Chapters (64)
- Front Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright
- Contents
- Pronunciation Guide
- Prologue
- Part One
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Part Two
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Part Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Part Four
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Epilogue
- Excerpt from The Sun and Its Shade
- The Night and Its Moon Playlist
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
- Back Cover
And so, their begrudging alliance continued, even if it was particularly challenging for Nox to remain calm with her business partner in times like these. Nox permitted the tantrum, understanding precisely what upset the woman. If she was free to roam about the continent, Millicent risked losing her hope for the future. With the puppeteered support nobility throughout Farehold, Queen Moirai might consider the Madame for her court adviser. A position of prominence in the castle was the Madame’s endgame, after all. The southern queen would never consider an audience with a Madame, as no monarch would ever openly associate with someone of disrepute like Millicent. If the weight of every male titleholder in the south put the woman’s name up for adviser, Queen Moirai would have cause to look twice.
Nox had no need for titles, nor did she care what Millicent chose to do with the power that came her way. The Madame helped bring her the men she needed, and so their alliance continued. As long as they were bonded by the common goal of amassing their forces, the Madame’s ulterior motives were not Nox’s concern. After all, Nox had protected Amaris from infancy. She’d taken her place at the brothel. She’d be damned if she gave up on her now. Not when she had the power to make a difference.
“I can’t allow it,” Millicent said.
Nox’s brows rose until she felt her forehead line with a testing disbelief.
“You may be the one with the abilities, but you can’t move forward without my people, or without the home we share. If we’re going to continue to work together, you need to stay here.”
Nox’s mind combed through the empty threat. The woman did have an essential band, to be sure. Millicent provided her protégé with a number of effective allies in their games of chess. The bartender, the lutist, the girls who worked the floor, the lures who would wander into the world to draw in the men, they were all cut in on the profits reaped.
Nox saw the faces of the others, certain they knew nothing of her dark power, though they weren’t foolish enough to mistake her for something entirely human. Men would go up to her rooms excited for a tumble and descend the stairs ready to hand over their homes, lands, and lives. The Selkie had more money than it knew what to do with. The succubus kept up her life as a courtesan, allowing men to wander into her bed whole and departing once beholden to her power. Not only was it an endless supply of fresh prey as she absorbed soul after soul, but Millicent was tirelessly willing to clean up after her botched missions. Besides, remaining at the Selkie came with the added benefits of the luxurious lifestyles and afforded Nox the freedom she desired.
She considered all of it, and none of it.