Chapter 10

"Hey," Astrid said, striding over to where Meera and I were having breakfast in the dining hall. "You two need to come with me today."

I'd mostly gotten accustomed to Astrid's blunt way of speaking, but there were still times when I couldn't help but be irked that she never said please.

Astrid softened her tone at whatever expression she saw on my face. "A Hunter has defected, they left a note where Soren and I had stationed ourselves in the human realm. It could be a trap, of course," she added, not sounding particularly concerned either way. Astrid was a weapon all on her own, I doubted she was afraid of anything. "But if it's not… Well, she sounded like she really needed help, and I'm not going to let her down."

"Do you want us to accompany you to the human realm?" Meera asked, immediately straightening.

Astrid looked horrified. "Fuck no. You two need to stay here where it's safe. The last thing we need is another Verity situation. I'll bring her to you. I just need you two to be on standby to help me get her settled in." Astrid shifted uncomfortably on the balls of her feet. "You know I don't excel at being, you know, welcoming or whatever."

"I'm sure we can fill in those gaps," I said with what I hoped was a reassuring smile. If it wasn't a trap, if more Hunters really were defecting and coming to the shadow realm, that could only be a good thing. I had a responsibility to do my part to help them acclimatize to life here, the way Ophelia had helped us.

Astrid gave me a curt nod. "Great. Finish up then come with me—Soren is setting up a temporary entry room closer to Elverston House so she can get onto the grounds more discreetly. The note made her seem kind of frail. We thought parading her through the palace grounds to get there was a tall ask."

"Very thoughtful of you," Meera said softly. "I do hope that life here won't be too much for her."

Astrid smiled grimly. "Only one way to find out."

Andrus, a particularly smug member of the Guard who I loathed making small talk with, stood watch at the makeshift entry room as we waited for Soren and Astrid to return. I'd expected a larger contingency of both guards and a welcoming party, but Astrid had really meant it when she said she didn't want to overwhelm the new arrival.

"So," Meera began. "What was it that Ophelia wanted to talk to you about yesterday? Not that you have to tell me, of course. I'm just being nosy."

"She, uh, asked if I would go on some prearranged dates," I admitted. "With some Shades who don't feel like they've had a fair shot at getting to know us."

Meera wrinkled her nose slightly, the only outward sign of her disapproval. "How do you feel about that?"

"I mean, I don't have anything else going on."

"Except some unresolved feelings from your fling at the ball."

"Ouch," I gasped, twisting to look at her. "Meera! Right in the heart."

She shot me a brief, unapologetic half smile. "It's true, though. Isn't it?"

I was pleading the Fifth on that one.

"I support you, of course," Meera continued. "And you're not making any promises by meeting with Shades who just want to meet you. Just… be careful, okay? With your heart."

"I will," I promised, my voice slightly strained. "You need to stop being so great, or I'll stink up the place with my feelings."

That earned me a slightly more confident smile.

"Andrus is quiet today," she whispered conspiratorially, leaning in close to speak in my ear. "Usually, he's always trying to get your attention."

"There's fresh meat coming through that door," I replied wryly. Andrus's attentions were fickle. Even if I had been able to overlook his Trust Fund Baby energy, he just seemed immensely unreliable.

Meera wrinkled her nose at the description, but it was only the truth. Andrus saw us as power sources first, romantic interests second. He was exactly the kind of Shade I wanted to avoid. Hopefully, Ophelia's vetting process would weed those ones out.

He straightened as the door opened, Astrid emerging first and holding it wide.

The first thing I saw was a dog.

A golden lab, to be specific. In a red vest with "Service Dog" printed in bold white text along the harness.

Followed by a pale, wan woman with patchy brown hair—her face tilted up toward the sky as she walked, gaze unfocused.

Shit. Elverston House was basically the least accessible building I'd ever encountered. There were stairs everywhere, and no handrails. The layout was entirely illogical. The stone floors were cracked and uneven. The bathroom facilities were all in the basement. None of the bedrooms were on the first floor.

Frankly, it was hazardous for anyone to live there. It was an ADA nightmare.

"Maybe we could convert one of the sitting rooms downstairs into a bedroom?" Meera suggested, chewing nervously on her lower lip, her thoughts clearly running along the same lines as my own.

"Tallulah, Meera, this is Iris Nash," Astrid said, gesturing at the newcomer. "And Tilly," she added, nodding at the dog.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," I said faintly.

Wait, Nash?

As a member of the Thibaut family, I was well acquainted with the higher-ups in the Hunter world, and the Nash family was definitely part of that. Though, I couldn't recall ever hearing about an Iris, and we looked to be similar enough in age.

"It's so nice to meet you too," Iris replied, her voice as calm as a lake.

Astrid looked at Meera and I before glancing expectantly at Elverston House as though waiting for us to take the lead. Astrid was great at looking at the bigger picture, but individual nuances were sometimes lost on her.

I widened my eyes meaningfully, giving my head a small shake. It would be entirely unfair to Iris to set her up in Elverston House on top of all the other adjustments that moving to the shadow realm required.

