Page 56 of Night’s Fall (The Four Realms #1)

Values

“O h my gods! It’s stunning! The butterfly detail is lie- yeef!” Princess Aleece exclaimed. “ Look , Mom . Isn’t it perfect?”

She passed my Palm to Queen Calisa .

I took a sip of tea.

Queen Calisa had invited her daughter to our get together, which I thought was cool since I wanted to get to know her better, and she was so down to earth, it helped with my nerves at hanging with a queen.

We were in another room on the second level of the Palace . This one was decorated in salmon, butter yellow, and bone. It was feminine and refined.

We sat on sofas opposite each other and perpendicular to a fireplace edged in gold-veined, ivory marble. The layout of a traditional tea, complete with finger sandwiches, biscuits and little cakes, was on the table between us.

I’d since learned that I didn’t have to formally curtsy in times like these ( Aleksei told me what Timothee’s mention of “dropping a formal” meant, and further explained Madam Garwah probably didn’t mention it because, “ She’s not family, love.

I doubt she knows the inner workings of the things we do that are unseen by the public. ”).

I still needed to curtsy. But just a bob.

This I’d done when I’d arrived, and weirdly, it seemed natural.

Queen Calisa squinted at my Palm in a way I wondered if she needed her eyes lased.

“It is quite stunning,” she murmured, then offered my Palm to me.

I reached across the table and took it.

“Who is the designer again?” the queen asked.

“Lancet,” I answered. “ He’s just emerging on the scene. Me wearing a design of his, I think, will be helpful to him.”

“Rest assured, it will,” she replied, vaguely wafting off the essence of pleased that I went with her advice before she shook it off and daintily sipped tea.

I was beginning to like Aleksei’s mom unreservedly. She wasn’t a warm female, but she was danged cool.

But I fought checking the time on my Palm .

My parents would be headed here soon.

And I had a decision to make.

I knew Aleksei’s ploy with this. Tie me up with his mother and sister, something I would think I couldn’t get away from, and that way I’d let him non-physically “tear them apart” without being there.

But before he went to a breakfast meeting that morning, I’d put my foot down. I made him promise he would connect with me before meeting with them.

He promised by kissing me deeply first, then giving me the words after.

It was a good way to make a promise.

But since then, no matter how often it clogged in my brain (and it clogged my brain often), I hadn’t made the decision.

“You’ve needed to defer instruction with Madam Garwah , considering your quarantine,” the queen broke into my reverie. “ But now that the unpleasant business that muted your beast is concluded, you’ll be resuming, yes?” And this last was an order veiled in a question.

“I only have a couple of sessions left, and I’m back on it this evening,” I assured her.

“Excellent,” she murmured.

“Your beast and Aleksei’s are so perfect,” Aleece mooned, sitting back in the corner of their couch, crossing her legs, her expression dreamy. “ I’m totally waiting until I find my mate.”

Queen Calisa gave her daughter a sharp look.

Mm.

Seemed the queen had other plans for the princess.

“Destiny obviously knows what it’s doing,” Aleece decreed.

“ Sure , it makes me throw up a little in my mouth to say this, but there’s no denying my big brother is not hard on the eyes.

He’s all dark and big and male, and you’re all blonde and rosy and female, and your beasts are just the same.

” She frowned. “ Not to mention, Anna used to complain all the time that it annoyed her he preferred to stay in, cook, read, chill. She was a nightlife kind of female.”

For a bright moment, I forgot about my parents’ imminent visit and considered this.

I considered it more as Aleece continued speaking.

“He’s always been like that. He liked the quiet spaces.

Preferring to be in his suite, reading or studying.

Out taking the dogs for a walk. Holed in the corner of the library.

He was all about perfecting the art of the chill.

Tim and Rol teased him about it all the time, but he didn’t care.

That was just who he was. The fact you two have that in common is double, ultra mega.

Everyone thinks Aleksei is this whirlwind.

He’s not. He’s a long storm.” She grinned.

“ Sometimes a thunderstorm, but that doesn’t happen very often. ”

There was a lot there: the annoying fact his brothers teased him about enjoying the things he enjoyed, a deepening understanding of why he bonded with my cats so easily (he was clearly an animal person).

But I was taken aback she knew this about us, even if I knew that Aleksei was close to his sister. Apparently , they talked. Somewhat deeply.

