Page 65 of Born of Starlight
Traitorous thoughts.
Emmerick was at the bottom of the steps, appearing a bit more disheveled than I’d seen him look before. His eyes were red, and his clothes rumpled.
“Get a good night’s rest?” Emmerick asked with amusement.
Was there no propriety or shame among these two?“What did he tell you?” I snapped.
“He didn’t have to—your defensive tone tells me everything I needor wantto know. Plus, he returned late last night and spent the morning preening himself.”
Fen rounded the corner and slapped the Commander on the back, not casting me more than a glance.
“Has the ale made you a bit groggy this morning?” Fenris spoke loudly into Emmerick’s ear. The Commander winced.
I fought the sting of Fen’s dismissal. I could not allow more cracks to form in my foundation, and I could not let him seep into my emotions.
“I’ve got us a carriage ride to the estate—the roads are still relatively intact. I’m told that the ruins and orchard are somewhat of a visitor’s attraction nowadays,” Fenris explained as we left the inn.
Emmerick stepped up into the passenger seat of the carriage first and held a hand out to take my pack. I handed it to him but ignored Fenris’ offered hand to help me up into the seat.
Letting an icy calm wash over my face, I pulled myself up and scooted around Emmerick to seat him between us.
* * *
Two hours later,the carriage stuttered to a stop in front of an arched iron gate that read “LAMOREAUX.” The driver banged on the roof to signal we’d arrived. We piled out of the carriage with our packs before Fen waved the driver off.
Beyond the gate and down a tree-framed path stood a behemoth limestone estate. The right side walls were decayed and crumbling, and the roof was barely present—but otherwise, much of the outer structural walls stood. Ivy crept up the stone—when left untrimmed, the harsh plant could overtake even the strongest structures.
There was nothing but vast countryside and orchards to look out upon, along with a large pond on the east side of the property fed by a quaint waterfall. In its prime, this place would have been a secluded paradise just close enough to town.
I glanced over at Fen, who seemed transfixed on the estate.
“What is this place?”
“Home,” he answered. My eyes settled on the name curled into the iron archway.
“Your surname?” I asked.
Emmerick stepped behind me, helping to secure my pack over my shoulders.
“Fenris Lamoreaux…quite a mouthful,” Emmerick teased.
Fen only smirked. It seemed the Commander had grown on him—when that had happened was a mystery.
“Interesting. I never use my surname,” I mused before looking at Emmerick. I hadn’t heard him refer to himself with a surname either and now I wondered.
“Except when it was least convenient for us,” Emmerick teased.
I grimaced. “What’s your surname?” This time, my question was directed at Emmerick, who rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably.
“Faulker.”
Fen laughed heartily. “No,” he said with a slap of his knee. “How did you survive as a schoolboy?”
Emmerick raised an eyebrow of challenge in Fen’s direction. “I gotbiggerthan everyone else. But that’s why I go by Sir Emmerick.”
“And not Sir Faulker.” Fenris howled—his amusement couldn’t be contained much to Emmerick’s dismay. “No wonder you’re such a fucker, Faulker.”
I left them to their light-hearted quarrel, compelled to enter the gate. It was as though the wind urged me toward the orchard of plum trees that spanned for miles. Fruit hung from the trees, plump and ripe for picking. My fingers stilled before touching one of the tree’s burgundy offerings.
