Splintered Fate (23 page)

Lola flashed a bright smile as she
approached Lana. She pulled on the corset strings, wrapping the
dress even more tightly around Lana’s body. After Lola had finished
she gave Lana a once look over with brown analyzing eyes, pulling
her brows together in thought.

The girl looked at the floor and looked up
with a sparkle in her eye “I can help with your hair!”

“
My hair?” Lana was hoping she had
misheard her. She could feel Ardin internally grinning, enjoying
the torture of her pampering.

“
I can braid some red ribbons into
a few strands to add just a little something extra!” The girl
seemed so excited by her idea, Lana didn’t have the heart to say
no. So Lola went to work braiding red ribbons, to match her gown,
into her otherwise free flowing hair. She also went on to insist
rubbing different creams on Lana’s face and skin for various
reasons. The girl had a lovely warmth about her that Lana didn’t
want to risk smothering by not allowing her to help.

Ardin thoroughly enjoyed watching
Lana buckle to the will of the girl.

“
It’s beautiful Lola, thank you,”
Lana managed after getting a look at herself in the mirror. She
hardly could believe this was the same dirt stained girl from this
morning. She almost did not recognize herself. “May I have a moment
to myself?”

“
Of course!” The girl said with a
warm smile “It is nearly time to leave. I’ll wait for you in the
hall.” With a small curtsy she left.

I almost
look…royal.
Lana thought staring at the
woman in the mirror. More than that she could see her mother within
her own reflection. Despite her brown hair, Lana had her mother’s
cheek bones, lips, and eyes. Dressed up like this, she could see
their similarities more clearly than ever before.

You grew up knowing only an evil
King of the Rami, the horrible King Zakran. The whole notion of
royalty seems bad to you but it needn’t be. This whole castle used
to belong to great kings, the Donyerths, who were loved, respected,
and fair. They lived in a time of peace between races.

Enough about Kings and royalty
please, Ardin.

I only want to ease your
thoughts.

Lana glanced
around the room, decorated in browns, creams and lavender. Anything
wooden was not plain but carved with intricate detailed designs.
There was nothing simple in the large room.
The Sterling’s would have loved this place, and fit right in
better then I.

Nonsense, they would never have
looked as beautiful as you in that dress.

Lana looked at Ardin, his tail whooshed in
rhythm behind him. The second chiming of the bells
sounded.

Lets get this
over with.

They walked into the hall where
they were greeted with Lola’s awaiting smile. She lead them through
the same confusing hallways that Connor took them through earlier.
Lana began to wonder about the party and the food. She had
forgotten how hungry she was. Her stomach growled, her mouth began
watering at the thought.

She nearly slammed into Lola, the
girl stopped so suddenly. A wooden door opened by a guard and Lana
could hear Micah’s voice seep out into the hall where they waited.
She could hear him give the introduction, “and our final guests…”
There was a great and final pause. “Lana Casteel and her Aorra
Ardin.” Suddenly the room filled with hushed whispers and Lola
shuffled her and Ardin in to the room.

Grand pillars held up the ceiling
in the massive room. The pillars were white with gold veins and had
wolf statues decorating their base. At the very far end of the room
Lana could see a large opening to a balcony that seemed to be
separated only by hanging fabric. She wished that she could be on
that balcony and away from all the eyes that seemed to be on her in
this moment. The room itself was overwhelmingly filled with people,
Rami and Madonians. So many people that she couldn’t count, they
flowed from edge to edge.

Lana stared at the sea of people
in the room before her. There were tables around the edges of the
room with the center left clear for dancing, or in this case
standing. She and Micah stood a step above everyone on a small
platform.

“
Well, let the music play.” Micah
addressed everyone. His voice brought Lana’s attention to the table
next to her. On his command the sound of a fiddle and flute spread
throughout the ballroom. Micah held out his hand to an open chair
at the end of the table. “Have a seat, eat, and get to know some of
the people who you try making requests of.”

Lana sat down. There was an empty
seat to her left and next to the open seat sat Cale. To her right
sat an older man and beside him a woman. He had no visible Aorra
next to him so Lana could not for sure tell if he were Rami or
Madonian. However, his pail skin pointed towards him most likely
being Madonian. Next to him sat a woman who seemed to be Rami. Lana
speculated whether the two were an item and if so were they really
of different races?

The table she sat at was made of
sturdy old wood. It had no intricate carvings yet still somehow
seemed majestically beautiful, decorated with softly glowing
candles. The table was covered by a spread with meat, potatoes,
grapes, bread, crystal decanters filled with wine, and various
vegetables. Everything was carefully spaced, evenly apart so that
those siting could easily reach for whatever their hearts may
desire.

At the other head of the table,
directly in front of her, sat Kaiden. His hair was clean and he too
wore new clothing. He wore a dark coat, which was embellished with
red around the neck and down the arm. It didn’t go unnoticed that
the colors he wore perfectly matched her dress.

Kaiden’s blue eyes were fixed on
her as soon as she looked up. Meeting his gaze, she suddenly felt
incredibly self-conscious. The way his lip curved up ever so
slightly when she felt her face flushed was almost too much to
handle. It was hard to breath, sitting across from him, trapped by
his gaze. The space between them was both too far and not far
enough. More than anything she wanted to be near him, to feel him.
Her heart thundered at the thought, determined to break through her
ribs and run across the table to those blue eyes that watched her.
Then the logical side wanted to run, get as far away from him as
possible, for nothing good would ever come of this. Nothing good
happened to those closest to her.

“
My name’s Zorin and this is my
wife, Aria.” The man to Lana’s right introduced himself.

