Page 134 of A Queen's Game
Yet a question had burned at the back of her mind, one she almost asked Keyain when they returned to the suite. Did Keyain ever love the King back, or was the King bitter when Keyain never returned his feelings?
Regardless, Marietta would stick to the plan despite what trouble it could bring her. That included handling Keyain’s burning fit of jealousy that day after the gardens. Even holding his hand hadn’t worked. It took a kiss. Not on the lips, thank gods, but on his cheek while Marietta caressed his face. Only then did he stop and breathe. Nauseating work, but it could have been worse.
The week alone in the suite had included her pretending to find his court gossip entertaining and lying about not being bored. She read the book from the library within an afternoon. The sexier scenes Elyse referred to were, well, tame. When Keyain saw what she was reading, he acted affronted. Marietta had to remind him that they had much wilder nights than what was in the book back in the day. The idea that the content was scandalous made her laugh. If only Elyse could read the books she had left in Olkia.
Other than that, her week dragged on, each day making her antsier than the last. The morning Amryth returned, she wasted no time in getting out of the suite. They strolled an unfamiliar section of the castle, where marble statues lined the hallway. A coiled serpent sat on a pedestal with its head raised, a pair of horns curling back from its face, its tongue flickering. She stopped to inspect the details, failing to remember the creature’s name from her father’s feyrie tales.
“Are you still not going to share what your task was?” Marietta asked.
“Gods damned fool’s errand is what,” Amryth grumbled. “I offered to help with the search of the missing pilinos, and Keyain took that as I’m open for whatever tasks he needs.”
“What did he have you do?” she asked again, raising her brows.
“Nothing worth sharing,” she said, waving her off, her leather armor shifting smoothly with the motion. “I checked in with Deania at the temple last night. She knew half of the missing pilinos, and so far, the ones whose bodies have been recovered were all her friends.”
“Deities above, that’s tragic.” Marietta clutched a hand to her chest. “Is she alright?”
“She says she is, but I know she isn’t.” Amryth paused, crossing her arms to lean against the pillar. “What I find more concerning is that she’s hiding information. The murderers almost abducted another friend of hers during the height of the disappearances. They never reported it to the guard.”
“Can you blame them?” Marietta said with a tight smile. “It’s not as if they’re treated well.”
“Though that’s true, Keyain is putting all his resources towards this.” She paused, toying with one of her braids. “The reason they didn’t come forward was because of what they saw. Two male elves cornered them, but the details were confusing. In the dark, they could only see the most glaring features, which were described as one having a set of gray, feathery wings sprouting from his back. The other male had two horns circling the sides of his head from his temple.”
Marietta furrowed her brows. “Costumes, maybe?”
“But why costumes? Why wear such distinct features that also make it difficult to move?” Amryth shook her head. “Itmakes little sense, and her friend knew that, hence why they didn’t go to the guard.”
Amryth pushed off the pillar, leading Marietta further down the hall. A massive statue pulled her attention. The bottom was that of a horse, from the torso up was human. “It sounds like something from a feyrie tale,” she said, nodding to the sculpture. “Like a centaur or satyr.”
Amryth scoffed. “Right, as if the statues were coming alive and attacking pilinos specifically.”
Marietta laughed, taking her arm to skip down the hall, happy to distract Amryth from the dour topic. “If you could be any creature from a feyrie tale, what would you be?” She stopped, twirling out the pale pink of her dress to face Amryth, the dual slits in her skirt reaching to her hips.
“What kind of question is that?”
Marietta shrugged, twirling again. “A fun one. I think you’d be a gorgon.”
“Seriously? Because of my hair?” She almost looked offended.
“No, because your gaze can turn anyone into stone.” Marietta laughed, getting Amryth to crack a smile. “Your unimpressed stare turns me to stone—and you like me. I can’t imagine what it looks like when you don’t like someone.”
Amryth smirked. “Let’s hope you don’t find out.”
“What do you think I’d be?”
“A satyr,” she answered without missing a beat. “Because you’re impulsive as all hells.”
“And I like to dance.” She twirled again, finding herself at the end of the hall where it opened up to a new room. Marietta stood, mouth agape.
“Welcome to the Glass Garden,” Amryth said, stepping past her. “I knew you’d like it.”
The enclosed garden had statues of satyrs and delicate water nymphs, carved frolicking in the waters, water spouting from the tips of their fingers. A massive rock outcropping from the wall centered the fountain. At its front was a cave inhabited by a beautiful female creature with a haunted expression, its mouth gaping as if she screamed. The angles of the face were too sharp to be human, elven, or anything in between. Water spouted out the eyes and mouth, down her naked body.
The glass ceiling high above let in the afternoon light. Crystal orbs floated above the fountain in the sun’s rays and created rainbows in the mist. Colors danced across every surface from the refracted light.
Around the exterior were trees and flowers planted in containers with thick vines coiled up the stone walls and columns. The perfume from the blooms blended with soil and wet permeated the air. The fountain’s babbling water aided Marietta’s sense of peace. “How have I not seen this?” she asked. “It’s unbelievable.”
“It’s one of the most beautiful spots in the palace.” Marietta jumped at the deep voice from just over her shoulder.
