Page 11 of The Blood Crown

“I can only imagine howthatwent for you,” she drawled.

“And you only know Nira as she is now—Embra’s softened her considerably over the last two hundred odd years. But make no mistake, Nira would still kick my ass if she thought I needed humbling.”

Aurelia smiled at the thought of her friends, holding onto the hope that she would see them again soon. Conjuring an image of Embra, backlit by the warm glow of her greenhouse, her tinkling laughter filling the tower at Ravenstone.

“Embra said it took her years to work up the nerve to approach Nira,” she said, smiling to herself at the thought.

“It did,” Ven rolled his eyes with feigned suffering. “It was clear to the rest of us how madly they wanted each other much earlier than that, but believe it or not—Nira was the one who was terrified to admit her feelings to Embra.”

Aurelia laughed, the sound of unstifled joy catching her off guard.

“It’s true!” Ven protested from beside her. “I’d catch Nira at the bottom of the tower steps, watching Embra work in her laboratory through the glass doors—piningis probably more accurate,” he chuckled. “Her excuses for being there were always pathetically flimsy, but the rest of us knew for years that she and Embra were—” His words broke off, something like sadness lacing his voice.

Bound.Embra had told her about finding Nira on the battlefield and not being able to leave her. Two people from two completely different kingdoms who would never have crossed paths if it hadn’t been for the world going to shit.

But both of them were fierce females. Strong and determined, and it wasn’t much of a surprise at all that they’d found each other. That they belonged together.

“And Seth?” she asked.

“Seth is . . . reserved,” Ven replied. “He sees and feels much more than the rest of us.” His voice trailed off as if he’d said too much.

“What do you mean?”

“Fate gifted him with premonitions,” he said quietly, thoughtfully. “Although, I’ve known him long enough to know it is not a gift. Not truly.” He paused. “I fear that he has not let himself truly love or be loved because of what he has lost. If he gave his heart to someone only to witness their death . . . I think he sees the way his twin loves Embra and it terrifies him.”

She was silent for a moment.

What must it be like to know of things that had not come to pass—an advantage for a kingdom at war . . . But did he also see the losses before they happened?

Maybe it wasn’t a gift after all.

Seth was kind, loyal, smart. The Unnamed knew he was beautiful. But there was an unspoken hurt that seemed to linger in his eyes, and she wondered if someone might be able to chase it away one day. If anyone deserved happiness, it was him.

“And you?” she asked.

“Me?”

“I’m sure you haven’t lacked companionship,” she teased, already hating herself for asking. She was desperately curious, but something inside of her couldn’t quite bear to hear the answer.

“I was always an outsider. Thankfully I had Karro, and later Seth and Nira. But growing up as a child of both kingdoms was not an easy thing. The other young males couldn’t decide if they should befriend me or throw me off the Ledge, and the females weren’t sure whether they should fear me or, well . . .” He gave another shrug, his lips curving into a smirk.

A flare of unwarranted jealousy prickled her nerves, but she could understand what he meant. There was much of that she had felt, herself, growing up. Being the daughter of a Councilor had painted a target on her back. The other young ladies at court only saw her as competition, and she could never be certain if the attention of the young men had been genuine or only because they knew it would pave a gilded path for their own futures.

Ven let out a sigh. “Nothing lasted very long, and honestly I preferred it that way.”

There is no future for us.

The thought sluiced ice water down her spine, and she cut it off before it had a chance to lodge itself there. Turning to facethe rough wall of the cave, she wrapped her arms around herself, trying to shake off the cold.

Soft rustling sounded behind her, and a moment later a heavy warmth draped over her body.

“If your teeth chatter any harder, neither of us will get any sleep.” Ven’s hard chest pressed into her back, his arm wrapped around her waist as she fought against the heat that flooded her body as he tucked her against himself.

Trying to think of anything to take her mind off of how he felt, how perfectly she molded into his body, she grumbled, “Won’t Karro be jealous?”

Amusement rumbled through his voice as he replied, “Definitely. But you don’t seem like one to snore and you certainly smell better, so I think he’ll understand my reasoning.”

Stifling a yawn, she turned the subject back to safer territory. Trying to ignore the heat that radiated from him. The dizzying closeness of him. “Tell me more about the wisps.”

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