“I’m right here, you can ask me yourself,” I said tartly.
Skye laughed. “Give her a few days, Tristan, it’s all too new for her. See you later at the feast, Aurora. Come on, Brianna.” She ran off with her friend toward the palace.
Tristan glared at me, and Cade grinned.
“Skye’s sweet,” I said as they walked me back to the palace.
Cade nodded. “She’s the only one in the family who is.”
“Who is her family? She said something about her mother arriving and going on a rampage.”
Cade chuckled. “So, Andromeda’s back, is she?”
Tristan nodded. “She came in today for the feast.”
“I was wondering why Aiden decided to go on patrol today.”
Tristan shrugged. “I guess it was the lesser of two evils.”
“Skye is Aiden’s younger sister,” Cade explained. “And their mother is the Grand Duchess of the Day Court. She has a terrible temper, and when she comes to town even Aiden runs for the hills. Skye is the only one she listens to.”
“Where is Skye’s father?”
“The Grand Duke of the Day Court has been ailing for some time,” Tristan answered. “Andromeda rules the Day Court in his name.”
The Grand Duchess of the Day Court didn’t sound like someone I wanted to meet.
“I will meet you at the bottom of the steps in an hour,” Tristan snapped when we reached the stairs to my room. “Don’t be late.”
I was too tired to argue, and although I had healed myself, my body still ached and my limbs were sore. I could barely make it up the stairs, and my legs were like jelly when I finally reached the top. Surely this couldn’t be the only empty guest room in the castle. I wondered why my grandmother had put me up here.
Someone had laid out a plain green cotton dress on the bed. It was virtually unadorned and edges were fraying, but it had little flowers stitched on the neckline and cuffs. Brianna must have sent it. I couldn’t be bothered to be fussy, so I put it on. It looked like a sack, but at least it was loose and comfortable. I brushed my hair and tied it in a ponytail. I didn’t have a flock of maids here to help me get dressed, so it was the best I could manage.
Tristan was waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs, arms crossed and legs apart. I could feel his powerful magical presence before I reached the landing. He looked dazzling in his midnight-colored doublet lined with silver thread, his high shining black boots darkened by the shadows of the night. His long black hair was tied back in a ponytail, enhancing his fae ears, and a thin silver circlet rested upon his head. The dark prince, devastatingly handsome in all his glory, stood before me, but he did not look pleased.
He glowered at me. “Are you going to the feast wearing that?”
“It’s what Brianna sent me,” I answered, holding my head high. “I don’t have anything else to wear.” I softened my tone, biting my lip.
Tristan cursed under his breath. “Come with me.” He turned abruptly and stalked off in the other direction.
“Do you always have to walk so fast?” I ran after him. “Where are we going? I thought the Grand Hall was the other way.”
He kept walking. “It is.”
We stopped in front of a huge wooden door at the very end of the corridor. It was intricately engraved with the flora and fauna of these lands, a lot like the carved chest I had seen in Rafe’s room at the Summer Palace before we left. I missed Rafe and wondered how he was. There was no word from Eldoren as far as I knew, and I had no idea what was going on in the other kingdoms.
Tristan knocked once, and a strong female voice bade us enter.
Tristan gestured me forward and closed the door behind us. The room was big and airy. At its center was a large four-poster bed, hung with light muslin curtains dyed a beautiful black with interwoven silver swirls that lit up as the moonlight touched them. An elderly fae lady sat beside the fireplace warming her hands.
She turned to look at us, and her sapphire eyes sparkled with silver stars, so like Tristan’s. She was older than any of the other High Fae that I had come across since I had arrived in Elfi. Her presence was powerful—I could feel the magic of the night rolling off her in gentle waves, as if it were she who commanded the stars to shine. Her hair was white and elegantly coiffed, and she wore a small silver tiara set with diamonds that sparkled as if she wore the stars on her head.
She was certainly of the Night Court and royal.
“Grandmother.” Tristan bowed formally.
“Tristan, my boy, to what do I owe this pleasure? I thought I would see you shortly at the feast.” She stopped and turned her eyes to me. Her eyebrows went up when she realized who Tristan had brought with him.
Tristan’s grandmother looked me up and down. “What is she wearing?”
Tristan scowled. “That’s what I said.”
I glared back at him.
“Aurora, may I introduce my grandmother, Rhiannon, the Dowager Duchess of the Night Court,” said Tristan formally.
“Pleased to meet you.” I inclined my head in deference to her rank. “I had nothing else to wear,” I explained. “And Brianna said she would send me something.”
“Brianna Darkvale is a jealous little vixen,” snapped the dowager duchess, getting up from her chair. “Her father is a Count of the Day Court and thinks a marriage between Brianna and Tristan will be advantageous to their family. Of course, my son, Tristan’s father, refused the match, but she still thinks it will happen. She’s a troublemaker and no good, stay away from her.”
I nodded and flicked a glance at Tristan, who had taken up his favorite pose: arms crossed and feet apart, glaring at me. I rolled my eyes; he had issues.
“Who cares what Brianna Darkvale thinks?”
