“Never would be too soon,” she snapped, then softened, closing her book with a resigned sigh.
Her gaze turned distant. “You’ve seen the best Sol has to offer. I was never so fortunate. Trapped in cold, barren halls, with only servants and my mother for company. I endured the years when war brought waves of wounded to our door. My father opened his halls, but there aren’t enough tapestries in the world to muffle the echoing screams of the dying.”
Her words struck like a chilled wind, the raw pain in them unmistakable. “I’m sorry.” My throat tightened. Her childhood had been swallowed by bloodshed, each memory marred by suffering.
“That’s why I’ll never go back.” Her hands smoothed her dress as she drew a steadying breath, eyes settling on the flowers. “That place holds nothing for me but sorrow.” Her tone shifted. “Tallon joined you?”
“After the king felled a mammoth.”
She tilted her head, curiosity sharpening her features. “The Great Hunt? Is he well?”
I hesitated, the image of Kallias’ pain flashing in my mind. His every movement spoke of discomfort—the grimace when he dismounted, the moment his hand braced against the saddle for balance. Scratches marred his skin, but his strength remained unbroken.
But I shouldn’t know that.
“He’s alive and appears well enough,” I replied, keeping my voice even.
“It must have been his first time seeing a mammoth. Did he tell you about it?”
My frown deepened. “Oh, you mean the prince,” I said, catching on. “No, he arrived after the slaying.”
Relief softened her shoulders as she glanced down at the book in her lap. “Those beasts should have been hunted to extinction long ago. The king’s chosen to face them, but Tallon is Radaan’s future, and he’s never even laid eyes on one. How can you prepare to kill what you’ve never confronted?”
He could have seen it—if he’d been with us. He likely avoided the creature, leaving the burden to his father.
“I don’t mean to upset you.” Her quiet words pulled my focus back. Worry flickered in her gaze. “I’m sure he could kill one if it came to it.”
Could he? I doubted that.
Her eyes studied mine, her brows knitting with concern. “Did something happen between you two?”
I shifted, casting a glance toward the Thresher lurking too near. “No—we are still set to be wed,” I said, each word chosen with care.
Everything happened. Yet nothing changed. My heart remained trapped beneath the weight of duty, my future a tether I could not sever.
She seemed to read the resignation in my tone, the bitter acceptance that colored it. Silence settled between us, broken only by the faint rustle of the garden. Flowers dipped and swayed in the breeze, their petals kissed by the sun. Insects darted through beams of light, their wings catching flashes of gold.
I could not escape him. Tallon was my future, no matter how much I wished otherwise.
Egath sat on my right, his presence looming like a storm cloud. I prodded a bean across my plate, nausea rising in waves I struggled to suppress. His words flowed past me to Tallon, their conversation a tempest with me as the lone, stranded island.
Fallione had secured Egath’s release. No evidence tied him to the assassination attempt, and the ambassador’s threats to return to Vellos forced the king’s hand. Egath claimed his confinement was unjust, a mistreatment that would strain relations with the Velli king.
Kallias simmered at the far end of the table, his anger a silent flame. I kept my gaze fixed downward, reminding myself of the chasm between us. Future relatives—nothing more. Twin islands, eachbattered by different storms.
A ripple beneath my skin startled me. My pulse surged as something squirmed inside my forearm. Had I caught worms? Turning my arm, I traced the spot with trembling fingers.
“Everything all right, Princess?” Egath asked, his fork poised over a chunk of beef.
“Just an itch,” I replied, forcing a thin smile. I noted the flicker in his gaze—a quick glance at Tallon before his attention dropped to his plate.
“I hope you avoided the mountain plants,” he said. “Some will have you scratching for weeks.” His knife sliced through the meat with deliberate precision.
The shift in his demeanor unsettled me. Politeness had replaced his usual barbs, as if I passed some unspoken test.
“You didn’t wander anywhere you shouldn’t, right?” Tallon jeered.
My stomach churned at his tone, too smug to be innocent. His smirk, paired with the rise of his brows, dared me to react.
