Page 20 of Ties of Deception (Tethered Hearts)

Chapter

Twenty

A s I finished breakfast, I was presented with two scrolls tied with silk ribbons. The first was from Sebastian, who requested that I join him for breakfast the day after tomorrow in the inner courtyard—a place reserved for the royal family where others could only come by invitation. I handed the scroll to Flavia so she could plan my outfit and make any other arrangements needed.

The second was from Constance, inviting me to join her, Hope, and Patience for lunch. After missing them yesterday, this was a promising sign. I would have something to do rather than wandering the gardens and hoping I stumbled across something important. And the more they let me into their circle, the more information they might spill. I should feel more enthusiastic about spending time with them, but I would have much preferred being with Ethen and getting to know his Aida friends better.

I dressed simply, not wanting to appear like I was trying to compete with Constance just yet. My thoughts kept drifting to Ethen and our almost kiss in the bushes yesterday. He’d said that he would see me today, but I assumed that meant this evening after dark, and the anticipation was almost too much. I could feel his absence like a constant nagging that something wasn’t right—which seemed ridiculous since we had spent so little time together. But compared to seeing him again, nothing else could truly take my focus.

I shook my head. I was playing a dangerous game. I couldn’t afford for him to take over my thoughts like this. One wrong word to the wrong person, and I would be out of the palace. Maybe even retired. Destroyed forever. I shivered.

Lunch was hosted in the small olive grove that nestled against the left side of the palace. The trees were ancient, their pale grey trunks gnarled and twisted in unique shapes. Tables were set up under the shade of the overhanging roof, supported by marble statues of men and women looking up and straining under the weight. I could imagine countless generations coming to sit and converse and admire the beauty of the ancient trees—trees that would have perished years ago if not for the constant presence of the Graces.

Hope was the only one there when I arrived. Her platinum blonde hair was braided loosely down her back, and her pale eyebrows contrasted with her bright red lipstick. She nodded as I approached. “Purity. It’s nice to see you.”

I smiled. “Likewise. I’m grateful to be able to join you.”

She pushed her pale silky hair behind her ear as I took a free seat. “You’re lucky to be invited. Constance is a wonderful friend and ally to have in this place. She helped me settle in so much, and always gives good advice. Just do as she says, and you’ll be fine. The empress herself listens to her. Did you know Constance has been a Grace for over one hundred and eighty years? Some even believe she might be two hundred. I think she’s the oldest I’ve come across, though I’m sure there are some ancient Graces living quietly in remote villages somewhere. She knows what she’s doing.”

One hundred and eighty years. Ethen had said souls had started disappearing one hundred and seventy years ago, so how could she be older? Somebody had to be mistaken. Could he be wrong? Maybe a few souls had been stolen a few years earlier without the Aida or Aidis noticing? Was Constance lying about her age to make it seem like Graces had been around longer? Or was Hope simply mistaken after listening to too many rumors and Constance was far younger?

Even if Constance was only around one hundred and forty to fifty years old, she still had to remember what it was like at the beginning when the Graces were new—before they were assumed to have been around forever. That was a long time to be going along with a lie and staying actively involved in the political games of the palace.

I realized I had been thinking for too long without responding to Hope and covered it up by shifting the conversation to a more innocent topic to be musing on. “I’m surprised she is choosing to marry now if she has been here so long.”

Hope shrugged. “She is patient and wise, but I think her time has come. With her experience, she would make a great empress, don’t you think?”

It was hard to argue with that—especially if the main contender was Charity. But how was I to compete with somebody like her enough to get Prince Sebastian to trust me? Hope’s loyalty to Constance was clearly genuine.

Hope’s smile widened as she looked over my shoulder. “Ah, here they are.”

I turned to see Constance and Patience laughing as they walked toward us. Patience had an easy diffidence to her, her head of strawberry blonde curls slightly bowed and her grey eyes hanging onto Constance’s every expression. Even dressed in a plain white robe, Constance was truly stunning. Her wavy chestnut hair glimmered a pale copper in the sun. As always, it fell loose down her back, brushing the top of her hips.

Unease at the acknowledgement of what I was competing against hit me deeper than before. Tricks could only get me so far. Sebastian had probably known Constance all his life. But would that be a true advantage? Or would it be difficult for him to have romantic feelings for a woman several times his age? But then, I wasn’t even a fraction of his age…

There was so much I still didn’t know.

I stood as the pair reached us and was surprised when Constance reached across one of my arms in a loose embrace. “So nice for you to be able to join us, Purity. On such a lovely day too.”

I muttered a response that was lost in the sound of chairs scraping as everyone sat. A servant came with drinks and a large platter of bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dipping. Constance asked for cold meats and cheese before settling back into the thickly padded cushions of her chair. “Has everyone received their invitations from the prince?”

Hope was almost too eager to speak. “I met him for breakfast this morning. He was such enjoyable company. I was sure to compliment you throughout the meal.”

I shifted, uneasy. Constance laughed. “You didn’t have to bring me up, Hope. Just relax and enjoy his company.” Hope flushed, but didn’t seem regretful.

Patience fished out the invitation that for some reason she was still carrying around. “I’m seeing him after dinner tonight for a walk in the gardens.”

