Page 77 of All the Pain of Promises
He was about to recite Nyxian’s name next when someone called out to him.
“Solarius, darling.” His mother’s overly saccharine voice caused his blood to curdle. “I’m so glad I found you.”
He stilled, shoved his hands into his pockets, and slowly faced her.
Trysta’s dull white hair was twisted into a braid, complete with ornate star charms and threads of gold. The silver dress she wore looked more ill-fitting than normal—it was as though she’d taken a heavily beaded curtain and fashioned it into something suitable to wear. There were too many layers and the angles were sharp, jutting from her shoulders and hips like daggers. The skin beneath her observant eyes had taken on a grayish hue, and the lines creasing along her forehead and the corners of her mouth had deepened in recent weeks. Where once they were faint, they now resembled craters. Still, she stalked toward him like she was on a mission, her elaborate bangles jingling on her wrists.
“Mother.” Solarius inclined his head in greeting.
She did not return the gesture.
“Walk with me.” Trysta hooked her hand in the crook of his arm.
“I’m actually—” Solarius began, but she waved one hand through the air, cutting him off.
Like always.
“Your brother can wait,” she sniped, plastering a counterfeit smile to her face, one Solarius had come to recognize over the years. “I wanted to speak with you about your lovely new bride.”
At once, Solarius raised his guard. The hairs along the back of his neck stood on end and his jaw popped. Whatever business his mother had with Narissa, he planned on putting a stop to it. Nothing good could come of Trysta taking a vested interest inhis wife, his marriage, or his life in general. She’d never made an effort before, and any concern she showed now was a warning.
“What about Narissa?” he asked, his voice cool and measured.
“To start, you two complement each other so well.”
Her flattery was wasted on him, and he remained silent. Solarius did not want nor need her blessing. Or her opinion, for that matter.
“I had no idea Narissa was so adept with herbs and such.” The heels of her shoes clicked noisily against the glittering tiled floor, and she peered over at him, eyes glinting with intrigue. “It’s quite a novel skill to have, don’t you think?”
Solarius ground his teeth, his hand in his pocket closing into a tight fist. He wasn’t certain what exactly Trysta was getting at, or why she was even bothering to strike up a conversation with him. She never made small talk, and the only time she approached anyone of worth was when she wanted something in return.
“Indeed.” He intended to keep his answers curt, to not give her anything.
Trysta prattled on, oblivious to his contempt.
“I fear my age is catching up with me,” she continued, though she was hardly what any fae would consider old. “I’ve been in the market for a lightening cream for my skin, or perhaps something to assist with the tension lines around my eyes. Honestly, bearing and raising children has been no easy feat.”
Her words set his teeth on edge. She hardly had a hand in the upbringing of himself and his siblings. She was scarcely around unless it was to patronize one of them or remind them of their disappointments and failures.
“What is it you’re after, Mother?” he asked, cutting through her tedious bullshit.
“Do you suppose she could make something for me?”
Typical.
His patience snapped and his temper flared, funneling through him in a burst of white-hot rage. Of course, she would only see Narissa as something she could use for her own needs and then discard.
“Like what?” he spat, wrenching himself away from her. He glared at the woman he couldn’t possibly believe shared even an ounce of his blood. “Some dragon root, perhaps?”
Trysta’s gaze sharpened, the skin between her brows puckering.
“That’s right, Mother. I know all about how you traded dragon root to Lord Calfair Skyhelm for some kind of concentrate. Or whatever it was you so desperately needed.” His fury expanded, spurred by her ignorance. Her lack of care. Her complete and utter disdain for anyone save herself. Namely, his wife. “Do you have any idea what he did with that?”
Her dry lips opened and closed, but she remained silent.
“Calfair drugged Narissa while masquerading as me.” Solarius took a menacing step toward her, encroaching on her space. Her eyes widened in shock, but she didn’t step back from him. When he spoke again, he kept his voice low, a testament to his seething rage. “He pretended to be me while I was courting her, and then he deceived her and stole her honor.”
There was a flicker of something in Trysta’s eyes, but it was gone before he could decipher it. “Solarius. I had no idea.”
