Queen Of Glass

Book 2 Chapter 24

Upon her arrival, Celaena Sardothien found the chateau in a state of extreme celebration. She could hear Stephaenya and Leighanna cheering from inside, and above that, Luca laughing loudly. The kitchen door, its upper half usually left open, was shut, and Celaena hesitated as she stood outside the chateau, listening to the conversation inside. She had been gone for two days and had not bothered to inform anyone of her initial departure.
She turned her head as the sound of a horse filled her ears, and saw, to her great surprise, the Baron Ghent walking away from the house, into the long alley of trees, a smile on his face. She watched him for a moment, and her brows rose as he turned onto the main road and headed towards his estate, the coat of his black stallion glistening in the morning light.
His clothes aren't as fine as one would expect with such a beast, or—Celaena looked at the sheathed sword that hung down from his belt—with such a fine sword. A frugal man? Or perhaps one that just does not care for fashion the way his spoilt son does.
The Baron suddenly looked towards her and Celaena clenched her jaw as she saw his mouth open slightly. Though he was a moderate distance from her, and a few trees and bushes stood between them, their eyes locked together. Raal's ring was suddenly heavy on her hand, and Celaena nodded her greetings to the Baron before clumsily opening the kitchen door, and slipping inside. Her heart was beating a bit faster than she would have liked, and Celaena used the cover of a blink to allow her magick to wash through her with calming force.
Soft green flashed before her closed eyes, and she let out a long breath as her muscles relaxed. Time seemed to slow for a second, and she could feel her blood pumping through her veins, passing through organs and arteries—she was in control, she controlled her thoughts now. As much as her magick might agitate and arouse her, Raonn had taught her how easily it could also calm and heal her mind and body.
There was a loud cry, and Celaena's eyes flew open. A fraction of a second had passed, though it had felt like several to her, and Celaena gasped as strong arms grabbed her from the doorway and lifted her into the air. Luca was spinning her around, laughing and crying.
"You must have done something, you must have said something!" Luca cried, setting her down. Celaena, slightly dizzy, looked at Luca, and then at Stephaenya and Leighanna, who were holding each other, their faces wet.
"Said what? To whom?" Celaena asked, smiling weakly. Didn't they want to know where she had been?
"To the Baron Ghent! To my—" Luca smiled broadly, "to my father!"
"Your father—why, at long last..." Leighanna sighed, releasing Stephaenya and sitting down at the kitchen table.
Celaena shook her head, a grin breaking out on her face. "I'm still terribly confused," she admitted.
"You little liar!" Luca goaded, "You spoke to him about it, didn't you? You convinced him to do it! That's where you've been these past few days!"
"To do what?"
Luca laughed, and ran a hand through his hair. "To acknowledge me as his son—as his firstborn son!" Celaena laughed, blinked, and then broke out laughing again, sitting down at the table. "But why would he—"
"Brenn and his friends were caught raping a young woman in town," Stephaenya said coldly, taking a seat beside Leighanna. "Since it was so public, the only thing Ghent could do was to disown Brenn as his son. Since he now only has a daughter—"
"He came here today to ask me to come live with him!" Luca burst in. "He explained everything to me about he and my mother, about his dreadful wife and son, about how he had seen me at the tournament and had wished that he could have spoken to me..." Luca trailed off, his eyes misting over.

"But," Celaena said, biting on her lip. "As wonderful as it is—isn't it highly...unusual that the Baron would disown his son over such a thing? Surely he could have tastefully covered it up."
Stephaenya glared at Celaena, but Luca shook his head. "It just makes me believe that he's been waiting for a long while to do this!"
"But he's still Brenn's father—kicking him out of the family is a bit much. It's surreal, in a way. I can't—" "Aren't you happy?" Stephaenya snapped. "Luca is now heir to the Baron's estate, meaning he is now royalty."
Celaena shook her head. "I'm thrilled, but I can't believe this without being a bit incredulous. I mean, what will the Baron's wife do?"
"She's already threatening divorce."
"Divorce?" Celaena looked at her three companions. "So the Baron would truly rip apart his estate for you?"
Luca raised an eyebrow, his smile fading. "You really didn't speak to him, did you?"
Celaena frowned. "No, but what makes you think that someone spoke to him? It sounds like he needed no one to convince him to kick Brenn out."
"No! He said that someone spoke to him about the situation—a conversation that basically made him realize what had been beneath his nose this whole time!"
Raal.
Celaena's hands clenched into loose fists, Raal's ring cold against her increasingly hot skin. He had to have spoken to
Ghent. He spoke to Ghent and told him everything about Luca's relationship with her—about how...how...
If he has Luca, he might have access to Aelin Galathynius.
"...But let me tell you that word has spread that Aelin Galathynius won the battle at Peregrinno, and that there is an eye in every household looking for her." Raal's words from the tournament repeated themselves in her head with unnerving clarity.
"Ele?" Luca placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Raal," Celaena said quietly. "It was Raal who spoke to him, I'm sure of it."
Luca was quiet for a moment, and Celaena took his hand in hers.
So long as they don't know who I am—so long as that remains, I shall be fine...
A smile spread across Celaena's face, her eyes softening. "I am happy for you, Luca," she said, squeezing his hand. "I'm afraid that I've become so cynical that when a faerietale happens in front of me, I can't help but doubt it."
Celaena smiled at Stephaenya, whose face had become alight with joy once again. "I suppose that you will go with him when he leaves?"
Stephaenya's mouth opened, and then closed. Luca, the only one standing, now sat down, releasing Celaena's hand. "Of course she'll come with me."
Stephaenya blushed deeply, looking down at the table. "I—I have to work here though. I can't just be given a job at the estate—it wouldn't be right, and besides, I have so many things to—"
Luca's hand clamped around her slender one, and Stephaenya's breathing seemed to quicken. The youth looked at her hand, calloused and stained with dyes, and leaned forward across the table. "I don't want you working ever