27 AN ENGAGEMENT
It was morning, and Lord Valenbonne was relaying final instructions to his men. The kindred had returned aboveground, with the courts assigning trusted vassals to keep guard over the Allpriory.
Remy wasn’t sure what they intended to do with Thaïs. Lorien had asked her to be placed under his care. The youth had shown no signs of wanting revenge, but Remy couldn’t help his concern.
“Mother wouldn’t want me to harm her,” the Second Court leader told him. He was to return to the Lady Rotteburg’s estate to put the woman’s affairs in order before rejoining Malekh. “I suppose she was as much a victim, brainwashed by the priestess for centuries. She’s been deeply remorseful, and I’m inclined to believe her.”
“You’re far too kind for this,” Remy said, and then gave a little start, remembering the times Elke or Xiaodan had said the very same thing to him.
“I suppose. But kindness has to start somewhere, doesn’t it?”
The other court leaders, too, planned on returning to their respective domains to prepare. There was no reason to believe that the Night Empress would act differently than when she’d been under the priestess’s thrall, though the prospect of having to face his mother again hurt.
He hadn’t been able to see Trin again before the Seventh Court had departed. Likely she was still suffering from the frenzy, but he felt sad not to have known. Raghnall had been even more abrupt and curt than usual, stonewalling Remy’s questions.
Malekh intended to return to the Fata Morgana to make his own preparations, while Alegra was to make for Chànggē Shuĭ to inform the others of Yingyue’s death. “They will be shocked and saddened, but not surprised, I think,” she said quietly. “And as selfish as it is of me to say, I cannot help but think of it as a final reprieve, after all the years she’s mourned and suffered.”
Xiaodan had said even less about her mother’s passing. Unsure of how to approach her, Remy had chosen to hover by her side to the point of painful obviousness. He did not want her to grieve alone again like she had back at the Third Court.
“I know what you’re doing, Remy,” Xiaodan finally said after an hour of him tailing her like a shadow. “I am perfectly all right.”
“I am certain you are,” Remy said.
“Eugenie has very kindly offered to use one of her many residences as a temporary stronghold while I figure out my court,” Elke told them. “As I want build my own clan, I want to rid it of the stain of Etrienne’s legacy once and for all.”
“And I expect you to be frighteningly competent at it, given your successes in Elouve.”
“I appreciate the vote of confidence. The other courts are to depart in a few hours’ time. Immune as they are to the daylight, they are loathe to travel in the morning. Fanglei has been most insistent about meticulously packing all that her clan had brought to the Allpriory. By the Light, what does one do with sixteen pairs of slippers and two dozen silk robes? I have only seen her wear linen since we’ve arrived at the temple.”
Remy took the opportunity to explore the Allpriory for the last time, knowing he would never set foot back inside the temple given the choice. He should not have been surprised to see his father already inside, looking at the empty throne with a faint jeer on his face. Grimesworthy stood beside him, quiet and as intimidating as always.
“Is that it?” Edgar Pendergast asked. “All the blood they’ve shed over eons, this is what it boils down to?” He laughed. “Well. Not so different than we do in Elouve, eh, Remington? Though we call ourselves lord high steward when they would call themselves kings. And where is this Godsflame that I’ve been hearing so much about? You need not look so sour about it. Lord Malekh has given me permission to view this monstrosity they’ve been keeping a secret, and after all we’ve done to help defend this place, none of the other courts protested. I’d like to see the accursed fires that resurrected my wife at least once in my lifetime.”
Remy was too tired to argue. He led him to the Fount and toward the platform where the flames continued to burn with its odd blue hues, indifferent to the violence that had taken place in its sight hours before.
The bodies of the Antecedents had been brought away, and he didn’t inquire about how they were disposed of. He thought of the temple priestess’s zeal, the devout desperation that had festered inside her all these centuries.
“What do you intend to do next?” he asked his father.
“Keep some regiments in the area to ensure that no one claims the Allpriory as their own. Some mutations still linger, and I would destroy whatever nests survive. But I suppose the better question is, what do you intend to do?”
The answer came readily enough. “I’m returning to the Third Court with Malekh and Xiaodan.”
“Oh? So you intend to renounce all the positions Queen Ophelia has been itching to give you, to be nothing more than their consort?”
“They treat me as far more than a consort. More than what anyone thought me to be at Elouve.”
He was expecting Valenbonne to be angry. But the man only continued to stare into the ghastly fires. “They tell me that this is where the first vampire was born,” Valenbonne mused. “That they walked into the flames and emerged unscathed, with powers no human reckoning could have imagined. A brave feat, they said. But I wonder, who would choose to throw themselves into such a terrifying conflagration if despair did not motivate their actions? They said she was a criminal condemned by her own clan, didn’t they? Ironic to find herself walking out whole and unharmed, cursed with her new immortal life?”
“I would not put it above you to try the same thing,” Remy said guardedly, watching his father as the light cast shadows over his face.
