Page 155 of Tale of the Heart Queen

She nods as he turns to address the room.

“So I’ll sneak into the Keep, find out what I can in my father’s room, and get the Torch.”

“I’m coming with you,” I say. He gives me a dark look. “Don’t even bother arguing. I’m coming.”

He opens his mouth and then closes it before he says, “Fine.”

“We’ll come too,” Amya says, gesturing between Mael and herself.

“Once we have both Artefacts, we can proceed,” Anemone adds. “I’ll study the book and ensure I have the process right.”

“I will find somewhere to perform the bonding,” Bronte says.

I give her an expectant look, and she shakes her head as though she can’t believe she’s agreeing to any of this. She convinced D’Arcy to destroy the ark, and despite what she claimed about just coming along when we headed north, she’s offering more of her help.

“I know I said I was undecided . . . but I like you, little queen. You remind me of me.”

“That’s . . . I was in awe of you from the moment I saw you,” I say a little breathlessly, and that earns me a warm smile.

“Etienne, you’ll need to retrieve the Crown,” Nadir says and Etienne nods. “Bring it directly to Bronte once she secures a location.”

“Absolutely.” He presses a hand to his chest and bends at the waist.

“We’ll also come with you,” Tristan says to Bronte, and Willow nods.

“We should make it nice,” Willow says. “Find some decorations.”

“Willow, that’s not necessary,” I say.

She turns to me, eyebrow raised. “My little sister isn’t bonding to her mate in some dusty mountain cave without a little something to liven it up.”

She glares, daring me to argue. This emerging form of Willow is so different from the sister I knew.

I offer her a grateful smile as everyone goes silent, lost in their churning thoughts.

It feels like the end. Like we’ve been running towards this place for almost three hundred years when our grandparents made a mistake that has rippled across centuries.

“Then we have a plan,” Nadir says after another minute, returning to the business at hand.

“Not a very good one,” Mael drawls.

“No,” I say. “But when have we ever let that stop us?”

CHAPTER 54

The next day, Nadir flies me to the Keep, landing us on the balcony outside his father’s library. Mael and Amya have returned the more conventional way and are busy blocking off the King’s apartments from visitors under the guise of investigating his disappearance.

It’s not a complete lie. We are looking for him, but we have ulterior motives.

The door has already been unlocked before we enter the room and survey the disaster of our surroundings. It looks even worse than Mael and Amya described. Broken glass and furniture lie everywhere, and it smells like we’re in a distillery.

“What do you think happened?” I ask.

Nadir stands with his hands on his hips and shakes his head.

“I don’t know. My father has always been in control of his emotions.” He pauses and I see some long-buried memory pass over his expression. “Mostly, I guess. The only time I’ve ever seen him lose it was when he was drunk.”

He runs a hand down his face.