Starlight's Heir - ✔️

Chapter 45 - Circumstances

Frigid air drifted across my back, waking me with a shiver. The emptiness of the bed beside me sent a wave of panic flooding through me. "Zev?" I sat up, squinting against the sunlight streaming through the window.

"I'm right here." The bed dipped behind me and his arms encircled my shoulders.

Leaning into his chest, I sighed, closing my eyes. "What do I do now?"

"You get up and face the day." He kissed my shoulder, and I turned my head to face him. "There's a lot of arrangements to be made, and everyone's been waiting for you to wake up so you can tell them what happened."

"Will you be there?"

"As long as you want me, I will be."

Taking a deep breath, I pushed myself off the bed, wrapping a sheet around my shoulders and padded across the cold, marble floor toward my bathroom.

"Zev?" I turned around as I reached the door.

"Evelyn?" He climbed off the bed and stepped toward me.

"Can you get me some clothes from my closet while I shower?"

"Of course." He grasped my hand as I turned around, spinning me back to face him. "Evelyn? You don't have to do all this now. No one would blame you if you wanted more time to grieve."

Reaching up to brush a lock of black hair from his green eyes, I smiled and kissed his cheek. "I'll grieve when there's time. But for now, we have her funeral to plan, my powers to unbind and my coronation to discuss."

"And you're ready for that?"

"Not even close but I have to be."

Brushing a hand over my hair, he gathered me against him and dipped his mouth to my lips. Warmth suffused me as his tongue swept against mine and my heart pounded in my chest.

He pulled back, a ghost of a smile playing on his face and squeezed my hand before releasing me.

Knotting my hand in the fabric of his black t-shirt, I stood up on my tiptoes and pulled him back for another quick kiss before retreating into the bathroom to shower.

I stared at the handful of faces gathered in the meeting room. Some familiar, Zev, seated at my left, Nydea to my right, Lavonte and Cordelia on the other side of the round table. A half-a-dozen other faerie lords and ladies sat between us, including Saviel, a gray-haired fae with celestial blue eyes deep-set in his wizened face. I had been told he would be performing my coronation ceremony as he had my mother's, and her mother before her.

All were silent as I finished my recollection of how my mother had died, pain and sympathy etched into each of their faces.

One of the guards lining the walls stepped forward. "I was there that night -- on duty outside Her Grace's chambers. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, there was no sign of disturbance until the princess showed up."

Lavonte shot from his chair, glowering at the guard. "You mean to accuse the princess of lying? You think she would have committed this atrocity?"

His face paled and his dark eyes widened. "No -- no, I never meant that. But nothing alerted anyone that something was amiss. And this is the second time a demon has slipped into the palace unnoticed, this time fully formed and powerful enough to slay our queen. How did it get through the wards? Someone must have let it in."

"He's right." Everyone in the room turned to stare at Elelas as he strode through the doors. "It should have been impossible for a demon possessing such powerful magick to have passed through our protections unassisted. Had it broken through, it would have risen alarms unless someone inside the palace granted it access."

"Why would someone betray us? Who would do such a thing?" Tears shook my voice and I reached for Zev's hand under the table, seeking solace in his touch.

Elelas shook his head, and when he spoke, his voice was heavy. "I don't know, but they should pray we never find out."

My chair scraped across the floor as I stood, passing a solemn look over everyone. "Everything we've discussed stays in this room. Spreading panic and suspicion does nobody any good. We'll get to the bottom of this. But for now, we don't speak of it. To anyone."

A murmur of agreement passed through the room and Elelas took a seat beside Zev.

"Now, we have lots to discuss. The first of which, the longer we go without a queen on the throne, the more vulnerable we are. My coronation can't wait the standard two weeks it takes to prepare. Are there any objections to performing the ceremony tonight?"

"With all due respect, Your Highness," a young, auburn-haired fae spoke up, her strong voice filled with sympathy, "your coronation cannot come before Her Grace's funeral, it's tradition."

My heart clenched at the thought of burying the mother I had scarcely begun to know. "Then her funeral will be held at sunset. I understand it's rushing and unorthodox but circumstances leave us no choice."

Cordelia's soft, almond eyes met mine as she nodded. "Evelyn is right, this cannot wait. Aurora was a magnificent queen and an extraordinary person, and I, for one, will miss her greatly. But if we wait for any longer, we risk the demons attacking while we are vulnerable. We arrange the funeral and coronation for tonight, and later we can discuss large public ceremonies."

"Thank you, Lady Cordelia." I inclined my head to her, grateful for her words that had settled the disquiet growing in the room. "Let's get started, shall we?"

Do they have a traitor in their midst? Who would have cause to want to kill Aurora? Who would want to hurt Evelyn?

Let me know what you think. I love hearing your ideas and thoughts!