"Anyway, thanks for the advice, but you're my best friend. No crown's going to change that. Anyway, you won't believe where I've been?—"
"Rain," Rachel snaps.
With a horrified gasp, she turns toward the voice. "You! You're here."
"Yes, I am," she replies primly. "And you and I are going to have a little chat."
She stands, makes her way to the witch, whom all the folk seem to stare at with some apprehension, and drags her by the sleeve out of the room, Caenan on their heels.
I shake my head, wondering how much Rachel is going to relish lecturing Rain. And whether Rain will stop herself from hexing her.
During the commotion, Calreth joined his twin at the other side of the table, and they're now exchanging low, pressing whispers.
I can't hear them of course, and I'm dying to know what Calreth's visit uncovered, if anything. To my surprise, Ryther puts a hand on his brother's shoulders, in a comforting gesture.
I want to be a little mouse at their end of the table. I want this dinner over, so I can hear it all, and actually enjoy my friend's arrival rather than fear for her safety. I don't need to ask Loch to realize I shouldn't leave. There are at least six courts to go through, and my absence, abandoning guests to greet a newcomer, would be a terrible idea.
Ruling truly sucks.
38
WHY DIDN'T ANYONE SEND THEM TO THERAPY?
Darina
Each course seems to take hours, though I know it has more to do with my impatience than the actual elapsed time. At long last, after poached pears in cream and chocolate, Loch stands to announce that the queen is retiring.
Rachel and Rain didn't return, so I track them to the room Rachel has claimed, a few doors away from mine.
"They tried to kill you?" Rain shouts at me the moment I walk in.
"A number of times."
"And they think we're breeding stock?"
The volume of her voice shows no sign of returning to normal. "I don't know. Rachel, definitely. Me, maybe. But I think you freaked them out with the casual little turn-that-into-water trick."
She rolls her eyes. "It's always a showstopper. Not that hard, though. I have a water rune in my pocket." She retrieves a purple stone and shows it to me."This is literallyinsane. You're a bona fide queen. I mean, we always knew you were weird, but man."
"Tell me about it."
It's truly strange to have her here. She reminds me of who I wasliterally days ago,and seems to highlight all the differences in me now.
"I really dig the dresses, though."
"Never mind about dresses. Did Calreth tell you what I need? Can you do it?"
She chuckles. "Dude, I can't believe you thought I could literally contact someone from a demon dimension. I mean, I appreciate the flattery, but that's definitely out of my wheelhouse. We had to go get a high sorcerer's help. Nowthatwas a hell of a lot of fun."
After she tells me about her trip to Highvale—a place I've literally never heard of—and everything she saw there, she gets to the meat: what Seevar had to say.
I find something in my heart constrict throughout the tale, like I knew…some of it. Not all. And at the mention that the gods were tricked, instead of a logical degree of pity for them, I feel rage. White-hot, burning rage that doesn't quite belong to me.
"Are you okay?" Rain checks, reaching for my hand.
I place it on my lap, out of reach. "I…don't think I'm safe right now. To touch."
The whirlwind of energy simmering inside me seems about to blow. I don't want it to blow at Rain.
