Page 116 of Brighter Than Gold

“And are you Marigold, or Dahlia?” I stopped and faced her; her tea-coloured skin paled at my question. She blinked several times, and her answer was only a whisper.

“Dahlia.”

“Thank you for your honesty, Tanna.”

“Are you upset, Your Grace?”

“No. Though I wish my husband had been willing to tell me the whole story, but I’m glad you have. Things make a little more sense now.”

“I feel like I’ve deceived you.”

“I understand how this was something difficult to navigate.”

“I do wish I could have been more forthcoming though.”

“I know.” Part of me wished I could say that it hadn’t hurt me, but Ididfeel deceived.

We continued on in silence until we came to the spiral staircase that led to the South Wing. To my misery, Diana had just reached the top of the stairwell. She cleared her throat and bristled at seeing me before she lowered into a curtsey.

“Your Grace,” she uttered with a grimace.

“Lovely to see you again, Diana. Your cheerfulness is inspiring.” I rolled my eyes. “Tanna, it was a pleasure as always, you are a gracious friend. And Diana…” I sighed. “I hope your day is as sour as your mood.”

I heard several gasps as I turned and left the two women standing there dumbfounded.

* * *

Reyah

Nyx was already waiting for me when I got to the garden entrance. He greeted me with a dazzling smile and a warm embrace.

“Good morning, my darling. Hello niece or nephew,” he said, reaching out to my belly. Even his vivacious energy was doing nothing to brighten my spirits. “What’s wrong, Reyah?”

“Everything. Everyone.”

“Care to elaborate?” he asked tentatively.

“Tanna has been lying to me, Diana is a crusty old bitch, and Kaspian has been keeping secrets from me.”

Nyx’s eyebrows raised as he took in all of my complaints. “Well. What can we start unpacking first?”

We strode along the flagstone path of the royal gardens. They were endless compared to the small space I’d found salvation in, in the South Wing. Violet and yellow crocuses bloomed brightly despite the chilly spring day, and the tall stalks of tulips and daffodils were ready to burst next.

“Tell me about Tanna,” Nyx asked.

“Tanna does not have the same sort of relationship as Charlotte and I do with Kas. He submits toher.”

“Oh. Well, that is…unexpected. And you discovered this how?”

“I ran into her leaving my husband’s quarters just now.”

He nodded slowly, keeping uncharacteristically quiet as he absorbed what I’d said.

“Does that bother you?”

“It only bothers me that neither of them were honest about it.”

“You have every right to feel upset about that, Reyah.”

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