Both men looked over, and Cohen broke out in a huge grin. “My lady, you came to visit today.”

“Yes.” Selene stepped inside and stomped out her boots as Karl shut the door behind them.

Cohen and the other monk walked over. “Lady Selene, let me introduce you to Brother Aedan. He leads us in our morning and evening chants.”

“My lady,” the older man murmured and bowed his head.

“Brother Aedan, it is nice to meet you. I heard the Chant of Light not long ago, and it was beautiful.”

“Thank you. It is one of our oldest chants.”

“Can I get you some tea?” Cohen asked.

Selene rubbed her hands, not quite ready to remove her gloves. “Yes. I was also hoping to read anything you might have about the birth of the Great Houses.”

Cohen wrinkled his brow. “I might have to look around, but I’ll see what I can find. I know there are some old tomes in the vault below, but many of those are sealed until we can copy them and preserve them.”

“I understand.”

Aedan spoke up. “I will be happy to make tea for Lady Selene if you would like to find what she is looking for, Brother Cohen.”

“Thank you. I will start with Pallion’s writings. Lady Selene, feel free to take a seat at the table near the fireplace, and I will bring you what I can find.”

She took a seat at the end of the long table, then removed her cloak and gloves and laid them beside her. Karl stood by the fire, his body turned so he could keep an eye on her and warm himself at the same time. Not for the first time she wondered why Karl had been assigned to her since her arrival at Northwind Castle.

The gentle hum of conversation combined with the snap and crackle of the fire. Selene leaned forward, her body slowly thawing from the trek here.

“I heard Lord Damien is feeling ill today.” One of the monks spoke softly.

“Not surprising. He was the same way this time last year as well.”

Selene remained still as she tuned into their conversation.

“Do you think he’ll ever recover from the death of his family?” the first monk said in a low voice.

“His parents, perhaps. But it was Lord Quinn’s death that hit him the hardest. They were close.”

“Ah yes, Lord Quinn.” There was a sad chuckle. “He was the sun to Lord Damien’s moon. One fiery and hot, the other cool and level-headed. And now the sun is gone. I sometimes wonder why the Light allowed the young lord to pass.”

“One of many questions that humankind has been asking for a millennia. I think even if we were able to stand in the presence of his brilliant light, we would still not be able to comprehend the ways of the Light.”

“You speak truth, Brother Eoin.”

Selene stared wide-eyed at the fire. Was today the anniversary of the passing of Damien’s brother Quinn? A vision of a dark-haired young boy climbing an oak tree with Elric Luceras filled her mind. His laughter, his smile, his adventurous attitude. Then her memories switched to the pale young man in a bed much too big for him, with Damien kneeling nearby, his head bent. And the way Damien wept when Quinn breathed his last. Such a bond between siblings, unlike anything she had experienced, even with Opheliana.