The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and Ash 3)

“True.” Naill smiled when I glanced over my shoulder at him. “My father is one of many who oversees the mills.”

“Oversees?” Casteel snorted. “More like he’s the heart of the mills. His father is mostly responsible for keeping these ancient wheels working so that everyone has access to everything electricity can provide.”

“Your father must be very smart,” I said, my gaze flicking over the faces that appeared in the windows. There were no hostile looks or feelings. Most seemed more focused on the mass of wolven converging on the street.

“That he is,” Naill answered, his pride as warm as the sun.

About a half-dozen wolven, along with Delano, had fallen back. I reached out to him in concern, finding the springy freshness of his imprint.

All is well, he assured me after a moment, his response tentative as if he were still getting used to communicating this way. We’re just making sure you and the Prince are protected from all fronts.

Were they worried about the Unseen or something else? I focused on the road we traveled. Eventually, we passed under the bridge that led to the east, a district of Evaemon that Casteel had said was called the Vineyards.

“Wine,” he explained as we rode near the bank of the main canal. Ships with white and gold sails were docked at the numerous piers. People hustled on and off vessels, carrying crates. “The district gets its name from the vineyards.”

The other district was called The Splendor for its cache of museums, art, and some of the oldest buildings in all of Atlantia. I couldn’t wait to explore the enclave, but that would have to wait.

We traveled along the thicket of glossy blood trees, climbing the rolling pasture hills. My breathing became short as the trees thinned out, and smooth, jet-colored stone became visible through them.

“Why is the palace so different from the rest of the buildings in Atlantia?” I asked, forcing my grip to remain loose on Storm’s reins.

“It didn’t always look like this. Malec renovated it when he took the throne,” Casteel explained, and I felt my stomach dip. “He said that it was to honor Nyktos, claiming it was more in line with the Temples in Iliseeum, from what I recall.”

I thought that over. “Do you think he traveled to Iliseeum?”

“I don’t know, but it’s possible.” The cooler breeze lifted the wavy strands of Casteel’s hair. “Otherwise, how would he know what the Temples looked like there?”

“Good point,” I murmured. “Priestess Analia once told me that the Temples in Solis were the oldest buildings, there long before the Ascended ruled.”

“For once, that bitch spoke the truth,” Casteel replied, and there wasn’t a single thing about what he called her that offended me. Analia was a bitch. “Those Temples are made of shadowstone, a material that was mined in the Shadowlands and transported over to this realm ages ago by the gods, depositing some of it in the Elysium Peaks.”

I hadn’t known that.

Then again, I hadn’t realized the Shadowlands even existed until recently. But it was just odd to me that the Ascended would change so much of the true history of the gods, and yet leave the Temples as they were. Maybe that was a line they wouldn’t cross.

Either way, thoughts of shadowstone and ancient Temples fell to the wayside as we cleared the trees, and the back of the palace came into view.

We could see down into the city from our vantage point, homes and businesses staggered over the hills and valleys and in between the canals. The Evaemon Palace was built into the hillside, the gleaming black structure a formidable sight with numerous windows lining the towers and along the lower floors. But something immediately stood out.

No walls surrounded the palace, none along the back nor the front courtyard that led to the Temple. Several ebony pillars connected a catwalk from the palace to the Temple and surrounded most of the palace, now patrolled by Guards of the Crown. It struck me then that there hadn’t been any walls around the estate in Saion’s Cove, either.

Several Crown Guards, adorned in white and gold, stood under the archway and by doors a shade darker than the mare I sat astride as we rode through.

I couldn’t believe how open the palace was. In every city of Solis where a Royal was seated, their homes were guarded by walls nearly half the size of the Rise that protected the city. No one could even come close to the castles or any of the Royal keeps or manors as there were always vast courtyards separating the home from the inner walls. But here? One could potentially walk right to the very entry points of the palace.

It was clear that the ruling class welcomed interaction with their citizens. Yet another stark difference from how the Ascended ruled Solis.