The trumpets pealed, announcing my arrival. When I stepped outside, a hush fell over the crowd, and a smile played on my unseen lips. I turned and gave both of them a curtsey, proud that it was flawless.
“How are you feeling, Queen Anya?” I asked.
“Much better, thanks to your tea. I’m getting stronger every day.” She smiled sweetly at me. Her eyes held a hint of softness about them, and she reached out to touch my arm. She couldn’t see my ecstatic response to her touch, or the tear that slid down my cheek.
The king wouldn’t make eye contact with me when he spoke. “Thank you for agreeing to go on the hunt. I’m sure your help will be immeasurable. Our whole country thanks you for your sacrifice.”
I frowned. “It’s not really a sacrifice. I’m your daughter now, and I will do what I can to keep your kingdom safe.” And I meant it. Despite my mother’s wishes for revenge, I wanted to do the opposite and help them.
“Yes, yes, very good,” King Gerald mumbled and looked toward Gaven, who was overseeing a group of hunters. Gaven was dashing in his furred cloak, his crossbow strapped to his back. He gave the king a salute.
I searched among the party that was going on the hunt and was surprised to see the Florin emissaries were accompanying us, especially after Earlsgaarde’s warning to me about wanting payment for their queen’s death. Was it because we were heading into the mountains close to the pass between Florin and Baist? I assumed so—if Prince Xander came anywhere near them with this large of an army, it would seem like a threat, but if the emissaries accompanied us on the hunt, there would be no deceitfulness.
Pru looked frustrated, as there seemed to be some confusion on where I was to be seated for the trip. Since this was a hunting party, most everyone was on horses, and there were two small enclosed carriages along with multiple supply wagons that would stick to the main roads. The hunters would be following the beast’s trail and would be riding with minimal supplies, only reconnecting with the larger group when needed. There was a chance I wouldn’t even see them most of the trip.
Pru had gone to take my small trunk to the first royal carriage, but Gaven shook his head. She looked up at me, and even from the distance, I knew something was wrong. I instantly recognized the passengers in the first carriage—Yasmin and her closest ladies-in-waiting. The second carriage was for me.
Why is she here? Why is she coming with us? He was publicly slighting me, telling the world that he placed more value on her than his own wife.
If my mother were here, she would have displayed her anger in a tangible way, and even though the cards were stacked against me, I knew I could play this game just as well. My veiled head held high, I grabbed my dress and made my way down the steps alone. I passed Gaven astride his horse as he moved ever so slightly to place himself between me and the prince’s horse, his face one of distrust.
I slowed my steps as I passed Wulfbringer and reached out to brush my gloved hand along his muzzle, but Gaven pulled the horse’s head away and out of my reach. Hurt all because of misguided perception, I weaved an illusion of an adder that appeared near the horse’s hooves, spooking him and almost unseating the guard.
As I walked away, I heard him whisper to Xander, “You’re right, there is something dark and unsettling about her. Don’t worry, Your Highness. I will protect you from the witch clothed in darkness.”
How little they understood. If only they knew my real secret.
To get to my carriage, I had to pass Yasmin and her servants. There was no hiding how she wore her own jeweled tiara to spite me. She sent me a knowing smile as she tapped her tapered nails against the side of the white carriage.
She didn’t cower from me, but instead looked like a cat that had gotten into the milk. Gone were her tears, replaced by a confident and brazen young woman.
Once again letting my own temper get the better of me, I began to recite a poem in the old language of the dark fey. Their tongue had been forgotten by most, and I knew it sounded threatening as I passed by the noblewoman.
Yasmin’s skin paled and she fainted in her seat. Her ladies rushed forward to attend and fan her, while I stopped in front of my enclosed carriage.
A guard opened the door, and I stepped inside and was warmly greeted by lush blue velvet benches and blue-and-gold pillows. Sitting down, I spread my skirt out around my legs just as Pru stepped in behind and sat across from me. Her plain linen servant attire was replaced by a dark blue dress with long sleeves and cuffs, signifying her rise in status. Her hair had been expertly braided and coifed, and she looked quite fetching.
The young woman had grown on me, and her fear, though still near the surface, had subsided. She seemed to relax more in my presence, which was good, because I would need a confidant.
Her face had a wonderful glow of excitement as she sat across from me. “You look nice,” I said, wishing I had come up with a warmer greeting, but I was still seething from what had transpired outside.
“Can you believe it? When I told the steward you requested me as your attendant, it was a promotion. Now I get new clothes and get to travel with you out of the palace. I’ve never been out of the palace, and now I get to see the world.”
The door slammed on us then, cutting off any more congratulations I had. The carriage jolted forward, and I was unprepared for the movement, crashing against the back wall before toppling sideways. Regaining my seat, I took a deep breath and looked around. The curtains had been drawn, and it was instantly stuffy. I reached over to pull them open, but they were stuck. Every one of them had been tacked shut so they could not be pulled aside and tied back.
Pru’s face fell with mine.
“I’m sorry your view is not very promising,” I whispered as my hand fell limply in my lap.
She tried to smile, but I knew it was a struggle. “No worries.” I could hear her disappointment. “But I still get to travel. It’s a great adventure.”
Knowing we would probably not be disturbed for a great while, I pulled the veil from my head and laid it along the velvet bench.
“Until a few years ago,” I confided, “I’d rarely been out of my town of Nihill. Well, once in a while we would travel to visit our friends in the north.”
“Nihill? Doesn’t that mean—”
“Nothing,” I answered. “A name very apropos for the town.” Leaning my head back against the sideboard, I closed my eyes and continued to speak. “A town so small, so filled with misfits on the border of Sion and Candor yet no country claims it. Filled with thieves and wastrels and vagrants, it has become a home for the lost and desolate. My adoptive mother was from the northern kingdom of Kiln. Her mother died in childbirth, leaving her to be raised by an ever-doting father.
“My mother is beautiful and was engaged to the prince of Sion. Her father was a well-known and wealthy shipping merchant, and when his largest trading ship was lost at sea, he lost his wealth, including her dowry. The prince refused to marry Lorelai, since she was a pauper now and devastated. Her father begged attendance at the yearly gathering of the seven realms and asked if anyone would honor the broken betrothal in the southern prince’s stead. They all laughed, for what worth could a pauper bring to a kingdom? There was no coin to fill their coffers, no army to join in defense, no family lineage to strengthen. She had no value other than her beauty.