Page 92 of The King’s Queen
I’m back, I really am back. I thought I’d never set foot in this house again, but I’m back!
Pat coughed, jolting me back to the present.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Aristide, Ker, this is Joy and Pat—my older sister and brother.” I pulled my hands from Aristide’s so I could shuffle out of the way.
“It’s a pleasure,” Aristide said, his voice surprisingly empty of sarcasm for the moment. “Chloe has spoken much of you both.”
“Welcome to Calor Villa!” Two steps and Ker was at my siblings’ side. “You have no idea how excited we are to have you here—it’s like we already know you!”
Ker gave first Joy then Pat an enthusiastic hug.
Pat’s eyes bugged with the experience, but Joy hugged Ker right back with obvious delight.
“Perhaps we should continue the introductions in the library? If we engage in any more mushiness, I believe I will expire,” Aristide announced.
“Yeah, we shouldn’t get too into it without Noctus,” Ker agreed. “He’ll be upset he missed greeting you as it is. Come on—this way.”
Joy sped up so she could walk with Ker, her voice pleasant and casual as she started pumping the werewolf for information. “So how long have you known Noctus?”
“For quite a while—Aristide has been around much longer, naturally.”
“Have you been with him for years?”
“Closer to centuries.”
The pair happily gossiped while Pat and I settled into the middle of our little caravan, and Aristide took up the rear.
I glanced at my older brother, trying to gauge his reaction.
I hadn’t had time to explain to my siblings my relationship with Noctus and the others—plus I’d wanted to wait for backup. Pat and Joy could be merciless, and I selfishly didn’t want to face them alone.
But now, as I studied Pat’s carefully blank face, I wondered if maybe that was a mistake.
“I’m sorry,” I blurted out.
Pat glanced at me. “For what?”
“That I didn’t tell you and Joy about any of this. But there are a lot of secrets, and a lot of them weren’t mine to reveal…”
Pat simply nodded.
Yep, he’s upset. Maybe not mad, but he’s not happy about any of this.
Cowed, I was quiet until we reached the library, where Ker opened the double doors and ushered us in.
The library was just as awe inspiring as the first time I’d seen it—any book lover would have been awed no matter how many times they saw it considering it was two stories and the room itself was larger than some houses.
The glass ceiling showed off the dark sky outside the villa. The mountain the villa was built against pierced so high into the sky, it felt like the ceiling nearly scraped the dark clouds that covered the night sky, and the gentle tap of falling rain pitter pattered on the spelled ceiling.
Bookshelves were arranged through the room in an orderly layout and lined the walls of the second floor.
There were more lanterns than I remembered—some of them were made of brightly colored paper and glowed like they contained flickering candles, while others were made of stone and were set in solid, guiding pathways.
The tree at the far end of the library was no longer flowering. Instead, its leaves were a mix of searing scarlets and bright yellows. A few fell off a branch and fluttered down, landing in the moat of water that surrounded the tree.
The giant glass globe—as big as I was tall—that was positioned in the center of the room still spun, though today it glowed like it was lit within by clusters of fireflies.
“Woah.” Joy stared up at the moving platforms that glided over our heads, following a pattern that led them to connect to the various staircases that led to the second floor. “Chloe, did you date this Noctus guy just for his library? Because if not, you should.”