Constance smiled and nodded then turned to me. I attempted to appear as enthusiastic and as simply motivated as the others. “He’s invited me to breakfast the day after tomorrow.”

Constance pushed the platter of bread closer to me, so I could take a slice. “I hope you’re not too nervous, Purity. You’ll be fine.”

Hope suddenly made a strange hissing noise and grabbed one of my arms. She also reached for Constance who sat on her other side. I followed her gaze and saw Ethen walking toward us talking to an Aida—it was probably Ben, but I wasn’t sure from this distance. Three other Aida men trailed behind him. I recognized Tamel when I squinted. All of them carried huge swords strapped to their backs even though the Amazones frequently patrolled the palace grounds. I didn’t take in many details of his two new companions; instead my eyes swept across Ethen, admiring the graceful way he moved and scrutinizing his blank face. As usual, he appeared cold and disinterested. How did he do that? If I wanted to be as good at fooling people as him, I had a lot to learn.

Constance unhooked Hope’s fingers from her arm with a grimace. “Don’t react, and he’ll ignore you. He won’t abduct you—don’t worry.”

Hope returned her hands to her lap, but she continued to stare as Ethen’s party moved closer between the trees. He hadn’t even looked up to acknowledge us—neither had his men. “He has such a cold presence, it’s…terrifying. I don’t know why he has to stay so long. It’s been years. Can’t he just choose a wife and go? What was wrong with Serene? She wanted to go with him and nobody else will. Unless she changed her mind and that's why she suddenly disappeared—she ran away from him.”

I blinked and looked away. How easily the court covered up the unsavory fates of Graces.

Constance took a calm sip of her juice. “He’s the empress’s honored guest, Hope. You must be polite.” Her voice carried a light reprimand.

She muttered an apology, but her expression remained wary and almost derisive, never straying from the god.

Still, Ethen didn’t look up and meet my eyes or look at any of my companions, as if we didn’t exist. In contrast, every fiber of my body seemed to be pulling me toward him. If we kept bumping into each other like this, I was going to find it torture.

I tried to ignore his close proximity and leaned toward Constance. Even if she didn’t know how Graces were made, if she was anywhere near as old as Hope said, she would be a wealth of information. “Is it true that you’re about one hundred and eighty years old? Atos must have changed a lot in that time. You must have seen so many things.”

Constance blinked, seeming surprised by my question, and gave me an appeasing smile. “You probably don’t know this, Purity, but we tend not to dwell on each other's ages after we reach ten or so. It can bring up difficult memories of lost loved ones and general awkwardness.”

I dug my nails into my palm in frustration at being dismissed so quickly. “I’m sorry. I was just looking at these ancient trees and wondering how long Graces have been here.”

She laughed. “A long time. There’s no recorded time in the history books where they’re absent from Atos. I suppose these trees could be thousands of years old with the constant Blessings.”

“Of course.” I nodded and looked down with a tight smile as if I were embarrassed by my stupid question, but I wondered if she knew why so many of those history books had pages missing and why they were all required to stay inside the libraries. If she was that old, she had to know she spoke a lie.

Ethen and the Aida were now parallel to our table, passing us on the other side of the olive trees. Patience turned to Hope. “Look, I will show you he’s harmless.” She stood. “Aidis! Would you like to join us?”

My heartbeat increased. There was no way the Graces would know we were together, but it felt like it should be an obvious, tangible thing to everybody around us.

Constance glared at Patience. “What are you doing? I keep on telling you to ignore him. He is not harmless.”

Patience looked a little taken aback and rushed to defend herself in a hushed voice. “I…well, he always declines every time somebody invites him to anything social—other than the empress’s formal dinners of course. He’ll do the same thing now. I wanted to show Hope…”

Ethen had stopped and turned toward us. His eyes swept over me with the same cold, calculating gaze he swept over everyone else. I shivered. How could this be the person I knew? There was no warmth in him at all—not even a flicker of attachment.

“Thank you, but no.” He quickened his pace and continued to the other side of the gardens.

Hope appeared to deflate as she blew out a massive breath.

“See?” Patience said, raising her eyebrows. “That’s why I’m not afraid of him. He doesn’t want to spend time with any of us. You have no reason to be nervous of him, Hope.”

Constance was not appeased, and the freckles across her button nose had wrinkled in a subtle frown. “Don’t do that again, Patience. He’s not someone to play games with. He’s a god of death.”

Patience looked down, her shoulders sagging. “I’m sorry. I’ll be more careful next time.”

Hope chewed on her lip. “But if he won’t talk to us, how is he going to choose a wife? It’s not like we’re all ugly.” Patience snorted.

As Ethen disappeared from view, I found myself relaxing as if I’d just experienced a lucky escape, even though nobody could have known what was going on between us.

Constance dipped her bread in the olive oil and vinegar. “Now, onto more pleasant topics. I want to hear about the new goddess in the east district of the city.”

Hope nodded eagerly. “Yes, yes. She was born yesterday. Her name is Joy. My maid told me she has blonde hair and is really beautiful. She’s on the shorter side. She’s been given to the Galanis family.”

I listened and nodded and prayed that at some point one of them would slip and give something more away. But Constance’s age was a start.