21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

“ I ’m so excited you’re here,” Cora gushed as I stepped into Elverston House the next day. “Would it be horribly inappropriate of me to ask if I could hold your arm and bring you into the drawing room? The floors are super uneven.”

“No, that’s very helpful. Thank you.”

Meera had brought me here, but had been waylaid in the garden by someone asking questions about the weeding. And I’d mostly come because I wanted to get to know Cora and Jade anyway. I’d never really had friends before, and I didn’t know what the signs were for finding potential ones, but I just had a feeling where the two of them were concerned. Or maybe it was wishful thinking. Maybe it was my insecurities talking because I knew how far behind I was in life experience compared to Ophelia, Meera, and Tallulah, who were all closer to me in age.

I guess I wouldn’t know unless I tried, though. I was going to make an honest go of befriending Cora and Jade.

The air was chillier in Elverston House, I noticed. And our words echoed a lot more—perhaps there were less soft furnishings in here to mute the sounds?

“We’re in the middle of renovations right now,” Cora was saying. “It’s kind of a mess, but it’ll be nice when it’s done. Meera and Verner have been so amazing—they coordinate everything. All of the rooms that had been closed will be opened up so new Hunters can come and stay here when they arrive.”

“Do you think you’ll move here when the renovations are done?” Jade asked, startling me at how close she was standing. “It’ll be less hazardous then.”

“I think I’m pretty set up where I am,” I said apologetically, not wanting to differentiate myself from them even more.

“That makes sense,” Cora replied, gently guiding me to an armchair as Tilly came to a stop alongside it. “Meera mentioned you’ve been spending time in the nursery too. Easier to do that if you’re only down a corridor rather than in a totally different building.”

“So how come we’ve never heard of you?” Jade asked, skipping the small talk. “The Nash family is pretty famous.”

“Well, yes. But I’m something of a liability,” I pointed out gently.

“Right. But if anyone could get away with it, Moriah Nash could. Other famous families have kids who aren’t Hunter material. Sometimes, like Austin Thibaut, they make them famous. Those rich families do whatever they want.”

“That’s not a great comparison,” Cora said mildly. “The only thing that prevented Austin from a career in the Hunters was himself. He could have fit the mold, if he’d wanted to. No offense, Iris.”

“None taken,” I replied faintly.

“I guess so,” Jade grumbled. “I’m sorry you had to be imprisoned in your mother’s house, Iris. That must have sucked.”

“I thought you might hold that against me,” I admitted. “That I’d gotten to live at home. I know other exiled Hunters aren’t so lucky.”

“Was it a nice home life?” Cora asked, sounding doubtful.

“The group homes can suck,” Jade added. “But we all had each other, you know? We were all in it together. The worst part was that we worked long as hell hours for pennies and were told we should be grateful to have a roof over our heads. It was exploitative as fuck.”

“I didn’t work. I just… stayed in the attic.”

“All the time?” Jade asked, horrified.

“Sometimes, if we were certain no one was going to visit the house, I could walk the paths around the property with my nana and Tilly.”

“Did you ever go anywhere else?” Cora pressed.

“Not until a spontaneous trip to Utah—my nana died, they didn’t know what else to do with me. And then here.”

They were quiet for a long moment.

“That sucks, dude,” Jade said with a whistle. “I mean, the labor camp group home also sucked, but at least I got to have a gas station hot dog sometimes, you know? Break up the monotony.”

“You must be so glad you came here,” Cora added.

“Oh, absolutely. It was the best decision I ever made,” I said decisively. “How about the two of you?”

Cora laughed. “I never had any doubts that it would be a good choice.”

“I was sent here as a human sacrifice, but it’s all worked out in the end,” Jade deadpanned. “I like it a lot more here than the human realm.”

“This might be a little forward of me to bring up since we just met, Iris, but oh my gosh. The way the prince looks at you.” Cora sighed dreamily. “It’s the talk of the court.”

“How does he look at me?”

“Like you’re his center of gravity. Like the sun rises and sets with you. Like nothing in the world matters but your happiness. If my future Shade wife doesn’t look at me like that, I don’t want her. Right, Jade?”

“I’d prefer a husband,” Jade replied, her tone giving nothing away while my heart seemed to be thudding out of my chest. “Despite my best efforts in the human realm, I remain chronically attracted to dick only. But right now, I’d prefer no one. Commitment is a horrifying concept.”

I latched onto the idea of talking about their romantic lives rather than mine. I had no idea what I was doing, and I was increasingly worried that my behavior was unkind. Cruel, even. I’d already rejected Damen’s marriage proposal. Was it wrong of me to continue the physical relationship we were developing?

“You shouldn’t rush if it’s not something you’re interested in. Have you been… dating, Cora?” I asked, fumbling around for the word I wanted. It seemed like such a human concept, and I wasn’t really sure what the norm was here.

“Courting,” she corrected gently. “And no. When my brother was alive, he really hated the idea. And then he died and was, you know, a traitor or whatever and even the Shades who’d been kind of interested in me backed all the way off.”

“Want me to talk to them?” Jade asked sharply. “Anyone who thinks you’re anything like your brother is a fucking idiot, and I’ll tell them that myself.”

“That’s really okay,” Cora replied hastily. “You don’t have to do that. I’m going to prove with my actions that I’m trustworthy, even if it takes a little longer to convince everyone. This is my home. I want to build a reputation that lasts.”

“What if they never change their mind about you?” Jade asked, voice laced with suspicion.

In some respects, Jade reminded me of Nana. Nana had lived through incredibly hard times, and she’d always expected the worst. When I was young, I hadn’t understood why she’d lash out over everything—even good things—but I got it a little more now. Even when something was good, she didn’t expect it to last. She hurt it before it hurt her.

It hadn’t made her easy to live with, but at least I understood.

“They will,” Cora replied confidently. “If Astrid can turn things around, then I definitely can. And me proving myself will hopefully make it easier for new ex-Hunters who come to this realm with good intentions—even if their families didn’t have the best track record. We set the example here, right? What we do matters . I want to be a good role model.”

Both Jade and I were quiet, and I wondered if she was reflecting on Cora’s words or if she was intimidated by them. I was somewhere between the two.

Perhaps it was just my ego talking, but I wanted to matter. I’d spent my entire life so far being invisible—I wanted the next few decades of my life to mean something. I wanted to make a difference in the lives of the children I interacted with in the nursery. I wanted them to see that it was okay that I was different from them. That different wasn’t a bad thing.

I wanted to be truly a part of life at the palace, so that when new ex-Hunters came here, they saw what that could be like.

And I’d already started. It was a buoying feeling to realize that I was already building those foundations, and they had to the potential to form something strong.