Page 50 of The Calling of Caellaias

“Shut the fuck up,” I demanded, irritated and confused.

Emrhys ignored my outburst. “I’ve already sent notice to King Casimir and your sister that you have arrived. They will join us in the throne room shortly.”

From there, we walked in silence. After what felt like an eternity and an insane number of turns through the castle, we came to a long hallway with ornate doors at the end. As we approached the doors, the guards who led us opened them. Inside was a room so grand I stopped to stare in awe. The room was made of white marble from top to bottom, and numerous columns lined the walkway to the dias.

Straight ahead of us in the center of the raised dias was a large throne made of dark metal with three spires raised from the back, all tipped with the same cobalt blue stone as the spires on the castle. An orletaylaer, carved in wood and painted the perfect teal color to match the actual flower, was situated below the middle spire—just above the man sitting on the throne. He was a man of tall stature with long, straight black hair and bright yellow eyes. Momma looked nothing like him, but his posture and smugness screamed power. He was my grandfather.

To the left was another large throne decorated almost the same as the other, which was likely meant for the queen. When we saw Calli,she said the queen had been deceased for quite some time, so I wasn’t surprised to see that the throne was unoccupied.

Looking to my grandfather’s right, I spotted a familiar figure seated on a smaller, less intricate throne, most likely meant for a prince or princess.

“It’s nice to see you, Vay.”