“There’s a small estate just over the hill there. It looks over the sea. My father built it for my mother, who loved this region and spent most winters here, where it was warmer. She never adjusted to the frigid air of Abscission in Arberly. They used to hold court for humans at the estate.”

“Do you come here often?”

I shake my head. “Not as often as I should. I haven’t been able to bring myself to hold court at the estate—it reminds me of them too much. But I also can’t leave it to rot, so it sits here empty,” I admit, though I leave out how I feel like the estate has become a ghost, reminding me of my parents and hollow of the life it once had. Unwrapping Thorne from my body, I take his hand and lead him to the stone path that will take us to my parents’ second home. “There are human servants who maintain the estate. It’s a way for me to employ as many humans as I can in the region to bolster their economy,” I explain to him as we walk. “I suspect we’re going to surprise, and potentially terrify, a few of them.”

“Good thing I can charm anyone,” he teases, and I roll my eyes.

When we arrive at the home, my breath catches at the beauty of the grounds, despite the hundreds of times I’ve visited. The front of the main house comprises four massive floor-to-ceiling windows facing the sea. Lush green grass covers the grounds that decline slowly to a small, private sandy beach. The barrier of mist that circles Thayaria is about a half mile out from the beach, allowing for enough space to swim. In the late afternoon light, the house sparkles from within.

Turning to Thorne, I watch as his eyes dart from the house to the beach and back again. “Ready?” I ask. He nods.

We walk in through a side door and down a marble lined hallway to the main entrance of the home. The foyer is made of the same dark green marble of the palace throne room, a massive black iron chandelier lighting the room. Matching staircases lead up to the second floor on both sides of the foyer. Instead of heading upstairs to the main living area, I release Thorne’s hand and walk quietly toward the kitchen, where I know most of the servants are gathered.

When we enter the warm and lively galley for the estate, a dozen humans startle at my presence. Many of them have never met me. Their nervous glances tell me they’re uncertain what to make of this surprise visit. The main housekeeper, Meera, an older woman who travels to Arberly once a year to update me on the status of the estate, smooths her skirts and dips into a deep curtsey, and the rest of the servants awkwardly follow her lead.