Page 28 of The Gods Veiling (The Valorian Veil #1)

I don’t speak for the rest of the walk.

I even keep the shock of seeing the small, cute cottages spread out everywhere to myself. I have about a million questions about them.

I just witnessed four men walk out of one with no care in the world about the size. From the outside, it doesn’t look like there’s any possible way there are four bedrooms in there.

It dawns on me this is what Havar was referring to when he explained the Goddess of Illusion’s power is all over the place. I bet the insides are just like the carriage was. Massive.

At least that means we won’t be cramped together.

Nestled in the back, farthest away from everyone, sits a house built out of black, gray, and white stones. It’s bigger than most we’ve passed so far and my home back in Oddian. There’re no pretty flower beds, nor is there a white door.

This one is charcoal like the color of all the stones mixed .

It’s like a looming warning that my life is about to get a little darker when I step inside.

“Do you mind?” Yemi asks quietly and I follow in the direction she’s nodding in.

Tucked to the side on the right, there’s a home that’s no larger than a loft-sized shed.

It’s actually very cute and quaint. The wood that it’s built out of is a reddish-brown and there is, in fact, a flower box underneath the single window.

There’s a stone path laid throughout the grass that disappears somewhere behind the other house.

My new house…

“No, of course not…Go ahead,” I say, reaching my hand out for my bag.

She says nothing as she passes it over and practically runs to her door. Her palm lands on the wood and a second later, she moves right through it.

“I guess that’s how we’ll enter in there as well?”

“Yep. Just lay your palm to the door and it’ll grant you entrance.”

He doesn’t wait for me. Either he’s just ignoring the jitters that are running through me or he’s trying to give me a moment of peace.

Not sure which, nor do I care. I use the opportunity while I’m alone to take as many deep breaths as I can.

You don’t have a choice, Thayla.

You have nowhere to run yet and it’s not like you’d know where you were going even if you did.

Fuck, I don’t want to face them.

Exhaling harshly, I straighten myself out. I take the little pep talk—if that’s what I can call it—to heart and just force my feet forward.

The wood is warm from the sun beating down on it. There’re natural grooves underneath the smooth prime and just as I run my finger across them, I fall through.

I quickly catch myself and freeze as the room in front of me shocks me still.

So far, everything I’ve seen has been marble, bright whites, and gold.

Not the living room at the end of the entrance hallway.

I don’t get time to appreciate it all when raised voices reach my ears from around the corner. My feet are moving without any command from me, when I repeatedly hear ‘her.’

I’m obviously the her in question.

“Oh, what the hell, Kyzen, you really did bring her back?” the one I now know is Riven asks .

“Are you serious? What did you expect me to do?”

“Um, leave her at the healing villas. Duh?”

Kyzen pinches the bridge of his nose. “You can’t be serious.”

“I’m standing right here, asshole.” I drop my bag with a loud thump and cross my arms over my chest.

“I have two eyes, little burden.”

“Stop calling me that,” I grit out at the same time Amick says, “Clearly.”

I don’t know who he’s being literal with, me or the asshole, but regardless, he earns himself a glare that makes his eyebrows bunch together.

“Figure this shit out,” the last one, who I can confidently assume is Creed, stomps past me without even a sideways glance.

“I’ll be in my room, then I’m going to catalog all the changes,” Amick says as he passes me by as well.

What the fuck is happening right now?

This is going about as good as the rest of the day has.

“You heard him,” Riven says as he pats Kyzen on the shoulder, then walks to the complete opposite side of the room to maneuver around me. My nostrils flare. He’s a grade A dickhead.

A deep sigh flutters through the air, and I whip back to Kyzen. He’s leaning against the kitchen counter with his arms crossed. There’s still a little smile on his face, but there’s tension behind it now.

“Sorry about that.”

I scoff and roll my eyes. His apology for his brothers is meaningless, so I focus on the only thing of importance I picked up. “What did Amick mean by cataloging all the changes?”

“The Goddess of Illusion created these homes to be designed with the essence of the beings living in it. The bedrooms are made based directly on the person, while the common areas have a mixture of everyone’s tastes.

That hall is new. I assume that’ll lead to your room.

” Both of us look to the right, opposite the direction the guys just went.

“As is the fireplace. Amick is probably losing his mind about the bookshelves being split.” He chuckles as he looks over my head.

