AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Despite her best efforts to distract herself, her mind and heart conspired against her, forming a solitary wish: that she could go back in time and stay long enough at Verlot to hear what Teryn had wanted to say.
10
Mareleau had enjoyed one night of bliss, one night of passion, one night to experience the pleasure of being fully and completely loved. It had been beyond anything she’d imagined, anything she’d ever had a right to hope for. Now she stood to lose everything.
Well, perhaps not everything. Larylis was her husband and nothing could change that. But if he didn’t show up for his own coronation, she wouldn’t be crowned either.
She paced the length of the hall outside the Godskeep at Dermaine Palace, grateful that the only witnesses to her panic were a handful of guards and her three lady’s maids. Breah trailed after her, keeping the long train of Mareleau’s white silk dress from touching the ground. Whenever Mareleau would pause, Ann and Sera would rush to her, dabbing her face with powder, patting her hair, or straightening her red velvet cape.
Seven devils, where was he?
Sounds of chatter slipped beneath the Godskeep door. The room was full and the audience had already been waiting for fifteen minutes. If Larylis didn’t show up soon, the courtiers, nobles, and guests would have more to gossip about than Teryn’s unexpected abdication and Larylis’ equally unexpected marriage to his brother’s former fiancée.
She reached for her hair, seeking a lock to braid, but found her tresses out of reach. Her maids had done her hair in an elaborate updo specifically suited for the crown she’d be given.IfLarylis showed up.
She’d seen less of him than she’d wished over the last few days. The morning after their union, they’d hastened to leave for Dermaine. Everything that followed had been rushed activity and travel. They’d slept separately at night, traveled separately by day. They’d exchanged only a few stolen glances and too-short embraces. Even the one night they’d spent together after arriving at the palace had been brief, with Larylis being called into a meeting with his council until well after Mareleau had fallen asleep. Still, their sparse interactions had been enough to show her the melancholy he’d returned to.
What if he’d changed his mind about becoming king? She imagined what that would mean for them. If they weren’t king and queen, if her marriage to Larylis lost what little credibility her father was willing to see in it, if she was disinherited…
For one moment, she felt the strangest twinge of relief. If they were no longer beholden to their parents’ thrones, they’d be…free. They could run away together, live a simple life—
She shook the thought from her head. Wherever Larylis was, he hadn’t chosen to bring her along. Besides, she may have enjoyed the occasional fantasy about living the simple life, but she knew as well as anyone that she was not a simple woman. She enjoyed her luxuries. Already, the walls of Dermaine Palace felt too close compared to the wide halls of Verlot. The lights too sparse, too dim. The floors too plain. Her footsteps too loud. Her pulse too fast.
She paused her pacing and steadied her breaths. Sera came to powder her forehead, but Mareleau slapped her hand away. “I’m fine.” The girl took a step back and exchanged a glance with Ann.
“He’ll be here,” Breah said, tone calm. Mareleau wanted to believe her, but Breah didn’t know a damn thing.
The Godskeep door opened, sending Mareleau’s heart leaping into her throat. Hope bloomed in her chest but she crushed it even before the figure emerged from the other side. It couldn’t be Larylis, for he was supposed to be entering the Godskeep, not emerging from within it. If he were already inside, she wouldn’t be an anxious mess.
Teryn stepped into the hall and closed the door quickly behind him. “He still hasn’t shown?”
“No.” Mareleau put her hands on her hips. “Do you know where he might be?”
Teryn’s eyes unfocused. “I think I have an idea.”
* * *
Larylis never imaginedhe’d find solace amongst the dead, but the crypts beneath the Godskeep were oddly soothing. It was the quiet that comforted him, something he used to only find in libraries. But with Dermaine Palace so busy in the wake of his and Teryn’s return, his favored haunts were devoid of their usual silence.
He placed his hands on the cool stone of his father’s sarcophagus. The sides bore an intricately carved relief of seven faces to represent the seven gods. The top was carved with Menah’s eagle sigil. Arlous’ effigy was still being carved, but soon it would grace the sarcophagus as well. Footsteps echoed from the entrance to the crypts, telling Larylis his respite was at an end. Teryn came up beside him.
“I figured you were down here,” his brother said without a hint of reproach. Instead, Teryn’s voice sounded as tired as Larylis felt. It was an exhaustion that no amount of sleep seemed to dissolve.
They stood in silence for several moments before Larylis found his voice. “We laid his body to rest this morning, and by afternoon I’m expected to take his crown.”
“I know.”
Larylis realized this was the first time they’d been alone since the meeting in Verdian’s study. Before Teryn gave up everything and laid it at Larylis’ feet. Slowly, he turned to face his brother. “I’m sorry, Teryn.”
Teryn released an exasperated sigh. “What are you apologizing for?”
“You know what I’m apologizing for. I’ve taken everything from you.”
“You’ve taken nothing that I did not freely give. And it’s nothing you don’t deserve.” His voice held an edge that wasn’t lost on Larylis.
He certainlydiddeserve it. Deserved whatever scorn his brother held.
Teryn’s expression softened. “I’m not mad at you.”
