Page 38 of Untamed

She bobbed her head. “I solemnly swear to tell you the absolute truth.”

“Are you under a curse to not speak?”

“No, well only for those letters that make my throat feel swollen. I’m pretty sure Monserrat or someone did something to them.”

“All right.” I bit the insides of my cheeks. “Are we going to the islan–?” The curse choked my throat, and I battled to breathe.

A sympathetic smile brushed across her face, and she waited to respond.

I grunted. “That wretched curse. We must figure out how to break it.”

“I’ve already tried several different ways of speaking and writing the truth, and no.”

“No?” My forehead crinkled.

“You asked about you-know-where. Cosme doesn’t think it’s a good idea on account of his promise to keep you safe.”

I tilted my chin upward. “You say that like I’m holding you back.”

“No, that’s not what I meant, Princess.”

“Then what do the ships have to do with anything?”

“I’d like to remind you that this is a yes or no game.” Laude flashed her teeth.

Energy pulsed over my skin, but I pressed fingertips into my muscles. I needed a new strategy. Perhaps the questions shouldfocus on the past rather than the future. “Why was it so easy to bribe Cosme about the other girl?”

She cocked her head to the side. “You mean Minerva? I thought you overheard everything about her.”

“I overheard the part where Cosme thinks so highly of me and a little about another girl.”

She guffawed. “Cosme would be so mad if—”

Shoes tapped within my room behind me. Laude stilled and bowed to the intruder.

“May I have a moment alone with my daughter?” Mamá’s regal voice loomed from within my quarters.

Laude rushed around me and fled. “Yes, Your Highness.”

The urge to flee with Laude almost pulled me off the terrace, but I kept my rod-straight posture.

Mamá stepped forward, holding a polished wooden box in her hands. I couldn’t handle another person begging me to use my gifting, but the way she carried the box protectively revealed something more to this visit.

“Please, sit beside me.” Mamá brushed aside the skirt of her coral dress and took her seat on the settee with ankles crossed in a perfect royal posture. She patted the space beside her. “I have something to give you.”

Without thinking, I sped across the two arm spans between us and plunked down in the indicated space.

“Beatriz, I want you to keep this pocket watch with you. Promise me you’ll wear it concealed at all times.” She cracked open the box. The gold glimmered with etchings like a mountain horizon encircling the metal. She removed the necklace from the red velvet lining and looped the chain around my neck.

I flipped my braid out and ran my fingertips over the cold metal. The last time I had seen this, I was getting ready for theceremoniato find a suitor. “Yes, Mamá.”

Her dark-brown stare bore into mine. “I debated giving this to you, but after much wrestling with the Ancient One, I believe you must have it. Keep it hidden.”

“Why?” My question came out in a whisper.

“It’s”—Mamá dropped her voice— “a relic.”

The pocket watch suddenly felt heavy over my bosom, though nothing had changed about the device. I tucked it under my chemise, even though the metal brought goosebumps to my skin.

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