Page 105 of Blade of the Nightking

We barely paused except to eat. At breakfast and then again at lunch, servants arrived pushing rolling carts laden with steaming food and silver tea services. Each time they entered the apartments, I noticed the same thing: the quick, wide-eyed glances they tried and failed to hide as they looked around the rooms. Curiosity. Awe. Nervousness. It was obvious that few of them had stepped foot in these chambers since the Dark Prince had left them.

But Levinica greeted every one of them with a gentle, disarming smile, and they answered with shy smiles of their own as they set out dishes and poured tea. It was there, unmistakable, in every glance they stole toward her: loyalty. Hope. Affection so deep it bordered on reverence.

It wasn't until midway through the afternoon that Levinica finally leaned back in her chair with a quiet sigh, massaging her forehead through the thin silk of her gloves.

“Are you alright?”

A wan smile touched her mouth. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been…” Myself. The word hung there anyway, unspoken but understood.

Her smile brightened. “You did well today,” she said, flipping a book shut.

A small pang of disappointment caught me off guard at the realization that the lesson was over. I ran my fingertips over the awkward scrawl of letters I’d copied across the page, wishing we could continue a little longer.

“Thank you,” I bowed my head. “You’re a good teacher.”

She stretched her legs beneath the table, the movement so casual it caught me off guard. I'd never seen her this calm. Even her tremulous smiles had begun to steady.

“Perhaps my brother was right,” she said, affection warming her voice. “This does help.”

The fondness unsettled me. It was difficult to reconcile this gentle, soft-spoken female with the fact that she stood at the Dark Prince's side. There was nothing cruel about her. If anything, she reminded me painfully of Brialla—the timid glances, the quiet compassion. Teaching me to read was a great kindness, though I couldn't fathom why she'd offered it to me.

Even so, we stood on opposite sides of something inevitable: she with the villain, and me with Elantis.

“May I admit something to you?” she asked abruptly.

I nodded.

A nervous smile touched her lips. “I’m dreading leaving you.” Her fingers knotted in her lap. “I… cannot bear to be alone.” Her eyes began to glaze.

Alarm peeled through my chest at the sudden distant look on her face.

“I hear him crying in the dark.” Her expression slackened as she stared somewhere far beyond the room.

Before I knew what I was doing, I reached across the table and seized her hand, squeezing hard enough that she winced. Her fingers felt terribly fragile beneath the gloves, bird-boned and brittle.

The pressure jolted her back. The haze in her eyes cleared as she focused on me again.

“Stay,” I said. I didn't know whether I meant in this room or in her own mind, but it was the only thing I could think to say. Some foolish instinct urged me to anchor her here, to let her know that if I could help her, I would.

She sniffled softly and nodded. Instead of pulling away, her fingers tightened around mine.

“Do you think he’s alright?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

“Yes,” I answered immediately. I hesitated only a moment before continuing, unsure whether I should tell her. “Aedric wouldn't say much, but he swore Dannis was unharmed.” I swallowed against the lump in my throat. “He knows where your son is. The bargain I made with Rìan will allow him to find him.” My voice caught. “I know that doesn't undo what was done. But I need you to know... I was horrified.”

Her eyes were clear now, alight with hope. A live ember refusing to go out. The sight made my chest ache.

“Perhaps,” I continued carefully, “when your son is returned to you, you may find it in your heart to show Aedric mercy.”

Her face hardened.

“Aedric is not a good male.” She squeezed my fingers with heartbreaking gentleness, as though she pitied me. The sympathy in her eyes startled me more than the words themselves.

Her madness had twisted her perception of things. I withdrew my hand first.

“He’s done things he’s not proud of,” I said slowly, weighing each word. “But he did them for the good of Elantis.”

“So he says.”