Page 36 of Within the Hollow Heart

His gaze lifted to the opposite wall of the courtyard and beyond, where as far as he could see, sprawling estate houses peeked from a landscape more green and lush than anything Nickolas had ever known. But in the distance, at the edge of the forest, stood a pyre as tall as the trees. Smaller pyres stood scattered around it, and countless indistinct shapes moved through the clearing in a manner that was not unlike the staff at Westrende when preparing for an event.

Dread sank into him as his eyes rose to the sky.

“Moontide,” said a voice at his ear.

Nickolas jumped, nearly tumbling through the window before he managed to turn his back against the frame. He had been alone in the corridor, he was sure of it, and yet the fae woman was only inches from him, pressing close enough he could still feel the breath as her words had brushed his skin.

She was unusually tall, her features sharp, the corners of her wide lips and dark eyes tipped upward in a smile. She wore a silk gown and jewels in her hair, but strapped at her side was a double-edged dagger that appeared well-used. When she showed her teeth, he had to still the sudden urge to run.

“Are you lost, little lord?”

Nickolas was not proud of how long it took him to get out “I am a guest of the prince.”

She leaned nearer, voice dropping to a whisper. “As am I.”

He tried to slide casually along the wall, away from the open archway.

She sauntered in the same direction. Her eyes twinkled like an actual, literal spark of light. Nickolas froze, his elbow brushing where the wall met a corner.

She said, “I can take you closer, little lord. Take you to see the festivities below. Would you like that?”

“I’m afraid I must decline.”

“Must you?” Her gaze flicked over his disheveled attire. “You do not look bound to me. Come now. It’s not far. Only just outside.”

Outside the palace, where he had no protection from the laws of hospitality. Where the prince and Noal had assured him he did not want to go.Noal.That was what he should do—call for help. Noal would come, surely, just as others had called on the prince. But Nickolas did not know if calling a fae would indebt him in some way. “I must prepare for dinner. If you’ll allow me to make my farewell—”

Before he could even attempt a bow, the fae moved closer. “Give me your name, little lord, so that I might speak it.”

“I—”

“My lord,” said a voice from down the corridor.

Nickolas and the woman looked up to find Noal standing before the entrance to Nickolas’s rooms. Nickolas was unsettled to realize the woman’s fingers had curled into a grip on the chest of his shirt, and he’d not even noticed.

Noal said, “It is time to make ready for the evening’s event.”

Nickolas sagged a little in relief then hurried to slide past the woman and toward Noal, the woman’s grip dragging free of him. When he reached the doorway, he glanced back to give a perfunctory dip of the head in case there was some rule of propriety he was unaware he might be breaking, but she was watching him with a long-nailed finger flicking irritably at the tip of her knife.

Inside, Noal tutted at the state of Nickolas’s wardrobe.

“Would she have harmed me?” Nickolas asked.

Noal gestured to urge him toward the basin and fresh attire. “You will find not everyone at court is as welcoming as the prince.”

“He said that already.”

Noal handed Nickolas a fresh shirt. “The prince is not known to lie.”

CHAPTER17

Nickolas was dressed in a fine suit, well-fitting boots, and a too-tight cravat. He had retied the cravat several times, but the sensation of being strangled would not seem to cease. When Noal had deemed him “well enough,” they made their way to a private study that was quiet, dimly lit, and painfully impressive. It gave Nickolas a little pang of envy, and he thought he might have preferred the strangled feeling.

Before Noal made their introduction, the prince laid down his quill and looked up at them. He seemed to draw a resigned breath then stood, pulled on his jacket, and slipped the folded parchment into a pocket of his vest. “Lord Brigham.”

Nickolas bowed.

The prince came out from behind the large desk then crossed the room and faced him. “It is moontide. The lady Jules and I are to be wed.”

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