“This feels familiar,” said Ava cheerfully as she led me through the corridors that stretched from the private wing to what I could only assume was the public section of the palace. The walls changed from red to cream and gold, and for a moment I forgot we were in the Underworld—at least until we passed a curtained window, and I made the mistake of glancing outside.
It would have been bearable had Henry been there with me, but when Ava stopped me outside a set of double doors that reminded me strongly of the ballroom in Eden Manor, there was still no sign of Henry or James. On the bright side, I finally understood what Ava meant by familiar.
“Did Henry have Eden Manor built like this place?” I said, looking around as we waited. Everything, from the color of the carpet and the walls to the path Ava had taken to lead me here, reminded me of Eden. It wasn’t exactly the same, but it was similar enough that I couldn’t help but remember the night I’d been introduced to the council almost exactly a year ago.
“Some parts,” said Ava. “The palace is bigger, of course, but he kept the important bits.”
At least Henry would never get lost in his own home, no matter how many he had. “Do you think he’ll be back on time?”
“Of course,” she said with a breezy attitude I wished I could trade for the knot in my stomach. “He can’t miss it.”
“James would probably get himself killed so he wouldn’t have to come.” I scowled. “Why do you think they ran off like that before the ceremony?”
Ava stilled, and she didn’t quite meet my eye as she answered. “Because it’s Henry’s job.”
“It couldn’t wait?”
Her painted lips tugged downward into a frown. “You can’t expect Henry to be someone he’s not. He hasn’t been married in a thousand years. It’ll take him some time to get back into it, but when it happens, it’ll be worth it. He’s used to putting his duties first, that’s all.”
Her answer made me feel like an idiot, and my cheeks burned underneath the layer of makeup she’d wrestled onto my face. “He barely touched me,” I said, fighting to keep my voice even. “It’s been six months, and he couldn’t even kiss me hello. I don’t want him to change for me, but it’d be nice if he at least tried to let me know that he was happy to see me. I can’t—” The words caught in my throat, and it took me a second to work my way around the lump that was forming. “I can’t spend half my life with someone who doesn’t love me.”
“Oh, Kate.” Ava hugged me, taking care not to mess up my hair or makeup. “Of course he loves you. He’s never been very good with physical affection, that’s all, and he’s a man. They’re never good at realizing what we want and acting on it, especially when they’ve been alone for as long as Henry has been. Do I really have to spend the next six months making sure you know how much he loves you?”
I sniffed. “No, but it would be nice if he did.”
“Give him time,” she said. “He’s probably just nervous with all that’s happening.”
“What is happening?” I said, trying to pull away enough to look at her, but while she was being gentle, her grip was unbreakable. “What’s going on with Calliope?”
Ava tensed. “Didn’t Henry tell you?” she said in a timid voice.
“No, and if you don’t either, I’m going to rub my lipstick all over my face. And yours.”
She jumped away from me and held out her hands, as if to ward me off. “Don’t you dare. I’ll delay the ceremony if I have to.”
“I think Henry and James are already doing it for you.” I crossed my arms. “Tell me what’s going on. I have a right to know.”
She sighed. “You do, but Henry will kill me if he finds out I’ve told you.”
“Then I won’t tell him it was you.”
Ava glanced around nervously and tugged on one of her blond curls. “I’m only telling you this because Henry isn’t here to do it for me, because you really should hear it from him,” she said in a lowered voice, but I was positive she was telling me because she knew Henry wouldn’t. “Calliope escaped. Henry and Daddy and Phillip aren’t saying much about what’s going on, but—well, you saw the condition Henry was in. Obviously something bad is happening.”
Something bad enough to scar a god. “How did Henry get injured—have they said anything?”
“Said anything about what?”
I whirled around. James headed toward us, his hair a mess and his jacket torn in the shoulder, but at least there didn’t seem to be any blood this time.
“James!” I flew toward him, hair and makeup be damned. He gathered me in his arms and hugged me tightly, and I heard Ava’s strangled cry of protest. For her sake, I didn’t kiss him on the cheek. “Are you all right? What happened?”
“It was nothing,” he said. “A minor mishap. Everything’s fine.”
“You mean it didn’t have anything to do with Calliope?” I said, and James opened his mouth to answer when a second voice interrupted.
“It did.”
James winced, and he immediately let me go and stepped to the side. Henry crossed the hall toward me, and unlike James, he looked impeccable.
“Are you bleeding to death again?” I said, unable to keep the frostiness out of my voice. Henry either pretended not to notice or was too distracted to care.
“I am fine.” He nodded toward the double doors behind me. “I will escort you in. We should not keep the rest of the council waiting.”
That was the last thing I was concerned about, but when Henry offered me his arm, I took it. At this rate, it was the most contact I’d have with him all winter.
Ava and James ducked through the doors, and Henry stared straight ahead as we waited. I watched him out of the corner of my eye, looking for any signs that he’d been attacked again, but he was as composed as ever. As if having his new wife devote her life to helping him rule the Underworld was an everyday occurrence.
My chest tightened. I couldn’t make that kind of commitment if things weren’t going to change. If he wasn’t going to trust me, if he didn’t want me as his queen, then I didn’t want to do this. “Whatever’s going on with Calliope, I have a right to know.”
“You do,” he said. “I assure you, as soon as we get a moment, I will tell you everything.”
“We have a moment now,” I said. I didn’t want to fight, not on the cusp of the moment my life was going to change irrevocably forever. But that was exactly why I had to do this. “It doesn’t feel like you trust me or—or want me here, and I need to know that you do. And if you don’t, then we don’t have to do this.”
Henry hesitated. I watched him for any signs of what he was thinking, but his expression gave nothing away. “If you don’t want to—”
“I do,” I said, desperation clawing inside of me. “I want to stay. I want to do this. I want to be with you. I don’t know how to make that any clearer. But I need you to want it, too, okay? Please, just tell me you want me here so I can do this.”
I expected silence in return, and when he didn’t answer, I started to turn away from the doors.
Henry’s hand stopped me.
“Kate,” he said softly. “It has been a difficult day, and I am sorry for the worry I have put you through this afternoon. However, no matter how hard things become, no matter how much time it takes for both of us to adjust to this new life, never doubt that I want you here. You are capable and insightful, and you are better suited to stand beside