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Gerarda’s brows trembled. “Thank you, Syrra.” She hung her head in a deep bow and stepped off the platform.
Syrra returned the gesture and went off in search of Nikolai.
Elaran slipped her arm around Gerarda’s neck. “You look delicious,” she whispered in her ear. Gerarda nudged her hip with her elbow, but the smile tugging along her lips was pleased.
I grabbed the pile of discarded clothes and left, pretending I hadn’t heard them.
Nikolai’s room was chaos. Fine silks and luxurious robes were scattered on every piece of furniture and sticking out of the four large closets on the farthest wall. Any space that wasn’t covered in clothing was littered with random tools or discarded ideas etched onto sheets of parchment.
“Keera dear.” Nikolai popped out from one of the enormous piles of clothes. He waved his hand over everything. “You should know it’sneverlike this.”
I picked up a burnt orange robe from the floor and held the lace collar to the light. “Of course not, you’d never let something this nice be this wrinkled.”
Nikolai let out a low breath. “You understand me perfectly.”
I laughed and tossed him the robe. He carefully put it on a pile of equally wrinkled clothes and nodded down the tunnel. “Vrail’s study is free and much less cluttered.”
I raised a brow but didn’t say anything. Nikolai led me down the hall to a small room by the library that was littered in books and scrolls.
“I saidlesscluttered,” Nikolai quipped, reading my thoughts.
I shrugged. “At least this has chairs you can sit in.” I picked up three scrolls from the seat and set them on the ground. Nikolai stopped me, placing one of his larger handkerchiefs underneath them before he let me set them on the ground.
“You look dreadful.” Nikolai slumped back into the chaise across from me.
I huffed a laugh. “You can be so charming.”
“You should be sleeping. It’s already midday.” Nikolai looked up as if he could see the suns through the layers of earth between us and the open air.
“I’ll be plenty rested before the ceremony.” I grabbed something from my bag and Nikolai’s eyes went wide.
He reached for his notebook. “I thought I’d lost that under the piles of clothes.”
“That’s my fault.” I nodded at the leather-bound book. “I needed something to keep me occupied when the Shades and I were sailing back and I found that you left it aboard.”
Nikolai flipped through the pages, checking on his designs like a parent checking on a child. “I was focused on more important things.” He opened the later pages and noticed where I had sketched my own design. “What are these?”
“I thought you could make them. For Maerhal.” I swallowed, suddenly embarrassed that my idea wouldn’t work. “She always has trouble with the faelights when I go to visit and she won’t gooutside until after sunset. I thought these would make it easier on her eyes.”
Nikolai bit his lip and studied the different versions of the design I’d scribbled on the pages. “It’s like a mask, but made of glass.”
I nodded. “I know that the Elverin can imbue their glass with different dyes and properties.” I pulled a vial from my bag. It was filled with tiny yellow blooms still attached at their stems. “Rheih taught me that shade petals darken under sunlight. I thought you could make something that could keep Maerhal’s sight dark enough that she doesn’t get any more headaches.”
Nikolai took the vial like it was the most precious item he owned. His eyes were lined with tears, but they didn’t fall.
“I was just visiting your mother and Rheih. Maerhal said she wasn’t going to come to the ceremony until after the suns had set.” I tucked my hands under my thighs, unsure where to put them. “But she’s already spent so much of her life underground. I don’t want her to miss out on one more thing.”
Nikolai’s chin trembled and a tear ran down his face. “I can make a model this afternoon.” He stood and wrapped me into a tight embrace. “Thank you, Keera.” He squeezed even tighter. “Thank you for still fighting to bring my mother out of the darkness.”
My throat tightened and my own cheeks were wet. “And thank you for doing everything to make sure I didn’t lose myself there.”
Nikolai pulled out a handkerchief for each of us. “I will get this started, but you need to go to sleep, Keera dear.” He walked me as far as his room and then went inside to begin tinkering with the initial prototype.
I walked down the tunnel with a small faelight hovering over my shoulder to light the way. I thought I was alone until I saw a quick flash of light down the far end of the tunnel. I slowed, grabbing the hilt of my blade as I walked that way.
The large stone door was opened as I peered into the room. Killian was standing at the hearth, leaning onto the mantel with his chest rising heavily. I knew he had been scurrying along every inch of the city to prepare for the feast and the Shades’ arrival, but I hadn’t seen him since I’d returned. It was as if he was purposely making himself scarce.
“Killian?”
