The front door was the only real entrance, so it was the only one with a guard. The other three walls had windows blocked by curtains. I wouldn’t be able to see much, but I could try to listen.
Invisibility was not a skill I’d ever learned, mostly because it was not one my master knew. Some magic could be learned from books, others could only be passed down from master to apprentice. Of course, there was always the option to invent the spell yourself, but true invisibility was never something I craved. Iwantedto be seen.
Instead, my master had taught me to bend the shadows. He used it most often to obscure his face and add to his menacing aesthetic as the Lord of Grimnight. It had the dual effect of blurring details and unnerving the audience into looking away on their own. In their primal hearts, people were afraid of the dark and the unknown threats lurking inside.
The far window was my best option. It would put some distance between the guard and me, and the angle of the sun cast deeper shadows in that area. I stuck my hand into those shadows and coaxed them up my sleeve. They crawled up the pale uniform, darkening everything they touched. It wouldn’t be complete darkness—anyone looking out one of the adjacent castle windows could still see a person—but it would hide my identity. None of the potential onlookers would immediately recognize Will Ain, a common attendant.
Once the shadows covered me from head to toe, I inched toward the window, pressing my ear to the glass to hear the conversation.
“Mumble mumble.”
“Mumble mumble mumble.”
“Counterpoint—mumble.”
Well, that’s useless.
Either someone had enchanted the glass to ward off eavesdroppers, or something else blocked the noise.
I pursed my lips as I examined the window, considering my options. Moving the curtains aside would show me the room’s interior and anything blocking the window. From the outside, the opening of the curtains was barely delineated by a thin line of light near the top. I pointed two fingers at it and twitched them to the right.
The curtain flung itself to the side with unwarranted enthusiasm.
“Ghost!”
I dove to the ground, keeping close to the wall so the champions couldn’t see me. I could hear them inside now, scrambling toward the disturbed window.
“Why would there be a ghost?” Fitz asked. Several thumps followed his question.
In the background, Angelica hissed, “Fitz, do you need to stack your bookseverywhere? This is a fire hazard!”
Is that what was blocking the noise? Stacks of books?
Delilah didn’t care about the fire hazard, too concerned with the ‘ghost’ she’d seen. “Because we were talking about curses! They heard us and don’t want us to succeed.”
“Shouldn’t a ghost be happy about us breaking a curse?” Trey drawled.
“Not if they’re the ones responsible!”
The window ledge blocked my view of the champions as well as it blocked their view of me. As they argued over ghosts, my racing heartsettled. If they were talking about breaking a curse, then they must have chosen the quest. It sounded like they were in the middle of choosing which one. Without the Good Wizard or anyone else hurrying them along, it could take them days to decide.
I relaxed, leaning my head against the wall, and waited for their interest in the ghost to dissipate. Eventually, I heard the rustle of the curtain being pulled back into place, and muffled footsteps walking away. I waited a few more minutes, then slunk out of the shadows and into the nearest castle entrance.
In a few days, the champions should announce which quest they’d chosen, and I’d find some way to join them.
I’d barely sat down on my bed in the shared staff rooms before Connor excitedly poked his head through the door and exclaimed, “The Royals are making an announcement!”
I blinked at him, certain I’d misheard. The royal champions had barely began discussing the quest, they shouldn’t be ready to announce anything yet. Maybe it was adifferentannouncement? It had to be, if they were involving the staff. “And we’re invited?”
“What? No, of course not,” he snorted and rolled his eyes. “But I was fucking this Calamity maid in a hidey hole and—”
I winced.
“What? Nothing wrong with a little anonymous fun,” he said with a grin. “Anyway, we could hear the royals gathering in the next room. Perfect spot to spy on ‘em and get a little news ahead of everyone else, right?”
Apparently, I should have asked my fellow attendants for help spying on the champions. I followed the attendant to his ‘hidey-hole’, which was now crammed full of eavesdroppers. The scent of musk and sweat clung to the air but everyone ignored it as they positioned themselves to peer through the available holes.
Without seeing the other side, I didn’t know exactlywhatwe were looking through, but the ragged edges of canvas implied it might be a painting where all the subjects’ eyes had been cut out.
