Page 44 of Song of the Shadow Prince
“Please, Lord Zacharia, introduce me to your daughters,” Emperor Valenor commanded.
I peered up to get a better look at him. From my spot at the center of the hall, it was difficult to size up the emperor without making it obvious. Middle-aged, maybe, but the guy wore it well. There was just enough gray threaded in his dark hair to screamdistinguishedrather thanancient, styled in a way that said, 'I’m too busy ruling to bother with hair gel.' His piercing blue eyes didn’t merely scan the room; they did full security checks, like laser beams in a spy movie. Seriously, if looks could be weaponized, this man had enough ammo in his gaze to stage a coup.
Damien must have gotten his dark eyes from his mother, but he was gifted with his father’s rugged jawline, all squared and ready for a statue. The emperor’s beard was so perfectly trimmed, it must have had its own royal barber. And that smile? It was frightening. He stared at everyone with an imperious scowl that declared he knew we were all a bunch of liars and he was ready to behead us all and laugh while he did it.
I realized this wasn’t just any emperor; this was the kind of leader who probably had his own action figure line back home—'Emperor’s Greatest Hits’, complete with real smoldering blue eyes action. Or maybe he was the villain. Yeah, he was probably a villain if what Royal Prince Bai told me about him was true, which I had no doubt it was.
The emperor’s cobalt robe was trimmed in gold, and I noticed that the others in the room wore similar attire. But beyond his royal bearing, the gold crown that sat perfectly atop his head and the gold rings on his fingers studded with different colored gems announced he was a cut above the others. In other words, the man was blinged out.
“Your Majesty, this is my eldest daughter, Gianna.” Lord Zacharia motioned to Gianna at my left and then turned to me. “And my second daughter, Arya.”
“You have a son as well, if I remember correctly?” the emperor asked with a raised brow.
Lord Zacharia nodded. “Yes, he is a proud member of Your Majesty’s army.”
The emperor’s eyes widened in sincere surprise. I guess he didn’t know. “Is that so? Under which command?”
“Nightwing, Your Majesty.”
That surprised the emperor even further. “Those are some of my most elite soldiers, Zacharia.”
He turned to a man standing so quietly beside him, I hadn’t noticed him until now. The man was tall, slender, and covered head to toe in a gray robe with a hood that obscured his face. Even though I couldn’t see any distinguishing features, he looked hella creepy.
“Send rewards to Lord Zacharia’s son over at the Nightwing.” He swiveled his icy blue gaze back to Zacharia. “What is your son’s name?”
He deferentially inclined his head, all manners and graciousness. “Jacob, Your Majesty.”
The emperor said, “Jacob Ryder,” to the man beside him. The hooded man nodded without saying a word.
“Thank you, Your Majesty.” Lord Zacharia bowed again.
“Please join us, Zacharia.” Emperor Valenor motioned to a group of empty tables just large enough for one person each on his left.
Lord Zacharia took the first table, Gianna took the second, and I took the third. They primly knelt on the cushions, but after jumping out of planes so many years, my knees weren’t conducive to remain kneeling for long periods of time. Instead, I sat my ass down and crisscrossed my legs. It wasn’t an elegant look, especially wearing a dress, but they would have to compromise with me.
Royal Prince Bai sat across from us, along with another gentleman who seemed to be around my age. Actually, other than the emperor and Royal Prince Bai, everyone else in the room seemed to be closer to my age. Then again, age was relative in Elaria, so who knew how old these people actually were?
“You girls may or may not know, but this is my older brother, Royal Prince Bai,” the emperor greeted. “Beside him is my eldest son, Crown Prince Thorne. He’ll be looking for a Crown Princess soon.”
When Emperor Valenor winked at us, I held back a grimace with great effort. From what Maeve told me while she helped me get ready, the dragons did not marry outside their race. So his little comment was both insulting and totally unnecessary.
“Please, Father!” Thorne laughed and brushed off his comment. The eldest prince looked like a much younger version of his father, down to the same piercing blue eyes. He was handsome, I’d give him that, if you were into the boy next door vibe. “It’s a pleasure to meet you both,” Prince Thorne said with a measured nod, his eyes lingering on Gianna.
Did he like her already?Hmm… interesting.I peered over at the emperor to see if he noticed, but he was staring at Gianna, too. My spidey senses tingled. Either they were both inexplicably drawn to Gianna and her unparalleled beauty, or… she was the reason we were here. And there could only be one reason why—Damien.
I sighed in relief and sagged, then nearly fell backwards when I remembered I wasn’t sitting on a chair and had nothing behind me. I darted out a hand to grip the edge of the table and the utensils rattled, catching the attention of the gentleman sitting beside Thorne and directly across from me.
The strange man smirked wickedly and winked, which made me frown. His reaction was way too friendly, almost like he knew me. And if he did, that was a problem because Maeve didnotprep me for it. Once again, here was another secret Arya had kept from her maid servant.
Emperor Valenor leaned forward and speared my almost-father with a pointed look. “Zacharia, from my understanding, Lady Gianna spends a lot of time with one of my sons, does she not?” He grabbed his wine goblet and drank, his eyes never leaving his Minister of Rites.
I searched for a servant, hoping to flag one down for a glass of water. There was no way I could drink wine. Just one sip would leave me with a mega migraine.
Lord Zacharia chuckled awkwardly. “Yes, the third prince, Prince Damien,” he admitted. “We have the honor of hosting him when he visits the mainland once a month.”
The guy directly across from me, the one who smirked at me, snorted loudly. Taking his goblet, he chugged the wine and slammed the glass down on the table. The sudden noise drew everyone’s attention his way.
“Excuse my other son, the second prince, Prince Julian. He lacks manners at times.” The emperor brushed off his son’s tantrum like it was no big deal and his behavior was an everyday occurrence.
