“This isn’t just a dress. It’s… sexy.”
The maroon fabric dips low in the front, revealing the curve of her cleavage. The fabric parts at her hip, showing off one of her long legs. Silver strings decorate her ankles, jingling with every step.
She groans, rolling her eyes. “It’s hot. We’re in Solace.”
“I didn’t say you had to explain yourself. I get it. I’m just a little surprised.”
“Well, stop gawking and finish getting ready.” She tries to bury her smile and fails.
“You ready, El—” Callum cuts off when he turns the corner, and his eyes land on Greer.
“Oh my gods, you two are ridiculous—” She shoves past him, walking out into the hall while I race to catch up.
“I didn’t say anything.” Callum looks at me, confused, and I just laugh.
The hallway is empty. No guards and no Wilder. I brush my hands down the front of my dress, following Greer to dinner.
“Solace isn’t anything like I imagined. It’s beautiful.” Tall sandstone walls surround us, dotted with endless windows that let light in.
“Poe designed it.” Greer looks up as we pass an intricately carved pillar. “Lochlan’s wife.”
“Lochlan has a mate?”
She shakes her head. “I don’t believe so. Not all Fae meet their mates, but some find happiness either way. He did.”
“Do you know Poe?”
“No, I never got the chance. But I heard she was lovely.”
“Was?”
Callum clears his throat, and Greer stops talking as a guard passes. It isn’t until they are out of sight that he adds, “Poe died near the end of the war with Tierryn Mor.”
“The fallen star?”
Greer nods.
I read about the war between Lyrichia and Tierryn Mor in one of the texts Callum brought to my room at the palace. Nearly seven hundred and fifty years ago, Lyrichia went to battle with a nearby realm. It was brutal, and both sides were ruthless. There were losses all around. Lyrichia barely won, and once they did, the Arch to Tierryn Mor closed. Where Tierryn Mor once hung in our sky, only darkness prevailed. Some believe it is still there, dead and empty. Some believe it fell from the constellation.
Greer leans closer. “The Arch to Tierryn Mor was in Solace, so Lochlan and his people took the brunt of the battle. In the final stand, Lochlan lost his wife and their children. It was Lochlan’s magic, tearing out of him in devastation, that is said to have sent the final blow that won Lyrichia the war. That’s when his rune markings appeared on his face.”
Two large fangs. Marks said to be from the gods when I’m starting to think they’re anything but.
“Solace used to be as lush as the Ley Court forests, but all vegetation died after that,” Callum adds.
The harsh landscape makes sense now. If the land truly does feed from the heart of the lord who oversees it, then Solace reflects his immense pain.
Our conversation is cut off when we reach the end of the hall. It opens into a wide room, with a balcony stretching two sides, leaving it open to the desert breeze. Tables are piled with food, and unlike the Ley Court, Fae are actually eating it while theydrink and smoke their cares away. Greer and Callum continue walking, unaware that I’ve paused.
I take a breath, absorbing the room—the territory.
Opulence soothing the destruction.
Gods’ marks masking pain.
I’m finally beginning to understand the kingdom I’m meant to save, and it’s not that different from home.
Chapter 39
