Ozias
Calem and I manifested on the open lawns outside of Hireath just as Iov and Emelia were about to start evening drills. Newly raised assassins waited before them, some with shadows already slipping between their eager fingers. I missed being the one to help them form blades out of smoke, to reassure them as they moved through the process, but Emelia and Iov were good replacements. I’d trained them myself years ago and had been immediately impressed by their prowess. One woman with short, spiked hair bounded to the front of the lines. Astrid. She was just as capable as the twins had been from the get-go. The three of them rounded their gazes on us, cautious smiles on display as they took in our sudden appearance, and I grinned back. The worry lines etching the sides of their eyes faded. Just here for a check-in, nothing to be alarmed about.
Before they could pull away from the troops, I waved them off. “We’ll come back after drills. Keep at it.”
“Fine,” Iov said in a mock whine, dragging his words. He pivoted toward the assassins and called forth a single, dark tendril and fashioned it into a hovering blade that glittered black against the purple sky.
“Too bad we can’t spar in this form,” Calem mused. He rolled up his sleeves and flexed his hands, as if somehow that would make it possible for him to join in on the action. The shadows around him flared in response. “You got all the fun with the Vyprale taming.”
I cocked a brow. “You call that fun?”
“I didn’t hear you complaining.”
Footsteps crunched against grass at our backs, and we turned to find Kaori and Raven approaching us. Dark circles shadowed their eyes, and they moved briskly across the lawn. Beside me, Calem stiffened. His eyes tracked Kaori’s frame, lingering on the fidgeting hands that toyed with the hem of her cloak. Raven’s expression was tight, and she came to an abrupt halt before us.
“Your timing is impeccable.”
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“We’re not entirely sure,” Kaori answered. She frowned and cast a glance behind her toward the keep. “We have something to show you.”
“Wonderful,” Calem said, voice dark. They led the way, maneuvering through the courtyard and around the trickling fountain. When we reached the open archway to the first floor of the keep, they strode into a small foyer just off the entrance where a white oak desk was centered over a circular moss-green rug. Bookshelves lined the walls, along with a handful of high-back upholstered chairs. Kaori and Raven made straight for the desk. Right in the middle was a small parcel wrapped in brown parchment and tied with twine. Neither of them made a move to touch it.
“A package?” I folded my arms across my chest. It didn’t seem dangerous, and yet Kaori and Raven were giving it a wide berth, as if a violent beast were about to pop out.
“It’s addressed to the Crown.” Kaori clasped her hands and swallowed thickly.
Sauntering forward, Calem crouched before the desk. Shadows spired around him, but nothing happened. “Seems like a regular old package. Who’s it from?”
“Doesn’t say,” Raven bit out. “But considering there are only a handful of people who know of Hireath’s exact location…”
“Exact enough to bypass the Kestral and deliver a package to our doorstep without alerting the Dreagles or being seen,” Kaori added, her gaze temporarily leaving the box to look first at me, then Calem. “We’re guessing Yazmin.”
Calem stilled. “Did you open it?”
“Does it look like we opened it?” Raven raised an incredulous brow. “No. We were debating what to do when you two arrived.”
The small, seemingly harmless parcel dominated my vision, and my stomach churned. Yazmin was cunning, that much we’d learned. Maybe therewasa small beast lingering inside, just waiting to leap out and kill us. Or maybe it was a different trick. Some way for her to gain leverage if we simply opened the box.
“What does it mean? Could it be a peace offering?”
Raven snorted. “I highly doubt that. But, I suppose anything is possible.”
Kaori shifted from one foot to the next, her gaze darkening. “What if… What if it has to do with those Charmers she mentioned? The missing ones?”
“I’m not so sure about that.” Calem’s voice was soft, gentle. Concern and something else I couldn’t quite place filled his gaze.
“I agree with Calem,” Raven said. She dropped her hands to the table and rapped her painted nails along the wood. “Yazmin has proven to be nothing but manipulative. I doubt those Charmers even exist.”
Kaori shut down completely, all emotions wiped clean from her face. She gave one definitive nod and said nothing more. Inching closer, Calem dared to ghost his fingers along her arm. Smoky tendrils grazed her skin where his touch would’ve been, but she didn’t react.
Clearing my throat, I nodded toward the package. “Let’s wait for Leena to open it. She’ll want to know about it.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Calem said, attention still focused on Kaori. Dropping his voice an octave, he spoke only to her. “Let’s take this to her room, yeah?”
“Okay. I’ll station a beast there, too, to keep an eye on it until she arrives.” She scooped up the package and held it close to her chest before exiting the room. Calem gave us a quick nod, then strolled out after her.
Raven deflated, shoulders softening and eyes falling to the desk. “She’s not taking this well.”
