17

“Here’s where you and your party will stay,” he said grandly. “I trust you’ll find there’s plenty of space. I’ll have my staff unpack your carriage and tend to the horses, and leave you to get settled until dinner this evening—though I would appreciate a brief private meeting with you, King Elias.”

Having an entire wing to ourselves—that was excellent. Perks of being royalty, I assumed.

Elias nodded. “Certainly. I look forward to it.”

King Draunar’s gaze lingered on me for another long moment, before he turned on his heel and sauntered back toward the foyer.

Elias sighed, shoulders slumping, and opened the door to the main quarters in the wing. The contrast to the main palace and the gardens was striking. The room had two big windows, but the plush, dark curtains were drawn, and the room was lit instead of warm, with glowing sconces on the red walls. The carpet was plush and dark under my feet, and the centerpiece of the interior was the immense gold four-poster bed, the black comforter itself embroidered with dragons. Elias closed the door behind us and rolled his eyes.

“Draunar’s taste is so gaudy,” he said. “I’d almost prefer to sleep outside.”

“You know him?” I asked. I sat on the edge of the mattress, testing it. It was extremely soft—we might end up sleeping on the floor instead of sinking into this marshmallow. There was a fine sheepskin in front of the unlit obsidian hearth.

“Just his reputation,” Elias said. “He certainly lives up to it.” He leaned against the wall with a heavy sigh.

There was a light knock on the door, and Elias stifled a growl before he opened it. A pretty, young dragon in a maid’s uniform nodded in deference, her hands full with a fine golden tray. Elias waved her in, and she set the tray down on the table, then left with a brisk curtsy.

“Lunch,” Elias said. “That’s nice, at least.”

I joined him at the table for a meal of cold noodle soup in a clear broth, which tasted surprisingly refreshing in the cozy room. We ate in silence for a few moments. Elias’ mind was obviously elsewhere.

I cleared my throat. “So,” I asked, “you’re meeting with the king after lunch?”

“Appears so,” he said. “Straight to business.”

“What exactly will you be discussing?”

“Likely updates on the skirmishes at the border,” Elias said.

I resisted the urge to lean forward. I hadn’t heard anything about the details of this diplomatic meeting, and I wanted to know everything, but I resisted the urge to pepper him with questions.

“East of here, where the three borders intersect,” he said, “there’ve been some minor tussles between rogue wolves and the eagles of Cruora. The eagles can be a bit aggressive—I’m trying to stay ahead of any escalating conflict.”

“Right,” I said. “What do the dragons have to do with that?”

“I’d like to ensure a peace between Frasia and Shianga as a preventative measure,” he said. “The eagles will be less likely to escalate any skirmishes if they’re aware we have a relationship with the dragons. Hopefully, we can manage this with some adjustments to our trade policies, but we may have to cede some land at the border to Shianga as a show of good faith.” He grimaced. “Though I hope it won’t come to that.”

“Well,” I said, “from my time in Daybreak, I’m quite good at trade tax policy, should you need my eyes on it.”

Elias hummed in acknowledgment but said nothing. His attention had already drifted. I pressed my lips together and returned to my soup. He had said he wanted me to be involved as a leader—but did he only mean being aware of his decisions? Instead of helping him make them in the first place?

He finished his noodles and stood up. “All right,” he said, “I should go get this over with. The servants should be here momentarily with our things; you could start unpacking.”

I blinked at him. Start unpacking? That was what he thought I should do right now while he initiated the meetings with the King of Shianga?

“And listen.” Elias smoothed out the front of his shirt and adjusted his crown. “Keep your distance from the dragons. I don’t…” He grimaced. “Things really need to go smoothly. So just keep your distance.”

“What?” I asked. “What do you mean?”

He waved me off and hurried out the door, in a rush to get to the meeting. I slumped down in my chair and picked at the remainder of my noodles, my appetite gone. Disappointment sent my heart sinking toward my feet. What did he mean, keep my distance? Implying that my existence would cause trouble? After all that talk about wanting me to be able to travel, and wanting us to be happy together, and wanting me to be a part of the leadership—he was back to treating me like a possession. A prize, a pretty thing to look at, a bedwarmer.

I was naive to think he wanted anything else. I was a prize. Wasn’t that the whole point of choosing a wife through the King’s Choice?

With a huff, I stood up and threw open the curtains in the window. Our quarters overlooked the front gardens, which were dotted with staff tending the topiaries and planting fresh flowers in the beds. Dragons stalked around the landscape, too, in both human and reptilian form, the sun glinting off their fine scales.

It was a gorgeous day, and I had nothing to do until dinner. I wasn’t going to be stuck locked up in here. Even if the king was worried about me—I could defend myself. He knew that.

It’d been too long since I’d had a proper, private conversation with Fina and Adora, too. I’d go find them—the king could unpack his own damn trunk.