Chapter Fifty-Seven Riela #2
not having to wait several more hours was an additional bonus with how tightly my nerves were strung.
Plus, I just felt better in Lohka and had since I’d awoken.
Garrick closed the door behind us, and I made a questioning sound. “I gave Vastien the ability to open it,” he said, eyes
heating. “So there won’t be any more interruptions.”
“Excuse me, Your Highness,” an unfamiliar male called.
Garrick sighed. “Except that one, apparently.” He turned to the spare man waiting near the steps up to the dais. “What is
it, Dek?” Then he turned to me and said, “Lady Riela, allow me to introduce my seneschal, Dek Jothash. He runs everything
around here, so if you need anything, you can ask him. He also has incredibly bad timing.”
Dek merely lifted an eyebrow, unflustered. He was tall and slender, with pale skin and silvery blue hair. If he were human,
I would say he looked closer to forty than thirty, but his dark eyes carried an unfathomable weight of experience, and I wondered
exactly how old he really was. He was wearing a plain silver tunic and black trousers, but the cloth was the highest quality.
He bowed to me. “It’s a pleasure, Lady Riela.”
“It’s nice to meet you, too,” I said. I glanced at Garrick. “Should I go or . . . ?”
“Stay. I’m sure Dek was just leaving.”
Dek winced. “Unfortunately, Your Highness, I need a moment of your time.” He smiled sympathetically. “Several moments, perhaps.”
“That’s okay,” I told Garrick. “I can read while you’re busy.”
“Stop by the kitchen first and get some food,” Garrick ordered. “Ciacho will prepare something for you.” He waved at one of
the nearby guards. “Protect Lady Riela as you would me.”
The guard bowed and moved to my side.
“I would happily arrange for a plate to be sent,” Dek said.
“I don’t mind going myself. It’ll give me a chance to see if Ciacho has made any progress on that vile tea.”
“No more today,” Garrick warned.
My smile was all sweet innocence. “I meant for you, Your Highness.”
Dek buried a laugh under an unconvincing cough, and Garrick mock scowled at me. Then the scowl melted into a heated glance.
“Eat well, little mage. I will join you soon. You’ll be in your room?”
It was a question, but I could tell that he would worry if I waited for him anywhere else. “I will be.”
He nodded, eyed the guard once more, then pressed a fleeting kiss to my lips. “Until later,” he growled.
If Dek was shocked by the display, he didn’t show it. He and Garrick disappeared to wherever kings decided things, leaving
me and the bemused guard beside me.
“What’s your name?” I asked him. He was clad in leather armor and carried a long pike. His skin was silvery gray and his close-cropped
hair was black.
“Viktor, my lady.”
“Well, Viktor, I don’t suppose you could step us to the kitchen, could you? I usually ask the castle for help, but I don’t
want to leave you behind.”
Viktor bowed, then he hesitantly took my arm and a moment later we were in the kitchen. It smelled incredible once again, and though I hadn’t eaten that long ago, my stomach rumbled.
“What are you—oh, my lady, welcome back!” Ciacho cried. “Did you enjoy the meal I sent with the tea?”
I blinked. The tea felt like a thousand years ago. “It was delicious, thank you. I’m back to bother you again, I’m afraid.
Could I persuade you to make a couple of plates? For Garrick—err, I mean His Highness—and me.”
“It’s nearly dinnertime. Do you want a snack to tide you over?”
Heat flushed up my cheeks, and it was all I could do to hold his gaze. “I, um, I don’t think we’ll be eating with the rest
of the court tonight.”
I was afraid I’d offended the chef, but his smile turned wide and knowing and just a little bit wicked. “I see. In that case,
I believe I can help you.”
He turned back to the kitchen in a whirlwind of movement, and in a few minutes, I was the proud owner of a basket full of
food. I thanked him profusely, then turned to Viktor. “Are you allowed on Garrick’s residential floor?”
The guard nodded. “I am part of his personal guard.”
“My room is next to his. Could you take me there?”
Viktor’s eyebrows rose, but he once again stepped us to the hallway outside my bedroom. “I’m afraid I can’t enter the rooms
themselves, my lady, but I will wait here in case you need me.”
“Oh, that’s not necessary.”
He smiled gently. “The king would likely disagree.”
I puffed out my cheeks and laughed. “You are probably right. Do you need some food or water or something? This basket weighs
a ton, so I’m sure there’s plenty to share.”
His expression softened, but he shook his head. “I am fine, my lady.”
“Knock on the door if you change your mind or if you need anything else. Promise me.”
He bowed. “I will knock if I require your aid.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “I might not be great at reading Etheri yet, but that sounded very weaselly. You’re not going to knock if you get thirsty, are you?”
His lips twitched, but he managed to mostly suppress the smile. “I am used to standing guard, my lady. It is not a hardship.
But I will knock if I need something.”
“Thank you.” I slipped into the room and gently closed the door behind me. I felt bad about leaving him standing in the hallway,
but he wasn’t going to listen to me over Garrick.
I set the basket on the table, then curled up in one of the comfy chairs near the fireplace. I would wait to eat until Garrick
joined me.
I took a deep breath, then carefully unwrapped my mother’s journal and opened it to the first page.