The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and..

take seats at the table but took two against the wall where
Naill, Delano, and Emil stood with Kieran and Hisa. No other
guards were in the room. There were two seats left at the
head of the table, reserved for the King and Queen.
For us.
Taking those seats felt as surreal as the crowning had,
and thoughts of Willa faded as introductions were made.
There were eight members in attendance. We were missing
only Jasper, who had remained in Saion’s Cove. Another
wolven had taken his place, a Lady Cambria, whose blonde
hair was sprinkled with silver strands. In the aftermath of all
that was happening, I knew it would be difficult to
remember most of the names, but I would remember Sven,
who looked very much like the son I had met by the stables.
There were three others, two males I suspected were
mortal, and a female Atlantian.
And they all sat in silence, staring at Casteel, their
combined ages and experience wholly intimidating. Muscles
tightened in my neck and shoulders, and suddenly, the
crown felt heavier. An urge to shrink in the chair, to make
myself as small and invisible as possible swept through me,
but it was brief because I was neither small nor invisible.
And I would never be that again.
“I’m not sure what the formalities of such meetings are,
but those of you who already know me are well aware that
I’m not one for formalities,” Casteel announced as he looked
over at me. “And neither is my wife, Penellaphe. So, we may
as well get to the point. There is a lot to discuss, and very
little time to waste.”
“If I may speak,” a pale-skinned man with golden eyes
sitting near the middle of the table said. All I could think
about was the last time I had sat at a table with Casteel,
and similar words had been uttered. This man hadn’t been
in the reception hall. I would’ve recognized his icy-blond
hair.