Total pages in book: 401
Estimated words: 390373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1952(@200wpm)___ 1561(@250wpm)___ 1301(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 390373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1952(@200wpm)___ 1561(@250wpm)___ 1301(@300wpm)
“Watch out for the last step,” Reaver advised as he had the last time, then disappeared around the bend. “It’s steep.”
I felt Casteel’s hand on my lower back. “I’d been injured, and that time is kind of a blur, but I was taken care of.”
“By Isbeth?” Seraphena asked as we entered a shorter hall that widened out.
“Yes.”
She slowed so that I walked beside her. “Were you happy? As a child?”
Gods, that was a hard question to answer. “I don’t know,” I admitted, laughing awkwardly. “I was taken care of, and I had my brother—” I stopped when Seraphena halted mid-step. “I mean, Ian,” I clarified.
“He will always be your brother,” Seraphena said, walking once more.
Yes. He would.
I breathed through the pain that always accompanied thoughts of him. A heartbeat later, I felt Casteel’s fingers curling around mine. “How did you know about Ian?”
She didn’t answer immediately. “Vikter.”
“Oh, yeah.” He had spoken about Seraphena as if he were familiar with her.
“You were saying?” she pressed.
“I was Chosen by the Gods,” I continued with an eye roll. “So, I was treated well.”
“But?”
I peeked at Seraphena. Her gaze was trained on Reaver as she twisted her fingers. “But that was when they first placed me in the veil, and no one but Ian was allowed to speak to or touch me. He spent as much time with me as he could, but he had his schooling, so I was often alone.” I exhaled long and slow as Casteel squeezed my hand. “I thought I was happy, but I…I was lonely.”
She remained silent as we trailed behind Reaver. “We have far too much in common, Poppy. I imagine it is the same with Millicent.”
My heart turned over heavily.
“You mentioned a Coralena? I do not know her.”
“I…I was told she was Isbeth’s Handmaiden and had fallen in love with a merchant’s son,” I told her.
“Leopold?” she said, the skin at the corners of her mouth tightening. “And you were told they were your and Ian’s parents?”
“Yes.” I wasn’t sure how much I should tell her, but I decided to be upfront. “I was told Leopold was a viktor. I don’t know how much of that is true because Coralena…well, she was a Revenant.”
Seraphena’s features sharpened.
“But she wasn’t like the other Handmaidens. She couldn’t have been,” I quickly added, remembering how Isbeth had told me that Coralena used magic to conceal her lifeless blue eyes from me. “She knew some or all of what Isbeth planned, and with Leopold’s help, she took Ian and me away. She went against Isbeth and… She died because of it.”
Seraphena’s brow furrowed. “That is unusual. Are you sure she was a Revenant?”
“That’s what Isbeth said, and Millicent confirmed it,” I said. “But I was told that Ian was their son.”
Seraphena inhaled sharply. “Revenants cannot reproduce.” She swallowed and picked up a strand of her hair again. “But it’s possible she conceived Ian before she became a Revenant. That doesn’t explain how she maintained a sense of self, though.”
It didn’t.
“Is it possible Coralena wasn’t entirely mortal?” Casteel questioned. “Like Millicent? Or perhaps she descended more directly from a god—one who perhaps woke before you?”
“Is it possible? Yes.” Her expression smoothed out. “I will ask Ires.”
She spoke again as we passed narrow, arched openings dimly lit from within. “I grew up in Wayfair when the capital you know today was larger and its own kingdom. I, too, was Chosen. Not by the gods but for a god.”
“Nyktos?”
She nodded. “I spent most of my childhood alone. Except for Holland.”
My brows rose. “The same Holland I know?”
“I knew him simply as a knight tasked with my training.” She glanced at me. “Like you knew Vikter as a Royal Guard. Except I was trained to kill Nyktos,” she added, and I nearly tripped.
Casteel’s head swung toward her. “Come again?”
Her lips tipped up. “It’s quite a long, convoluted tale.” She looked over at us. “I will tell you about it someday.”
This time, when my heart skipped, it did so with hope—hope for a real, true familial bond not weighed down by deceit. “I’d like that.”
Her smile widened. “As would I.” She let go of her hair, and it slowly unraveled. “And Ires. He would like to see you and your sister once he’s well enough.”
The shadowy hall ahead blurred. I wanted to say that I’d love to do that but could only nod since I didn’t trust myself to speak. This was my first time meeting Seraphena in the flesh. I didn’t want to sob all over her.
A moment passed. “I wasn’t surprised when I learned of your name.”
My heart kicked up for some reason. “Isbeth named me after the goddess Penellaphe.”
Her nostrils flared as eather coursed through her eyes. “Is that what she said?”
“Yes…” A strange tingling sensation swept up the back of my neck and head as Casteel’s steps slowed. The narrowing hall ahead disappeared for a moment, replaced by walls of aged wood that carried the scent of smoke.