Page 54 of The Raven Queen

I was about to tell her she’d get the hang of making deals with the underbelly of society when my eyes lingered on a painting of the Patrons circled around the Patron Tree. Jake was among them. Though it was only his back, it was obviously him, holding hands with raven-haired Zoe.

Lyra, Callon, and I exchanged an uneasy look. “It’s so weird seeing paintings of him around the castle,” Lyra said.

“You have no idea,” I muttered, and as we continued walking, I felt Liam’s mind.

Hearing his footsteps coming down the hall behind us, I looked over my shoulder to find he and Ada were heading to breakfast, too. I smiled. “Good morning,” I said, my voice carrying through the corridor.

A smile lit Liam’s face as he jogged closer. His raven ruffled as she bounced on his shoulder, but she was probably used to it. Liam’s hair was damp, as if Ada had run a wet comb through it, and he was dressed in his princely clothes—a fresh, tailored tunic and pants—ready for the day.

“Morning,” Liam answered and fell into step beside me. Our fists pounded lightly in greeting. After our game of keep-away yesterday, it officially became our high-five, hello, and goodbye gesture. That it made Liam smile, chased any anxieties I’d woken up with away.

Liam scratched Tick on the top of the head, and I watched as the coyote and raven eyed one another with cocked heads and curiosity. It wasn’t the first time they’d met, but I figured they were coming to some sort of mutual agreement that they would be seeing a lot of each other moving forward.

“Good morning,” Ada said when she finally caught up, her eyes meeting mine quickly before a shy smile curved her lips. Callon held out his arm to escort her onward, and Lyra, Liam, and I continued down the hall.

“You look well rested, Your Highness,” Lyra said, and her eyes sparkled as she smiled at Liam. They’d formed a kinship teasing Callon yesterday, and it made my heart happy to see Lyra smiling more around him. She was always so closed off, though I understood why. And if I had to venture a guess, I would say she took a shining to Liam because he was the same age her brother would be now, had he survived the slaver attack when her family had fled the Crescent Kingdom.

“How did you sleep?” I asked him, wishing I had as much pep in my step as he did this morning. My muscles ached a little from all of our running, jumping, and tumbling yesterday.

“Really good,” he said, absently stroking Nyx’s feathered breast with the crook of his finger.

I grinned. “I thought you might.”

“Yesterday was really fun,” he said, green eyes brightening. “Can we play again?”

I glanced at Ada for confirmation, but she was chatting with Callon, oblivious.

“We’ll see what your mother says,” I told him. I didn’t want to step on Del’s toes and upend their routines more than I already had since arriving. “I’m sure you have lessons or something you can’t neglect. But definitely afterward,” I promised.

That seemed to appease him as we neared a set of double doors. “Are you coming this way for breakfast?”

I snorted a laugh. “Of course. Callon would never let me hear the end of it if we missed a meal.”

Liam was familiar enough with Callon by now to know he was always hungry. “Good.” He leaned in conspiratorially. “Don’t eat the blood pudding, though,” he told me. “It’s disgusting.”

“Noted,” I said with a chuckle. A bundle of barely restrained excitement, he leaped for the double doors and hauled one open. I grabbed the top to help him, and we stepped into the dining room.

“Oh, my Patrons. I’m salivating,” Callon said behind us as the scent of maple ham filled the air.

“I hear the blood pudding is delicious,” I told him, giving Liam a wink. His shoulders shuddered with a laugh, and we shared a secret smile.

Glancing around, the dining room was as I’d expected it would be. It was sumptuous, with mirrors and more gilt framed paintings lining the walls. Wrought iron sconces were mounted between them to match the chandelier that must have held three dozen bulbs hanging over the center of a long oak table.

Del stood at the coffee bar on the other side of the room, talking with Garath as she poured them both a cup of tea from the pot.

“Is he evernotaround?” Callon whispered in my ear. “I mean, he’s nice enough to look at, but really, Fin. I’m beginning to think you have some competition here.”

I wanted to tell Callon it didn’t matter. I wasn’t here to woo Del, yet, I couldn’t deny the way my stomach fell a little whenever I saw them together. “None of this is easy,” I said instead. “For any of us. As long as she’s safe, that’s all that matters.”

“Aye,” he agreed and took a step back, but the sympathetic look on my friend’s face lingered before he finally walked toward the buffet. I knew Callon was worried about me after all that had happened and all that I’d learned since returning. And I couldn’t fault him for that.

“Down here!” Liam called, pulling out a chair for me by his mother. “You can sit with us.”

For now, there was nothing for Callon to worry about unless it was my having to leave Liam behind one day soon and the affect it would have on me. Even if it was just temporarily.

For today, though, I would relish my first official breakfast with my son.

22

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