The Stones of Resurrection Page 21

  Taryn recognized Ravenwood in the background, and Gwyn’s graceful features and long blonde hair looked very much like her sister’s. Taryn wondered if Lliandra missed Gwyneira as much as Hayden and the duke did. For the briefest of moments, she imagined the girls as young princesses running through the Crystal Palace. The image made her chuckle.

  “Did I miss something humorous?”

  Taryn spun around at the sound of Hayden’s voice. “I was just picturing your mother and the empress as young girls, terrorizing the palace.”

  “I do believe you have it right. From what I’ve been told, they were quite the troublemakers. For what do I have the honor of your presence?”

  “I was hoping you could give me your famous tour.”

  His eyes lit up. “I’d love to.”

  She waved at Oliver. “Good night, thank you.” He bowed in return. “He reminds me so much of Brandt. I do miss him so.”

  “You’re starting to sound like the princesses. ‘Oh, however will I survive, I do miss him so.’”

  Taryn slapped his arm. “You’re mocking my pain.”

  “Never—just your speech.” He pushed at her with his shoulder. “I think you need a distraction, and I’ve just the cure.” He put a finger over his lips before moving aside a large tapestry that hung on the wall. Hayden pressed himself close, his deft fingers dancing over the wood. After a soft click, a hidden door swung inward. Hayden produced a glowing orb, and Taryn was tempted to do the same but she wasn’t ready to tell anyone her secret.

  They walked along the darkened passageway through various galleries. Hayden showed her where the throne room was and how if she were to lie on her stomach and put her ear just so, she could hear the proceedings in the room below.

  “I used to hide here as a young boy, listening to Lliandra holding her audiences. I learned a great deal from her. She never belittles her subjects. Every claim, whether legitimate or false, is heard with an open mind, and her justice is nearly always fair.”

  “She wants to dine with me tomorrow in her private rooms. Do you have any idea why?”

  His gaze drifted away. “None at all.”

  “I’m nervous about meeting her. She never once spoke to me at Paderau, you know.”

  “I wouldn’t worry about it if I were you. If it were something serious, she’d call her court to the throne room and you’d meet with her there.”

  She tried not to think of the empress while they continued their tour. Hayden wasn’t lying when he said he knew this palace as well as his own. Hunger beckoned, but Hayden wanted to show her his last special hiding place—the small room where servants often slipped away when they wanted to have some privacy, usually with another servant.

  “We shouldn’t. If it’s for the servants, leave them their secrets,” Taryn objected. But Hayden ignored her, pressing on through the corridor.

  When they approached the room, more of a passageway, really, Hayden stopped so suddenly Taryn ran into his back. He turned quickly to shush her, his orb blinking out. The hushed tones of conversation drifted to her. A lazy orb hovered at the far end of the room, giving scant light to the space, leaving the couple in shadow. Hayden crept along the wall to hear better but Taryn tugged on his shirt, trying to get him to leave. She could just make out a shake of his head in the dark.

  “You can’t stay here. Mother will find out, and then everything will be ruined. We’ve dawdled long enough as it is. You must leave at once.”

  Cold dread congealed her blood when she heard Marissa’s voice. She tugged on Hayden’s shirt again, but he shrugged her off, moving forward. When Taryn heard Marissa’s companion, her insides recoiled.

  “You worry too much. I’ve managed to keep my presence hidden this long. A few more days won’t matter.”

  The sound of kissing filled the small space, and Taryn tried once more to pull Hayden back.

  “Tell me again you want me to leave,” Zakael whispered in a silky voice.

  Moaning, followed by more kissing sounds, came from the darkness. Zakael and Marissa’s ShantiMari swirled close enough to Taryn that if she reached out she could touch it. Zakael had Marissa against the wall, her skirts around her waist. To Hayden, everything was shrouded in dusky obscurity, but for Taryn, the couple’s ShantiMari illuminated them as if they stood beneath a streetlight.

