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“It’s a Nocturnus sigil. If he should go against our wishes, it will burn him alive.” She pats him on the shoulder. “Thank you, Percy. You and Jobe are dismissed.”

I have never seen two grown men scuffle away from a beautiful woman faster. “So you do know the names of all your servants.”

She smirks and helps herself to another goblet of wine. “Of course, I do. I handpicked each one of them. You didn’t think I was going to move into a house with a strange man and not have protection, did you not?”

I amble over to her and help myself to her cup. “I want to know everything about Nocturnus.”

“Why, my lord? Do you wish to become an initiate?” she drawls teasingly.

“No. I wish to become an elder.” I finish the wine and pour another.

She sighs. “You can’t.”

“Why not?”

“Because you’re not a founder. Only the families of Evigheden can be elders. That was the pact they made. A safeguard to protect the bloodlines.”

I lean in and lick the bloodstain at the corner of her mouth, reminding her of what I’m capable of. “You’re mine now, Arkana. And the only thing that matters to me is protecting our bloodline.”

ARKANA

Walking through the halls of Graves Estate, it’s hard to imagine that it was my home mere days ago. The rooms feel empty without my father in them. He filled every nook and crevice with his energy. Even my old bedroom feels like that of a stranger’s. It’s hard to fathom that I was ever the girl who grew up here. How can everything and everyone change so quickly?

I take a seat in the drawing room, but immediately stand when my mother enters. With her white hair in a low bun, not a strand is out of place. Her lips are pursed, pulled tight with such severity she looks in pain. I imagine she is, actually. Despite her annoyance with how he doted on me, she was madly and deeply in love with my father.

“Hello, Mother. You’re looking well.” In a dark emerald-green gown, she is the epitome of elegance and duty. After the seven-day period of mourning in all black, it is customary for the lady of the house to don the color of their family crest.

She motions for me to sit and joins me in the opposite chair. The brocade on them is vintage, pulled in by carriage from Evigheden. I never noticed before how much they smell like him. But now that it is all around me, his musk permeates. Another trace of Icarus Graves stitched into the very fibers of the furniture.

“Well, it’s a miracle. I barely had time to allow my chambermaid to brush my hair. There’s much work to still be done. If my strands were not already white, I’m afraid they certainly would’ve turned just this week alone.” A subtle nod to her housemaid brings the portly woman forward with a pot of tea. She serves us both before scurrying back against the curtains.

“What can I do to help, Mother? With laying father to rest, hosting Uncle Atreus and the other elders, and still having to deal with Silas and Finn in the house, you must be exhausted.”

She nods through a sip of tea. “Yes, there is something you can help with.”

I lean forward, excited. The past couple of weeks have left me feeling helpless and overindulgent. “I am at your service, Mother.”

She pulls a vial of liquid from her skirt. The heady scent of oleander permeates between us the second she twists it open. “Care for a splash?”

I nod and offer her my teacup. Oleander calms the nerves like whiskey but without the feeling of drunkenness. “Thanks to Aquarius Thorn, my garden will be in full bloom by next winter.” Everyone in Melancholia knows that the most sought-after poison thrives in the coldest frost.

My mother sighs, relishing the toxins. “Silas has been absent since the night of your father’s viewing. He paid his respects then left with Jessamine Blackwell. I haven’t seen him since.”

I gasp. It is much unlike my older brother to shirk family duties. “He must be unwell. What can I do, Mother?”

She steels her icy gaze on me. “You can find him and talk some sense into him. If he doesn’t return soon, Atreus will name Finn as your father’s successor. And we both know how that will turn out.”

“Of course, Mother. But why me? Surely his initiates are more equipped to drag him back.” If Finn becomes the next elder of Nocturnus, it will be a disaster. A man as cruel as he is should not have that much power.

“He responds better to you, Arkana. If you make him understand how important he is, he will come home. But if I send a group of initiates after him, he will only retreat farther.” She fidgets with the lace that rims her sleeves. A rare display of uncertainty.

I lean forward and clasp her hand. “I will find him and speak sense to him. You cannot allow Finn to take over, Mother. Please appeal to Uncle Atreus.”

She snickers. “They are cut from the same cloth, my child… His presence here has reminded me of why I chose Icarus over him.”

A tinge of fury sparks in my chest. “Has he hurt you?”

She chuckles. “He has hurt everyone… I’m fine. No need to worry. Lucy is here, too, now. She keeps him under her thumb.”