Page 17 of Ties of Deception

I blinked in surprise. “You were?”

He nodded. “You’re always on your own. I never see you talking with the other goddesses or courtiers. I saw you wander down here, and I thought I would check on you.”

I swallowed, wondering what was behind his comment. “I haven’t been introduced to anyone yet. I’m still very new here. I did talk to Constance earlier, though.”

The prince nodded, his face all empathy and understanding. “It must be tricky. And you have to watch yourself in court. Not everyone is as nice as they appear, though I’ll admit Constance is a fine example of a Grace. But others would take advantage of you if you let them.”

I nodded. “I’m being careful.”

He smiled. “Well done. There’s nothing wrong with keeping your distance from the others. If you need anything, just let me know. I’ll keep an eye out for you.”

I curtsied again, feeling both flattered and uncomfortable. “Thank you, Your Highness.”

He grinned, and his gaze moved over my shoulder back toward the main street. “Ah, Charity. I didn’t see you approach.”

I turned and saw the goddess dressed in a fresh bronze robe draped over the traditional clothes. The layers of chiffon were nearly sheer but heavily embroidered with leaves and flowers. Her blonde hair was piled on top of her head, a few loose curls framing her perfect features. Her frown was quickly smoothed over as she smiled at the prince. “Sebastian, I thought I saw you come this way, and I thought it was odd to see you moving away from the festivities. I also wanted to ask if we were still going to have our tea later.”

Prince Sebastian laughed. “Of course, Charity. There is no need to follow me around to guarantee that. It will be the highlight of my day. Third bell, if I remember correctly?”

She beamed and one of the flower buds nestled in the piled curls of her hair suddenly burst into bloom: a vibrant pink rose.

I hid a twinge of jealousy. How could she be so in control to achieve a trick like that, when I couldn’t even be trusted to sit at a table?

The prince bowed to Charity, turned, and nodded to me, before taking his leave. As Charity turned to face me, the prince mouthed from behind her, “One to avoid.” Then he was gone.

Charity’s posture was tense, though her expression remained carefully neutral. The alleyway suddenly felt much narrower. “Who are you? What did he say to you? And why are you down here going away from the guards?”

I shifted my feet. This was definitely a conversation I didn’t want to have. The last thing I wanted was to appear to be a competitor for the hand of the prince.

I tried to seem innocent. “I’m Purity. I have only been here a month. The prince was remarking that I’m friendless and always alone. I think he…pitied me. I will try to be more amicable.”

Charity raised an eyebrow with a hint of a smirk. “Ah, so you’re the one who cracked the palace wall.”

I sighed inwardly. “Yes.”

Charity nodded, then something seemed to snap inside her. She strode to me, and I gasped as the paving stones started to crack on the ground around me. That wasn’t me, was it? No. Charity was the one who was angry.

She stopped inches from my face, though her expression was still calm. “Let me give you some advice, my newfriend. If I ever find you talking to the prince alone again, I will destroy you, your house, and your family.”

I stumbled as the stones directly below my feet cracked. The whole ground seemed to shake. A shiver of alarm made me step back and put distance between us.

The cracking stopped and Charity smiled sweetly. “Whoops, it looks like you lost control again.” She tutted and shook her head.

I frowned. “That was you. I know it was.”

She raised her eyebrows and placed her hand over her heart, all fake innocence. “Me? But everyone knows I have perfect control. I haven’t broken anything in more than ten years.”

I could almost taste my dislike of her, thick and cloying in the back of my mouth. I couldn’t keep back my retort. “Oh, clever you. Has picking on me made all your obvious insecurities disappear?”

She snorted. Another rose bloomed in her hair as she smiled. I really hated this woman. At my feet, another slab cracked; this time, I was pretty sure it was me.

“Careful, or you’ll be banned from the whole city. The empress already dislikes you. Who knows, maybe you’ll even be retired before the year is out. Now why don’t you run along back to your carers and have your temper tantrum elsewhere.”

I grimaced at her words. What was I doing, playing along with this goddess’s games? I just needed to leave. I turned to walk past her when a strange energy pulsed through the air, making me pause. The roses in Charity’s hair shriveled into brown stumps, black blotches corrupted the stems and leaves, and dead petals drifted down over her shocked face.

Her shock turned to horror. “What was that?”

I was as confused as she was, but I couldn’t stop my smile as she started angrily pulling the flowers free from her hair and hurling them to the floor. Her intricate hairstyle collapsed as pins were tugged loose. She grabbed at me as I tried to escape. “What did you do?”

---