Reiner smirks without meeting my eyes. “I make the time when I deem it worth my while. Though mastery in any kind of work takes effort. I’m proud to be in theposition I am, attending the Lord and his Dark Companion. It allows me to be part of something truly special.”
“What was the last Lord like?” I ask as he assists me in putting on a shirt made of black fabric that shimmers in the moonlight. Red thorns are embroidered on sleeves that have the most flamboyant volume.
“Stern,” Reiner tells me without hesitation. “Much sterner than His Highness Kyranis. He didn’t like to gamble nor go to the theater, nor take many lovers. Do you want me to be frank, Master Luke?” he asks, closing a long row of buttons at the front of my top.
“Yes.”
“He was a bit of a bore.”
I snort and shake my head. “Was a boring master better, or one who needs his sheets changed every night?”
The same shark skin, high-waisted breeches are given to me as soon as I put on a pair of stockings. They’re red this time, and I don’t even feel self-conscious about them, because it’s the fashion here. I don’t have to worry about someone teasing me because of my style, despite this outfit being way more flamboyant than anything I could afford with my meager earnings.
Reiner scoffs. “I do not judge my betters for their choices.”
He absolutely is, but I let him get away with this lie and grin as he continues talking.
“I can hardly blame His Highness. Your beauty is way beyond that of all the other Dark Companions at present.”
When he hands me a thick vest that needs tying at the back, I feel encased. Safe. It’s like armor I can face the world in.
My mind takes a moment to circle back to what Reiner just said. “OtherDark Companions? The prince told me no other royal is allowed to marry one until he has.”
Reiner clears his throat and kneels in front of me, holding a pair of boots made with soft leather in a shade that matches my stockings and adorned with silver buttons.
“Other shadow-wielders canhaveDark Companions, but no one is allowed to take one when the heir apparent remains unwed to one of his own. So all of His Highness’s cousins have been waiting for almost a decade, but their seniors, those who obtained their Companions during the reign of the previous Lord, they just aren’t allowed to be at court until His Highness marries you. It’s tradition.”
“How many are there?”
“Only two,” Reiner says, and he gestures for me to sit down on a dainty chair in front of a mirror. “There were eight, not counting the Lord’s Companion, but they all died along with their wives and husbands, attempting to fight off Heartbreak. It was an incredible sacrifice on their part, and while the Lord didn’t survive his wounds, no civilians were hurt. Heartbreak didn’t even reach the shore.”
My stomach drops. My arrangement with Kyran is that he will only call on me when he deems it necessary. I’m guessing that Heartbreak’s attack will be one of such situations. As much as that gives me a chill, I do still feel it’s a fair agreement.
“How often does this beast come?”
“Not that often. Perhaps once every ten to fifteen years? There was one time when it returned after just three, but another time, we lived in lazy peace for over forty,” Reiner says as he sprays something onto my hair. The mist smells of the sea, and I close my eyes, not wanting to get any salt in them.
I’m still getting to grips with him being almost two hundred and fifty years old. He has more energy than I do some mornings.
He must notice I’m tense, because he strokes my shoulder before getting back to coiffuring my hair. “We have alchemists and scholars working on the secrets of when and why Heartbreak arrives. You shouldn’t worry about things that cannot be helped,and focus on your role at court. When a storm comes, all we can do is open our umbrellas.”
“How old is Prince Kyranis?”
“He will be thirty-five years young later this year,” Reiner says with a fond smile. “Don’t tell him I said that, but you seem to be a good influence on him. He’s… different now. In a good way,” he adds, unaware it’s not the behavior that’s changed, but the whole man. The original prince really sounds like a piece of work.
“May I?” Reiner asks, leaning over me with a tiny brush loaded with red paint. I’m guessing the question was only a formality, because he then goes on to grab my chin and applies the color under my eyes.
“Is there a reason for all the red, or am I just your personal fashion doll?”
Reiner purses his lips. “It’s a special occasion, for the prince to disclose.”
I smirk. “Does it have to do with our courting?”
“My lips are sealed.”
As if Kyran knows he’s being discussed, he walks in, dressed in a coat with wide, pleated skirts and a tight-fitting outfit of black shark leather with many buckles. My heart leaps when hesmiles and places his hand on his torso. “Oh, you are perfection,” he states as Reiner drops the brush, lowers his head, and steps away from me as if he wants to turn invisible. I just hope he isn’t about to beg for Kyran’s forgiveness too, because it was awkward enough to witness that once.
I get up so he can get a better look at me, and yeah, I do a slow twirl, showing him how the breeches hug my ass. “I do kinda love it.”
