Page 57 of The Duke and the Disciple

“You never struck me as someone particularly fussed about titles.”

“I’m not,” she said as they stepped inside. The main hall of Wulfsgate Keep was cavernous, broken up only by a series of tapestries for warming. A central staircase ran down the center, with further halls to the left and right. An entire line of staff waited at the bottom. “But I understand duty.”

The doors whooshed closed behind them. “Of course you do. I haven’t forgotten.” His hand twitched against her back and fell away. “We’ll be going just to the back here.”

“The back?” Aesylt checked to make sure Rahn was still close, but he seemed distracted. “Where are Imryll and Aleksy?”

“My father has already taken them to their apartment. Your brother wrote ahead, asking if you could be provided, ah, how did he word it... special privileges? For your research, is that right? You’re working on something important?”

Rahn cleared his throat. “We have a research endeavor we’d love to continue, if possible. But special privileges will not be necessary, my lord.”

“If you’re not a duke, then I’m not a lord,” Pieter said amiably. “And Steward Wynter specifically said, ‘Somewhere she can see the stars.’ I suppose that applies to all of the grounds, but there’s one very particular place we’ve fixed up for you that should work well, should the clouds clear.”

Regret tickled the back of Aesylt’s eyes. She hadn’t left her brother on the greatest terms, but he’d been thinking about her happiness when he’d made the request. “Wherever it is, I’m sure it will be fine.”

“Now, it hasn’t been used much. We have three bell towers at the keep, as you might recall, but we only actively man two of them. The third made itself obsolete when we expanded the residences further into the foothills. No one wants to hear bells going off in the middle of the night outside their window, eh?” Pieter winked and exited through the back of the keep, which opened into another courtyard. The mysterious Wintergarden lay just beyond, to the west, and to the east was the Northerland Range. “The stairway is daunting, but you’re both young. At the top... Well, I’ll just show you. Come.”

Rahn stepped in beside Aesylt as Pieter jogged ahead. “A childhood friend of yours?”

“Yes,” she said as everyone in the courtyard stopped to watch them. “You’ll like him.”

“He’s my age.”

Aesylt grinned. “That an admonishment, Scholar, or an observation?”

Rahn tried not to grin back. “When have I ever admonished you, Squish?”

She cocked a brow. “So you’re back to calling me a squirrel?”

“Aresourcefulsquirrel.”

“Just up here, Aesylt, Scholar.”

Pieter took them through a series of short, tight alleyways, which opened into a small garden, surrounded by the walls of other structures. On the north end of the garden was a tower. It stretched about six stories high, the outer walls cracked but solid. Moss burst from the mortar, crumbling off in chunks. The bell at the top was rusted, but just beneath the platform was a series of windows. The bellman’s apartment. Aesylt had never seen one so didn’t know what to expect. There were no bellmen in Witchwood Cross, just guards in sparse stone monoliths.

“This is Halifax, but you can call him Hal, or even Billiards if you’re feeling cheeky. Maybe he’ll even tell you why,” Pieter said, pointing out a congenial guard with golden hair cascading down his back from a leather ribbon. Hal glared at the disgraced heir in a mix of playfulness and annoyance. “One of the best guards we have, and certainly the one you’d want playing your money in a game room.” He grinned. “He’ll be in charge of your tower protection while you’re here. Anything you need, any concerns... He’s your first line of defense at night. His brother, Kezza, takes over in the daytime and is equally experienced. You’re in capable hands.”

“A pleasure to meet you, Hal, and thank you for looking after us,” Aesylt said amiably. Rahn echoed her words. The man flushed and bowed.

“Your trunks are already up there. Our men are fast,” Pieter said, holding the door for them and tipping a nod at Hal. He grabbed a torch from a basket on the wall. “We brought two eternal flames here, one at the top and one at the bottom, for when you need to climb the stairs after dark. But there are far more candles than you’ll ever need once you step inside.”

Rahn held his arm out for Aesylt to go first. He joined right behind, close enough she could feel his warmth and inhale the not-unpleasant musk of hours on the road. She wondered how she smelled, if he was thinking about her the same way. Every few steps his hand would brush her back.

Yes, he is.

On they climbed, up and up. In her head, Aesylt counted the stories, but her math was woefully off, as Pieter confirmed when he called outwe’re halfwaywhen she was certain they were about to reach the top. Exhaustion beckoned, but she was sharply aware of everything happening around her. The spiders crawling along the dark walls, dancing in and out of the light of Pieter’s flame. Pieter’s long legs disappearing around every winding turn. Rahn’s prevailing presence at her back.

Pieter slowed when they reached a small platform and a door. “Privy. It’s a half story below the main apartment, which may seem inconvenient to you now, but given the lack of proper air circulation in the structure, you’ll be grateful for it.”

Rahn chuckled. Aesylt frowned at the door and followed Pieter up the last flight.

Pieter set the torch in a sconce and unlocked the door and handed the ring, key dangling, to Aesylt. “After you, love.”

Aesylt stepped inside. The room was larger than she’d imagined, and surprisingly well furnished. A living area, a dining area, and a bathtub were the first things she saw, followed by two sizable desks, each holding a stack of books. But then she noted the beds, separated by thin curtains, and it hit her. One room. It would not be like her prior confinement, where they’d each had their own space. Any privacy in the bell tower would be an illusion, as wispy as the curtains. “We’re staying here? Both of us?”

Pieter chuckled. “Wherever you are at night is where you must stay until morning, for your safety. As your astronomy work can only be done at night, staying in the keep would have kept you from it. My father was assured it would not be a problem.”

She gestured at the two beds. “Drazhan knows we’re sharing a room?”

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