Chapter 17
Hope
“Blessed post meridiem to you both and welcome to the South House, Organ Mandor,” the Ruler of the House greeted Hope before adding, “Ciaran Castel, always a pleasure.”
Gabrielle Heliba's head shone under the bright sun, illuminating the South House's hall through countless four-petal-shaped windows of different sizes.
Her complete lack of hair suited her ivory facial features, her soft oval face framed by multiple violet hoops in both her ears.
A long, v-shaped tunic in the same color revealed the shape of her breasts, exposed her back and the sides of her long legs as the material cut neatly from the belt around her waist down to the ground.
Gabrielle hadn't stopped smiling since they had entered her House, and to Hope's surprise, hers seemed like an honest smile. In a world that demanded blood and endurance, kindness became its own form of resistance—soft-spoken, luminous, and unyielding.
“Thank you for inviting us despite the very short notice, Gabrielle.
It's much appreciated,” Hope said. The very short notice being less than 5 minutes, after they had already moured to the East Petal and Ciaran suggested it was good manners to inform the Ruler before arriving at their House unannounced, which is precisely what Hope would have done.
“My niece, Arabella D'Arcy, told me about you, Hope Nevada of the Organ House.”
The image of a blond woman that Lenna hated with a passion flashed through her mind.
A woman who had been part of Jake’s life many, many years ago.
Perhaps Lenna didn’t hate her that much anymore, since Arabella had accompanied them on the Fifth Crusade with the sole purpose of teaching Lenna the synchronized use of panom powers.
However, the ins and outs of the Fifth Crusade were not to be common knowledge—knowledge not even privy to the Rulers of the Houses.
“Did she?” Hope didn’t mean for her voice to be as sharp as it came out, nor for her teeth to clench as tight, but keeping impassive facial expressions was not her forte when she was caught off guard.
Gabrielle nodded slowly. “Don't worry, she didn't disclose her whereabouts or her mission. Even though I must admit my curiosity about her absence right before the former Organ Mandor was defeated has kept me theorizing, to say the least.”
“The Cardinals guide us in our paths and fates,” Hope replied.
Gabrielle’s dark eyes widened slightly, despite the sun striking directly at them.
She looked at Hope, then Ciaran, then Hope again.
Ciaran looked absolutely handsome and lethally devastating as always, even without the metal ring in his bottom lip.
Hope hadn’t even noticed him removing it.
He stood one step behind Hope, far enough from her that no one would suspect they were one and the same, that their hearts and lives were intricately connected—intricately united.
For now, it was better this way. It was safer this way. Panom society should know about Hope’s role as their new leader, so she had informed them, but not about the fact that another leader and his army were in Thyria too.
Courtrade business was no one else’s business. At least, not yet.
Hope had a feeling that no panom, and most definitely no Ruler, would take well to knowing their Houses and history had been researched by strangers infiltrating their homes for decades.
Strangers with a magic that wasn’t panom, nonetheless.
In fact, it wouldn’t surprise her if only a few beings knew about courtrades at all, about their shadow magic, and their god of whispers and night.
“Are the Cardinals what bring your presence to my humble House, Mandor?”
Calling the Taking House a humble House seemed laughable, but the Ruler’s expression and relaxed, apparently comfortable body posture, appeared to be modest indeed.
Why had such a panom earned the right to rule this House?
Why had the South Cardinal deemed a respectful, kindhearted soul to rule her House?
“I’m afraid I can’t disclose the reason for this visit,” Hope replied. “I appreciate your understanding in respecting our privacy, and your cooperation would be much valued.”
“What do you need from my House, Mandor?”
Hope refrained from replying, “Nothing out of the ordinary: a part of the Cardinal Queen’s heart.
” It would be interesting to see if she could say something that made Gabrielle drop her continuous smile and subtle, unfaltering nod.
Instead, Hope said all she had wanted to request from the moment they stepped a foot in this House.
“I need the utmost confidentiality. No one is to know Ciaran and I are here.” Or they would find themselves giving excuses to her nation as to why she was parading around the Houses instead of fighting for her throne, like her ink had promised them.
Or worse, the Queen would find them, and they would have to fight against her before they got rid of all the spare pieces of her heart.
“Ciaran is well known around Thyria, as he’s been the heir of the West House for centuries, so my people will recognize him.
” If she only knew he was no longer the heir, as he was no longer panom.
“You, however… Everyone is talking about you, but no one knows what you look like, Hope Nevada. As long as you take the appropriate measures, no one will know the Organ Mandor is in this House.”
“Please do not call me Organ Mandor or Mandor while I’m here. Nor Hope,” she said, remembering the explanation Ciaran had given her about her new nickname, bloodrose, and nodding to herself as her suggestion fitted her perfectly. “Call me Blood instead.”
Ciaran choked on his cough. “Rose. Let’s call you Rose, shall we? It’s more socially acceptable.”
Gabrielle had lifted her eyebrows at Hope’s idea and still hadn’t brought them back to their usual place. “I must confess, people would talk more about a Blood-named female than a Rose-named female. Another way to be unnoticed might be getting rid of some of your weapons, Rose.”
“Not an option.” She didn’t even have to think about it.
Gabrielle swallowed, taking a few seconds before speaking again.
“No one in this House except myself wears any accessories, any weapons, any jewelry on them. The South Cardinal, as you well know, was the creator of the Taking power of our four-petal panom marks. The South House enjoys…Taking belongings from the beings in it.”
“A House that steals?” Hope’s voice was an octave too high, but her shock was way higher than that.
“A House that Takes,” Gabrielle corrected her.
“As the Organ Mandor, you are the utmost powerful panom in this island, so the House will respect you and not Take from you, like it respected previous Mandors, but the people here will notice you are brave or foolish enough to carry belongings with you.”
Some belongings being exactly fifteen blades and two Lawful Stabs.
Hope narrowed her eyes. “Brave or foolish enough? What do you mean?”
“Over the years, I have only seen two types of guests carry things with them. The first type are fools, and come to a House without knowing its rules and customs. They are no better than a gambler willing to risk all their grolls and valers on their first gambling night, but they are innocent. The second type, though, is brave and pedantic. They carry their belongings, knowing of the South’s passion for Taking, yet they believe the House will for some reason think they are good enough and not Take things from them.
” Gabrielle chuckled lowly and tried to contain a smile as she added, “I must admit, my House seems to find the second type particularly funny, and usually Takes everything from them, including every single piece of their clothes. These guests rarely come back.”
Hope snorted, her eyes wide as she turned around to look at Ciaran, who nodded with a side smile, clearly very familiar with the South House and its peculiarities.
“I will play fool, then, because my blades aren’t going anywhere but with me,” Hope reiterated. “Oh, and if we could be in a wide room, it would be very helpful.”
“One room for both of you?” Gabrielle asked, again with that slightly contained smile appearing through her thin lips.
Damn the Fifth. “One room, very wide, please. Two beds, very small, please. For security, among other reasons.” Hope’s smile was as tense as her chest.
“Consider it done.”