The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and..

Taking my hand, we walked forward under the banners
and into a hall straight ahead. Evaemon Palace was a
surprise. Based on the exterior alone, I would’ve imagined
that the inside would be cold and unwelcoming, but only the
floors were made of the crisp black I now knew was
shadowstone. The walls were covered with a cream-hued
type of plaster, and all the windows and glass ceilings let in
a surprising amount of natural light.
Staff hurried along the sides of the corridor near the
walls, stopping to bow hastily before disappearing into other
wider halls. I caught sight of a sparse atrium, one full of
night-blooming roses, and the hall we entered had
numerous closed doors.
“These are meeting spaces,” Casteel explained, his
hand wrapped firmly around mine. Kieran, Delano, Emil, and
Naill walked with us. Some of the wolven had remained in
the foyer while Vonetta and Lyra followed with a dozen or so
wolven.
They weren’t the only ones who trailed behind us. From
the moment the crowns had been placed on our heads, Hisa
and several Crown Guards followed. I wondered if it was
strange for them to switch who they protected so quickly,
and if it was also odd for Casteel’s parents to suddenly be
lacking familiar shadows—although at least two guards had
flanked Eloana when she parted ways with us in the foyer.
The hall we traveled down spilled into another foyer,
one where a grand staircase spiraled up to the second floor
and several above it. “Guest rooms are above, along with
the staff rooms.”
I resisted the urge to break from Casteel and rush over
to the staircase to see if the black stone of the banister was
as smooth as it looked. “What—what about our rooms?”
“They are the east wing,” he answered, nodding at an
older male who descended the stairs, carrying a platter of
empty glasses.