The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and..

buildings you see before you were built by the deities.”
Gods, that had to mean they were thousands of years
old. How anything lasted that long was beyond me. How a
city could be so stunning and intimidating was also beyond
my realm of understanding.
White-winged birds flew overhead as we crossed the
bridge, soaring over the wolven who prowled in front of us. I
glanced at the large wheels in the water, wondering if that
was how they fed electricity to the city. Carsodonia used a
similar technique, but not on such a grand scale. Ahead, I
could see sails of small ships in the canal.
“I have so many questions,” I whispered.
“Not a single person is surprised to hear that,” Kieran
remarked, and Delano chuckled.
“But I can’t even formulate words at the moment,” I
admitted, clearing my throat.
Casteel drew Setti closer as he looked over at me. “Are
you…crying?”
“No,” I lied, blinking the tears from my eyes. “Maybe? I
don’t even know why. It’s just…I’ve never seen anything like
this.”
A bell tolled, startling me and sending birds flying from
the belfry as it rang in a quick succession of three—which
was different than the bells that tolled in Saion’s Cove to tell
the time.
“They’re just alerting the city to our arrival,” Casteel
reassured me, and I nodded.
Emil looked back at us, his gaze finding Casteel over my
shoulder. He nodded, guiding his horse to the front. Nudging
his mount on, he galloped ahead, passing through the
structure at the end of the bridge.
“Where is he going?” I asked.
“Ahead to the palace to let them know we’ve arrived,”
Casteel informed me. “We’re going to take a far more
discreet path. There will be people, but nothing like the
route Emil is taking.”