“Those four doors at the back lead to our rooms.”

I follow the direction he’s pointing in and sure enough, there are four doors, perfectly spaced out across the far back sidewall.

“Why don’t you go familiarize yourself with your room and I’ll round them up.

We don’t go into each other’s spaces without permission, so just come back out when you feel like it. ”

He doesn’t give me a chance to say anything before he marches across the room. My mouth falls open to halt him, then I stop myself. He either senses my hesitation or just decides to speak again.

“This…we…none of us know what to do right now, but we all need to talk. Like adults. Just take some time to yourself, then we’re going to try this again. We’ll get the awkwardness out of the way.”

He passes through the fourth door as soon as his palm lies against it. For a weird, uncomfortable second, I stand here and stare at each room.

I grab my bag, tighten my grip on the straps, and on quiet feet, move to the hallway.

It isn’t long, but it’s deep enough that it gives me a bit of extra privacy.

It’ll also give me a little warning if anyone comes to my door.

My desire may be not to like anything about this situation, but I appreciate that.

My palm lands against the door just as Kyzen’s did and I’m ready for it this time when I pass through. Although I still stumble from shock.

The bedroom is larger than any room in any home I’ve ever seen. I can’t decide where I want to look first. I take an unsteady step forward, then tilt my head back and release a deep breath.

Shit.

Even the arched ceilings stretch confusingly high.

This is too much.

I drag my feet toward the huge bed in the center of the room and grip onto one of the four marble posts for balance. It’s just as elaborate as everything else. I run my fingers over the soft, stunning, sage-colored comforter and up the pillar I’m holding on to.

It’s carved in delicate twists and at each end are wooden peaks that remind me of mountains. There’re beams that connect them all in a square with a canopy over top.

The fluffy white covering is just like the clouds I used to stare up at and daydream about grander places.

This has to be as grand as it gets.

As I try to regulate my breathing, familiarity rushes through me.

My bedroom looks just like my dream home but with some tweaks.

The dark green walls, the beautiful fireplace across from my bed with the decorated mantel and all. A smaller, but still full bookshelf, and a massive wall of windows that in the center has a door that leads out somewhere….

It’s all remarkably similar and all basically designed by me .

I drop my bag at my feet and move back to the door. I’ll take time later to familiarize myself with my room like Kyzen said to. Right now, the only thing it does is remind me of what just happened in the Gods Veil.

I need a minute away from that reminder.

I’m going to be pissed if my dream home is forever ruined because of what Deri—he did.

Unsure of the proper way to get out, I first try placing my palm on the wood rather than turn the handle. To my satisfaction, I slip right through.

My silent steps only add to the quietness of the house. The others are obviously still in their bedrooms, so as soon as I exit my hallway, I let my eyes feast on what I was oblivious to when I came in.

The kitchen that I have to pass through to get to my room is dark and moody but comforting even with its enormous layout.

I’m not sure how much cooking is actually done in here, but there’re herbs and tea leaves hanging about.

A jar of beans sits on the counter and the smell of roasted coffee still lingers in the air.

The scent reminds me of the fields back in Oddian. The bushes that bloomed with the delicate seeds inside could be smelled even in the arenas. Between those and all the other things we grew that could be brewed, there were always delicious aromas on the breeze.

The kitchen seamlessly merges into the living room and my jaw drops as I take in the stunning design.

Dark gray walls add depth and a sense of peace to the space. Their surfaces hold no portraits of gods or statues, but there are gilded frames that hold paintings, and pictures of different sceneries.

The stained-glass windows display the light in a dance of colors and patterns across the dark hardwood floor. A few plants around the room add just enough pop of greenery that goes perfectly with the rug in the center of the room.

Mindlessly, my feet carry me across the space to the back of one of the couches. My nails create little patterns on the leather as my attention is sucked into the fireplace. The black stone is decorated with intricate carvings of wings and there are ancient-looking bookshelves on each side.

Those must be the bookshelves Kyzen thinks Amick’s losing his mind over.

I can hardly believe four men live here.

I snatch my hand from the couch and jump when a shout reaches my ears. My heart thunders in my chest as I scan the room, only to find it still empty. The voices lower, but whispers of their words carry out here.

All four doors are still shut, but I assume they’ve congregated to one.

A little eavesdropping won’t hurt.