  Panic whipped up her spine. They should leave, but if they moved, the pair might hear them. Instead, they stood as still as possible while Marissa and Zakael continued to moan and grunt. Zakael moved against her, his breath coming in heavy gasps as his pace quickened. Skin slapped against skin, and Taryn averted her eyes to keep from seeing them. Hearing their lovemaking was mortifying enough. With shuddering cries, they finally stopped.

  Zakael breathed into Marissa’s ear, “Find out what you can. I don’t like this sneaking around. Tonight, come to my room at the inn.” He gave her a loud kiss on the lips before leaving in the opposite direction, the lazy orb bobbing after him. After a few moments of adjusting her skirts, Marissa left the same way as Zakael.

  Neither Taryn nor Hayden spoke until they were far from the secret room, and when he did, he sounded excited. “Do you know who that was in there?”

  “I couldn’t see anyone. Could you?”

  “No, but the woman in there was Marissa, I’d swear to it.”

  “What about the man?”

  “His voice was familiar, but not enough to say for certain.”

  “What should we do?” Taryn’s nerves spasmed down her back. They’d been too close to being discovered.

  Hayden rubbed his chin. “I suppose if the princess has a lover, then it’s none of our business.”

  She wanted to argue with him, to point out Zakael was the person who killed Brandt, but Hayden didn’t know the details of Brandt’s death or her suspicion Marissa had placed the sword above Hayden’s own chest. If she told him about Zakael and the cavern, it would open a whole host of questions she couldn’t answer. “I guess you’re right. Strange, though, that they had to hide. I wonder who her lover is.”

  “It doesn’t matter, really. Not unless she gets with child. Then it becomes a case for the realm to handle. I’m famished. All that exploring has worked up my appetite. Let’s get some dinner while we can.”

  Taryn was shocked he could think of eating after what they’d witnessed. They needed to tell Rhoane, to warn the empress. Her gut wrenched with the terrible understanding she couldn’t say anything to Rhoane until she had proof. Without Hayden’s corroboration, he wouldn’t believe her.

  Rhoane had to see it for himself, which meant catching Marissa unawares. Something told Taryn skinning a carlix would be easier.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Taryn’s calm expression belied the mass of nerves that twitched periodically, heightening her anxiety. Her skin, still warm from the sun, glistened with the oil Ellie had used to combat the salty dryness of the sea. Sabina and Hayden had done their best to keep her mind off her meeting with the empress by taking her to the small private cove beneath the castle.

  Over the course of her day, Taryn ran through several reasons the empress might want to see her and could only come up with two. She either found out about her role in saving Hayden or she wished to discuss Brandt. Either way, Taryn wasn’t looking forward to dinner with the most powerful woman in all Aelinae.

  Rhoane arrived to escort her to dinner, a happy surprise to be sure, and relief washed over her. She didn’t have to endure the ordeal alone. They arrived at Lliandra’s door much sooner than Taryn expected, and her stomach dipped as a guard opened it for them. They waited in an entrance hall with floor-to-ceiling mirrors and a huge chandelier. Everywhere she looked, reflections of her reflection repeated in an infinite array of mirrors.

  “Creepy,” Taryn murmured, trying to find a single place to stand where she wouldn’t have to stare at herself.

  “I find the floor immensely fascinating,” Rhoane intoned, eyes lowered.

  A footman escorted the
m to Lliandra’s sitting room where entire walls of crystal allowed views of the beach and ocean beyond. Striations of color, from pale jade to turquoise and finally deep denim, marked the various depths of the sea.

  Rhoane leaned over to whisper, “Welcome home, Darennsai.”

  “You said that in the cavern, too, you know.”

  “That was to welcome you back to Aelinae. Now you are truly home.” His eyes shone with intensity as he watched her.

  She started to ask him what he meant when the empress swept into the room, radiant in a frothy gown of eggshell blue. Lliandra greeted Rhoane in Eleri and then in Elennish said, “Prince Rhoane, I’m so pleased to see you returned to Talaith. It has been much too long since you’ve graced our court with your charm and wit.”

  Rhoane bowed low. “It is I who has missed your company, Great Empress. It is my sincerest hope that my travels will abate for a long period and I can continue to enjoy your generosity at the Crystal Palace.” An underlying tension marred their words, which did nothing to dispel Taryn’s anxiety.

