19. Adair

Chapter 19

Adair

Huxley had retreated to the Dawnchaser quarters, and Oberon was still sitting in his parlor, stewing about the situation with Aubrey. Titania was not going to abandon Aubrey in order to break bread with her brother and the Dawnchaser, whom she hadn't even acknowledged the night before with so much as a head tip.

So maybe, I decided, as I sat across from Rain and the incredibly affable Caspian Sunrunner, the best choice was to keep them together. To talk to them at the same time, and have Rain help me try to prepare Caspian for dealing with the egos and arrogance of Oberon and Huxley.

I wasn't sure I was up to the task any more than they were, but at least I had experience with Oberon, so I could give them pointers on how best to finesse him.

The problem was that the degree to which they could do the same things I did was limited. As Rain had made me realize, I finessed Oberon the way an underling did most of the time. I convinced him I was giving him whatever he wanted, or that my ideas had been his. Rain and Caspian couldn't do that. At best, if they managed to make him believe that, he still wouldn't respect them, and that was what we needed.

Well, no, what we needed was an agreement that was going to save the world, and after that we could worry about the magical power of friendship or basic fucking human decency, but the heart of the point remained. I couldn't ask half the major families in the Summerlands to make enormous concessions to Oberon and Huxley just because they were selfish assholes.

And yet, we had to find a way to make it work, or millions of people were in danger.

While it was clear that Rain and Caspian cared about that, I still wasn't sure either Oberon or Huxley did, and there was no way to force someone into giving a damn about other people. At least, not one I was willing to delve into, ethically speaking.

"Why don't we go into the city for dinner?" I asked them. It would save the kitchen staff worrying about more people at dinner, so they could focus on the difficult assholes. I was sure I could present it to Oberon in a way he'd like too—if nothing else, he wouldn't have to deal with two people he considered lesser during one meal. Really, I suspected he'd be happiest just sitting in his parlor nibbling on his ridiculous protein bars, alone. No one to disappoint him, no one to make him feel like he wasn't up to snuff. Just silent efficiency.

Ugh.

Caspian lit up, the enormous smile from the moment he'd opened the door returning to his face, but thankfully this time, it didn't seem quite as flirty. "That sounds great. I'm freaking starved. Didn't really stop much for food on the way here, just drove. "

That sounded awful to me, but I didn't even know how to drive, so perhaps my view of being alone in a car for days was skewed. Nothing about it sounded appealing, but that might have been mostly because whenever I got into a car, it was invariably in Oberon's company.

In fact, this would be an odd change for me. Rain and Caspian were both clearly somewhat younger than I was, and my mother had always called me her "little old man" when I was a child because I'd been prematurely mature...but that made sense, as I'd spent most of my life with people decades my senior.

This could be fun.

Or it could be the worst night of my life. Maybe Caspian would want to go to a dance club. Between music and movement and everyone's threads, that sounded like a nightmare of overstimulation, and just the thought made me shudder.

"Are you okay?" Rain asked, his voice soft and soothing, as always. Well, except when it was soft and smooth and sexy as fuck.

I nodded, trying to wrap my aura of calm professionality around myself like an armored cloak. "Fine. I'm just...well, I'm not as young as the two of you, so I'm not sure what sort of things you prefer. I don't know any...any clubs."

Caspian made the strangest face, like I'd suggested taking a dip at the local water treatment plant and shook his head. "I'm gonna be honest with you, I've been to enough clubs and parties to last more than a lifetime. Just dinner sounds great. If we gotta do something else, it could be, like, something quiet?"

Quiet? Sunrunners had a reputation for animality. For self-indulgence and wild abandon. Something quiet didn't fit that mold in my mind, but what could I say? It sounded perfect to me.

"I'm sure we can accommodate that," I promised. "Amalion City has something for everyone. Let me make a few calls, and I'll meet you in the foyer?"

"Sweet," Caspian agreed. "I should shower and change, and I'll meet you guys down there."

I started to stand and the ground beneath me lurched, a loud rumble going up around us. Rain and Caspian both reached for me, but Rain was closer, so his hand grasped mine and he steadied me. The rumbling and shaking went on for far too long, before it left as quickly as it'd come, leaving us in silence.

Taking a deep breath, I met Caspian's eye. "That's why we have to succeed at this."

Caspian, who'd been staring out the window in the direction of Mount Slate, turned back to me, clearly shaken in more ways than the obvious, and nodded. "Yeah. That's...yeah."

