Page 6 of Fall of Ruin and Wrath

“Ask the question again,” I instructed, because it would help me focus on only what she wanted to know and not everything else that was taking shape and forming words.

“Will Laurelin recover from her fever?” Naomi said in a voice barely above a whisper.

There was silence in my mind, and then I heard what sounded like my own voice whisper,She will recover.

A shudder of relief went through me, but my skin quickly chilled. The voice continued to whisper. Releasing Naomi’s hand, I opened my eyes.

Naomi had gone still, her hand suspended in air. “What did you see?”

“She’ll recover from the fever,” I shared.

Her throat worked on a delicate swallow. “Really?”

“Yes.” I smiled, but it felt brittle.

“Oh, thank the gods,” she whispered, pressing her fingers to her mouth. “Thank you.”

Now my smile was a grimace as I looked away. I cleared my throat, picking up the bowl. I barely felt the cool ceramic.

“Has Claude been having trouble sleeping again?” Naomi asked after a handful of moments, her voice lighter than it had been when she walked into the chamber.

Thankful for the change of subject, I nodded. “He wants to be rested for the upcoming Feasts.”

Naomi’s brows rose. “The Feasts don’t start for several more weeks— at least a month or so.”

I glanced at her. “He wants to bewellrested.”

Naomi snorted. “He must be quite excited.” Leaning back, she toyed with a sapphire hanging from a thin silver necklace she almost always wore. “And what about you? You excited?”

I lifted a shoulder as my stomach tumbled a bit. “Haven’t really thought about it.”

“But this will be your first Feasts, right?”

“Yep.” It was the first year I was eligible to attend, as one must be twenty-two years of age or married, which made little sense to me, but it was the Hyhborn and King Euros who made the rules, not me.

“You are in for . . . quite the show,” she said slowly.

I snickered, having heard the stories.

She tipped toward me once more, her voice lowering. “But will you be partaking in the . . . in thefestivities?”

“Festivities.” I laughed. “What a tame description.”

She grinned. “What else would I call it?”

“An orgy?”

Tipping her head back, she laughed, and it was such a lovely, infectious sound. Naomi had the best laugh, causing a grin to tug at my own lips. “That’s not what happens,” she said.

“Really?” I stated dryly.

Naomi feigned a look of innocence, which was rather impressive considering there was little about her that could be called innocent. “The Feasts serve as a way for the Hyhborn to reaffirm their commitment to serving lowborn by sharing their wealth of food and drink.” She recited the doctrine as well as any prioress would as she folded her hands demurely in her lap. “Sometimes a lot of drink flows, and with the Hyhborn around, certainactivitiesmay occur. That is all.”

“Ah, yes, reaffirming their commitment to lowborn,” I said a bit sarcastically. She was speaking of the uppermost sphere of Hyhborn— the ones known as Deminyens.

When Deminyens emerged from the ground, it was said they came into existence fully formed and were ageless, capable of manipulating the elements and even the minds of others. Some of them were the lords and the ladies of the Hyhborn echelon, but those weren’t the most powerful of the Deminyens. The princes and princesses who ruled over the six territories within Caelum, along with the King, were the most frightening in their power. They could take different shapes, whip rivers into a frenzy with a flick of their wrists, and even seize the souls of the lowborn, creating the terrifying creatures known as the Rae.

Not much was known about any of them except for King Euros. Hell, other than Prince Rainer of Primvera, we didn’t even know their names. The only other one we ever heard about, and that was usually through the rumor mill, was the Prince of Vytrus, who ruled the Highlands, and that was because he was dreaded by most. After all, he was known as the hand that delivered the King’s wrath.