A House Divided (Astoran Asunder, book 1) by Nicole Ciacchella Page B
Authors: Nicole Ciacchella
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Lach's heart was too pure for bitterness to corrupt him. Yet whenever she dared to test the waters, to dip her toe in, the depth of the hurt on his face was enough to tell her that refusing his suit would devastate him. What would she do if her best friend grew to despise her rather than love her?
Wasn't it selfish of her to delay the inevitable because she dreaded finding out?
Kila's presence in the city was dangerous, far more dangerous than he knew. Not only was she asking him to take on the Houses, she was doing so while cherishing feelings she shouldn't have. She had told herself time and again that her adoration of him had been nothing more than a childish infatuation. She had never believed herself.
"Do you and Captain Stowley have an understanding?" Kila asked.
Gods, but having to speak to him about this was excruciating. Still, he would hear it one way or another, and she would rather he heard it from her.
"Everyone expects me to marry him. He hasn't asked me to be his wife, but he's made his wishes plain. I won't marry him, though," she said softly, staring down at her hands.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry into your personal life."
"You didn't," she said, shrugging a shoulder. "And all this may seem irrelevant, but I don't think it is. You should know what the situation is like in House Staerleigh, and I suspect my relationship with Lach factors into it."
"How so?"
"As I said, I've no real evidence. But I have noticed some things. For instance, the presence of the Elders at the Stowley manor felt odd."
"Isn't it standard practice for the Elders to visit the family in times of loss?"
"It is, but they arrived at the manor even before Lach, my father, and I did. The moment we received the news, we raced to his home. As you've seen, the manors are all close to one another, so it isn't inconceivable that they could have reached the manor before we did, but it was still odd."
"Do you know what time it was when you received the news?" Kila asked, his face suddenly intense with concentration.
Cianne thought carefully. "Lach and I left the assembly at around eleven. I remember because it was somewhat rude of us, but allowances are always made for Lach, and he wanted to catch up with me away from the crowd. He was supposed to report to the Elders in the morning to discuss his next excursion, and his mother told him not to be too late because he would need his rest."
"Do you get along with his mother?"
"She despises me," Cianne said baldly. She tried to keep the bitterness from her tone. "She's never thought me good enough for Lach. I have no Adept abilities and no position of any prominence. Were my father not as powerful as he is, I would likely be relegated to second-class status within the House."
"Would she approve of a match between you, then?"
"She would to secure an alliance with my father."
His face pensive, Kila rubbed his chin. "Forgive me, I didn't mean to interrupt you. Please continue with what you were saying."
Concentrating, she did her best to pinpoint a time, which was difficult as she hadn't consulted a clock and could do no better than estimate. "We had finished tea, but Lach hadn't yet said anything about leaving. It was perhaps midnight, or a quarter past."
"Was your father at the manor with you?"
"He was, but he was in his study. The messenger didn't say that Lach's father had died, but he said there was an emergency of a dire nature, and Lach should return home immediately. Lach was alarmed, and there was a commotion as I called for servants to bring his things. My father came out of his study, and Lach told him about the message, at which point my father said he would come with us."
"He said he would come with you? Or Captain Stowley asked him to come along?"
"He said he would come. Lach was concerned only with getting out the door as quickly as possible."
Kila's face was pained. "Annali—Miss Wyland, is it possible that your father is connected to whatever you think may be
Wasn't it selfish of her to delay the inevitable because she dreaded finding out?
Kila's presence in the city was dangerous, far more dangerous than he knew. Not only was she asking him to take on the Houses, she was doing so while cherishing feelings she shouldn't have. She had told herself time and again that her adoration of him had been nothing more than a childish infatuation. She had never believed herself.
"Do you and Captain Stowley have an understanding?" Kila asked.
Gods, but having to speak to him about this was excruciating. Still, he would hear it one way or another, and she would rather he heard it from her.
"Everyone expects me to marry him. He hasn't asked me to be his wife, but he's made his wishes plain. I won't marry him, though," she said softly, staring down at her hands.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry into your personal life."
"You didn't," she said, shrugging a shoulder. "And all this may seem irrelevant, but I don't think it is. You should know what the situation is like in House Staerleigh, and I suspect my relationship with Lach factors into it."
"How so?"
"As I said, I've no real evidence. But I have noticed some things. For instance, the presence of the Elders at the Stowley manor felt odd."
"Isn't it standard practice for the Elders to visit the family in times of loss?"
"It is, but they arrived at the manor even before Lach, my father, and I did. The moment we received the news, we raced to his home. As you've seen, the manors are all close to one another, so it isn't inconceivable that they could have reached the manor before we did, but it was still odd."
"Do you know what time it was when you received the news?" Kila asked, his face suddenly intense with concentration.
Cianne thought carefully. "Lach and I left the assembly at around eleven. I remember because it was somewhat rude of us, but allowances are always made for Lach, and he wanted to catch up with me away from the crowd. He was supposed to report to the Elders in the morning to discuss his next excursion, and his mother told him not to be too late because he would need his rest."
"Do you get along with his mother?"
"She despises me," Cianne said baldly. She tried to keep the bitterness from her tone. "She's never thought me good enough for Lach. I have no Adept abilities and no position of any prominence. Were my father not as powerful as he is, I would likely be relegated to second-class status within the House."
"Would she approve of a match between you, then?"
"She would to secure an alliance with my father."
His face pensive, Kila rubbed his chin. "Forgive me, I didn't mean to interrupt you. Please continue with what you were saying."
Concentrating, she did her best to pinpoint a time, which was difficult as she hadn't consulted a clock and could do no better than estimate. "We had finished tea, but Lach hadn't yet said anything about leaving. It was perhaps midnight, or a quarter past."
"Was your father at the manor with you?"
"He was, but he was in his study. The messenger didn't say that Lach's father had died, but he said there was an emergency of a dire nature, and Lach should return home immediately. Lach was alarmed, and there was a commotion as I called for servants to bring his things. My father came out of his study, and Lach told him about the message, at which point my father said he would come with us."
"He said he would come with you? Or Captain Stowley asked him to come along?"
"He said he would come. Lach was concerned only with getting out the door as quickly as possible."
Kila's face was pained. "Annali—Miss Wyland, is it possible that your father is connected to whatever you think may be
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