Page 14 of House of Gilded Nightmares

We don’t go far. The last of the light is quickly fading from the sky, and here in the shadow of the mountains, it’s even darker. Zyren leads us several hundred feet from the riverbank into a narrow passage between the mountains. Steep walls of rock rise from the valley floor on either side of us. A small grove of trees fills the passage and climbs along one of the slopes. He takes my shoulders and sits me down on a small boulder just within the tree line, and then he strides off, deeper into the trees. I ponder escape for a moment, but I’m shivering and worn out, and he doesn’t move more than a dozen feet away. No, when I do this, I need to get it right. I likely won’t have a second chance.

He comes back before too long with an armful of branches, and he builds a small fire. A flash of magic from his fingers lights it, and the resultant wash of heat feels glorious. I lean in close, putting my hands as near to the flames as I can without burning them. Gradually, the feeling returns to my frozen limbs. I can still hear the rushing of the river, though it’s beyond sight now.

I look up at my guardian. “We’ll be safe here? So close to the boundary with the nightmare creatures?”

Zyren nods. “As I said, there’s a magical barrier. They cannot cross. At least not now.”

I shiver, from the cold and from his words. “Not now? But other times, they can cross?”

“During a lunar eclipse, the magic that holds this boundary becomes weak. It is wise to stay far from the border when that happens.”

“When is the next lunar eclipse?”

“Not for three days,” he says. “We’ll be far from here by then.”

I fall silent, contemplating this new world I find myself in. In the quiet between us, I watch Zyren as he sits across the fire from me. The flames reflect in his eyes, making him look even more formidable than he already is. I wonder what I’ve done to make him despise me so, considering he’s supposed to be my guardian. But as I sit there, deep in thought, my stomach lets out a loud rumble. Zyren looks up and my cheeks pinken.

“I think I saw a bramble berry bush in the trees,” he says.

He gets up, gesturing for me to do the same. As soon as I step out of the ring of heat from the fire, I begin to shiver, though it’s not as bad as before. Zyren doesn’t seem to notice. In fact, he barely looks at me as he leads the way into the deeper dark of the trees, calling a ball of magic to his palm to guide the way. A wave of gratitude moves through me when I see that there is indeed a large bush of berries deep within the trees. Several bushes, in fact.

They don’t look like anything we have back home—round and smooth and pale pink in color—but then, I never ventured beyond the palace walls, other than my secret valley. It strikes me all of a sudden how very unworldly I am. I know nothing of life beyond the boundaries I’ve been confined within. Maybe we do have wild berries in Eldare. We no doubt have all manner of things I have never seen or experienced.

I’m so hungry I eat the berries right off the bushes, not bothering to collect and carry them back to the fire like a civilized person. I put two in my mouth at once, and their sweetness breaks across my tongue. A little sigh escapes my lips, and Zyren glances over at me. I blush even deeper this time, but I don’t stop eating the berries. I pluck and eat for several minutes until I feel satiated, and then we return to the fire.

“You’re not hungry?” I ask Zyren, realizing now that I’ve had my fill that he hadn’t tasted a single one.

The tiniest hint of a smile crosses his lips. “Not for berries.”

I sit back down, holding my hands over the flames once more. “How did you come to be my guardian?”

What little pleasantness was written across his features vanishes like storm clouds rolling in. He remains silent for several long moments, and I begin to think he won’t answer. When he finally does, his tone is tight as a bowstring.

“It’s a tradition in our culture,” Zyren says. “For those born in certain families, or of certain rank, to have a blood guardian. Someone to watch over them, to bear responsibility for their safety at all times.”

I blink, watching him across the fire, though his gaze won’t meet mine. “But I’ve lived in the Amethyst Palace my entire life. How could you have been my guardian? And why?”

“A guardian is assigned at birth.” His jaw rolls.

My eyes scan Zyren’s face. “You look no more than ten years older than me.”

“The fae live vast lifetimes. I am many, many times your age, princess.”

“Fae?” My heart flutters rapidly in my chest. I’d heard tales of the fae, ancient beings who lived in various parts of Aureon. Cruel kings and queens, wielders of incredible magic, cunning and dangerous. “But if you’re fae, then I…” I can’t bring myself to say it.

“Yes, Sarielle.” Zyren’s eyes burn into mine from across the fire. “You are fae, too.”

I’m silent for several long moments as I absorb this. “Who exactly am I?” I finally whisper. “You said certain families have a guardian. You keep calling me princess, but I can’t be…I’m an orphan. Surely, I’m not actually a princess.”

“No,” Zyren says, his tone somber. “But you were born to be our queen.”

My eyes flare, and this time, Zyren doesn’t drop his gaze. He continues before I ask him the question we both know I’m going to ask.

“You come from the oldest family in Valaron.” His words are soft and hard at the same time. “And you are betrothed to the king.”

“Betrothed?” I snap. My feelings shift from confusion to fury in an instant. I knew he was hiding something from me. “How can one be betrothed to someone they’ve never met?”

Zyren lets his breath hiss out between his teeth. “It was an agreement made before you were born.”

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