into the room, making Rafe’s mouth water. Others must have smelled it too, as a shuffle went down the ranks, but no one dared to speak. An expectant silence hung in the air, broken only by the creak of the main doors swinging open.
Music started, first a ripple of notes from a wooden flute, then the heartbeat of a drum. The sound drifted from the far end of the room, but Rafe couldn’t see the players. The song settled into a stately march. Twin rows of fae, these wearing indigo braided with silver, came down the central aisle of the room at a solemn pace, each bearing a candelabra to light the way. Two by two, they stopped before the long tables and held up their burdens, bathing the aisle in light.
Then Galeeta appeared, one hand resting on Ademar’s arm. She was dressed in a flowing emerald gown that shimmered as she moved. Ademar’s garments were darkly sober. Behind those two walked Lila, her long hair piled atop her head and pinned with sparkling combs.
Rafe’s breath caught. He’d only seen her in ordinary clothes before, but now she dressed the part of a fae lady. A tight-fitting sheath of pale green silk fell to the floor, hugging her slender form. Over it was a sleeveless gown made from gauzy, glittering layers that made her seem to float. It was as if a star had fallen to glide among them on soundless feet. His heartbeat quickened, his senses suddenly, acutely aware of every breath she took.
A few dozen finely dressed fae followed, but nothing about them captured his interest. They stopped before the servants with the candelabra, forming two lines that faced one another on either side of the center aisle. Then the music changed, adding instruments and kicking up the tempo a notch. It was time for the guest of honor to grace them with his presence. It said something about this Lord Farras that he traveled with his own band just in case he needed to enter a room.
The next servants had fancier uniforms and carried a tall pole topped with a golden bird of prey, Lord Farras’s banner hanging from its talons. The fae who came next had to be the lord himself. After so much fanfare, Rafe’s curiosity was piqued, and he strained to catch a better look. Farras was dressed in cream and gold, his white-blond hair falling straight to his waist. Even from a distance, his presence was a palpable force. The bones of his face were sharply defined, as if all softness had been pared away to leave nothing but steel and will. The others here might be high-born, but Farras was in command.
There weren’t many with such obvious charisma. Rafe’s imagination replayed the video of the Magician, comparing the two. There were obvious similarities—the coloring, the hair, the lithe fae grace. But too many fae looked alike, and without being able to use scent as an identifier, Rafe couldn’t be sure.
As Farras reached the double line of nobles, they bowed low. So did the servants. Asus tugged on Rafe’s sleeve until he did the same. Wolves didn’t bow, but this was a matter of fitting in. By the time the servants rose again, the company was taking their places at the long tables. Every seat in the vast hall was taken.
Rafe was closest to the high table, which sat at the front of the room on a dais and faced the other tables. Lila sat to Lord Farras’s left while Galeeta and Ademar sat to his right. The lord’s expression was carefully neutral, but Galeeta could not hide the flash of triumph in her eyes.
Rafe’s concentration broke when Asus thrust a golden ewer into his hands. The metal was warm from the steaming water inside it. Asus draped a thick linen towel over his arm and picked up a matching basin.
“Time to earn our bread,” the fae said.
A ripple of nerves flashed through Rafe as he followed his guide to the high table. The ewer was heavier than expected, and he had to walk carefully to keep water from splashing over the rim. Lord Farras sat in a high-backed chair more ornate than the rest. Standing to one side of Farras, Asus held out his basin toward Rafe, signaling for him to fill it with the warm water.
“Is this the wolf shifter you spoke of, my lady?” Farras asked Galeeta. His voice was sure and resonant, as if he were used to being heard on a battlefield.
“Indeed, my lord,” she replied. “This is the beast that injured my son. As you can see, he is now tamed by our magic.”
Rafe’s gaze flicked to Lila to find her studying the embroidery on the tablecloth. She was ethereal, her slender arms pale in the candlelight. He’d almost looked away when she lifted her lashes just enough to meet his eyes. Her expression was shuttered, protecting her secrets. He longed to hold her again. The feeling burned like a hot coal in his guts.
Farras washed his hands in the basin, then dried them on the towel Asus offered. From what little Rafe knew of fae customs, this was a ceremonial cleansing. A good guest shed bad energy before sharing a communal meal. It was also practical, since most of the dishes were finger food. Farras finished by handing Asus the damp towel.
With another low bow, the servant rose and muttered a spell. With a mild flash of light, the basin was empty and the towel clean and dry. Rafe’s ewer was just as full as before. They moved behind the chairs to stand next to Galeeta, the next in rank at the table. With a bow, they began the hand-washing ritual again.
Lord Farras turned to Lila. “You should be pleased. From what I see so far, your family has arranged a most acceptable welcome.”
Lila nodded. “Thank you, my lord. I’m pleased that we were able to accommodate your retinue.”
He laughed. “I designed the way station to always have as many rooms as needed, regardless of numbers. It is a complex piece of magic, but well worth the trouble. ”
“I can see that.”
“I trust that you have looked forward to this event with anticipation?”
An unreadable expression passed over her features, there and gone in an instant. “I wish I could say so, my lord, but this event came as a surprise.”
Ademar coughed. Galeeta signaled another servant to fetch wine.
Lord Farras turned to Galeeta with a feline smile. “Have you been keeping this meeting a secret?”
Lady Galeeta returned his smile. “I was prudent, in the interests of security.”
“Of course.”
He lifted Lila’s hand and kissed it, letting his lips linger a shade too long. Rafe could not blame him. She was all but edible in that damnable confection of a dress. He barely stifled the low growl aching to escape his chest.
Asus and Rafe finished with Ademar and offered the bowl of hot water to Lila. She quickly disengaged Farras’s hold and lowered her hands into the basin for a vigorous scrub. Farras’s brow furrowed with displeasure, but there was nothing he could say.
Rafe stood to one side of her chair, close enough that the filmy fabric of her dress grazed his wrist. When she finished drying her hands, Lila dropped the towel at Rafe’s feet. They both bent to pick it up.
“Outside. Later,” she whispered in his ear.
Rafe straightened, eager to read a signal in her gray eyes, but they were cool and placid. She wasn’t taking any chances—at least not until after the banquet.
With a polite bow, he followed Asus to the next table, excitement tingling in his chest. Outside. Later. Whatever was happening at the way station, it was coming to a head.
Rafe welcomed it.