Guards surrounded Ruenen on all sides, including Marai and Aresti, as they passed over a wide bridge. The frozen stream below cut the castle off from the rest of the capital city of Lirrstrass and the nearby alpine lake and pine forests. Marai’s portal had dropped them in the woods up the road, away from the prying eyes of the city. Now, however, people noticed them and the Nevandian banner they carried. Burly Northerners lined the streets in their thick fur coats and boots, watching with curious eyes as Ruenen’s retinue passed through.
“Make way, make way,” said Goso in a commanding, pompous tone. “Make way for Prince Ruenen of Nevandia.”
Then the whispers really started. People flocked to the road, hoping to catch a glimpse of the newest ruler in the Nine Kingdoms.
“Is that truly necessary?” Ruenen asked the ambassador as several women waved.
“Of course, Your Highness. If you want to have a respectful alliance, it starts here with these commoners.” Goso continued to shout his commands to citizens crossing the road.
The guards, Marai, and Aresti kept their hands on their weapons, alert, as they approached the metal grate of the Glacial Palace. Constructed from Northern obsidian rock, the castle sparkled in the remaining daylight. Snow caked the turrets, towers, and inclines. Icicles dripped from its many roofs and arched windows. The large Greltan flags on the four tallest towers were frozen stiff from ice. It was a palace from a fairytale.
Except for the nightmare leaning casually against the black gate.
Nosficio’s feline grin spread wide, exposing both fangs, as he bowed. “Your Highness, Ambassador . . . Lady Marai.” He straightened, focusing now on Ruenen. Nosficio sniffed in his general direction.
Lirr’s Bones, could Nosficio smell Marai on him?
The vampire raised a knowing, cocked eyebrow. Yes, he could.
“Queen Nieve anxiously awaits your arrival,” Nosficio said.
Ruenen swallowed. His palms sweat inside his gloves despite the cold. Nevandian guards blocked Nosficio from getting closer, but the vampire leaned in towards Ruenen.
“She was quite surprised at your sudden arrival, but she is very curious.” Nosficio looked to Marai, then Aresti. His nostrils flared, scenting her fae blood. “And who, may I ask, are you?”
Aresti regarded Nosficio with caution and skepticism. “None of your concern, vampire.”
The silver Greltan soldiers surrounding the castle leered darkly at Nosficio, but they hadn’t harmed the vampire, which meant that his appearance wasn’t unexpected. Possibly normal. Nosficio turned to the guards at the gate.
“His Royal Highness, Prince Ruenen of Nevandia, has arrived to speak with Her Majesty Queen Nieve. Perhaps you could open the gate,” Nosficio said with all the finesse of a practiced courtier.
The guards stiffened, but then proceeded to raise the iron grate. Ruenen and his retinue entered the courtyard. Intricate ice sculptures of the gods surrounded a frozen pond. Ruenen had never seen such craftsmanship before. Lirr twirled, the ice of her dress perfectly capturing the movements, eyes sparkling in joy as a tree sprouted at her feet. Laimoen was mid-stab with his dagger, face set in a fierce gurn. Each of the sculptures were so realistic that if they were not crystal-clear, Ruenen might be convinced the gods were really there, affixed in their poses.
The mighty wooden doors to the palace swung open, and a figure dressed in white emerged. She would have blended in entirely with the snow had it not been for red hair blazing underneath her crown of ice and silver.
Ruenen had never seen a woman hold such command in her posture and stare. Nieve walked with elegance and authority. Strong, steady steps; gown trailing behind her. She was in her forties, Ruenen knew, but her pale face was relatively smooth, save for the black mole by her pointed nose and a few crow’s feet. Her blue eyes took in everything around her. A calculating expression Ruenen had seen many times from Marai. The queen’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly as Nosficio led the way to the steps leading up the palace.
“Lord Goso, it pleases me to see you again,” Nieve said. A courteous smile slid on her face, but it didn’t reach those ice blue eyes.
Her husband, the king and rightful ruler of Grelta, was nowhere to be found, but two adolescent children appeared on either side of Nieve, both with equally alarming red hair. The boy was older, whip-thin with none of the imposing presence of his mother. His sister, a head shorter and willowy, hid behind the queen.
Nieve reached out a hand. Several large, glittering jewels graced her slender fingers. Goso kissed her hand with a ceremonious bow.
“You are as beautiful as always, Your Grace,” he oozed.
Nieve removed her hand from his grasp, without acknowledging the compliment. Her eyes honed in on Ruenen. Her shoulders shifted, her chin raised, as she beheld him. Her intense eyes grazed him up and down, leaving Ruenen feeling exposed, stripped naked.
“My children,” Nieve said, gesturing behind her. “Crown Prince Hiver and Princess Elurra.”
Both red-headed young royals bowed and curtsied with effortless grace. They were far more polished than Ruenen was, and they were almost half his age.
“May I present his Royal Highness, Prince Ruenen Avsharian,” Goso announced in a bold voice for all to hear, stepping down to allow room for Ruenen.
A man Ruenen hadn’t noticed before shifted closer to the queen. He wore a white full-face mask and a gray cloak. Something about his hunched posture was familiar. Ruenen couldn’t place it.
“You’re a plucky one, aren’t you?” Nieve asked; her lilting voice was a seductive caress across his cheeks. This was a woman who had power and knew how to wield it. “Your first note was unconventional. Your second note, even more so. How ever did you manage to arrive here so quickly? And without any of my sentries alerting me to your passage.”
Her gaze drifted to Marai and Aresti.
She knows. Nosficio told her about the fae. Her daughter peered at Marai and Aresti from around Nieve’s shoulder with round blue eyes.
However, it was the hunched man whom Nieve looked to for confirmation. The white mask bobbed up and down as he nodded. That was when Ruenen recognized him. This was the man who’d hired Marai to give a “warning” to Nosficio in Iniquity.
“This is my Master of Spies,” Nieve said, gesturing to the man. The hunchback bowed awkwardly.
“I’m pleased and honored to meet you all,” Ruenen said, not trying to hide his shiver as he kissed her bejeweled hand. “Could we continue this inside, in more pleasurable temperatures?”
“My apologies, we of the North have thick skin. Sometimes we forget that not everyone is accustomed to the cold,” Nieve said, her smile widening. Then her eyes drifted to Nosficio, standing to the side of the King’s Guards. Her face grew serious. The Master of Spies tensed behind his mask. “If you’re taking responsibility for the vampire, I must demand that he remain on his best behavior. He claims to be your emissary.”
“He’ll behave,” Nosficio stated. “He ate dinner an hour ago.” He licked his lips again.
Nieve watched the movement and didn’t shy away from it. Instead, her eyes darkened. The frozen air suddenly felt close and heavy.
Nieve turned and glided inside the castle, her white gown and children trailing. Ruenen and Goso followed first. Marai, Aresti, Nosficio, and the guards hung back, granting space to the lords and royalty as they walked into the nearest chamber. The prince and princess excused themselves, and went up one of the various staircases, followed by a handful of courtiers.
Nieve’s council room housed two silver and white bone thrones. Her council, in robes of ivory and robin’s-egg blue, were as tall, fair, and broad as most Northerners. They bowed as Nieve took a seat in one of the thrones.
“My husband will join us shortly. He cannot stay for long, but he does want to be cognizant of the discussions.”