After that, Rain and I departed. He ducked his head at me, mumbling something about changing for dinner and slipping off in the direction of the Moonstriker rooms. That did pose a slight problem. Rain's idea of dinner attire...well, it left nothing at all to be desired, ever, other than maybe a better view of his tall, muscular frame. Those broad shoulders looked incredible in his coats, and I very much wanted to see him out of them as well. But for dinner, it meant that we needed somewhere upscale; somewhere that wouldn't get him funny looks for being overdressed.

Not that I expected he'd even notice strange looks. While I was sure he was younger than me, he often seemed older than his years, with the way the demands and expectations of others slid off him. If he could handle dirty looks from two family heads, he could certainly handle a few curious stares from inconsequential strangers.

Plus I was interested to see more of his jackets. More artistic masterpieces. I wondered, briefly, if he dressed the same way at home, but dismissed it. Of course he did. He wasn't like Oberon, putting on a front to look a certain way to people. He was thoroughly, almost painfully, honest and real.

I sent Oberon a perfunctory text message saying I was taking the Moonstriker and Sunrunner to dinner to discuss the summit, and he sent back an equally disinterested acceptance. He was probably thrilled at the idea of being able to skip dinner.

Then I called one of Titania's favorite restaurants. They were happy to accommodate myself and two major family members with such short notice. Thrilled, even. In fact, I barely got past my own name before they were falling all over themselves to offer me a private dining room for the evening.

It was a strange reminder that while I thought myself a worker drone who sat around Gloombringer Castle and kowtowed to Oberon, other people seemed to see it differently. I was the Gloombringer's right hand, and one of the most important men in Amalion City.

Bizarre.

I'd had to argue with my boss that very morning about my right to eat a goddamned banana on my breakfast, and people thought I was powerful. Important. Special.

You're the one who chooses to let him treat you that way , Rhodri helpfully pointed out. You could take a job in any part of the Summerlands and actually feel important and special. Be treated like you matter, and not just like a mildly annoying distraction .

She wasn't even wrong.

My family has been loyal to the Gloombringer for?—

Yes, yes, since before they brought gloom to the world. But they used to be loyal back, you know. These days Oberon is just a drag on humanity. If we were more bloodthirsty, I'd say you should convince that killer brother of the Moonstriker to go after him . She gave an extended high sound that approximated a sigh for a creature that didn't breathe air. The Summerlands would be better off with Titania in charge .

I tried to imagine Titania as the Gloombringer, and for just a second, it turned into Titania in charge of everything. The whole of not only Gloombringer lands, but all the Summerlands.

I didn't know why, but I didn't much mind the idea.

My head gave a throb as I turned toward the grand staircase and was confronted by thousands of golden strands right in my eyes. Another step, thousands more. My stomach turned at the idea of walking right into them, but I didn't have other choices. Titania and Aubrey were in the foyer at the bottom of the stairs, and I needed to go down them.

"My grandfather put these tiles in," Titania was saying. She was motioning to the black-and-white tiles on the foyer floor, and through the masses of golden threads, I could just make out that her expression was tragic, like the boring marble tiles had somehow wronged her.

Next to her, Aubrey was rapt, staring at her, hanging on her every word. Clearly, she had a fan in her nephew.

She shook her head, sighing. "The old tiles are still in the barn out in that field in back, and I just can't forgive him for taking them out. They were beautiful. Blue and deep gold and purple, like a sunset."

"Maybe someday we could put them back," he suggested, hopeful and earnest, and for the first time in a long time, I could see hope in her expression as well.

"That would be lovely, Aubrey. I think that's a perfect idea." She gave him a sigh, like a teenager with a crush on him rather than his aunt. I couldn't blame her. This was an opportunity to improve the world she lived in, and unlike her brother, he actually seemed to care about her opinion. I was actually thrilled that she cared enough to try, after the years of living in Oberon's gray misery.

I had the wild urge to invite them to dinner, but the throbbing in my head demanded otherwise. If I had dinner with Aubrey, Rain, and Caspian, I'd regret it. Caspian's threads reminded me a little of Aubrey's, if less...well, just less. In every way. He had thousands, like fucking everyone at the castle right then, and they were golden, like rays of the sun, to indicate that he was well-loved by the people who knew him. It was harder to look at than Rain's soothing silver, but the relationships were essentially similar. They were good. Positive.

And yet, Caspian's thousands were more than enough to make my head protest. Aubrey was...well. He was another level, and one I wasn't sure my head would ever get used to.

