Page 12 of Blooms of Darkness

Elisabeth gasped as she realized who had barged into her room. “Lana! Ian! What happened?” She took me from Ian, ushering me into a tattered burgundy chair near her workstation.

Elisabeth’s small yet cozy room instantly made me feel safe. A four-person table sat by a stone hearth, and her bed rested underneath the window, overlooking the gardens below.

I winced as I unwrapped the cloth and showed Elisabeth my arm. Elisabeth muttered under her breath as she looked me over. “What have you gotten yourself into now, child?”

I tried to laugh, but it came out more as a choke, “Oh you know, a little bit of this, and a little bit of that. What haven’t you healed on me these past twenty years?”

Elisabeth clicked her tongue in reprimand. “I’ve been healing you since birth, don’t shorten me those two years, child. You need to be more careful.”

“Can you heal it?” I pressed. “Andras saw us in the kitchens. I can’t have the king asking any questions.”

She eyed me. Although old enough to be my grandmother and could demand I spill my secrets, she’d never pushed for answers when I arrived injured at her door. Some days I wondered if she had put together more than I gave her credit for.

“Well, it will be painful to press your body’s ability, but yes, we can heal this tonight. Ian, grab the brown woven basket on the table and we can begin.”

“My body has no abilities, Elisabeth,” I huffed. My frustration increased as I thought about how I couldn’t take care of this myself, unlike everyone else in our kingdom.

No abilities indeed. With my lack of power, I always had to rely on the strength of other’s magic in my times of need.

I held the title for not only being the first royal princess born without magic—ever—but also the firstFaeborn without any magic. Our kingdom could not find out about my lack of magical abilities, or there would be an uprising. The royal bloodline prided itself on being the strongest and mightiest of the lands, but even the peasants and lesser Fae on the streets held more magic than I did.

This dark secret had been kept by the king and queen, told only to Andras, Elisabeth, and my two friends I held close. If anyone else learned of this, I would never be allowed to take the throne.

I’d spent years in a cold room, experimented and tested on, as a way to coax magic from me, but nothing succeeded. After years of failing, I instead worked on hiding in plain sight to ensure no one questioned me, or my lack of demonstrating the kingdom’s magic, which should be prominently on display. I killed myself finding ways to charm the Court, fitting in with the mundane ways of royal life, all in an effort never to stand out. Blending in meant my secret remained safe, regardless of howpainful it may be to constantly wear a mask to cover what I truly felt and who I truly was.

Which didn’t at all fit in with my running about as the Hidden Henchman. But the Hidden Henchman provided me with an escape, a way to do what I wanted, to be free from the confines of the palace. To be free to move throughout the land and do what I thought best for my people.

Ian returned with two chairs for both Elisabeth and himself, but as I attempted to stand to help him, my body swayed. Once, twice.

“She’s coming down from an intense evening, Elisabeth. She had another episode. I think she might?—”

One second, Elisabeth prodded the wound through Ian’s warning as the fire heated my body, and the next, my vision darkened, whisking me away to oblivion.

Chapter 3

“You’re an idiot is what you are, Ian Stronholm.”

The fury lacing Kalliah’s normally dainty voice told me if my eyes were actually open, I’d spot spit flying from her mouth.

Ian growled right back at her. They would keep this up for days without any intervention.

I laughed, slowly opening my eyes to the sunshine streaming through my window. My bedroom window.

Safe. We were safe in the confines of my chambers.

I stretched my arms, deliciously more rested than I should have been, given what happened last night, thanks to Elisabeth’s healing magic.

“I don’t know what you're laughing at.” Kalliah directed her attention to me. “You two are going to be caught. Or worse, you’re going to be killed, kidnapped—something.”

The final piece to our trio, Kalliah Brennan, had her hands on her narrow hips at the end of my bed. Her green eyes angrily met mine. The true sign of her anger, a few beads of sweat forming on her golden skin, showed just how frustrating she found this conversation.

Kalliah had been with me for ten years, originally as my attendant. While our first few years together had been difficult, navigating our teenage years together as Princess and attendant, we bonded once we decided the rules surrounding the formalities of Court were meant to be broken. With both of our guards down, we grew inseparable. Besides Ian, she became my only other true friend, something nearly impossible to find as a princess.

When I became of age, I elevated her to lady-in-waiting despite her having limited magical abilities, only able to conjure light breezes of air. The role should have been reserved for someone of a higher standing of magic. Status meant nothing to me, though.

No one questioned me, partly because I never asked foranything, and partly because I held the title of “Princess.” Kalliah kept to herself, and my mother, Queen Roxana, adored her as much as I did for her fierce loyalty throughout the years.

“Kalliah, it’s fine. There’s not even a mark anymore… hardly a thing to get a crown in a twist, you know,” I joked. I brought my hands behind my head, tugging my pillow forward and chucking it at her as she stood criticizing me from the end of the bed.

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