I was also silently reeling, because I’d been living this with Aleksei for days, and it hadn’t occurred to me he was a homebody.

Just like me.

I was feeling all warm and squishy inside when Queen Calisa said, “ Quite . Now , Laura , it’s come to my attention you intend to continue working. I can understand you wish to honor your obligation on your current project but?—”

“Mom, give it up,” Aleece warned. “ I know you want to pretend, since he stepped back from royal duties and put effort into making his own money, that every time Germaine unleashes a poll about why Aleksei’s popularity continues to soar, respondents don’t say it was because he stepped back from royal duties and put effort in making his own money. But they do.”

Queen Calisa’s mouth formed a mew, but she said nothing.

Aleece turned to me. “ Days gone by, our ancestors filled their chests with gold, silver, copper, you name it, taxed from the people. Then again, we used it to build roads and schools and whatever. We were also the first to fly and put ourselves in danger when some idiot, usually from Sky’s Edge , did something stupid.

And it was all on our heads to make laws and carry out punishments and stuff, which had to be a royal pain. ” She smiled again. “ Pun intended.”

I smiled back at her.

She carried on, “ But some bright bulb in our past invested in real estate and stuff like that, which made buckets. Now all of us and the entire Palace run on residuals and interest. We don’t cost the citizens of the Fall a single shilling.”

I had no idea that was the case.

Actually, it never occurred to me to wonder where their money came from.

But seriously, those investments must have been stellar for the residuals and interest to fund this setup.

“Still,” she continued, “part of why Timothee and Errol languish in the polls, notwithstanding their penchants for acting like twits…”

The queen made a genteel sound of disapproval.

Aleece ignored it and carried on.

“Is that they’re considered wastrels. It’s half what they get up to when they’re out living it up, getting drunk and femaleizing, and half the fact that they’re constantly out getting drunk and femaleizing.

” She turned to her mother. “ People work, Mom . Most people work hard. And they respect other people who do.”

“They respect me, and I don’t work ,” Queen Calisa retorted.

Aleece scoffed. “ You work harder than any of us, it’s just that the estate pays you an allowance instead of some boss giving you a salary. I mean, how many appearances do you have scheduled this week?”

The queen didn’t answer her daughter.

She said to me, “ It’s a fulfilling way to spend your time, Laura . And there is much good you can do without putting much effort into doing it. Like how you’ll benefit that designer by wearing his gown. It might even change his life.”

“Keep your job if you love doing it, Laura ,” Aleece encouraged. “ We’ve got it covered on our end.”

“I’m actually a little worried about this,” I admitted. “ I’m not super outgoing. I have friends and I like going out, it’s just that, like your brother”— I smiled at Aleece —“ I prefer quiet time at home, and there are times I can be shy.”

Queen Calisa seemed to be considering this, but Aleece immediately replied, “ Then do you. I promise, your ratings will stay high if you do.”

I was feeling a tad bit alarmed at all the ratings talk.

“Is this, uh… ratings thing a, well…big deal for you all?” I asked.

Aleece shot a pointed look at her mother.

Queen Calisa answered, “ As my daughter explained, our dragons do not fly, and we no longer bear the entire brunt of the governance of this land. But we do have votes in the Center , and we must understand how our citizens wish us to cast them, something you can learn by being out among them. Though , you can learn more by conducting polls. Also , we continue to reign at the pleasure of the people. If that pleasure should wane…”

She let that trail.

Aleece picked it up. “ Then we’d just be a super-rich family that lives in a palace and owns all sorts of stuff. But Mom and Dad , me, Tim and Rol wouldn’t have anything to do.”

No less alarmed.

I mean, my mate was the first True Heir in two centuries.

Was something up I didn’t know about?

“Is there something I’ve been missing? Is there some threat to the monarchy?” I asked.

Aleece shook her head, but said, “ There are anti-monarchists, for sure. Folks who don’t think we’ve got the right to represent Night’s Fall in the Center and think we embody a dead, antiquated system that needs to be cast aside.

But there have always been those kinds of beings.

That said, they’re right. There is no real purpose for us.

Except , like Mom said, we do good. We open hospitals and shine light on issues and make beings feel special, just because they shook our hands.

It doesn’t seem to have much meaning, but it does. ”