  Threads of ShantiMari crisscrossed Lliandra’s face, giving the observer an impression of a youthful complexion. Taryn tried not to stare at the empress, but the face beneath the veneer held the look of someone either very old or very sick. Dark circles stood out against her pallid, almost jaundiced skin. Taryn checked herself in time to smile when the empress took her hands, kissing her cheeks. At Lliandra’s touch, her pendant hummed in her mind. The woman’s Mari slid over her skin, cold with a touch of tension.

  “Welcome, Taryn. I’ve heard many wonderful things about you. I hope you don’t mind I put off our formal introduction until now.” To Rhoane, she said, “She is as lovely as they say.”

  “Yes, she is.” A look of something close to pride danced in the depths of his eyes, unsettling her even further.

  Taryn curtseyed to the empress. “Thank you, Your Majesty. I’m honored to make your acquaintance.”

  The empress studied her face before turning to Rhoane. “My darling prince, give us some time alone. I’d like a chance to get to know Taryn better.”

  A shot of panic ran through her. She had no desire to be alone with the empress. Rhoane paused a moment to touch Taryn’s cheek, and in that small gesture was all the strength she needed.

  Lliandra bade Taryn to sit while a servant brought them a dark red wine in crystal glasses.

  “Have you ever heard of the Eiriellean Prophecy?” Lliandra asked casually.

  “No, ma’am.” Her pendant fluttered at her neck, distracting her thoughts.

  Lliandra took a long drink before she began. “Several hundred seasons after the Great War, an oracle from the West foretold a schism in the world. A child would be born of this world, but not from this world. One who would usher in a new era for Aelinae, restoring the balance that Kaldaar had upset. For eons, the oracle’s words were laughed at and discarded, but then events began to happen on Aelinae that made scholars believe the oracle might have seen something after all.

  “The Master mages scoured the countryside looking for the child. Then, in the seventy-fifth season of the Sylthan Age, another oracle had a vision. It was different from the first. She spoke of an Eirielle who would destroy all that lingered of the old regime, bringing forth a terrible and frightening future for Aelinae.”

  Lliandra’s voice was distant, as if she were back in time with the sages of old. “Once more, mages searched every kingdom looking for the child, this time so they could destroy the one of prophecy. After a thousand seasons of searching, the mages once again discounted the oracle’s vision and gave up.”

  The empress paused in her recounting and stared into her empty wineglass. Taryn waited patiently for her to continue but Lliandra sat silent with her thoughts.

  “Your Majesty?” Taryn hoped to prompt the rest of the story.

  A servant announced dinner, and Lliandra beckoned Taryn to follow.

  A massive table, large enough to sit twenty people comfortably, was set with two places at one end. Fragile plates and glasses made of rose colored crystal rested on a tablecloth of gold filigree. Knives and forks, trimmed in gold and embedded with pearlized shells, fanned out from the plates. One servant filled their goblets with more of the rich wine while another brought out several dishes of various sea creatures. Purplish lobster-looking things rested atop toast; legs, from what Taryn hoped were crabs, oozing butter were placed before her. Doughy rounds stuffed with white fish and smothered in cream sauce came next. Despite its unusual appearance, the food smelled delicious.

  Lliandra turned to Taryn. “I hear I must thank you for saving the life of my nephew.”

  “Hayden? That was nothing.”

  “So you are as humble as I’ve heard. What you did was not ‘nothing.’ That took bravery.”

  “Or stupidity.” She smiled at the empress. “I think I lack the former and have too much of the latter.”

  “Nonsense.” The sword would not have chosen you if that were true. Do you have it—the sword?

  The last she spoke in Taryn’s mind, startling her. Rhoane had told her no one could enter her mind unless invited.

  I don’t need to know where it is, only that you have it.

  “Yes,” Taryn said, gently nudging the empress from her thoughts.

  “No one else must know of it, and I’m afraid the walls have ears.”

