Total pages in book: 401
Estimated words: 390373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1952(@200wpm)___ 1561(@250wpm)___ 1301(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 390373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1952(@200wpm)___ 1561(@250wpm)___ 1301(@300wpm)
“Is the entire castle like this?” my father asked as the scent of damp soil and moss increased, and the air grew colder.
“The first floor and much of the second,” I answered, approaching one of the four arched entrances to the Hall of Gods. I ignored the chill that accompanied entering the space once designed to honor the gods.
Now?
Now, it was just a space fallen to ruin.
My father’s steps halted as he stared down at one of the vases. They were the only things that remained—that and the vines that blanketed the walls and pitched ceilings.
He knelt, taking a closer look at the poppies. I couldn’t blame him for wanting to. He’d likely never seen anything like them.
A thin layer of frost encased the flowers, freezing them in time. Beneath the glittering ice, you could see the vivid orange-red hue of the petals and the lush green of the leaves. Somehow, the poppies lived beneath the ice.
Movement snagged my attention. My gaze flicked up. A raven peered down from a tangled mess of vines, its silver orb eyes watching us. It wasn’t the damn bird that unnerved me, though. It was the crimson-streaked shadows pulsing through the vines.
“The Great Hall is straight ahead,” I said, knowing my father’s presence had been felt.
Damn, Cas had likely known the moment he crossed into the capital.
“Is he alone?”
“Attes is likely with him,” I told him. A huge part of me was still shocked that the Primal had returned after the blowout between him and Cas.
He rose, and we were about halfway across the chamber when we heard the quiet click of…heels. Frowning, I turned toward the larger atrium.
No one wearing heels would be in that part of the castle.
“Wait here.” I stalked toward the large, circular chamber.
Anger pumped through me as I briefly glanced at the wide staircase and then scanned the hall ahead. I didn’t have time to deal with whatever fool had managed to get into Wayfair.
A heavy thud echoed from the hall straight across from the stairs—the one that led to the dining and meeting chambers. The muscles in my neck tensed. “I thought I said wait.”
My father huffed from behind me. “And I thought you knew better than to issue such a ridiculous order to your father.”
I could feel the veneer of calm I’d been wearing for the last several days begin to crack as the clicking grew louder. I prowled into the middle of the atrium and jerked back a step the second my eyes locked on the pale-blond-haired female. It was her—
No, it’s not Seraphena, you dumbass. You would’ve felt her. This was the other her. The moment I realized that, my jaw unlocked.
Was this some sort of mirage? No one had seen her since Poppy was in stasis. But no, it was her.
Poppy’s sister. She strolled down the center of the hall as if out for a fucking walk in the park, her fitted cloak swishing around the ankles of her pointed-toe boots.
“I see some redecorating has been done in my absence,” Millicent said, the delicate lines of her brows arched. “I like it.”
I stared at her, too stunned to speak.
“Though I would’ve pared back some of the vines. Less is more, or so they say.” Millicent’s steps slowed, and her pale-blue gaze flicked behind me. “Who are you?”
“Jasper,” my father stated.
“Hello.” She gave a jaunty wave and tilted her head, sending several pale curls falling over her shoulder. “I’m—”
“I know who you are,” my father stated.
Blinking, I snapped out of my stupor. “Where in the fuck have you been, and how did you get in here?”
Millicent’s ruby-red lips parted.
I turned to my father. “And how do you know who she is?”
“She’s the Queen’s sister,” he answered blandly. “And it’s obvious. She looks like her.”
He was right.
And also wrong.
Millicent did share Poppy’s heart-shaped face, pointy chin, and cheekbones. The shape of their eyes was the same, but Poppy’s nose was thinner, and her mouth was smaller. Millicent was leaner and had a face full of freckles that were only visible now that the damn paint was absent from her face, but Millicent…
She was a dead ringer for her grandmother.
“Answer my question,” I demanded.
Crossing her arms, she met my stare. “How did I get in here? Or where have I been? Which would you prefer I answer?”
My patience thinned. “Either one, Millicent.”
She flashed a sugary-sweet smile I’d seen on Poppy every time she had to speak to Aylard, and fuck if that didn’t hurt. “How did I get in here? I know so many ways to get onto the Wayfair grounds and into this castle that your head would spin.”
Damn.
That wasn’t good to hear.
I needed to know all those many entrance points because I’d been confident we’d secured them when we first took possession of Wayfair.
“Then I’m sure you know there’s a main entrance.” Distrust brewed as I held her stare. “Why didn’t you use it?”