Page 119 of Of Glass and of Gold

“And why do you think that was? Hm? Your mother held it in her line. He was bound. Deep down, I suspected he knew. Knew the mistakes of granting that sort of leniency. He’d mention to me in passing that he waited for the day you’d display anything. At the first whiff of magical power, you were to be shipped off to Duski.

“I thought if you possessed any abilities, you’d slip up one day, but I never saw it. Tell me, how long have you known? Standing by your side, spewing my tolerance for magic wielders—I was certain you’d confide in me. Never did.” He shrugged, forcing his bottom lip into a pout. “Perhaps you inherited a little of your father’s cunning after all.”

A barrage of footsteps came from either side, a couple guardsmen grabbing me and hoisting me to my feet. I tried shirking out of their grip, but they held firm.

Bide my time. Wait for the perfect opportunity. Lull them into a false sense of security.

Damn it all, I wished I hadn’t spent hours sparring with Marco. I could feel it in my muscles, the lack of usual stored strength. I still hadn’t fully recovered after Nora’s attack.

“Load him on the ship. They’ll want as many as we can get. And put a bag over his head. It’ll act as your crown during transport,” Commander Druller sneered in my direction before tilting his chin up in silent command.

His men complied, shoving me forward without question toward the docks. To a cloaked ship that I knew waited. If they got me on board and locked me in that iron cell, there’d be no escape until Radhak’s men intervened, and Commander Druller would be left in his position at Highcrest, with access to Nora.

I had to avoid being loaded on that ship.

60

Nora

Knowing Chanston rarely ever made it to South Harbor, I indulged in every opportunity to share details about my town. Family business lineages, reputations such as who sold the freshest fish and when the market was least busy.

Reminiscing allowed my heart to grow a little fonder of this village I would no longer wake up in daily.

It probably added an extra hour onto this trip, in between stops to castle staff families. Some ailments required medicinal shipments from faraway lands that they couldn’t afford. I took note of those things, promising to look into procuring some.

At first, my interactions had seemed stiff, like they weren’t sure how to handle having someone with my status enter their humble homes. Yet, after not much time, they’d relaxed, thanking me more as a friend than a ruler. The smile plastered on my face didn’t wear off for quite some time.

Sure, we hadn’t found out who was behind the kidnappings, but we were making strides. In the meantime, the satisfaction from seeing hope arise on sickly people fueled me more than I thought it would have.

The carriage took us back to the castle, sunset having bid its farewell on the day within the past hour.

Moving through the opulent halls, I offered greetings to a few of the staff whose names I’d committed easily to memory. Others I’d made a game with, taking stabbing guesses until they finally corrected me or I begged for the answer.

They might think my efforts to know them all to be kind. A prudent queen, extending courtesy and respect to her subjects. While I did agree that knowing the names of the people in service to me was important, it supplied another purpose. A strategic one.

Someone, or many someone’s, had moved undetected within these walls long enough. Nick had said he and Marco narrowed it down, but just like I’d seen with the Citadels, emotional motives were as easy to rein in as an unbroken stallion. We’d yet to determine why the kidnappings had been taking place, and thus we didn’t know the reasoning for it. Or how many people were involved.

People didn’t choose evil for the sake of it; they became misguided and desperate while trying to do the right thing. I knew that firsthand. Once I’d felt empowered to act, I’d been willing to risk everything. Even my very soul, and it had seemed worth it.

So, while I paraded around, playing the ever kindly role of queen, I hoped none would suspect that my eagle-eyed eagerness to learn meant anything more.

The dining room in which we normally ate had been cleared already, but one of the sweet staff offered to prepare me a plate. I would have insisted on getting my own, but my stomach grumbled at the mention of food and I didn’t quite know my way to the kitchens yet. I would rather not be found passed out in some random corridor later. So I agreed, and she swept away to retrieve it.

Knowing it would take her some time, I marched to our room, prepared to live up to a promise I’d made earlier, only to find it empty. A guard posted outside said the prince hadn’t been back since the morning shift guards noted his exit.

I imagined my handsome fiancé hard at work, doing princely things somewhere in this place.

Rather than waiting alone and hungry in the dining room, I made my way to Marco’s suite. His guards greeted me with nothing but jovial warmth before I strutted through the double doors. Marco ran a towel through his snow-colored hair, luckily in a fresh change of clothes already.

“You know, I think half of your charm comes from your delightful guard detail,” I said, slumping into the green velvet sofa in the sitting area.

Marco laughed. “It’s built into their pay. Make people like me.” He held out his hands as if reading the words across a banner.

“You should give them raises. That’s a hard job to do,” I teased, my lips quirking into a smirk.

“We can’t all have your charm, Nora dear.” He tossed the wet towel over the chair at his desk.

“Have you seen Nick?”

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