“Duty calls,” he drawled, winking at me. “But stick around and maybe we’ll talk about those dirty thoughts a little more, Zay. Try to find the charms, however, and we’ll be having a very different conversation.”
Grigory went to the door and flung it open to reveal Valora on the other side. She was supposed to arrive earlier this week, but something with her daughter had forced them all to remain in Nova Kingdom for a few extra days.
“Zaya!” she squealed, running right past Grigory and directly to me, yanking me into her arms in a much-needed hug.
Oh, how I missed my best friend!
It hurt to stay away from her, but she resided in a place that nearly broke me indefinitely. It didn’t matter that she’d destroyed Necros and married Adrik in the process. My mind would forever remember the horrors Necros and his men had inflicted upon me in that dark palace, the night they tried to destroy me forever, all in an effort to force Valora’s submission. Yet her bowing to him hadn’t been enough. And Necros adored punishing others. Which was why he’d used me to hurt Valora.
One day, I would be strong enough to visit without cringing.
Just not today.
I pulled back from Valora and noted her gown. “Your dress is pink. Napia is going to be furious.” I said the latter part with a grin, amused.
Valora shrugged. “I’m sorry, but green isn’t my color, and my royal status supersedes hers. She’s just a princess. I’m a queen.”
“A very beautiful queen,” Adrik added, nodding at Grigory. The two of them were technically brothers-in-law since Valora and Grigory shared a mother, but their male bond went deeper than blood. They’d grown up together, essentially brothers already, thanks to Lux raising them both.
“Still not forgiven,” Valora replied, arching a brow at Adrik.
“I’ll make it up to you later, sweet star,” he promised, a devilish twinkle in his gaze as he leaned against the wall just beside the door.
“Right you will,” she agreed as a petite female entered the room, holding their daughter, Adriatica. I recognized the woman as someone who had grown up in Graystall.
A pang of longing hit my heart, seeing another woman taking the role of my former job. But I knew in my soul that it was the right thing for Valora. She needed someone fiercely loyal and fully sane at her side, and I didn’t quite measure up to that last bit. Not entirely, anyway.
“I’m so sorry we couldn’t come sooner,” Valora said to Grigory. “Adriatica has been unwell with a little childhood fever. Nothing too serious.”
Adrik grunted. “I’m not sure I’d say that. We need to redesign a few parts of the castle. Again.”
“Why?” Grigory took his niece from the maid, who curtsied and stepped aside to melt into the background of the room as maids were trained to do. I made sure to acknowledge her with a smile before refocusing on Valora and Adrik.
“Let’s just say it means Adriatica’s cough is similar to a dragon in that she spews fire from her lungs with every hack,” Adrik explained, clearly amused by Grigory’s growing anxiety. “Considering your kind isn’t fond of the element, we didn’t think it would be wise to have her in Noxia.”
“Right.” Grigory handed his niece off to Valora without so much as a kiss on her pretty dark head. “I’ll bond with the spawn later, then.”
“Adriatica,” Valora corrected.
&n
bsp; “Sure,” Grigory replied. “Maybe we should let Valora and Zaya catch up while we, uh, leave the fire-breathing demon here.” Grigory didn’t give Adrik a chance to argue; he just grabbed him by the sleeve of his jacket and pulled him out of the room. “We’ll meet you both in the ballroom later.” He gave a little wave, leaving me to shake my head in his wake.
“Coward,” I muttered.
“I think your uncle is a little scared of you, my darling,” Valora cooed at her daughter, her amusement palpable. She bounced the young girl a few times in her arms, making adorable little noises of contentment the whole time, while Adriatica watched with big blue eyes.
I rubbed a palm over my chest, the innocence radiating off Valora’s daughter tormenting a burned part of me.
I used to believe in fairy tales once upon a time. I had a mother and a father who cared about me and raised me with stars in my eyes, then Necros cruelly lit my reality on fire and made me watch it burn.
“Do you want to hold her?” Valora asked, distracting me from my darker thoughts. She held Adriatica out to me, and I accepted the darling bundle with a smile. Her big blue eyes watched me curiously as if to say, Who are you?
I’m a friend, I told her back with my gaze. While I had no direct relation to the child, I felt fiercely protective of her. She must have felt my loyalty, because she gurgled happily, her beauty radiating before my eyes.
“She’s grown so much,” I murmured, smiling. “There won’t be any lasting effect from the fire issues, will there?”
“No.” Valora shook her head, her focus on her daughter. “She didn’t kill anyone, just maimed one of Jeremiah’s recruits.”