Page 49 of Kingdom of Ashes & Bone
Zion huffed. “No, I haven’t.”
Well then, just another thing to add to the list.
Zion and I emerged from our tower, both of us in awe at the hustle and bustle of the castle. Even before the attack, the halls hadn’t been full of people like this! Servants and bakers hustled back and forth indiscriminately, feeding the hordes of people lodged in every available room. Stone masons were gathered in clusters, pointing at damaged sections of the castle and arguing over the best way to proceed. Two children clipped my ankle as they ran past me, intent on their game of tag.
Zion stopped, taking it all in. “I’ve never … seen it this lively,” he remarked, in awe. “It’s … beautiful.”
I remembered how either he or his brother had said that they weren’t allowed to play with other children growing up. Had the entire castle been isolated to keep their secret? How lonely! I grabbed his hand, giving it a squeeze. It was incredible to see how people came together in the wake of tragedy and brought out the best in each other. At the same time, I couldn’t help but hate that it took such heartbreak to make it happen. No one gave a shit when everything was fine, but present them a situation so heinous to their sensibilities that they are forced to take the other side, and see what happened.
Imagine what the world would be like if we had that mentality every day.
“Mari? MARI!”
A familiar voice caught my attention and I turned, running straight into Leilani. She looked a little worse for wear with soot in her blonde hair, but we all looked awful at the moment.
“You did it! I’m so sorry I didn’t believe you. You forgive me, right?” Her desperate plea went straight to my heart, and I hugged her. I’d never considered myself a touchy-feely person, but I couldn’t help it. I wanted to grab everyone close to me and never let go.
“Of course!” I shouted back, my voice muffled by her hair.
Leilani drew back, sniffing. “Your mother is here! Ess was doing his best, but it’s obvious he’s never done anything for himself in his life, so naturally he can’t take care of anyone else. I’ll take you!”
I shot Zion an apologetic look, but he waved me away with a small smile and immediately was surrounded by a group of squawking Nobles. Better him than me, I supposed.
“Come on! She’s just down this hallway!”
I never had really managed to memorize the layout of the castle, but I needn’t have worried; Leilani clearly knew exactly where she was going.
“The second door on the right. She—oh.” Leilani drew up short at seeing a grim figure standing guard out front. My eyes narrowed as I set eyes on my estranged brother.
“Ess,” I grit out. “I came to see our mother.”
He stuck his nose in the air, arms crossed over his chest. “She’s sleeping. And she hasn’t slept in a while. I can’t let you go in there.”
Irritation and anger flared in my veins. “You can’t keep me from her,” I bit out, trying to keep my voice down if what he said was true. How dare he try to ban me from seeing her! Who the hell did he think he was?
Emotion flared in his eyes, even as his hands balls into fists at his sides and he stood between me and the door. I’d murder him. I’d put him in the ground so fast—
Leilani stepped in, putting a calming hand on my arm. “No one is trying to stop anyone here. Ess, you’re just trying to look out for her, right? She is mother to both of you, after all.”
My throat bobbed, my stubbornness not wanting to give up the fight, but my mind arguing that I would do the same in our positions were reversed. The fire in Ess’s eyes wasn’t staged, after all. Maybe he was doing the best he could, and he truly believed my presence would disturb her from her rest. If the positions were reversed, I’d act exactly like him. If we were both on the side of protecting our mother, then that was a good thing. Even if I wasn’t quite ready to give up the title of sole protector myself yet, I could see the logic of having someone around to help.
“Fine,” I managed, staring at the ground and crossing my arms.
Leilani blinked, taking in both of us in similar positions. “Oh wow. Yeah, I see it now.” She giggled, then cleared her throat. An awkward silence stretched between the three of us.
“You’re so busy being the dragon girl. Maybe spend some time with her,” Ess muttered.
My jaw dropped at the audacity. He wanted to point fingers? Fine by me. “And where were you the last twenty-one years while I had to fight and scrape for every morsel of food that went into her mouth? I ought to knock some of your teeth out,” I whispered furiously, taking a step forward.
His eyes widened, his back against the door. “You wouldn’t dare. The queen—”
“Was claimed by a massive black dragon and isn’t queen anymore,” I corrected him. I shouldn’t have enjoyed the shocked look on his face so much, but no one was perfect.
“B-b-but I—” he stuttered.
“Mari, let’s come back later after your mother has rested.” Leilani took my elbow and steered me away from my idiot brother. I was sad he turned out to be such a softy, but I couldn’t blame him. He’d never worried about his next meal, after all. I should be thankful his life had been so easy compared to mine. It was interesting to contrast him to Zephyr, who only seemed hardened by his time in the Seat.
“I don’t want to leave. But you may stay with me here.” I pulled Leilani over to a small couch on the other side of the room. My brother tightened his stance in front of the door, and I sighed, holding my hands out helplessly.
