Chapter 24

Ryker

The morning of the coronation,I left the opulent room I'd been assigned and strode down the palace hallway. The massive, sprawling residence was a testament to money and power; Leo hated it, but Ivan reveled in it and ensured his wealth was displayed for all his visitors.

Statues, paintings, figurines, gold pieces, tapestries, vases, and other assorted priceless items that weren't on exhibition the last time I was here with Leo were now on full display. Amsirah crafted much of it, but there were collections of work from a vast number of other immortals and humans.

It was all beautiful, but it wasn't on display for its beauty. These treasures were all meant to impress and ensure that Ivan's guests knew how much wealth and power he had.

Even my father, who had increased his wealth during the war and built himself a bigger, more formidable castle, didn't have all this—something I was sure drove him nuts.

That thought made me smile as I tugged on the lapels of my long, black coat. Silver swirled throughout the sleeves' ends and at the coat's bottom. The silver vest underneath was a good complement to it and was more elaborately embroidered than the one I wore yesterday.

My black boots didn't make a sound against the white marble floor with its swirls of gold running through it. The last time I was here, the floors were gray, but the palace could change colors. Leo had fun playing with the feature; it was one of the few things he loved to show off.

Above me, the domed ceiling spiraled high until it ended in a swirl of gold at a point. The swirling pattern could make one dizzy if they stared too long, which I didn't do.

I'd been given a room on the tenth floor, just below Ivan's. I was sure he would have preferred to put me in the stables, but even if he was about to be king, he wouldn't risk insulting my father by sticking me there. So, like my father, I was awarded the coveted position of being only a floor below Ivan.

I would have preferred the stables.

Below me, a door creaked open. I rested a hand on the shiny wooden banister and leaned over to watch as Ellery descended the stairs from the second floor to the main entrance.

Ivan had invited Ellery and her mother, but their status in amsirah society hadn't awarded them a room higher than the second floor. They'd probably shared the room, and it wouldn't surprise me to learn they'd done so with other single and widowed women.

Ellery didn't look back as she strode across the floor toward the twenty-five-foot-tall main door. Her steps were soundless against the gold-and-white marble as she weaved through the servants scurrying about as they put the final touches on the coronation.

None of the servants acknowledged her as she rested her hand on the knob, took a deep breath, and slipped outside. I watched her go with a pang of envy. She could slip away without anyone noticing—something I could never do.

More servants rushed through the room as they hurried to prepare the main ballroom, where the coronation would occur. The ballroom took up three floors of one of the palace's buildings.

I'd been in the ballroom many times before and for countless parties over the years. Leo hadn't enjoyed hosting them, but it was a necessary evil as king. I was sure it would be far different from what I remembered when Ivan declared the servants finished with the sprawling space.

Despite the hustle below, the servants were impressively quiet as they scurried back and forth with plants, chairs, colorful decorations, drinks, and food. They didn't speak or laugh with each other, but I doubted there was any joviality amongst the amsirah who resided here; there certainly wasn't in my father's castle.

I pulled my attention away from the activity below as my father and the Earl of Calwick emerged from two separate rooms in the hall. They didn't see me until they were in the lift.

The earl went to hold it for me, but I waved him on and turned to climb the grand staircase to Ivan's floor. The red carpet running up the center of the sweeping staircase muffled my footsteps.

At the top of the stairs, the floor split into two directions. Each side of the split had numerous doors lining the hall, but Ivan's sprawling suite was beyond each door. It was once the floor Leo occupied, but Ivan claimed it after his brother's death.

Ivan had insisted that all the wealthiest and highest-ranking aristocracy should come to his rooms to tend him before the coronation. In other words, he expected a lot of ass-kissing from all those who were professionals at it, but they were also professionals at digging knives into the backs of those they kissed.

One of the servants stood outside a door halfway down the hall to my right. My father and the earl were arriving in the lift when the servant opened the door for me; I stepped into a scene that wasn't as chaotic as I'd anticipated, but I was one of the first arrivals.

"Ryker!" Ivan called as he flung his arms open. "Welcome, my friend. Welcome!"

But when Ivan's pale blue eyes met mine, there was nothing friendly in them. Instead, they glinted with the cold, calculating gleam I knew well—there was also fear there.

I was a lightning bearer and a man who had survived the Ghoul War, Doomed Valley, and the ophidians. Given the right circumstances, I could destroy him, and we both knew it.

Ivan had never liked me, and the feeling was mutual. Leo and Ivan had despised each other; they were opposites in every way except for looks, and those were just enough similarities for someone to know they were related.

Because of the brothers' antipathy toward each other, they hadn't liked any of the other's friends. Even before the Ghoul War, I was Leo's right-hand man, lead general, and friend. Ivan hated me because of it. That was why I smiled as I strode toward him.

"Your Majesty, how good it is to see you again," I greeted.

I loathed the game of false niceties but was raised to play it well.

Ivan clasped my hand and squeezed. "And you as well."

The door opened again, and Ivan's smile grew when my father and the earl entered. I stepped aside to blend in with the few other aristocrats already present as they sipped their wine, munched on fruit, and gazed out the panoramic windows overlooking Tempest's sprawling mountains and valleys.

From here, I could barely see the edge of the Revenant Woods, and Nottingshire wasn't part of the view. Ivan would have only the best vista outside his rooms.

I admired the view as I drank my wine. Tempest was a beautiful realm, one of the most breathtaking I'd ever been to, and I'd seen many of them.

I'd promised Leo I'd watch over it and all the immortals residing here. I'd vowed to protect them from Ivan, but I had no idea how I could do that when Ivan was the ruler. A part of me died on the day the ophidian emperor severed my king's head from his shoulders.

I didn't know how to help anyone in this realm when I didn't give a shit anymore if Ivan and my father killed each other in their desire to rule… when I didn't care about anything other than surviving my memories.

I glanced at the tall, thin man sitting in a throne-like chair as he overlooked the room. Before his imprisonment and death, Leo was broad and big, but Ivan was taller and skinnier.

The chair made Ivan look smaller instead of larger and more impressive. He reminded me of a child playing at being an adult but with many servants and sycophants fluttering around him.

As the rest of the elite filled the room, it was abuzz with flattery and laughter. I played my part and helped place Ivan's cloak around his shoulders, all while contemplating strangling him with it.