Page 71 of The Gods Veiling
“The house is down this random path?” I ask.
He murmurs a ‘uh-huh’ before carrying on, “This path leads to a section of the gods’ housings. They’re spread out across this whole side of the Godsdawn.”
Yemi grunts at that, and I catch the longing on her face.
“Your house is over here as well?”
“No, mine was down that path we just passed.”
My feet stop and I turn back. “We can walk you home first so youdon’t walk alone.”
“I don’t live there anymore,” she says flatly.
“What? Why?”
“When Attendants are chosen, they move closer to the god who chose them. I haven’t been back home since the Veiling ceremony, but I’d wager her new house is now beside ours.”
There’s a bit of disdain in Kyzen’s tone. I don’t know if it’s directed at me or what he said, but regardless, I stay focused on Yemi.
“Wait. You have to leave your house just because I chose you?”
“Yep.”
My mouth opens and closes as indecision on what to say wars within me. No wonder she comes off like she hates me. I’ve literally uprooted her whole life.
Gods damn it.
“Do you want to go pack your things? I can help you.”
“It’ll already have been done for me.”
“Rose? She’ll be the same?”
“Yeah.”
My face falls. There’s absolutely nothing I can say to make this any better. It would’ve been real nice for the High Chancellor to explain in full detail what this truly meant.
In my mind, I was accepting her because I wouldn’t treat her shitty like I know they all are. Apparently, all I’ve done is take her from a bad situation and put her in a worse one.
I don’t speak for the rest of the walk.
I even keep the shock of seeing the small, cute cottages spread out everywhere to myself. I have about a million questions about them.
I just witnessed four men walk out of one with no care in the world about the size. From the outside, it doesn’t look like there’s any possible way there are four bedrooms in there.
It dawns on me this is what Havar was referring to when he explained the Goddess of Illusion’s power is all over the place. I bet the insides are just like the carriage was. Massive.
At least that means we won’t be cramped together.
Nestled in the back, farthest away from everyone, sits a house built out of black, gray, and white stones. It’s bigger than most we’ve passed so far and my home back in Oddian. There’re no pretty flower beds, nor is there a white door.
This one is charcoal like the color of all the stones mixed.
It’s like a looming warning that my life is about to get a little darker when I step inside.
“Do you mind?” Yemi asks quietly and I follow in the direction she’s nodding in.
Tucked to the side on the right, there’s a home that’s no larger than a loft-sized shed. It’s actually very cute and quaint. The wood that it’s built out of is a reddish-brown and there is, in fact, a flower box underneath the single window. There’s a stone path laid throughout the grass that disappears somewhere behind the other house.
