Page 59 of Insolence (Eisha’s Hidden Codices #1)

Itissa

“Three more spins. Are you ready?” The blonde’s voice carries in the ringing silence after the music.

“Yes!” Bouncing at the knees, Imogen giggles and places her hand in Sadrie’s again.

Warmth rushes in my chest. Perhaps it’s only the celebration, but for once I feel just a little bit at home. Wanting to linger in the feeling, I smile and watch Sadrie spin the handmaiden around by her hand.

That’s when the sensation of strange eyes watching me sinks in. Turning around, I scan the courtyard and flinch. Where have you been hiding?

Lydia’s clear brown eyes bore into mine from beyond the Waymark. Her expression cryptic, she takes off toward the Orrery Tower. For once she doesn’t have a guard hovering nearby.

Heart thumping in my chest, I do a quick scan of the courtyard.

Elodie and Lady Maida are at the refreshment table, heads together chatting. Cordelia sits with Ghisele, talking and laughing on one of the Waymark’s benches. Gods only know what she sees in the brash redhead, but they seem to have struck up some sort of friendship.

Meanwhile, Sadrie manages to twirl Imogen so hard that the little girl staggers backward and drops to the ground, dizzy and giggling hysterically. Instrument case in hand, Brigit walks up to corral her charge for bedtime.

Behind me, the prioress is drunk and still greatly enjoying being the center of attention at the bonfire she’s sharing with most of the sisters. Now that the dancing is over, Delia has joined them.

With everyone distracted, I slip away unnoticed.

When I catch up to her, Lydia is standing with her back to the great yew tree, warming her hands at a dying fire. The Orrery Tower rises beyond it. Like the other temple buildings, it’s draped in celebratory banners that ripple in the breeze.

"It's really you." I hold my hands to the flames.

Head down, hood pulled forward, she makes a noise in her throat.

"I saw you the night you were attacked. Do you recognize me?"

“Mm-hmm.” She lifts her chin to meet my eyes. Her mask is gone. Aside from the black thread marring her mouth, she's very pretty. Beautiful, even.

"I watched for you after that. Gods, I thought you were dead when you weren't at the lottery. I asked after you, but the prioress made a veiled threat, and one of the priestesses warned me to drop it."

She gives another strangled hum, making me wonder how painful the stitches are. The skin around her lips looks inflamed.

Not wanting to stare, I shift my focus to the winding path to the Observatory. Lit lanterns dot the trail up the steep escarpment. Although the Observatory appears unoccupied, lights are on inside the building.

I gesture to her mouth. “Are you being punished by someone?”

She nods.

“Did you do something bad?”

She emphatically shakes her head. “Mm-mm!” A lock of sleek, dark hair escapes her hood.

“I wish we could talk. I’d really like to know some things about that night.” I give a sardonic snort. “Let’s be honest, I want to know a lot of things. Somehow, I think you might even answer my questions without making me jump through hoops.”

“Mm-hmm,” she nods and pantomimes writing.

Of course. I almost slap my forehead at my own stupidity. If I hadn't been so wrapped up in Elodie, I’d have run to grab a pen and paper as soon as dinner ended.

Temple Guardsmen stand at attention, spaced out evenly along the courtyard’s circumference and half-hidden by shadow. A glance confirms Lydia sees them too.

“Tiss?” Maida’s voice comes from behind us. “What are you doing all the way over— Oh . I see . ”

When she registers Lydia’s sewn mouth, she snatches my arm and drags me away like a child. “Come along now.”

Aggravation flashes through me.

She releases me once she deems we’re a safe enough distance away and jams her hands on her hips. “You know better than that, Itissa!” she hisses, a blade-like edge to her voice. “You’re lucky it was me who came along. She’s the Screamer, I take it?”

“Lydia. Yes.”

Beyond Maida’s shoulder, I spot Ghisele and Enid at the refreshment table. The handmaiden blathers excitedly, her chestnut curls bouncing while she whispers to Ghisele.

“I know you’re concerned about her, and I appreciate why. But I assure you all is well,” says Maida. “Now you’ve been told to leave her alone, so leave her alone .”

Exasperation bunches my shoulders. “All is not well,” I whisper, “and I can’t imagine why you’d lie about it, Lady Maida.”

“Just Maida. And fine, you’re correct. Doesn’t mean I’m going into details with you. Elodie has assured me she’ll explain everything eventually.”

“‘Eventually,’” I huff. “It’s always eventually with her.” Fingers wrapped around my onyx pendant, I hunt for the fleeting contentedness I felt not so long ago.

