Page 15 of To No End

She remained silent and attentive. “Gris was the best option. I trusted him and he’ll keep it a secret.”

Versa folded her arms and gave me a smirk.

“What?” I threw my hands up in exasperation.

“Details, sister, I need details!”

Finally, I exhaled, worried that Versa was displeased with me. All I wanted to do was pore over each detail with her, like she had with me after all those nights she’d crawled in through my bedroom window.

Now we convened, laying on the floor of her room surrounded by crumpled wedding dress sketches. We stared at the pastel floral fresco paintings adorning the ceiling while I recalled to her, in explicit detail, each amazing memory of my first time with Gris.

She questioned me and we giggled for what seemed like hours until twilight filled her windows and I could hear Father yelling for her to come to dinner.

They hadn’t realized I was home and would be joining them after all. I gave a knowing look to Versa and said, “If anyone asks, I went riding all day.”

She winked at me and pulled me up from the floor to head downstairs for dinner.

My parents were pleasantly surprised to see me at dinner. Versa did a fantastic job of leading the conversation in her direction with talks of her soon-to-be infamous wedding dress swap. I was grateful that I didn’t have to spend too much time lying about being out riding all day. Well, Iwasout riding something… I snickered to myself. As the meal concluded, I witnessed mymother arguing with our chef in the corner of the dining room as staff cleared our plates. It was unlike her to have such a brash attitude, especially toward our cook. She bragged over his elaborate delicacies any chance she could; it was peculiar to see her terse dismissal of him.

Before retiring to my room for the evening, I found my father pacing the expansive hallways connecting mine and Versa’s rooms to the other wings of the household. His clothes looked crumpled and his hair a bit messy, which was far from his normal appearance. He began to approach me, but then quickly turned back around, heading in the direction opposite my room like he had changed his mind.

Before shutting my door, Versa poked her head into the hallway and gave me a questioning look that said,Will you be sneaking out a window this evening?I rolled my eyes at her and shut my door without addressing her taunt. I was too tired from the weight of this day to do anything but retire to my bed and seek comfort in the softness of my silk sheets.

My body was sore, tired, but also ached to fill the absence. The incredible absence of Gris. I kept telling myself he was a means to an end. Stop fixating on him. I rolled to my side and reached for the tiny book on my bedside table where I had hidden the small piece of paper with my list.

I was more than pleased with myself when I crossed off the very top item. My tired eyes began scanning over what remained. There was only one thing on the list that wasn’t entirely selfish of me; I figured it made sense to at least prioritize that. I lay in bed that night as the moonslight blanketed the pale marble floor, thinking about all the wealth contained in my room alone.

Wealth, after all, is what made our family Honored Fae, members of the High Court. At a certain point in history, the king of our land couldn’t ignore the benefits of having allies notjust of royal blood, but also those who held fortunes of their own. There would always be a divide, though. Us and them, the Honored Fae and the Royal Fae. It was extremely political because in terms of land, treatment, and respect, all High Court families were equal. But beyond the eyes of the king, these two sides would always remain divided.

The Royals found it distasteful to allow their children to marry outside of Royal bloodlines. They scoffed at invitations to attend major parties or weddings hosted by the Honored Fae and, oftentimes, these invitations were only extended to maintain a facade of pleasantries.

This is why I didn’t know many of the Royal families of the High Court, because they didn’t mingle with our kind. Additionally, when our family was called to court, it was standard practice that only one generation at a time travel to Aeon’s castle or palaces in order to protect the lines of succession. My mother and father always traveled with heavy security in tow.

Sadly, a lot of the High Fae families had been intentionally killed off during the war, so the Royal and Honored families were especially keen to protect those that remained. Many High Fae families had to relocate when peacetime resumed to spread farther out and maintain governance over all the territories.

Despite the Royals being invited to attend Versa’s nuptials, it would be unlikely that they’d make any appearances. But boy did they love to gossip and one-up each other. The Honored Fae lived on the cusp, always trying to be acknowledged or buy their way into acceptance.

The Royals were secretive and conniving, often avoiding sending their children to the same academies, instead opting to provide private education. Years and years of deeply-held beliefs passed down from one generation to another, creating endless cycles of unwarranted division.

Regardless, at the end of the day, we were all the king’s pawns. This had never been more evident to me, now knowing I would be called to the Offering. It didn’t matter your bloodline or your fortune, all would be required to make a sacrifice.

I folded my list and placed it back inside my book. My eyelids were heavy, and as I rolled onto my side to pull my pillow into my chest, I thought of Gris and his formidable muscular frame and how nice it would be to feel his warmth cradled against me under the soft sheets. I drifted off to sleep, hoping if I kept his handsome features in my mind’s eye, I’d be lucky enough to dream of him.

CHAPTER

6

When the sunlight began to peek through the soft sheers at my window, I reluctantly stirred. I hated mornings, but my new circumstances called for a make-every-minute-count approach. I completed my normal routine, but instead of dressing to impress, I once again donned my brown riding pants, a loose-fitted cream-colored blouse, a dark blue vest, and black riding boots.

As I walked past the mirror, I felt more like myself than the day prior. But today I was once again met with the look of a new person staring back from my reflection. A confident female; one who still blushed at the notion that she had commanded a male’s desire. I smirked back at the girl in the mirror and made my way to my armoire. I pulled back the drawer to uncover jewels of immeasurable value, all laid out in a display atop a blanket of black velvet.

The display looked like a museum exhibit, as if it had never been touched and these items were arranged just for viewing. Although I wasn’t big on wearing jewelry, our merchant fatherwas insistent on spoiling his daughters every chance he got with shiny, sparkling baubles from all over the world.

I lightly ran my fingers across each piece, touching the brilliant stones ranging from small to large, intricate and ornate to simple and minimalist; there were too many to count.

Necklaces, earrings, bracelets, brooches, rings, diadems. My sister’s drawer overflowed even more than mine, as she enjoyed collecting such finery. And my mother, well, let’s just say a drawer wasn’t enough to contain the luxurious accessories that she had accumulated.

The worth of these pieces was exorbitant. And for me, these were now just pointless material things that would no longer carry space in my life. Where I was going, whatever I would be doing, wouldn’t be a place to bring such things. It made it very easy to reconcile that just a few of these wouldn’t be missed by me or anyone else, and I had an idea and a better purpose in mind.

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