You . . . might , Rhodri hedged. Given enough time.

So even she had doubts.

She scoffed at that and sent me the mental equivalent of a shrug. It's a lot even for me. Makes me feel like I could crack, trying to focus on them all .

That, the thought of her cracking, made me slide a hand into my pocket and run it across the cool, smooth surface of her, protective and concerned. She was too big to mount on a piece of jewelry, so I always kept her there, close to me.

Rhodri was...well, for fifteen years, she'd been my main ally and only friend. I didn't think I'd have survived without her.

I considered downing another painkiller and inviting them along. Making friends with Caspian and Rain would be good for Aubrey, if he was the future Gloombringer. It could be good for all of them.

"Adair, how are you doing?" Titania asked, one arm still threaded through Aubrey's. "We're going out to have a picnic in the garden instead of eating dinner with those stuffy assholes. Want to join us?"

I smiled at her, and oddly enough, I found that part of me did want to. I'd always liked her better than her brother, but this side of her, this was...hells, it almost made me proud to work for the Gloombringer for the first time ever. "As much as I'd love to, I'm afraid I've agreed to go to dinner with Caspian Sunrunner and Rain Moonstriker. To that place downtown you like so much, Fontaine."

She bit her lip, clearly considering, and again, I almost invited her. Invited them. But looking over at Aubrey, I realized it was too much—not just for me, but for him. The poor kid was already overwhelmed, and pushing him into a situation where he was to get to know the heirs to two other major houses was terrifying him. His deep blue eyes were wide, showing the whites all around, and he was standing stiff, like maybe I was a predator and I couldn't see him if he held very still.

So I smiled at him, trying to be as easygoing as possible. "Maybe after you've settled in some, you'd like to have dinner with them too. They're very nice, I promise. "

He bit his lip and continued to look nervous, but slowly, Titania nodded with comprehension in her eyes. "That's a good idea. Give him some time to breathe before shoving him into dinners with future family heads." She smiled up at him, squeezing his arm tight. "If Adair says they're nice, though, they are. You can trust Adair completely. Unlike some of the other people around here."

He looked between her and me a few times, and I tried not to grimace with the pain in my head. I wasn't sure my attempted smile was anything to look at, but he didn't cringe away. Instead, he nodded to me. "I, um, I'd like that? I think? Lord Moonstriker seemed very nice when I met him earlier."

"You should probably just call him Rain, dear," Titania said, leaning into him, and turning to steer him toward the kitchen. "You have a lovely dinner with the handsome Moonstriker and"—she paused a moment, considering—"well, if young Caspian looks anything like his father did when I was a girl, the handsome Sunrunner, too."

Aubrey flushed bright red, looking away, like thinking about Rain and Caspian as handsome was the most embarrassing thing he could think of.

So I smiled and nodded. "I'm sure we will. They're both excellent company, and I think that yes, Caspian is a rather handsome man. Perhaps a bit young for me, though."

She scoffed and waved a dismissive hand. "Young for me, maybe, but you're a baby. Go have all the fun with the pretty young men."

Poor Aubrey looked like he might have an aneurysm any moment, so I bowed slightly, and excused myself to go arrange for a car to take us to dinner while Titania continued to give Aubrey the tour of the house.

The moment I got outside, away from Aubrey's bright invasive threads, the pounding in my head lessened, and I stopped to rub at my temples.

"He's really something, isn't he?" Rain asked from behind me, voice low, like a balm to my aching head. "He was what made you pass out earlier. More, ah, connections than Oberon and Huxley?"

I wanted to whimper pathetically and lean against the wall, but I had to hold it together, so I gave a little nod. "It's...it is a lot."

It was more than I should have told him, but it didn't exactly give away Gloombringer secrets. Really, though, Rain was clever and had functional eyes. He could quite literally see that Aubrey looked like a Gloombringer if he thought about it. They all had the same eyes, blue as cornflowers—almost unnaturally blue.

I finally stopped rubbing my temples and looked up at Rain, expecting more pain, but somehow, the silver of his threads wasn't even hard to look at anymore. His pale hair and so-light blue eyes were like ice on the wound that was my mind, cool and tranquil.

His smile was gentle, like everything about him. When Caspian joined us, the whole dynamic shifted, sharper and faster and just more. It wasn't...bad, exactly, but I missed that moment of just us, alone, in the quiet and still.

I was dangerously close, I thought, to disloyalty to the Gloombringer.

Somehow, I couldn't make myself care.