Chains of Fate

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen

I was dead by the time we reached the top of the staircase.

It felt as if heavy rocks were strapped to my legs and arms. Pebbles clotted my lungs and hindered my breathing.

But of course, Titus was in all his good health as he stood at the top.

Darned half-sylph prince and all his endurance.

I lumbered to the platform at the top of the staircase and put my hands on my knees. Before us was a floor-to-ceiling door made of the same amber as the tower entrance. It stood wide open, and in the midst of blue air from the stained glass windows, I could see Mayra standing in front of a throne. Hadrian hovered nearby her. Confused servants—satyrs, nymphs, and sprites—milled about with panicked expressions. I supposed that seeing one of your princesses abruptly come back without notice was upsetting.

Mayra's argumentative voice could be heard in high-pitched sentences. I sighed. Clearly she had forgotten her manners. Not that she had any to begin with.

Titus moved forward hesitantly. "I'm not sure we're even supposed to be here," he said, casting a glance at a passing nymph maid with light teal skin, who—upon seeing Titus—stared slack-jawed as she looked from him to me. Apparently, they could sense both our identities. Titus ran a hand through his hair as the nymph scurried away and nearly tripped herself in the process. "What will she say when she sees me? What if she doesn't care about me...at all?"

He had probably been worrying about this the entire trip. And I never even considered how he might be feeling about seeing his mother. "Since she told her own sister to look after you," I said, "I think it's pretty clear that she wants to see you. If she never cared, why send an Eremithian princess to guard her son?" I tried to smile at him comfortingly, but all I could think about was whether or not Astera did care about Titus. If she cared about him, why would she send him away to Aria?

He seemed to think about this for a moment. Then he relaxed and returned my smile—except his was actually a smile and not a grimace. "I suppose so," he said as he entered through the tall amber doors with me.

The chamber was circular and void of paintings. But the lack of decor didn't matter because the entire room was bathed in blue starlight. Azure stained glass covered the majority of the far wall behind the golden throne Astera sat upon. The domed ceiling was painted with figures of dancing fauns, galloping centaurs, and blushing nymphs. It was far different from Aria's castle, which only had paintings of destruction from the Rift Wars. It was nothing as peaceful as this.

"I even brought your blasted son here and this is how you thank me?"

Mayra was on a roll as she yelled at the woman on the throne. I recognized Astera from the painting in Aria's castle. Her dark brown hair flowed over her shoulders in waves, and her soft features reminded me strikingly of Titus. When her amber eyes set on the prince, she half-stood from her throne, her lips parted as if to say something. The sleeves and skirt of her emerald dress cascaded onto the glass flooring as she stood with barely retained grace.

Titus stopped at the foot of the dais to the throne. His countenance exuded anxiety as he knelt on one knee. "Hello, Mother."

Hearing those two words from his mouth made something constrict inside of me. For the past two months, I had only known Philippa De Luca to be his mother. What in Aria's name had caused Astera to give Titus up? He didn't deserve that.

The queen didn't say anything for a long time. Her delicate eyebrows drew together as if she were in pain. She clasped her long fingers together. "Hello, Titus." Though her words were spoken in a whisper, her voice carried a power that silenced the throne room. "It is...nice to see you."