Lynet knew she had to save her strength for the journey, so she selected a single coin from her purse. She held it out to Nadia, watching her face as the coin transformed into snow. Nadia stared at the melting snow in Lynet’s palm with silent awe. “I have power over snow,” Lynet said. “I can transform it and tell it what to do. I think … I think I could make the snow stop falling, if I wanted.”
Nadia lifted her gaze to Lynet’s face, eyes wide and shining with excitement. “You could break the curse,” she said softly. “You could save the North.”
Lynet stepped closer to her. “You’ll go with me, then?” When Nadia didn’t respond, her forehead creased with indecision, Lynet added, “I’m going back for my home, my family—don’t you think any price is worth that? Wouldn’t you do the same?” Her hand twitched, a sudden impulse to touch Nadia’s arm, a promise to restore the connection between them—but Lynet stopped herself, not wanting to make a promise she didn’t know she could keep.
But no promises were needed. Nadia nodded once, and all trace of doubt vanished from her face. “Yes,” she said. “I would. I’ll go north with you.”
“We’ll leave at dawn.”
Nadia started to turn away with new purpose, but then she stopped. “You know that going back means becoming queen,” she said.
“I know,” Lynet answered. “But I’m ready now. I know what kind of queen I want to be.”
“Queen Lynet,” Nadia said, testing the words. She stared at Lynet, and then she tried to hide a laugh.
“What?”
Nadia approached Lynet and lightly touched one of her curls. “Your hair is a mess.”
Lynet thought of how she must look, saying she would be queen with her unevenly shorn curls in a tangle, and before she could stop herself, she started to laugh too.
Still smiling, Nadia drew back her hand, and the backs of her knuckles brushed against Lynet’s cheek, her touch as soft as cobwebs.
27
MINA
The knock at the door made Mina jump. That was silly of her—she knew it could only be Felix. No one was allowed to see her without going through him first.
Since that night in the throne room, Mina had lost the ability to pretend, even to herself. Her guilt was visible in every line on her face, and so she chose carefully who could see her and when, and she haunted her own rooms like a ghost.
“I wanted to be alone tonight,” she told Felix when she opened the door.
He wore an apologetic look, but his arms were tense. “Your father is here,” he said. “He claims to have urgent news that he wishes to share with you immediately.”
Mina gaped at him. Gregory had been away for months, and he had sent no word of returning anytime soon. The news of Nicholas’s and Lynet’s deaths must have reached the South by now, and so he had come to see his daughter, the queen. Would he be pleased with her for keeping the throne? Or would he blame her for the death of his creation? Either way, she knew if she refused to see him now, she would only regret it the next time she did see him. “Bring him here,” she said, resigned.
Felix left, and when he returned, Gregory was with him. Mina stood aside to let them both in, Gregory striding into the center of the room while Felix remained by the door with his arms crossed.
Gregory looked older and frailer than when she had last seen him, and there was a bandage wrapped around his left hand. “Send this one away so we can speak alone,” Gregory said, gesturing to Felix. Before Mina could say anything, he barked, “Leave us,” at Felix.
But Felix didn’t move, not even to wince at Gregory’s rough voice. Mina hid a smile. “He’ll only leave at my request.”
“Then tell him to leave,” Gregory said through gritted teeth.
She gave the appearance of considering this, so he wouldn’t think she was following his order, and then asked Felix to wait outside, as she had always intended. She also didn’t want her father to think she was afraid to be alone with him.
“Much has happened since you left…” Mina began, but Gregory waved his bandaged hand to interrupt her.
“I know all about your little power play,” he said. “The king conveniently died and you saw your chance to take his place with the princess dead. Only you were wrong about something, Mina—the princess was never dead.”
Mina shook her head. She must have misunderstood him. “But Lynet is dead. She broke her neck.”
“No, Mina. That’s what I came here to tell you. Lynet is alive.”
Mina repeated the words to herself, but they didn’t make sense. She felt faintly ill. “No, you’re wrong. I saw her. She was dead.”
“A ruse,” Gregory said. “She has the same power that I have, only with snow. She created the body to stop you from searching for her.”
Mina took a breath. She felt like she was moving underwater, all her movements slow and heavy. Lynet was alive. This revelation simultaneously burdened and unburdened her, relief and fear and shame all mixed together. She had been fooled, an embarrassing admission in front of her father, but did that matter when Lynet was still alive? The girl that Mina had watched grow into a young woman was still living and breathing … and she would return one day to take everything Mina had.
Mina had no doubt of that; despite her protests, Lynet would come back for her birthright, and on that day, one of them would have to lose. It was easier when she was dead, Mina thought. Then I only had to hate myself, not her.
She tried not to show any reaction at all, other than her trembling hands. “Lynet is alive,” she repeated. “How do you know this?”
His expression darkened. “She wanted my help. I pretended for a while to have her interests at heart, but she ran from me before I could give her to you.”
He was lying. Gregory had driven Lynet away somehow—and Mina wasn’t surprised in the slightest. Mina had always tried to shield Lynet from him, but left alone, Gregory wouldn’t always be able to hide his morbid fascination with the girl he had created.
“I know you remember her as a silly child, Mina,” Gregory continued, “but she’s … changed now.” His eyes flickered down to his bandaged hand. “She is ruthless. I believe she’ll do whatever is necessary to take back her crown.”
Mina looked away from him. Why should Lynet have anything but hate for her? “She said that?” she asked.
“She thinks she can cure your heart, but what do you think she’ll do once she knows that isn’t possible? And more importantly, what will you do, Mina? Are you willing to kill her, when it becomes necessary?”
Kill Lynet again? But no, she hadn’t killed Lynet the first time—Lynet hadn’t even died. Mina eyed her father warily. “Why do you care? Why should you want me to kill her? You always wanted to be closer to her. Did Lynet not embrace you as her new father as much as you’d hoped?” Mina couldn’t help smiling a little at the thought. “Is that why you suddenly want her dead?”
Gregory gave her a stony look, then quickly grabbed the back of her neck. Mina fought the urge to shake him off; she didn’t want him to see her thrashing about like some caged bird.