Legend hadnât just moved into the palace, heâd taken it over. Servants covered every inch of the place, buzzing around like worker bees as they either prepared for Legendâs upcoming coronation or worked on the massive renovation heâd commissioned.
During Elantineâs reign, her palace had been a thing made of dust and history. It had been grand in the way old stories were grand, full of curving details, threaded tapestries, and delicate artistry. But Tella imagined Legendâs palace would be none of those things.
Legend possessed a fallen angelâs beauty that commanded attention. He was tailored suits over inked tattoos, and lies that people wanted to believe. His palace would be breathtaking in the way that only powerful things could be.
Tella knocked against her sisterâs door in the sapphire wing once more. Scaffolding covered both sides of the entry, but there were no workers in sight at the moment, so Scarlett should have heard the knocks.
âEither sheâs not there, or sheâs not answering,â Armando said.
âI didnât ask for your opinion.â Tella knocked again, just to be obnoxious, since she was certain Legend was just being obnoxious when heâd chosen to assign Armandoâwhom he knew she despisedâas her personal guard.
Tella wondered if Scarlett was with Julian. In the dungeon theyâd looked closer than Tella had expected. In a dream a week ago, Legend had told her when Julian had returned to Valenda, but as far as Tella knew, he hadnât come to visit Scarlett until after Tella had left. Whatever reunion theyâd had must have been magnificent, or maybe Scarlett hadnât been quite as over him as sheâd claimedâsomething both sisters had in common.
Tella knocked on the door a final time, but Armando was rightâScarlett wasnât there or she wasnât answering the door. Either way, Tella couldnât stand here and do nothing, not as long as the Fates were out there.
Tella had bathed and scrubbed off the dirt from the cavern, and changed into a slender ice-blue gown with tiered skirts that she must have left in the palace. But she would never wash away what had happened in those ruins. She could still hear the of the wheel and see her motherâs wounded body, unmoving on the floor.
The Fallen Star needed to be stoppedâand he needed to pay for what heâd done to her mother. And if Legend wasnât going to share the Fallen Starâs weakness with Tella, then she was going to find someone else who would. And she knew just the person.
Cold licked the back of Tellaâs spine. For a moment she was back in his study, on the floor, feverish and hot except for all the places where his cool limbs tangled with hers.
It was a bad idea to go back. But if anyone knew the Fallen Starâs weakness, it would be another Fate. And hadnât Jacks said something about hating the Fallen Star?
Tella glanced at Armando. He was barely two steps behind her. Losing him might be a little tricky. But she couldnât take him with her to Jacks. If Legend found out Tella was visiting Jacks again, he might actually lock her up in the tower.
She did believe that this morningâs imprisonment was a mistake. But Tella also knew that she wasnât dealing with the Legend of her dreams, who sheâd almost convinced herself wasnât that different from Dante. She was dealing with Legend the immortal, the soon-to-be emperor, the Legend who did whatever it took to get what he wanted. And if he wanted Tella safeâand away from the Prince of Heartsâshe could picture him taking measures that went far beyond simply assigning her a guard.
Tella quickened her steps as she passed the Stone Garden. The statues had been human once, but when the Fates ruled centuries ago, they had treated humans more like objects and playthings. One of the Fates had turned all the people in the garden to stone just to have lifelike decorations. Tella didnât know if there was any life inside them, if the people who had been frozen could still look out on the world and see and hear. She swore that the statuesâ faces appeared more terror-stricken than they had before the Fates had been freed from the cards. She wondered if the brideâs sister who had been turned to stone today was standing among them, or if theyâd found a way to cure her, but somehow Tella doubted that.
Her limbs had turned shaky again as she reached the carriage house.
âHis Highness would prefer it if you didnât leave the palace grounds,â said Armando.
âAnd Iâd prefer it if he didnât keep so many secrets.â Tella hopped inside a floating coach that would take her to the Temple District.
With a groan, Armando threw himself into the carriage opposite her as the cozy box took off. âI hope weâre at least going somewhere interesting.â
âActually, not going anywhere.â With that, Tella opened the door and leaped outside. She tore the hem of her glacier-blue gown and nearly sprained her ankle from the awkward landing. If the carriage had risen any higher, she definitely would have injured herself, but it was worth the risk to get away.
Armando scrambled to the door, but the coach was too high for him to jump safely.
Tella blew him a mocking kiss. âI wonât tell that you lost me if you donât tell.â Then she picked another carriage line, one that would take her to University Circle and to the Prince of Hearts.