I should be using this opportunity to find Carol and speak to her, but as Kyran shows me around, I keep delaying my secret mission. We participate in a game of pouring wax onto water through a heart-shaped stencil. It’s meant to predict whether a couple stays together or grows apart, and while I don’t believe in superstition, when our wax heart breaks, I’m a little sad. But then Kyran dutifully uses a candle to glue it back together, and all is good again. We throw balls at towers of little wooden cups (and win nothing), and then get more cherin, which maybe we shouldn’t, because its alcohol content is clearly a bit too much for Kyran.
He acts as if every single thing I say is hilarious, but fortunately, the booze doesn’t affect his balance, so we end up dancing too, and he spins me in the air, just like I imagined. I wouldn’t have recognized the elves who gossiped about me, but I hope they’re watching.
“Is that Anatole?” I whisper with my head still spinning and point out the oldest Goldweed sibling by the bonfire.
He isn’t looking our way but must be aware of our presence, as we’ve been here for at least an hour or two now. Anatole is putting something into the massive effigy by the fire. It’s supposed to represent Heartbreak and will be burned by moondown. Maybe I’m prejudiced, but I trust Anatole as much as I trust a drunk driver, and his sheer presence here feels sinister. The Goldweeds have been busy groveling, but I didn’t buy any of it. Not after Kyran and I almost died because of Vinia’s actions.
A low growl comes from Kyran’s throat, and he hugs me so tightly I need to pull back for air. “Always in the way. What is he doing here?”
“He slid something into the effigy.”
Kyran sighs, stroking my back. “That’s tradition. Anyone can place something of their beloved’s between the dried branches. Then you check the ashes the next day. If it’s not burned, it’s a bad omen for your relationship.”
“Does he have a lover?”
“I never cared enough to find out,” Kyran says with an odd smirk.
He stirs when a lady with smudged makeup around the eyes grabs his shoulder, as if she’s forgotten propriety and decorum. Her lips are stained black too, which explains her conduct, but when she whines about being scared of the monster hiding in the ocean, Istep away, leaving Kyran to deal with this one. I whisper to him that I will be around, and head for Crab, who awaits us on the edge of the square.
“Not just yet, boy,” I whisper to him, careful not to touch him as I pull out one of Kyran’s gloves from under the saddle.
Okay, maybe I’m a little lightheaded from all the cherin, but Iwillbe putting something of Kyran’s into the effigy. Can the hand of destiny tell me the future of our relationship?
Though as I make my way toward the Heartbreak made of driftwood and filled with dry seaweed, I do take in my surroundings. This might be the perfect moment to search for Carol, so why am I wasting time on superstition that isn’t even my own? Isn’t that what I came here for? I could at least ask someone about her. I’d just need to go about it smartly. I’m about to go through with that plan, but my feet first lead me close to the pink bonfire that’s sending golden sparks into the air. After all, it won’t take much time. With a smile, I slide Kyran’s glove into the dry seaweed and only step away once I’m certain it’s secure.
But as I step away, heading for the stall with cherin, where I hope to get the information I need, someone steps right in my path. The hope in me dies at the sight of Anatole’s face.
“Your shadow is exquisite in this light,” he says.
Chapter 29
Luke
Ididn’t expect Anatole to approach me, and I certainly didn’t anticipate any compliments either. But my guard is up, because Vinia was sweet as a bag of Twizzlers too, and she literally sent me to my death. I am not falling for that kind of shit again. I now trust Kyran’s opinion about that snake pit of a family, and I’m determined to keep Anatole at arm’s length.
That might prove difficult, because he’s hiding behind lies and the facade of a smile, which I can’t openly dismiss for the same reasons you can’t tell the passive-aggressive head cheerleader you’re seeing right through her frenemy act. If high school taught me anything, it was to keep my cards close, and I intend to take full advantage of those lessons.
As much as I want to hate Anatole though, I can’t deny his beauty. For all I know, it’s part of his predator camouflage. His pale face looks as if he’s doing that Korean skin care routine with seven steps and has never missed a day in his life. His long, silvery blond hair could give Legolas a run for his money and land Anatole a L’Oréal commercial. He’s wearing his usual midnight blue, and his velvet jacket has skulls embroidered on it with silvery thread. The pattern would have been a sinister giveaway for a villain if the aesthetic of every royal at the Nocturne Court wasn’t flamboyantly gothic with a touch of marine life.
I’ve never paid much attention to my shadow, but when Anatole points it out, I glance to the ground, and seeing it next to his sends a shiver down my back. I don’t have to be a shadow wielder to see that the darkness behind me is like black coffee, when everyone else’s appears milky in comparison.
I guess physics doesn’t work here the same way it does in my world. Which reminds me I was supposed to ask Kyran why the moon waxes and wanes if there’s no sun here, but that can wait.
“Um… thank you?” I finally say to Anatole. “Yours is… nice too?” Okay, I’m a little drunk and unsure what the protocol is here. Is this like teens comparing each other’s dick sizes? Thumbs? The denseness of that first mustache?
Anatole’s mouth quirks as he meets my eyes with an intensely blue gaze. It’s like being pinpointed by two sapphire lenses, and I can’t help the tingle at the back of my neck. Am I flattered? Intimidated by a threat my brain doesn’t yet comprehend?
“You’re not at all what I expected,” Anatole says before I can wrap my mind around the way I feel. “When I go looking for a Companion of my own, they will have a lot to live up to.”
He’s lying, of course he is, but I still feel my cheeks flush. It’s most likely the cherin. I don’t think Anatole’s stupid enough to be making a move on me when Kyran is right across the square, but maybe my shadow really is such a catch and he can’t help himself? Or maybe he’s just the god of chaos trying to sow discord in the Realm.
“What did you expect?” I ask, curious about the other Companions. Which again reminds me I should be looking for Carol, but maybe Anatole can provide information about her whereabouts.
“Someone… more frightened maybe? Humans tend to be skittish for a while after being taken. I was impressed by your quick thinking at my sister’s execution.”
My heart stops. He wants to kill me.
“I… Kyranis needed the—”