  Lliandra’s midnight blue threads of ShantiMari interlaced throughout the room. Other colors lingered from past empresses, their threads frayed but still powerful.

  “I wanted to thank you for the lovely apartment. I don’t know how to repay your kindness,” Taryn said, changing the subject.

  Lliandra took dainty bites of her food before replying. “You have quite captured my daughters’ hearts and imaginations. According to them, there is nothing you cannot do.”

  “They’re sweet but mistaken.” She quickly added, “I like them very much. They have been very gracious to me.”

  “That is nice to hear, thank you,” Lliandra said sincerely. “And how do you fare with my eldest daughter?”

  Taryn took a bite to stall her answer. “I haven’t had the opportunity to get to know Princess Marissa as well as your younger daughters, but I hope my stay here will reverse that.”

  Lliandra laughed, a throaty sound that belied her delicate frame. “Well said. You might make a politician yet. I was led to believe you speak from your heart, but it seems you also have a brain that works equally as well.”

  “Your Majesty?”

  “There is so much you cannot possibly understand, and I am sorry for that, but as Marissa is my heir, it would serve you well to stay in her good graces. The next few weeks will be trying for you, to be sure.”

  Lliandra started a new story, one that involved the Overlord of the West. “The first man I ever fell in love with lived on the other side of the world. I saw him often at court, but he was nearly a man, and I was but a child. That didn’t stop him from charming and beguiling me so completely that I dreamed of one day marrying him so we could rule our kingdoms together.”

  “Did he return this love?”

  “He did. Valterys and I shared a bond not many lovers have.” Lliandra’s eyes glossed with unshed tears. A longing fluttered beneath her words. “I was inconsolable after the death of Marissa’s father—he was beheaded for trying to poison me. Some say he wanted to seize the crown for his daughter, but she was neigh on five seasons. Still, I forced her to watch her father’s death as a reminder never to cross me.”

  Taryn swallowed a sip of wine with difficulty.

  “Don’t think too unkindly of me, please. To be a great ruler, you must be willing to make sacrifices. Marissa understood that and is now my worthiest ally.”

  Taryn nodded her agreement, surreptitiously checking the room for exits.

  Lliandra continued without pause, “Valterys came to me out of friendship. By then, Zakael’s mother was long dead and because I had never truly stopped caring for him, we became
lovers.” Taryn couldn’t imagine the angry man she saw at Ravenwood with the fragile empress. “Despite my continued pleas, Valterys refused to marry me and co-rule our kingdoms. For ten seasons, we were together. Most of that time I opened my bed to only Valterys, but my appetites are many and I admit, I had others who satisfied my needs.”

  Taryn squirmed in her seat, mentally counting the egg-and-dart pattern around the ceiling to keep from hearing all of the empress’s lurid details. When a servant brought dessert and Lliandra persisted in her tale, Taryn blushed furiously and kept her head lowered, her focus on her plate. The frothy concoction might’ve been delicious, but it settled on her tongue like sand.

  “I loved Valterys with every fiber of my being. I would’ve given him my throne if he’d but asked,” Lliandra finished at last.

  Taryn nodded, seriously doubting Lliandra would give her throne to anyone, including her daughters.

  With dinner concluded, they moved to the sitting room, where another servant brought them sweet wine in tiny glasses accompanied by a shot of something that smelled like sewage and tasted even worse. Lliandra held her glass aloft, giving a silent toast before tossing it back. Taryn had no choice but to follow suit. The disgusting sludge burned down her throat to her already unsettled belly.

  After knocking back another shot, Lliandra picked up the thread of her story from dinner. “For most of our time together, Valterys was loving and kind. He doted on me and Marissa. Zakael would visit from time to time, but he mostly kept to Caer Idris.” Lliandra signaled for another shot of the soupy liquid. “This is my favorite blend of trisp. Have you had this before?”

  “No, Your Majesty,” Taryn said, stifling a shudder and declining the servant’s offer of another. The smell alone was enough to make her gag.

  “It wasn’t until I got with child that Valterys’s personality changed. I had no idea what the man planned for our unborn baby.”