"What is this?" a voice asked, making everyone jump—even the usually observant captain. Damen appeared on the path behind us, all glowing purple eyes and charming smiles as always. He immediately crouched down, admiring the labrador. "What a magnificent creature."

"He means Tilly," I said hastily, not wanting Iris to get creeped out thinking she was being ogled by Shades. Which she undoubtedly would be, but they usually waited until dinner at least.

"Thank you," she said, her head turning toward my voice.

"They don't have dogs in the shadow realm," I added. "Prince Damen, this is Iris Nash and her dog, Tilly."

"My service dog," Iris added, her voice sweet and angelic. "I'm blind. Tilly is my eyes."

Damen startled, but made a gracious recovery. "Well, you and Tilly are both most welcome here. I hope you will find the shadow realm a happy home for both of you." He hesitated, shooting a wary look at Elverston House. Finally. At least someone was paying attention. "Tallulah and Meera stay in the accommodation that has been set aside for ex-Hunters, but perhaps you would be more comfortable in the palace, Iris? I believe it would better suit you and Tilly."

Who was this gentleman? Damen was usually the most relaxed, mischievous Shade at court. I'd never heard him be so formal before.

Iris's soft, closed-mouth smile was incredibly comforting somehow. I'd only met her five minutes ago, and yet I was more confident than I'd ever been in anything in my life that this woman was kind all the way down to her bones. "Well, I've never been inside a palace before, just heard about them in fairytales. It certainly sounds like the kind of place where anyone could be comfortable."

Oh, she was sugary sweet. I half expected little hearts to start floating around Damen's head as he stared at her.

"We'll accompany you over there," Meera said, visibly relieved that Damen had come up with a solution. The palace had resources that Elverston House had not, simply by virtue of being filled with staff. It also wasn't crumbling to the ground, which was a massive bonus. And Ophelia and Astrid both lived in the palace, so Iris wouldn't be totally without non-Shade company.

Damen strode off, muttering a quiet stream of orders to Andrus before sending him to run ahead. It was a level of authoritative I'd never seen from him.

"Um, we'll just start walking straight ahead," I said for Iris's benefit, unsure how to proceed, and not wanting to offend her. "It's about two hundred feet away. The path curves a little on the way, but it's flat."

Iris's smile could have stopped traffic. "Thank you."

Meera and I moved to walk either side of her, leaving Damen to walk ahead, and Astrid and Soren to take up the rear.

"What made you decide to come to the shadow realm?" Meera asked softly.

Iris frowned thoughtfully. "Well, my parents kept me hidden away because they were ashamed of me," she began with startling bluntness. "And my nana who raised me, recently passed away, so the options of what they were going to do with me were looking quite bleak. Bleak enough that one of the Hunters decided that this would be a better option for me."

"One of the Hunters decided that?" I asked in disbelief. Maybe the tides were turning? I liked to think that the cold war we were engaged in would eventually thaw out, and we could have some kind of dialogue with the Hunters again, but it had felt like a pipe dream recently.

"I suspect what my parents had planned for me was very grim indeed for him to make that decision," Iris said serenely, making all of us do a double take. "But it was very kind of him to help me. I owe him a great debt."

The palace descended into chaos as soon as we arrived, with everyone rushing around to accommodate the shadow realm's latest resident, seemingly with no real sense of direction.

I looked expectantly at Damen while the staff debated room choices with one another.

"I should get my brother," he mumbled.

"Why? I mean, I get that he has more authority than you, but surely it's within your power to sort this out?" I suggested tentatively. Or I did my best to sound tentative. My patience was growing a little thin.

"That's not… I don't really do that."

My smile was more of a grimace by that point. There was no good reason he couldn't—Damen had just demonstrated outside that he was perfectly capable of jumping in and taking the lead. He just chose not to.

"Damen, you handled things really well out there," I said softly, maintaining eye contact and doing my best nonconfrontational corporate face. "It isn't realistic for King Allerick to personally address every logistical issue that the ex-Hunters face in moving here. You could really help us in this area."

I wanted to tell him off a little bit, because he was being a spoiled little princeling, but I didn't want to let my mouth run away from me and get banished back to the human realm.

He nodded once, gesturing for one of the staff to come over. "You're right. Okay. Yes. There's a ground floor guest apartment with a small garden area out front, near where Captain Soren and Astrid stay. Please ready that room."

"Have you eaten, Iris?" I asked.

"No, but I'll be fine."

"I'll send for food," Damen said with a decisive nod.

"And some water for Tilly. Perhaps we could eat in the dining hall?" I suggested to Damen before turning my attention back to Iris, lightly touching her forearm. "We'll give you a tour of the place now while it's empty."

"I would appreciate that. Thank you."

"Great, let's go. We're going to make you feel so welcome here, Iris. Anything you need, just let us know," I said, giving her arm a squeeze.

Selfishly, I was glad for the opportunity to be useful in a way that wasn't going on random filler dates for Ophelia, hoping I would meet The One, or fussing with curtains that nobody but me cared about. I liked being helpful.

No, I needed it. I needed to feel needed, because what was I bringing to the table otherwise?