Page 55 of Twin Crowns

She wished she wasn’t in her nightgown. If only her face were clean and her hair untangled. She longed for her best dress of honey-gold and her most decadent jewelry so she could mark herself as the princess of Eana, the true ruler of this feral place. Princess Rose Valhart, beautiful and beloved.

But all she had now was her pride, and that would have to be enough.

Banba was pulled away from the crowd by an old witch with a long gray beard while Tilda chattered like a friendly bird in Rose’s ear. “That’s where I live, in that hut there, and that big one, right next to it, belongs to Thea and Banba. On rainy days, Thea does her healing there, too. I know because when I broke my arm after I fell from thecliffs, that’s where I went.”

Rose turned to Thea. “You’re a healer?”

Thea smiled. “Shen tells me you are a healer, too.”

“I don’t know why Shen thinks he has any right to talk about me at all,” said Rose quickly. Thinking about that deceitful bandit sent fresh anger coursing through her. “But I do know that he’s a liar.”

Thea raised her eyebrow but didn’t push for more.

“Did Shen have to use his craft on your journey?” asked Tilda excitedly. “I’ve never seen himfightfight. Just practice. He trains me sometimes. The truth is, I’m not a very good warrior yet, but Shen says, if I practice every day and eat my bread crusts, then one day I might be able to take him down.” She giggled. “He trained Wren, too. It was much harder for her at the start because it’s not her craft. She can’t jump very high or climb very well, and one time, she got tangled up in a bunch of seaweed and we had to cut her loose with a tackle knife.” Tilda had to stop to catch her breath, she was talking so fast. “Anyways, sometimes when Shen’s out on the rocks, it looks as if he’sflying!”

Rose remembered how fast Shen had moved when he’d pounced on the blood beetle to save her life. She should have known right away that his skill wasn’t natural, that he was a warrior witch. “Who would he have fought?”

“Palace soldiers, of course!” Tilda lowered her voice as if she were telling Rose a secret. “Did you know that Shen can fight ten people at once? Probably more. But the most I’ve seen is ten and that was only practice, so I don’t even think he was trying his best!”

“I’m afraid you will have to ask him yourself,” Rose said tightly. “I was asleep when he kidnapped me.”

Tilda’s face fell. “Oh, that’s right....”

Thea cleared her throat. “Tilda, how about we let Rose have something to eat and a moment to settle in before we badger her. I’m sure the princess has had a difficult journey getting here.”

“That’s one way of putting it,” said Rose pointedly.

She wrung her hands as she searched for Shen’s face in the crowd. Insolent, sneaky, lying Shen. She guessed there were close to two hundred people gathered around the bonfire now. They wore rough tunics and dark trousers similar to the ones Banba and Thea wore, their hair blowing loose and tangled in the sea wind. It felt strange to be among the people she had feared for so long. Rose reminded herself that, just because the witches didn’t look threatening, didn’t mean they weren’t dangerous. She mustn’t drop her guard.

“Here, love.” Thea guided her to a woven mat on the sand. “Sit and steady your nerves. Rowena will bring you something to eat.” She waved over a tall girl with long golden curls and a face full of freckles. She looked about Rose’s age, though her overdramatic pout made her seem younger. “I’ll be back soon. Tilda, come and help me fetch the wine.”

Rose watched with rising panic as Thea and Tilda disappeared into the crowd. A moment later, Rowena carried over a wooden platter piled with grilled fish and brown bread. She dropped it roughly in front of Rose. “Don’t get used to this,Princess,” she said coldly. “We serve ourselves here in Ortha.” She threw a glare over her shoulder as she stalked away to join a girl with cropped black hair who was snickering at the edge of the bonfire.

Rose’s hand shook as she rescued a sliver of cod from the sand.Never in her life had anyone dared speak to her like that. The witches were already testing her. Gingerly, she took a bite of fish.

“Don’t let Rowena get to you,” said a voice close to her ear.

Rose jerked her head around to find Shen kneeling next to her. “How are you so quiet all the time?” she said, startled. “It’s unnatural.”

Shen flashed his teeth. “Witch, remember?”

Rose yanked Shen’s boots off her feet and dumped them in his lap. Then she stood and shook out her nightgown. She was suddenly acutely aware of how dirty it was, not to mention the tangles in her hair and the sunburn on her face. “Please just leave me alone.”

Before Shen could reply, she stalked around the bonfire, where she stood alone by the shore.

The waves lapped at her feet as she stared into the sea, fighting back tears. The desert with Shen had been frightening, but sometimes it had been exciting, too. And out in the sands, she’d had a plan. Now that she had scaled those towering cliffs and met Banba at the bottom of them, the possibility of escape seemed almost impossible, and her throne—herlife—seemed farther away than ever.

Rose yelped as something sharp struck the back of her leg. She whipped her head around to find four witches stalking toward her. Rowena and her snickering friend led the charge, followed by two lanky boys. One had brown skin and shorn hair, and the other was white, with tight blond curls. They were laughing and nudging each other as they raked their eyes over Rose.

Rowena’s smile was feral. She held a fistful of rocks in one hand and was flinging them carelessly in Rose’s direction. Rose craned her neck, searching for Thea—the witch who had been kind to her—or evenTilda. But through the haze of fire and smoke, she saw only strangers staring back at her.

She managed a thin smile. “May I help you with something?”

“So formal!” Rowena jeered. “Bryony, did you hear that? The princess wants tohelpus.”

Bryony, the other girl, kicked sand at Rose, forcing her to back up, into the shallows. “You and your beloved Kingsbreath have already done more than enough.”

Rose’s stomach twisted as the young witches converged on her like a pack of wolves. “I think there’s been some misunderstanding....”

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