Page 76 of First Light

“Cool is very good.”

There were long bookshelves all along the front wall where they’d walked through the arched doorway. The shelves were piled with various manuscripts, scrolls, and more than a few piles of loose papers.There were assorted specimens in jars, many of which Carys didn’t want to examine too closely, and pots of trailing ivy cascaded from various nooks and crannies.

There was a row of sizable windows along the outer wall, pushed out from the chamber so shelves could be built into them to catch the cool light outside. They were lined with different potted plants, clippings in jars, and tubes holding roots and bulbs.

“I love your laboratory.” Carys turned in circles, taking everything in.

“I’m glad you came to visit.” Aisling had a smudge of dirt on her cheek, and she wiped her hands on her apron. “It’s my favorite place.”

Lachlan’s eyes were fixed on Carys. “You’re looking well this morning, Carys. How did you sleep after your meeting with Dafydd?”

She glanced at him. “I slept well.” Her irritating heart raced to see his admiring stare.

“Will you be at the banquet tonight?” Lachlan’s voice reminded her of lazy mornings in bed.

“Of course she will be.” Aisling shooed him out the door. “Go. I imagine your father is already on his horse. Go put your arrows to good use, Lord Lachlan. Your guests will be hungry tonight.”

Lachlan sent Carys one last look before he left the high-ceilinged room.

“He’s going hunting with Lord Robb and King Dafydd.” Aisling narrowed her eyes at Duncan. “Weren’t you invited, Duncan?”

“I was, but I’m useless with a bow.” Duncan wandered over to the wall of plants and looked into the courtyard. “Give me a shotgun and I’d be helpful.”

“Ah, but the fae would have none of that.” Aisling looked at Carys and winked. “We’re limited on what metals we’re allowed to mine and we have no access to gunpowder, though I have heard the Shadowlands in the Far Eastern world have it.”

Carys looked at a row of jars, tubes, and simmering cauldrons on the worktable. “So you’re a chemist?”

“Alchemist.” Aisling called out, “Nate?”

A young man came from behind a set of bookshelves. “Yes, Lady Aisling?”

“I’d clean up that spill, but I have guests. Can you get it for me? I don’t want any accidents.”

The young man bowed. “Of course, my lady.”

“Use the boar-leather gloves.” She motioned Carys toward the windows where Duncan was standing. “It’s my own space and I love it. I brew practical things for the castle and the town mostly. Potions, healing salves, teas, and tinctures, of course. But I do experiment with rarer ingredients when I can get them, and I practice my spells, of course. Regan will be with me later when she’s rested.”

“Where does your aunt live most of the time? Is she close by?”

Duncan muttered, “Thank God, no.”

“Regan lives here and there.” Aisling laughed a little. “She’s not married, so she can do as she pleases.”

“Regan travels with the fae,” Duncan said. “Be careful talking with any of her companions. They’ll be like Dru.”

“Right.”

Aisling waved a hand. “Duncan is suspicions of anything fae. I grew up with the Good People in my grandmother’s court, so they don’t bother me.”

“Yet.” Duncan surveyed her plants. “Your herbs are looking well. I’m impressed you can grow rosemary inside.”

“It’s always a challenge to get them enough light.” Aisling pointed to a system of mirrors hanging along the walls. “I use those to amplify the natural light. We don’t have a sun, so growing anything indoors is a challenge, particularly warm-weather plants.”

Carys frowned. “With no sun, how do you grow anything at all?”

“We have light.” Aisling pointed to the windows. “We have… I suppose it doesn’t make much sense to you.”

From the moment Carys had arrived in the Shadowlands, the lack of a sun had nagged at the back of her mind. The light grew brighter in the morning and the sky was illuminated by stars at night, but thatwas the only familiar light. It was as if the sky was constantly covered by a high fog that blocked the heavens.

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