In Deeper Waters by F.T. Lukens (most motivational books txt) 📕

front of Athlen and nudged it with his fingers. “No need to be shy. Eat your fill.”

“I don’t think I can eat all of that.” Athlen exchanged a look with Tal.

Tal shrugged, a small grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. “It’d be rude not to try.”

Athlen raised an eyebrow but grabbed his fork and joined Tal in stuffing his mouth full.

“I think I’m going to be sick,” Athlen said, holding his stomach as he and Tal walked to the queen’s council chamber. “I ate too much.”

Tal groaned in agreement. His belly was uncomfortably full.

Garrett laughed at the pair of them. “Don’t throw up on the rug. It’s mother’s favorite. Aim for the stone.”

“That’s not funny, Garrett,” Tal said, hand hovering near his mouth.

Garrett’s expression turned solemn. His gaze raked over Tal’s skinny frame. “No, I guess it’s not.” He glanced at Athlen at Tal’s side. “Are you injured?”

Athlen lifted his head from where he’d been studying the paving stones and rugs under their feet. “What?”

“You’re moving… oddly.”

“Oh.” Athlen rubbed the back of his neck. A blush painted his cheeks. “I’m not used to riding. And we’ve been on a horse for days.”

Tal frowned. Not quite a lie and not quite a truth. Athlen was good at that, hiding his thoughts and feelings, tucking them away behind a congenial smile. The night in the bath must not have helped as much as Tal had hoped.

Athlen avoided looking at Tal and ducked his head again, his bare feet padding silently along the ribbon of thick carpet leading to the queen’s council chamber.

A few minutes later the trio stopped in front of a set of large, ornate doors. Several guards stood across the hallway, hands on their swords, sharp eyes boring holes into Athlen as he approached. Athlen paled and slowed, angling behind Tal.

Tal reached behind him and took Athlen’s clammy hand, squeezing it in reassurance.

Garrett gestured with his arm, and the line parted to allow them to pass. A steward opened the door to reveal the council room. A large, glossy table sat in the middle, its legs and trim covered in designs. Several high-backed wooden chairs with plush cushions encircled it. A sprawling rug covered the stone, the design a tangle of blue and purple threads radiating outward from the center of the room. Tapestries adorned three of the four walls, cushioning the sound and breezes from the windows in the fourth wall, and depicting some of Tal’s favorite fairy tales—unicorns frolicking with maidens, a manticore fighting a knight, a large black bear with horns and red eyes howling from the top of a mountain, and a scene of mermaids near a beach enticing sailors to swim in the froth of a tumultuous sea.

Tal hadn’t noticed that one before, not in the scant few times he’d been in this room, or the one that hung behind his mother—a picture of a mage with flames entwining her limbs and fire in her eyes, mouth open in a scream, her enemies crushed under her feet, a sword thrust through her middle from a knight behind her.

His grip tightened on Athlen’s hand as they entered.

The rest of Tal’s family already sat around the council table. His mother, the queen, presided at the head, her dark hair piled beneath her crown. Isa sat at her right hand, demure, the gold circlet around her forehead glinting in the light from the high windows in the stone wall. Kest was next to Isa, right arm in a sling, his tangled hair hanging in his pale face. Corrie leaned close by his side, ready to jump in if Kest tipped over. The seat at his mother’s left was open for Garrett, her second-born, and those next to Garrett’s were empty, presumably for Tal and Athlen.

The occupants of the room all swiveled to stare as the door swung shut behind the trio.

Tal followed Garrett and eased into his seat, pulling Athlen to the one next to him.

Athlen’s eyes were wide, his mouth slightly open as he took in the opulence. His hand trembled in Tal’s, and Tal noted the moment Athlen noticed the tapestries of the mermaids and the mage, as his body shuddered and his throat bobbed. He ducked his head.

“I’m glad you could join us,” his mother said, addressing Athlen. “I am honored to meet the man who saved my son.”

“Thank you,” Athlen said softly. He cleared his throat, eyes firmly on the table. “I’m happy to meet Tal’s family.”

Her eyebrows shot up at the familiarity, and Tal hid his wince.

“We’ve much to discuss regarding the treason and subterfuge committed by Princess Vanessa of Ossetia and her handmaiden, including what this means for our relationships with the other kingdoms, especially Mysten. First, I’d like to hear an account of Taliesin’s…” She paused, eyes fluttering shut, her fingers gripping the edge of the table. She took a steadying breath. “Of Taliesin’s misfortunes.”

Tal took a sip from the goblet in front of him to bolster his resolve, thankful it was filled with sweet wine. He licked his lips and, with a slight nudge from Athlen, began his tale. Under his family’s scrutiny, he recounted finding the derelict and freeing Athlen from the fetter. He told them about the sailor in the crew’s quarters who’d tried to kill him, before Shay chased him to his death. He spoke about the kidnapping on the beach, the shifter who’d chased him and dragged him from the waves when he tried to escape. He talked of the days on Zeph’s ship, the work and the pressure to reveal his magic, and how in the end he’d broken after seeing Kest in the hold and Garrett’s ships on the horizon. He told them how he’d fallen into the sea and would have drowned save for Athlen, and of his days in the cave healing with help from Dara, and their journey across the countryside—running into the men who’d held Athlen captive and the shifter from the beach, Vanessa’s maid.

The words tumbled