Page 101 of Twin Crowns

And then the king of Gevra threw back his head and laughed. And laughed and laughed. And laughed.

The sound of it made Rose’s skin crawl. She stood trapped in his arms, with a hundred gazes suddenly boring into her.

Alarik stopped laughing with unnerving abruptness, the last of it dying in his throat. “No.”

Rose blinked. “No?”

“No,” he growled. “You should be kissing my feet for the pleasure of this union.”

“I mean no disrespect, Your Majesty,” said Rose hastily. “I only thought that being such a prize himself, perhaps Prince Ansel may prefer a little more time to consider whether—”

“Enough.”Alarik dug his fingernails into her waist. “It is for me to decide who is best suited to wed Ansel. And I say that person isyou. And besides, without this union, I don’t get any witches of Eana for my collection....” He paused and licked his teeth. “And Iwantthem.”

An image sprang up in Rose’s mind of Banba and Thea holding hands in front of a roaring bonfire. Suddenly, her fear for them and all of Ortha rang in her ears like a gull’s cry. “I’m afraid the witches are no longer part of the deal.”

Alarik grabbed her jaw and pulled her close until they were nose to nose. “If I were you, Princess Rose, I would take that back. You do not want to see what happens when you renege on a deal with a Gevran.” He dropped his hand. “Back home, witches are nothing more than a bedtime story. A tale to frighten our young, and yet I have always wondered what truth lies in those tales. Whatpower...”

The waltz ended and Alarik released her, bowing once at the waist, before brushing his cool lips against her hand. “Thank you for the dance, and for the entertainment. I haven’t laughed like that in such a long time. Until tomorrow, Princess.”

He sauntered away, and Rose stared after him with such hatred burning inside her, her cheeks turned bright pink.

Then Ansel appeared. “My flower! You have been waltzing with my brother for positively too long. Surely it must be my turn again? And I must say, it looks as if your dancing has improved remarkably.” He cast a nervous glance at the king’s retreating figure. “Alarik is quite good at that. Inspiring improvement.”

“He certainly has a firm grip,” muttered Rose as she massaged her jaw.

“When I was a boy, I refused to ride the palace ice bear because I was terrified of its teeth, but after Alarik made me rest my head in its open mouth for an entire afternoon, I found I was no longer afraid of the creature at all!” Ansel giggled nervously. “Alarik is a good king. A strong king. And a good brother, too! Of course, being king is more important than being a good brother.”

Rose stared at the babbling prince, trying to remember why she had ever thought herself in love with him. He felt like a stranger to hernow. Perhaps he had always been a stranger, and she’d been so eager for love—for extraordinariness—that she had painted in the edges of him and turned him into someone else entirely. Someone she thought she could love. But now that she had tasted the desert air with Shen and watched the stars dancing in his eyes as he looked at her, she knew she had never loved Ansel. And she certainly couldn’t marry him. Of that, she was unerringly sure.

She was struck by a surge of pity for poor Ansel growing up in the shadow of someone like Alarik. She took his hand in hers. The unprompted touch silenced the chattering prince, who stared at their hands in muted surprise. A blush rose in his cheeks.

“Alarik is lucky to have you as a brother, Ansel.”

Ansel swept his golden hair from his face, his blue eyes bright with joy. “It is I who am the lucky one. What a good brother Alarik is to arrange for me to marry the most beautiful and unique woman in all of Eana. You will be adored in Gevra, Rose. You’ll see. The love of our people will keep you warm in the long winter months.”

Rose smiled faintly. She might have steeled herself for their wedding if she had truly believed it was what was best for Eana. She would do whatever it took to protect her kingdom, to ensure the prosperity and peace her people deserved. But this union was not the answer.

She could see now it never had been.

Ansel tugged her toward the dance floor. “Shall we dance, my sunbeam?”

“I’m afraid I can’t right now.” Rose stepped away from him just as the doors to the ballroom opened. She gasped as Willem Rathborne stepped inside, looking like a ghost who had come to haunt her.Oh no!Suddenly, everything was going wrong.

Although Wren was mistaken about how close the Kingsbreath was to death, Rose could tell, even from a distance, that he was not well. The sight of his gaunt face and sallow skin evoked no kindness in her heart. She knew him now for the monster he was. The monster he had always been. “I must speak with the Kingsbreath.” She flashed Ansel her most radiant smile. “When I return, you and I will raise a glass to the future of both our great countries.”

And how they may never be joined, she thought to herself as she seized her courage, lifted her skirts, and marched toward the Kingsbreath.

Willem scowled at Rose as she approached, and the sight of his displeasure made her feel like a child again. By instinct, she curtsied. “I’m so pleased you have recovered from your illness, Willem.”

“Mind your tongue,” he hissed. “I will not have the Gevrans hear another word about my illness. It’s bad enough that I missed their arrival on the Silvertongue. I told Chapman to keep things running smoothly in my absence, which begs the question,Whyaren’t you over there waltzing with your prince?”

Rose raised her head and met the gaze of the man who had murdered her parents. The man who had raised her, had pretended to love her, had taught her how to cower and bend her whole life, not for Eana but for him.

She wished for a knife to run into his heart.

Be careful, she reminded herself. There was no sense in revealing what she had learned about Willem yet, nor the existence of her twin sister. Despite Wren’s betrayal, they shared a common enemy. She was more than just her sister. Wren was her ally.

With King Alarik’s laughter still echoing in her head and the Kingsbreath standing before her, Rose decided to appeal to him one last time. “I do not intend to dance with Prince Ansel again, nor will I make a life with him,” she said steadily. “After careful consideration, I no longer believe that a Gevran alliance is what is best for Eana. Alarik seemed to disagree, but perhaps if both you and I speak to him—”

---