Heir of Darkness

Chapter 2

The Lord Commander stood in the entryway of the grand estate, shrouded in a dark hood that covered his body. The sharp planes of his face were stark, the flickering torches surrounding him making the deep shadows all the more pronounced, and his cold blue eyes made Tessa want to run the other direction. His unflinching gaze rested on her, and she wrapped her cloak tighter around her body, wanting to burrow as far within herself as possible. Despite the many layers protecting her from the bitter cold outside, she felt somehow undressed under his scrutinizing gaze.

The air was pregnant with the smell of rot and decay and the stone fortress before her was utterly barren. There was no laughter here, no joy. No flowers or any signs of life safe for the haphazard, bristling bushes climbing up its walls.

She shivered.

"This is her?" The Lord Commander's voice was clipped, cold.

She could hear the smug satisfaction in her uncle's voice as he spoke and fought not to curl her fists. "Lord Commander," he said. "May I present to you the ever-lovely, Theresa Fields."

She could have snorted under other circumstances, never in her 21 years had she heard her uncle utter so much as a kind word in her direction. She wondered if the Lord Commander could hear the icy sarcasm lacing her uncle's words. But no, fear held her heart in its icy grip and she struggled to breath past the lump in her throat.

The Lord Commander made a dismissive sound and her uncle stiffened. Rain pelted her as they stood shivering in the unceasing downpour. Her nerves were on fire, and she flinched as the mud squelched beneath the Lord Commander's boots.

Slowly, agonizingly, he approached her, seeming to relish the way she trembled and cowered before him. Even her uncle was completely still beside her, tension radiating off of him like heat from a flame.

Rain ran down her cheeks with renewed vigor, and she felt the unruly curls Amanda had fought so hard to tame that morning break free from their pins. With cold hands, the Lord Commander reached out to grab her chin, slowly turning her face from side to side. His fingers dug almost painfully into her jaw, and Tessa furled her fists to keep them from slapping away his hands, from grabbing the sword festooned upon his waist and driving the sharpened blade through his abdomen.

Tessa's breath chilled as a cruel smile crept across the Lord Commander's face. "You'll do nicely," he said. He dropped his hand and turned towards her uncle. "I'll need a demonstration before the union is legitimized."

His words settled into her core like stones in a pond, and Tessa felt her hands begin to tremble.

Distantly, wrapped in her own grief and despair, she felt her uncle beside her bow his head. "Of course," he said smoothly.

The Lord Commander gave a brief nod to her uncle and turned sharply, striding back towards the dark opening of the fortress as the world seemed to mobilize around him. Servants she hadn't seen suddenly emerged from the deep shadows of the estate, and she watched them through blurred eyes as they scurried about, faces as drawn and bleak as the land surrounding them.

A girl, small and billowy, timidly approached where Tessa now stood, her dull grey dress nearly hanging off her slight frame. Cheekbones as sharp as daggers sat below grey, sunken eyes, making her look as if all life had been wrung from her.

"Come with me, miss," she said, giving Tessa a sad, almost apologetic nod of her head.

Tessa didn't trust herself to speak, so she could only nod and dimly follow as the slight girl turned and led her into the dark entryway.

The interior of the fortress was as dark and unwelcoming as the exterior had been. The long hallways were dank and musty, lit only by the occasional flickering torch to guide them. Dark red tapestries clung to the walls with intricate designs and sprawling lettering in a language Tessa couldn't identify. Their footsteps echoed down the narrow pathway and Tessa felt as if she could physically feel the coldness seeping from the walls.

Unable to bear the hollow emptiness within her, hurried forward to match the girl's brisk pace. "What is your name?" Tessa asked tentatively.

A long moment stretched between them, and Tessa was half afraid the girl wouldn't respond at all. Their footsteps echoed throughout the narrow space, and the girl looked around nervously, as if half afraid the walls themselves were listening to their every word. Just a few steps ahead of Tessa, the girl turned her head back. "Do me a favor, miss, and do not speak to me where others can hear," she said under her breath, picking up her pace again and looking very much as if she hadn't spoken at all.

Where others can hear? Why can't wouldn't they be able to speak?

Hundreds of questions bubbled up onto her tongue, and Tessa struggled to hold them in as the girl dutifully led her through vacant hallways and up countless sets of stairs. Though she tried to mark what hallways they turned down, Tessa quickly lost her bearings in the labyrinth that was to be her new home. She half wondered if the girl had been ordered to disorient her before leading her to her rooms, though after the fourth winding set of stairs, Tessa was breathing heavily enough she no longer cared to try and discern where she was in the sprawling fortress.

At least she was no longer cold, Tessa thought bitterly.

She wasn't sure how long they had been walking before they finally reached a simple door at the end of a long hallway.

The girl pulled out a brass key and went about unlocking the door. Tessa jumped when she finally spoke again. "The Lord Commander would like you to change into something... more appropriate," the girl said quietly, swinging open the door with a loud creak.

Tessa looked down at her haggard traveling clothes she'd been wearing for days and fought back a wince. She supposed she did look rather frightful, what with her haphazard curls and blotched skin, though in truth she didn't particularly care what the Lord Commander thought of her appearance. She was half tempted to stay in this dress, merely to spite him, though curiosity quickly overrode any feelings of animosity she bore for the Lord Commander as she caught sight of what was to be her living quarters.

Despite the seemingly large estate, the room was small with modest furnishings. Two twin windows sat at the far end of the room, and though their shudders were pulled firmly shut and a fire blazed steadily in the fireplace, the room was still frightfully cold. Tessa shuddered and wrapped her arms around herself, hoping the simple duvet on the bed would be warm enough during the long winter nights.

Her eyes caught sight of an ornate, tan dress draped across the plush mattress. She walked towards it, running her fingers across the gold thread woven throughout the bodice. The bottom of the dress flared out almost comically, looking very much like an explosion of feathers on a disheveled bird. The dress was an abomination, and Tessa couldn't tell whether she wanted to laugh or cry more.

She could almost hear Amanda's laugh as she pictured herself wearing it.

The servant girl's voice, as faint as it was, pulled Tessa's eyes towards the door. "You are to dress and meet the Lord Commander in the study," the girl said, fidgeting anxiously where she stood in the narrow door frame. "And he doesn't like being made to wait."