Valenbonne chuckled and took a step back. “Not on a whim, no. You may think me foolhardy, Remington, for allowing Quintin Yost to experiment with my body, but I had little to lose then. Now, I have much more to gain by not surrendering myself to fancy.”
He took pause. “No. That was not how I should have described it. I was infirmed and close to dying, of no use to anyone. Had I met my death quickly in battle, I think I would have faced it with as much grace and dignity as I could muster. It is a weary thing, to be a burden.”
“A burden?” Remy echoed, surprised.
“That is of no matter,” his father said, smiling contentedly to himself. “We have thwarted the Night Empress for today, and her mutations litter the ground above and below. It is a good day.”
FANGLEI’S SUBORDINATES rushed back and forth from the temple, carting the rest of their leaders’ trunks and other miscellany—Elke had not exaggerated when she said that the Sixth Court queen had brought far more possessions than she’d bothered to use. After parting ways with his father, Remy had avoided their mad rush, heading immediately to the chambers he shared with his lovers on the western side.
Malekh and Xiaodan had yet to finish packing their belongings for the journey back home. Neither were the disorganized sort; Remy saw with a guilty flush that his own meager items were strewn more haphazardly about than either of theirs. It was quick work to clear away the rest of his belongings; after a moment’s deliberation, he began attending to theirs as well.
The effects of their bloodsharing hadn’t completely gone away. The lust had dimmed somewhat after everything else, but now that he was holding their clothes, their possessions, parts of it flickered back to life, brought back by the scent of them that still lingered in their chambers. Long before he’d met Malekh, he would have scoffed at the idea of vampires bearing scents, for not even his bloodwaker-imbued sense of smell could detect them. But now they were as familiar to him as breathing. He had not touched any bloodwakers since their journey began.
Malekh had brought relatively little, as always. A few changes of clothing, all in neutral tones of gray, brown, or black, and a few cleaning implements for his sword, most tucked away inside a second valise. And then there was the oversized kit where he stored all the medical equipment he liked to bring along in cases of emergencies, but that was the extent of the lord’s vanity.
Xiaodan was a different story. While she hadn’t had the trunks upon trunks of clothing and items that Fanglei had, she’d brought along a pretty qipao for formal occasions and sensible shirts and breeches suited for traveling. A few hair ornaments, a few bottles Remy recognized for her skin, though the thought of Xiaodan worrying she might break out in spots made him smile. Several jewelry boxes, one smaller than the others. He opened it, wondering briefly if it was fragile, so he could wrap it heavily in some cloth before—
It was a simple gold ring, bright and polished. Remy stared at it wordlessly.
He had seen one on the dresser of their chambers at Fata Morgana. Had Malekh fashioned a replacement in case one of them lost theirs? But they never wore them.
He knew enough about courting rituals, had seen many a newly engaged woman flaunt her ostentatious jewelry in a bid to incite envy. But the rings were simple enough that it would cost very little to—
There was the sound of a throat being cleared behind him. Remy turned to see Xiaodan and Malekh by the doorway: the latter leaning against the frame, the former looking aghast. “Y-you shouldn’t have seen that,” Xiaodan spluttered.
“I’m sorry. I thought it would be faster if I were to pack the rest of your things.”
A chuckle from Malekh. “No sense in delaying it now, Xiaodan.”
“Delaying what?” Remy asked.
“Remy,” Xiaodan said seriously. “Do you know what that is?”
Remy looked down at it again. “A ring?”
“Yes. And what do you think it’s for?”
“I suppose it’s something supplementary, should you accidentally lose the ones you have or need the originals cleaned.”
“Remy,” Xiaodan said, with all the patience of the Mother. “It is a simple enough design that a warm soak is enough for polish. And we never mislay our possessions.”
“Oh,” Remy said, perplexed at why she was taking the time to explain to him the intricacies of their jewelry. He’d never worn many himself, except for some function or other.
A strange sound erupted from Malekh. On any other person, Remy would have thought it was laughter.
“The ring isn’t for Zidan or myself,” Xiaodan said gently. “We’d been hoping to ask you when things weren’t as chaotic as they’ve been the last several hours.”
Remy stared blankly at her. “Ask me what?”
Malekh remained amused. Xiaodan sighed, crouching down beside him. “Remy, I swear to everything you consider holy that sometimes you are the densest person I have ever met. It’s yours.”
Remy looked down at the ring. It did look about his size. Xiaodan must have been very good at estimating, or had she measured his finger when he was asleep?
And then, finally, he understood.
“Me?” He didn’t mean to sound like he was choking on thick wool, right on the verge of regurgitating it back out. Neither seemed offended. Xiaodan looked worried, while Malekh was having the time of his life.
“Actually, we were planning on asking Raghnall for the honor,” the lord said. “Of course it’s you, you oblivious arse.”
