A Trial of Sorcerers: Book One by Kova, Elise (universal ebook reader .txt) 📕

pressed. He kept stopping himself right before saying what felt like the most important part.

“It’s nothing.” Cullen shook his head, retreating from the topic. Eira bit back a sigh, but didn’t persist. His secrets were his own and the echo of his worried voice was still in her ears.

“Your father seems like a man who is ambitious.”

“An understatement. He’s—” Cullen stopped, glancing over his shoulder at a commotion.

A group of people collected by the door. A man was at their center, a spitting image of what Eira imagined Cullen would be in twenty to thirty years. His dark brown hair was salted and carefully coiffed back in a mirror of how the emperor wore his hair. Across his chest was the sash of a senator.

At his side was a woman with short, blonde hair. She wore it half pulled back, pinned with a feathered and bejeweled clip. She had the body of a dancer and the eyes of a scholar.

“He’s here,” Cullen finished with a grimace. “Let’s keep looking at the painting.”

“Shouldn’t we go and say hello?” Eira asked. Cullen gave a light tug of his arm, drawing her attention forward.

“I’d rather my father come over here and meet me on my terms.”

“I’ll follow your lead,” Eira reassured him.

Sure enough, they only had to wait a few minutes before the senator approached. Eira was surprised to see his dark brown eyes—nothing like Cullen’s bright amber. That must have been a trait he inherited from his birth mother.

“My son, it’s good to see you.”

“You as well, Father.” Cullen gave a bow of his head. It felt as though he was greeting a stranger and not his family. He turned and greeted the woman with a stiff, “Lady Patrice.”

“Hello, Cullen,” Patrice said warmly. “Who is your guest today? Another candidate, I see.”

“I’m Eira Landan.” Eira bowed her head as Cullen had.

“Ah, Miss Landan…” Cullen’s father’s eyes narrowed slightly as his words trailed off. “I thought your name was familiar during the third trial.”

Eira’s eyes widened slightly. Her day in court following the incident three years ago was fresh in her mind, sharpening despite time. This man’s face put her right back into the shoes of that girl, afraid and awaiting judgment.

“It is you, isn’t it? The girl who murdered her peers.”

“I… I didn’t…”

“Father,” Cullen said sharply. “That’s not appropriate conversation for court.”

“Of course not.” He chuckled, but there was a sinister note to it. “You might not remember me, but I led the senate investigation on the murder of a Tower apprentice.”

I didn’t murder anyone, she wanted to scream. She’d killed them by accident. There was a difference. There had to be.

“Father!” Cullen’s biceps tensed, drawing Eira slightly closer. “I think what my father is trying to say, is that his name is Yemir Drowel.”

Yemir. Yes…she knew that name. She’d just made herself forget it. Like so much else she’d tried to wish away. Eira felt cold in the worst of ways.

“It’s a good thing we didn’t lock you away. After the display of your talent, it would be a shame for the world to lose that.”

“Thank you for the compliment,” Eira mumbled, mostly because she felt like she had to, and immediately hated herself for expressing gratitude to a man who was making her viciously uncomfortable.

“Have you ever considered becoming an aide to a senator? I could think of a few uses for a young woman with your skills. Perhaps you could think of it as gratitude for what I did for you back then.”

You tried to lock me away, Eira wanted to say. If Fritz hadn’t stepped in…

“Eira is focused on the trials at present,” Cullen said briskly. “She doesn’t have time to become an aide to you or anyone else.”

“Think about it is all I ask.” Yemir shifted his focus to his son. Eira bit back a sigh of relief. “I thought you and I might take a walk about the gardens. It’s been a while since we caught up, just you and I.”

“I wouldn’t like to leave Eira alone since she is new to court.”

“I would be happy to keep her company.” Patrice stepped to Eira’s free side, scooping up her hand and patting the back. “I shall introduce you to my friends.”

“Good, that’s settled,” Yemir declared. “Come along, Cullen.”

Eira thought the muscles in Cullen’s jaw would rupture from how tense they were. But he ultimately didn’t speak any objection, leaving her behind and going off with his father. Oddly, Eira was far more worried about Cullen than she was for herself. Now that she realized who Yemir was, she didn’t want to leave anyone alone with him.

“So, Eira.” Patrice placed Eira’s hand in her elbow, beginning to stroll. “Tell me what your intentions are with my son.”

“Excuse me?”

“Cullen is a handsome young man and one of the most eligible bachelors in Solarin.” She spoke with an easy smile, as though the fact was known by everyone far and wide. Eira, in fact, had not known it. But she never really had concerned herself with the power plays of nobles. That had always been more of Marcus’s aspiration. “He’s been hand-trained by the empress and is within her inner circle. He’s a lord, the son of a senator, and is likely to be a senator—if not Head of Senate—one day. Not to mention, he is also a viable candidate for Minister of Sorcery.”

“My uncle is the Minister of Sorcery,” Eira said flatly.

“Oh, how charming! Well then you know how prestigious a minister position is.”

“I suppose.”

“You seem like a smart girl, so I’m sure you can realize that Cullen must remain focused on his future. And that extends to who he surrounds himself with, if you follow.”

Cullen’s mention of Allora was forefront in Eira’s mind. “You’re talking about who he courts, or marries.”

“You’re so bold. So refreshing for court.” Patrice tittered as they turned the corner. “Yes, you’re right, I am. So, dear, you must understand that you simply cannot get any ideas. Yemir and I have Cullen’s best