Behind Maida, Ghisele and Enid are whispering vehemently back and forth, glaring at me now. Ghisele’s green eyes widen at whatever salacious gossip Enid is filling her in on.

“I know it’s a lot to ask, but you’re going to have to trust us for the time being. Now!” Maida clasps her hands, pulling my focus back. “Come along. There’s more celebrating yet to come.” She spins on her heel, checking to make sure I follow her back to the festivities.

Ghisele and Enid stare when I pass. Shivering, I hug my cloak tighter around myself and weave around the dying fires, scanning for Elodie.

The courtyard is sparser now, with far fewer betrothed girls milling about. Strange . They must have sent themselves to bed.

At 23:30, the guardsmen give up their perimeter posts in favor of patrolling.

Movement catches my eye in the shadows cast by the Archive’s facade. It’s the quiet moaning that brings me to an immediate halt .

At first there’s nothing but a tangle of limbs melded with darkness. I look harder, my brain struggling to make sense of the flurry of shapes and shadows, until two betrothed girls come into focus.

They’re close to one another… Very close.

No. Not merely close; they’re embracing , and not in a platonic way.

Heat flushes my body while one of them grabs the other behind her neck and kisses her there passionately—to the point that the other woman sags against her, a look of pure ecstasy on her face.

Like when I was with Sadrie and the monster took over…

Out of nowhere someone grabs my elbow, spinning me around. “What the hell , Ghisele?” I cry, my heart in my throat.

“Enid heard something interesting about you,” she says, standing too close. “I thought you might like to know.”

Good gods, what now? “I don’t give a damn what anybody heard, first of all. Secondly, I don’t care for your company, so I’ll be on my way if you don’t mind.”

The redhead turns a blistering glare on me. “Be as flippant as you want, but they’re keeping secrets from you. Secrets about you.”

“Who?”

“Elodie and Maida.” Her slow smile is predatory when my posture goes rigid. “Enid might have accidentally overheard Maida mention a juicy little tidbit. She was talking about a ‘Succubus and her Thrall.’ In reference to Elodie and you , Tiss .”

My next breath refuses to dislodge from my lungs.

The handmaiden in question lingers near the refreshment table, watching our conversation with unconcealed interest.

“And what, exactly, is a Succubus?” Words cannot convey how much I despise feeling like an idiot in front of Ghisele.

“Something unnatural. A dark force,” she shrugs, a touch too casually.

“You don’t know either, do you?” I bite out, wanting to scream. “You’re stirring trouble about something you don’t understand.”

“Fine. I don’t know what a Succubus is. I know exactly what the word ‘thrall’ means, though.”

As do I.

“It’s a state of being under someone’s control or power,” she continues, needlessly. “Like a slave or captive .” She plays idly with one of her amethyst earrings, her sharp gaze passing over me. “You’re falling in love with her, aren’t you? I can read it all over you.”

There’s no question she’s alluding to my aura. The burgeoning feelings for Elodie I’ve scarcely acknowledged myself.

Despite being overdressed and bundled up, I feel suddenly exposed, defenseless, and on display. “This conversation is a waste of time. Hasn’t anyone told you how tedious you are?” Brushing past her, I resolve to find Elodie and ask her about this Succubus and Thrall business directly.

But will she give me answers?

A pair of Temple Guardsmen crowd the Archive’s entrance now. They’re rounding up the two betrothed women. Strangely, they’re neither angry nor appalled; perhaps a bit amused.

My gaze darts to the prioress, who throws her head back in laughter. She’s still standing at the large bonfire, still sipping her goblet of wine, still being fawned over by her retinue of sisters, and loving it.

“You see the problem, though.” Ghisele’s words slither right through me, halting me in my tracks. “Can you say that you trust her? Can you say with certainty that she won’t lie about it or brush you off if you go to her?”

I whirl around, feeling like she’s infringed on my mind along with my aura and most private emotions.

“There it is.” Her grin is too sly, too cunning.

“If you intend to arrive at a point, I beg of you. Enlighten me.”

“I may not know precisely what a Succubus is, but I know what it’s like to be in Elodie’s thrall. So do you, it seems.” She examines her fingernails, affecting nonchalance before her focus sharpens on me. “From the looks of it, you’re at an advanced stage of ruin when it comes to her. Are you not?”

I’m immediately, acutely aware of the invisible thread connecting us. Humming from across the courtyard, it’s as if I’m tethered by the gravity surrounding her. Ensnared by a force I don’t understand.

Offending betrothed in tow, the guardsmen pass us while I grope for something to say.

One of them mutters to the women—something that sounds like “keep it underground” but that makes no sense at all.

I do a double take. Is that blood smeared on her neck?

She’s out of sight before I can be sure.