“You don’t have to answer now,” Xiaodan said hurriedly. “Malekh was overhasty in talking to your father about involving you in the Third and Fourth Courts, and I don’t want to—”
Remy leaped for them.
Xiaodan was pinned to the floor beneath him, Remy taking her unawares for the first time while he peppered kisses onto her mouth and neck. With his other hand, Remy grabbed at Malekh’s collar and yanked him to them, lifting himself up from the woman to fuse his mouth with the Summer Lord’s.
“A yes, then?” Malekh murmured.
“I don’t need a wedding in Aluria,” Remy breathed. “I don’t want a fucking wedding in Aluria. I don’t need a wedding at all. Just the two of you in bed for a week, and if I’m still walking by the end of it, I’ll sue for annulment.”
“Oh,” Xiaodan said. She lifted a hand to cup at his face, peering into his eyes. “We should have been more careful, Zidan. He’s still under the influence of the bloodsharing.”
“You were caught up in a particularly nasty frenzy,” Malekh said. “As was I. Surely Pendergast can forgive us the momentary lapse.”
But their hands were already moving, divesting him of his clothing. A particularly hard tug from Malekh sent one unlucky boot flying into the corner of the room with a muted thunk.
“We’ll ask you again once you’re of sounder mind,” Xiaodan said against his throat, teeth nipping playfully along the base. “For now, we intend to take very good care of you, puppy.”
“I want Malekh’s arse for my wedding present,” Remy continued, and the lord finally, truly laughed.
“MILORD? MILADY? Oh, hell, I didn’t mean to—”
Remy cracked an eye open. Both Xiaodan and Malekh were already up, talking in low tones as they moved about their chambers, sorting the rest of the belongings that Remy had tried to pack before he was interrupted. Lazy bastard that he was, he’d been content to lounge about in bed and polish off the rest of the plate of fruit that had been sitting in their quarters before all hell broke loose, not wanting them to go to waste. He glanced over and saw Elke doing her best not to look in their general direction, as they all three had felt little need to put on clothing.
“Lady Whittaker?” Xiaodan asked, startled. “I thought you’d already left for Eugenie’s.”
“Left and brought my arse back here running again. We hadn’t time to do much there before one of Eugenie’s pigeons came soaring in with a fresh report. The First Court is moving east toward Agathyrsi, milady. There’s no time.”
“Agathyrsi?” Malekh whirled, eyes flashing. “Does she intend to attack the Fata Morgana?”
“I would very much hope not, but all indications point to that.”
“They cannot have recovered so quickly.” Malekh was already pulling on his shirt and reaching for his breeches.
“Didn’t Riones say that there were close to ten thousand children who’d gone missing in the course of ten years from Aluria, Kerenai, and the surrounding areas? The Night Empress has all the numbers she needs—especially if those who succumb to the frenzy can be turned via the Rot.” Elke was pale. “I’ve already called on the other courts, but I do not know how long it will take them. Eugenie’s is the closest to your court, and they’ve already been alerted. I apologize for overstepping my bounds, Lady Song, but I told Alegra to bring everyone from the Fourth that she could spare.”
“You did the right thing, Lady Whittaker.” Xiaodan was already pulling on her own clothes while Remy was scrambling to find his. “We didn’t get through to her, then,” she said, voice pained. “I thought that perhaps—”
“If Ishkibal’s blood still runs through her veins,” Malekh said, “it is not an unforeseeable outcome.”
But they’d hoped not, for his sake. “She’s still frenzied. I’ll get word to my father; he cannot have traveled very far.” Remy finally spotted his shirt half-hidden underneath the bed. “He still had plans to survey the area, in the event of any stragglers, and was heading toward the Fata Morgana himself. No doubt he’s left his vampire messenger near the Allpriory, waiting to see me leave. I’ll send word to him, and they should be at the fortress only an hour or so behind us.”
“Remy,” Xiaodan said, sounding troubled. Malekh watched him with the guarded look that Remy knew all too well.
“We’ll finish this one way or another,” he said, curbing his despair. “No more regrets. If she still wants to fight in the end, then we’ll give her the battle she wants.”
THE VAMPIRE messenger appeared after Remy had shouted for him a third time, looking bemused. “Must you call me an undersized piece of shit every time you try to summon me?” he inquired politely, not at all affronted by Remy’s lack of etiquette.
“Maybe if I knew what your fucking name was,” Remy said, then barreled on when the latter gave no sign of giving it, “Tell my father to make haste to the Fata Morgana. The Night Empress is on the move and intends to make her next siege there.”
“Even without the temple clan’s influence?”
“It’s complicated.”
“I shall send word immediately.” The messenger hesitated. “I have no love for the courts, as you very well know. I have always thought your Summer Lord’s penchant for seeing humans and kindred coexist far more optimistic than what the reality requires. But after seeing the odd arrangement he has with the humans within his domain—perhaps it’s possible after all.” And he was off before Remy could formulate a reply.