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There was no animosity in her tone, but a fair bit of curiosity. I had to guess we weren’t a common sight.

Something else occurred to me. She didn’t recognize me. Didn’t they get the newspapers here?

Or perhaps they had their own. I couldn’t say I recalled much unders news in ourGazette. Maybe because I seldom read it.

“Yep. We’re visiting Lucian.”

Her expression, already friendly, brightened considerably. “Are you? Send him my love, will you? That boy is too good to us. You tell him Sessona expects him to save her a dance next Sunday, yes?”

We assured Sessona we would; then Gideon stood, pressing a button behind out seat, and the tram soon stopped in front of the underground manor I remembered.

It was genuinely hard to believe we were underground at all, given the light coming from every tree left and right of the bridge leading up to the great edifice. Their shine reverberated over the cave walls, lighting the darkness up.

“It wasn’t as bright last time I came,” I said.

I would have noticed.

“He must have been asleep, then,” Gideon guessed. “The house wakes up with him.”

“Have you been here before?” I asked, surprised.

I didn’t think they were the kind of friends to make house calls, even if they certainly got along.

“Of course not, but it’s common knowledge.”

It wasn’t to me.

“Down here,” Gideon added. “Everyone knows about this house down here. It’s the Royal Manor.”

I blinked several times. “Come again?”

I was infinitely grateful he was not making me feel stupider for having so many questions.

“They’re called Regis for a reason, Kley,” Gideon replied. “Back in the day, when Highvale was considered a kingdom, rather than a city-state, and the founding families were also the ruling families, the Regises were in power. They were the kings, here. The patriarch stepped down after some time, forming the ruling council to take his place.”

I had about a million more “whats” in mind, but we’d reached the red doors, and before my cousin could knock, they disappeared before Lucian Regis.

19

KLEOS

On my last visit, Lucian greeted us half asleep, his dressing gown open at the chest—an image that remained anchored in my mind for a long, long time.It still made the occasional appearance in naughty dreams.

Today, he was sadly fully dressed, but the sharp cut of his dark, slightly asymmetric suit with a subtle sheen, like a blend of silk, wool, and magic, was no less attractive than a glimpse of his abs.

It felt different from seeing him in the Guard. Maybe because his clothes, rather than being more casual when he was at home, seemed, well, for lack of a better word,regal. He must have made an attempt to blend in with simpler outfits at the Guard.

“Gideon. Kleos.” Lucian stepped aside to let us into the humongous, bright hall. "Come in if you dare."

My cousin laughed as we walked into the grand mansion. So tall and wide it felt more like a cathedral than the entryway to someone’s home, it had clearly been designed to make any guest feel about half an inch tall.

The first thing I noticed was the brightness. It kept surprising me because my brain understood that I was underground. My eyes said something else entirely.

Gideon had been right about the house adapting to its master, there was no doubt. A year ago, it had been so dark, all curtains drawn, and no light to speak of inside. Today, the velvet drapery was pulled back by golden knots, and all that eerie light emanated from the garden—not daylight, but just as bright and warm, if a little more blue than yellow—bathing the arches, columns, and smooth checkered floor.

“I prepared tea if you'd like,” Lucian offered, leading the wayto a sitting room.

Where the entryway had been white, other than the greenish marbled tiles on the floor and the great columns supporting the structure, this room felt less impersonal. Like an actual living, breathing being might reside here.