Page 57 of The War of Wings
“You’re acting foolish!” she shouted back. A beat of silence passed before I heard a door click shut, as if they’d just realized it’d been open the whole time. But Laion wasted no time, the sound of his muffled voice traveling through the closed door. I couldn’t make out any of their words as they continued to volley back and forth, growing louder and louder with each response.
Unease filled me as I took a cautious step forward, out of the protection of the shadows, and turned left, away from the King and Queen’s chambers and toward my own. As soon as I turned another corner and peered over my shoulder to make sure I was alone, a whooshing breath left my lungs. And in its place came the questions.
What. The. Fuck? What had I just overheard?
But my internal questions halted as I slammed into a wall. No, not a wall, but a lieutenant.
“Saints,” Miles snapped, his hands finding my shoulders and righting me. “Why the hell are you out here unguarded?”
“I-I–” I stammered, the words tangling behind my lips when I met his gaze. There was a darkness there that had nothing to do with the low light of this corridor. I was the most powerful being in this entire city, but something about being at the end of Miles’ stare right now made me want to hide. “I couldn’t sleep. I needed some air.”
Had he heard the conversation between the King and Queen? Had he been hiding in the shadows, listening from behind another corner?
“That was a stupid fucking move, and you know it, Petra,” he snarled.
Something was different about the energy between us, like it was suddenly worn thin, tattered and threadbare. The lines of his face appeared harder, more severe. It had to be the light, right? And his dark eyes… They were almost glistening. Had he been crying?
He looked awful.
I leaned forward, placing a careful hand against his elbow. “Are you okay, Miles?”
He tensed, making no attempt to hide his discomfort as he averted his gaze. “Never better, your Majesty. You don’t have to keep asking me.”
I wanted to call him on his bullshit, demand an answer. Tell him I was his queen and command him to tell me what was going on. I wanted to tell him I was his friend and he could talk to me. But I didn’t. For all intents and purposes, Miles had died in the rubble of Eserene. His chest had gone still. I’d been the one to yank him back here to the Human Realm. It occurred to me something like that might wreak some havoc on a soul.
I swallowed hard, trying to appear nonchalant. “What are you doing up?”
He shifted on his feet, his eyes somewhere behind me. “Same as you. Couldn’t sleep.”
I opened my mouth to ask if he’d heard the conversation between the King and Queen, but the sound of a door swinging open stopped my words. Cal appeared in the doorway to our suite, the contours of his bare chest almost as distracting as the blade in his grip.
“Petra,” he breathed, his jaw tight as he stared back and forth between me and Miles. “What’s wrong?”
I opened my mouth, but Miles spoke first. “Nothing,” he muttered, pushing past me and turning the corner before I could even respond.
My eyes found Cal, but his stayed trained on the space Miles had just vacated for one second longer. My arms crossed over my chest, my hands holding my elbows as if it would bring mesome sense of comfort. “Are you sure he didn’t mention anything was wrong when you two talked?”
“He’s fine,” Cal answered quietly, extending a hand toward me. “Come on. Let’s go back to bed.”
I followed Cal through the suite to our bedroom, climbing into bed beside him. We were silent as our limbs tangled together, his hand closing over mine before his breathing slowed. And after Saints knew how long, when I finally drifted off, I dreamed of Miles pulling me below the surface of the ocean.
???
The meeting with the military officials was nothing but a formality. King Laion had briefed everyone he needed to and given the order to follow me, and that was that. It had been almost suspiciously easy to gain their support, but then it occurred to me that I’d addressed the group of men in the training yard while standing in front of a trio of drivas, steam puffing from their nostrils and talons gouging canyons in the dirt.
I, on the other hand, was having a hard time going along with King Laion and Queen Irli’s plan. I’d taken to trying to convince myself this was a good idea, even though I didn’t have a better one.A ball is a good idea. A ball is a good idea. A ball is a stupid fucking… No, a ball is a good idea.Maybe if I chanted the words enough in my head, I’d believe them.
We’d have the ball. I’d put the fear of death into every attendee by calling on Adorex, Obitus, and Gehenna. We’d gain the support of every kingdom of the realm. We’d have a massive military to fight Malosym. And then…
Then what?
How could we possibly figure out his plans? Where would he strike? Could we lure him somewhere and give ourselves some kind of advantage? How many drivas did he have? Andhow the actual fuck was I supposed to free Katia and Rhedros from the Darkness Beyond?
Fuck.
“Shoulders, your Majesty.”
My thoughts faded as I blinked at the reflection of the woman staring from behind me.