Peeling her eyes away from
Kaiden’s gripping stare, she looked at the older couple sitting
next to her. Zorin was older, with a brown mustache and a matching
brown head of hair. Aria was an olive toned blond woman. Before
Lana had a chance to reply Zorin spoke again. “We are very sorry
for the loss of your father, he was a great man.”

“
Thank you, did you know
him?”

“
I have heard of Valdor Casteel,
but no, I have never had the pleasure of meeting the man. Aria and
I do not go outside of the walls of Alogrin.”

Were they prisoners here? Did they
know how to leave? Lana thought to herself.

“
What if you wanted to leave?” She
asked.

“
Of course we would then leave
dear, we just have no need, this is our home, and it’s safe here.”
Aria spoke, giving Lana a warm smile.

"You may think bringing you here blindfolded a
little silly, but it keeps us safe. Even though you are a Council
Woman, you are from the outside, and we do not get newcomers often.
Please do not judge us for it, you are no prisoner." Zorin
added.

"You say I am not a prisoner but do all your
guests not know how to leave?"

"If you want to leave all you need is but ask.
Do you want to?"

"Not yet," Lana admitted.

She then glanced at the empty seat
next to her.

"That's Tor's seat, you have to excuse him he
tends to avoid large gatherings, just like my Aorra. Though Dorian,
my Aorra, will regret missing meeting you."

Lana looked back to Zorin before
he added. "Tor is the one with a nasty scar across his throat. He
frightens most people but he is actually a pretty nice guy, very
skilled with a blade but rather quiet and keeps to
himself.”

The empty seat beside her belonged
to the strange man she saw whisper something into Micah’s ear when
they first arrived in Alogrin. She spared a glance towards Kaiden,
who was deep in conversation with Clyte. When Lana caught his eye
she quickly turned away, irritated at how senselessly happy he
seemed by the Rami woman’s presence in Alogrin. She shouldn’t have
been letting these things bother her, not when she had things she
still needed to accomplish. That was where her focuses should have
been. Lana made a point to not look over at Kaiden for the rest of
the dinner.

Glancing around the room, Lana saw
many people, some of which looked back at her when her eyes glided
over them. She searched for a familiar face but could not find one.
With a worried frown Lana turned back to Zorin and Aria.

“
I came here with an older man and
his grandkids… You wouldn’t happen to know if they are
here?”

Zorin reached
for his glass, drinking from it so Aria responded. “They are
probably in their room. Donn was given a drink that makes him a
little loopy, so we could better transfer him here without
interference of his
pets
. He wont be much of himself
till tomorrow.”

“
So you two know Donn?” Lana
perked up. She hadn’t mentioned his name but Aria seemed to know
whom she referred to right away.

“
Oh yes. We know Donn.” Aria said
with a smile and a sideways glance at Zorin, as if there was
something else she had said, an inside joke of some kind. Zorin did
not smile back at his wife’s mischievous grin.

“
You are fond of him, of Donn?”
Zorin asked, setting down his glass.

“
He helped me when I needed him. I
find him perhaps a bit odd but yes, I like him.”

“
He is more than just a simple odd
old man. It would be wise for you to remember that.”

“
Zorin.” Aria’s tone was full of
caution. “Donn has held up his end of things. We need to respect
his wishes.”

“
Of course, my dear.” He gave his
wife a tight forced smile before returning to his meal. All
conversation of Donn was immediately dropped.

It was peculiar. Lana had no idea
what Zorin or Aria were getting at but by the way they both
returned to their meals it was evident that no more was going to be
said of her travel companion. Perhaps Zorin and Donn had some sort
of past, one that forced a riff between the two men.

For the rest of their meal Lana
indulged in conversation with Zorin and Aria. They told her of
their lives in Alogrin, the council, and the advisors. Lana learned
that Zorin was born in the city however Aria, who was indeed a
Rami, fled there as a child with her family. Zorin was an advisor
to the council and had been for a very long time. The two of them
had no children of their own. Zorin was indeed a Madonian with the
Aorra of a Great Cat.

Sometime during their pleasant
conversation, Cale, slid into the empty seat to Lana’s left, after
he finished eating. He leaned in towards her “So, how do you like
the party thrown for you, Lana Casteel.” He lifted his arm in a
wave, addressing the beautiful room filled with a sea of people,
before draping it over the back of her chair.

Lana felt a little uncomfortable
at how close he was to her. She glanced around the room, her eyes
paused at the balcony in the distance, the outside breeze blew the
fabric around its entrance. Its as if the breeze were calling to
her. She wanted so badly to be on the balcony. To breath in the
fresh air.

“
It is beautiful.” Lana replied,
turning back to Cale’s dazzling smile. Even though he smiled, she
could feel his distaste for her radiating off of him.

“
How does it feel to know all of
this is right in your back yard, under your nose, and you knew
nothing about it?” Cale reached over for his glass and returned to
face Lana, taking a long drink of wine.

Ardin’s attention suddenly zeroed
in on Cale. Together they shared a simmering irritation, directed
at the Alogrinian council member sitting next to her.

Lana forced a
tight smile.
“You must be referring to the
city of Gorthyn. My backyard is in the Selvirian capital city
called Olbi, Cale. But that’s okay, geography is not everyone’s
strong suit.” She knew she probably should just keep her head down
and not react, but she couldn’t help it. Cale, for a reason unknown
to her, seemed to be against her since the moment she had
arrived.

What seemed to be a small chuckle
came from Zorin at Lana’s remark. When she glanced at him he
appeared to be busy cutting a piece of meat that was on his plate,
but she could swear that there was a glint of amusement in his
eye.

“
I hear you have been practicing
sword play.” Cale spoke, changing the subject, unfazed by Lana’s
remark.

“
Where have you heard
that?”