Page 43 of The Shadowbound King

He cleared his throat. “Yes. The enchantment dates from the time of the Covenant. Othor wrote a book about it.” Andrin turned, gesturing to the shelves behind us. “I believe it’s here.”

“And Othor is…?”

“The High Priest of the Autumn Court.”

Surprise flared in my mind. Every few months, a traveling priest made the climb to Purecliff. The household staff squeezed onto benches in the castle’s tiny shrine as he mumbled a few prayers and collected a fee.

“This Othor speaks to the gods?” I asked.

Andrin’s expression cooled. “OthorVerdalistends the Edeloak. My house has always cared for the trees. In past centuries, we counted dozens of priests and priestesses among our numbers. Othor is the only priest left in Autumn. The others perished in the Edelfen after we lost the Kree.”

Just like that, the tentative camaraderie between us evaporated. For a moment, Andrin had seen me as someone other than Walto Lornlark’s daughter. That moment was gone.

As an awkward silence stretched, I inclined my head. “Thank you, Your Majesty, for allowing me to look at the ledgers. I love reading, but it was nice to do something else for a change.” I moved around the desk.

“Where are you going?” Andrin demanded.

I froze, then turned enough to meet his stare. “I’m returning to the cage.”

He frowned, his eyes shifting to the cage behind me. Then he moved swiftly, flipping the ledgers closed and stuffing them back on the shelves. He pulled a different book from the stacks and tucked it under his arm.

“Ginhad will be along shortly to help you dress for this evening’s feast,” he said tightly. “You might as well stay out of the cage until he gets here.” Before I could react, Andrin strode to his bedchamber.

I stared after him, confusion whirling through my mind. He’d gone from threatening me to ignoring me. Then, for a few brief moments, he’d seemed almost…normal. Or, at least, as normal as an immortal king could be.

And now, after a week of forcing me to sit at his feet in the Great Hall and sleep in the cage at night, he gave me the run of his quarters?

The fire popped, pulling me from my musings. I pivoted slowly, taking in the expansive, richly furnished space. My gaze landed on a large tapestry on the far wall. As I drifted toward it, more details emerged. The tapestry depicted a large forest dotted with a variety of trees. Red, gold, and orange leaves decorated their branches. All sorts of animals leaped between the trunks. Foxes and squirrels appeared to play a game of chase. A speckled fawn peeked from behind a clump of tall grass.

Reaching the tapestry, I traced the outline of a fuzzy white rabbit with my fingertip before moving to one of the trees. Talland majestic, its branches stretched like giant arms over the forest floor.

Abruptly, I realized it was the same tree I’d seen in the King’s Grove. Or perhaps one like it. I stepped back and ran my gaze over the tapestry. Sure enough, the same tree appeared over and over. Some were taller than others. Several looked like saplings. But all boasted the colorful, oversized leaves of the tree in the grove.

The chamber’s doors swung open, and Ginhad rushed inside with a dress draped over one arm.

“You’re going to call me a hypocrite, and I’m telling you right now I donotcare because this gown is—” He stopped, his eyes popping wide as he stared at the cage. “Oh, fuck.”

“I’m here,” I said, rushing from the side of the chamber. “It’s all right.”

Ginhad swayed on his feet, the color draining from his face. “I might faint.”

I hurried to him and took his arm. “Come on. You need to lie down.” He nodded weakly, and I helped him to the nearest sofa, where I urged him onto his back. Then I untangled the dress from his elbow and thrust a pillow under his feet.

Ginhad lay with his eyes closed and one hand pressed to his forehead. Gradually, his breathing evened out, and his skin lost its waxy hue. After another moment, he slit an eye open, his gaze fixed on me.

“Are you real, or are we in the afterlife because the king executed me for letting you escape?”

A smile tugged at my mouth as I pulled a chair next to the sofa and sat. “I’m real. You’re alive.”

“That’s nice. Why are you out of your cage?” He held up a finger. “I didn’t know how bad that would sound until I said it.”

I couldn’t help a glance toward Andrin’s bedchamber. “The king was struggling to balance his ledgers. He let me out so I could help him cipher.”

“And did you? Help him, I mean?”

“Yes. Afterward, he said I might as well stay out of the cage until you arrived.”

Ginhad appeared to turn this over in his mind. “That’s…kind of sweet, actually. You bonded over math.” He winced. “Notbondedbonded. Not like a shadow bond.”

---