Niko and I bowed before them as I willed my pulse to calm from its state of disappointment earlier.
"Raise your heads," said the Duke.
And we did. I took in the parlor. It was spacious, furniture positioned calculatingly without sacrificing the room's artistic aspects. A pianoforte laid opened on the side, and it looked like it had been used just now from how the bench was slightly askew. The wallpapers that covered the entirety of the walls in the parlor were blue and gilded silver, just like all the other stuff in here. It was all the same, though there were different tones of blue, a streak or a feature of silver was never missing. Navy blue curtains with silver embroideries flapped against the night breeze behind the duke and duchess, the moonlight outlining their ice-like images.
"Your graces," Niko greeted. "You called for us?"
Duke Varemont nodded, a fluid tip of his chin. "Yes, we did. Come sit, the both of you."
