I stayed quiet, even though I should have known this, as a prince. As hateful as the Brid was, at least she’d apparently kept her presumed heir informed of what would happen when he took over. The Carlin had told us nothing. Or she’d told me nothing, at least.
“Are you alright, love?” Gillie asked Nua softly, pulling him closer.
He let out a hard breath. “Yes, I’m fine. It’s… odd being back here.”
“You don’t have to stay,” Ash said quickly. “Not if you don’t want to. But… you’ll visit us at least, I hope?”
Us.My stomach squeezed into a tight knot, and I gripped Ash’s hand harder.
“Of course we will.”
“You’ll give us a good room here, lad?” Gillie was eyeing the palace as we made our way up the grass steps towards the huge front doors, blossom trees and wild animals and dancing Folk carved into the wood.
Ash laughed. “Of course. The best. Take the Brid’s room, if you want.”
“You don’t want it yourself?” I asked quietly.
He wrinkled his nose. “Maybe if we burned all the furniture in it first. Did her boar sleep in there with her?”
“We can have my old room,” Nua told Gillie. “If it’s still… intact.”
Ash looked over at me with an amused smile.
“And you already know wheremyroom is, don’t you?” He bumped my shoulder with his. “My little moth spy.”
I flushed, my eyes darting over to Nua and Gillie to see if they’d heard.
“I just wanted to make sure you were alright,” I mumbled. Ash laughed.
“I know. You made me feel better.”
He leaned over to kiss my cheek, and I saw the two guards standing on either side of the doors staring at us as we reached the top of the steps. They said nothing, just pulled the doors open for us to go inside.
Palace staff were everywhere. They all stopped as we stepped inside, freezing for a few seconds before every single one of them dipped into a deep bow.
Ash shifted uncomfortably beside me, his hand growing clammy where it clenched mine tight.
“You don’t need to do that,” he said quickly.
A few of them glanced at each other in confusion as they all slowly straightened back up. There was a long moment of awkward silence.
“Can—um, can we get some water, maybe?” Ash asked, and two of the female fae with long, braided brown hair scurried off immediately.
Ash turned to me. “Do you need something to eat? Do you need to rest for a while?”
My leg ached fiercely from the long walk here, but I shook my head. “I’m fine.”
Jora hurried over, still twisting the front of her simple brown dress in her hands. “The royal messenger has gone into the town, King Ash. The Folk will start arriving shortly for you to address them.”
Ash swallowed and nodded, glancing at me again with anxious eyes. I squeezed his hand to try and comfort him.
“I…” Jora looked terrified as her eyes darted first to me, then to Nua. “Will… will your… Will the unseelie prince be joining you? And… Prince Nua?”
“Yes,” Ash said immediately. “And Gillie.”
Her brown eyes darted to Gillie, and for the first time her narrow face broke into a tiny smile as he grinned at her.
“I appreciate your help, Jora,” Ash said, smiling at her. “What’s your job here?”