Page 49 of A Legacy of Storms and Starlight

Saphi laughed quietly as they stepped onto the bridge that crossed the river. “Aside from the eyeglasses that you don’t need, the hair that’s always poorly dyed, and the fact you never go anywhere without this cloak?” She tugged at Zylah’s sleeve.

“Point taken.” Kopi landed on her shoulder the moment the bridge ended, and Zylah stroked a finger lightly over his head.

“Sometimes I think he truly is Pallia’s owl, sent to watch over you.”

“I don’t know about that. But I do know he doesn’t like crowds,” Zylah said as they turned into the alley that hid the entrance to the safe house.

The door swung open, Rose leaning against the frame. “You’re late.”

“We missed you, too,” Saphi said, pressing a kiss to Rose’s lips and gently pushing her aside.

Zylah remained in the alley to give them a moment of privacy and whispered to Kopi, “Sit this one out buddy, it’ll be far too busy in there for you.” She could already feel the hum of extra bodies from this side of the door and cast aside the twist of nervousness in her stomach. Kopi hooed quietly before flying away, and she watched his little frame bank up and over a rooftop. Whether he was Pallia’s owl or not, Zylah was grateful he’d found her.

She let the door fall shut behind her and followed Rose and Saphi into the hall. It was packed, just as she’d suspected, the buzz of chatter filling the room. Again Zylah tried not to stare at the faeries, just like the ones in the tapestries lining the walls; instead, her gaze fell on the blue faerie with dragonfly wings.

Most of the Fae left their deceits in place, but there were a few, like the blue faerie, who concealed nothing. Zylah stole a glance at Saphi and Rose, at their delicately pointed ears on display.

The door to the kitchen swung open, and Raif strode in laughing beside—Holt.Seven gods.Of coursehe was part of the uprising. And for the first time, she saw what he truly looked like. His pointed ears, the brightness of his eyes, his preternatural movements even more fluid than before. He was more than a god. It was as if he was from another world, raw power rolling from him like it had the first time they’d met.

They made their way through the crowd towards her, and although Zylah was vaguely aware of Raif’s gaze on her, it was Holt she watched. The way he shook hands, the way he greeted everyone by name, the way the crowd parted forhim. As if they stepped back in sheer reverence of that power. He was theirboss, as Raif had put it. Their leader. And she’d been sharing a room with him this entire time, teasing him about hisjob.

She shouldn’t have been surprised. Why would he tell her, anyway?Why wouldn’t he?It shouldn’t have mattered if he didn’t trust her; they’d barely known each other more than a month… were barely friends. But it still stung. It was Holt who had called her his friend, after all.

It doesn’t matter, she told herself.He doesn’t owe you anything.

Raif walked beside Holt as they made their rounds, an easiness between them that Raif, despite his swagger, didn’t have with others. Holt nodded in approval at something, and they both broke into laughter.Holt is like a brother to me, Raif had said. Seeing the two of them together, how relaxed Holt was with Raif, Zylah believed it.

“There’s our expert apothecary,” Raif said as he reached Zylah, looping an arm around her waist to pivot behind her and press a kiss into her hair, his arms wrapping around her.

“Territorial bastard,” Rose muttered beside them.

Zylah’s attention remained fixed on Holt as he casually made his way through his rounds, his gaze sliding from Raif’s arms to meet Zylah’s eyes. That feeling twisted over and over in her stomach again. She was nothing like them, nothing like him. If she’d thought him a god with his deceits in place, without it… words failed her.

“Liss,” he said pointedly, the ghost of a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Nice work with the poultices.” He didn’t wait for a response, just offered a swift greeting to Rose and Saphi, as if he’d already seen them earlier on, before moving through the rest of the crowd.

The hum of the room was nothing compared to the roaring in Zylah’s head, but the chatter soon quietened as Holt took his position in the centre of the hall. “Arnir is visiting in less than a day.”

The crowd murmured.

“And no one is to make a move,” Holt added.

“Soyoucan?” the blue faerie with dragonfly wings asked. “Why not just let the Black Veil do your dirty work again, kill off a few more humans in the process?”

“Mala, hold your tongue,” the faerie with leathery wings hissed. Mala shook him off and stormed out of the hall, towards the entrance.

Holt didn’t seem fazed by her outburst, or her departure. “The Black Veil work with us willingly to bring down a corrupt king.”

The room sounded their agreement as Holt continued.

“Mala is new to our cause,” Raif murmured into Zylah’s ear. His hands were still around her waist, his reassuring warmth pressed against her, and she leaned into his touch. She hadn’t realised how much she’d been anticipating this meeting. She wasn’t one of them, no matter how many poultices she made. She wasn’t even sure how many other half Fae there were; it was impossible to tell from looks alone. Raif’s hand squeezed lightly at her side and she fought back a smile, just as Holt’s attention slid to her, to Raif’s hand at her waist, and back out to the crowd not even a heartbeat later.

“If we’re to succeed, we’ll need all the human allies we can get. Without them, we wouldn’t be able to gain access to many locations across Virian, and outside the city walls. Rest assured, the Black Veil are compensated for the work they do for us,” Holt continued.

Zylah thought of Mala’s words about the Black Veil. Whatdirty workdid she mean, exactly? Was that what they were being compensated for?

“Arnir is coming to discuss plans for the festival, to make sure everything is going to his liking. I want scouts from every house following him. We need to know who he meets with, where he gets his breakfast, what whorehouses he frequents, all of it. And we need to know who his suppliers are so that we can station members from each house throughout all aspects of the festival.” No one spoke as Holt laid out his plan.

Zylah had stepped out of Raif’s embrace, offering him a reassuring smile. She was intent on listening to Holt’s every word, to work out where she might be able to help. She wasn’t the only one; every faerie listened just as intently as she did, no one interrupted him again.

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