Page 57 of Untamed

The humid air shifted, tousling the updo I had braided and arranged on my head. Disobedient curls sprang loose from their intended location and decided to land on my shoulder. Just as I grunted my frustration at having to do my hair again, a word came to me:There.

The hairs on my arms stood at attention, and my gaze roved over the sea. Sunlight cut between the clouds and shone on a ship all the way on the horizon. It could have been a smudge on a painting for how it looked. Whoever traveled on that ship would be the answer. They had to be my way out of this plan or even possibly part of the plan itself. I swallowed the lump that formed in the back of my throat, resigned to Queen Cottia’s crazy schemes but hoping for a better strategy to come along.

“Princess.” I ran to the chamber doorway. A servant from Aracibel arranged Beatriz’s hair because she said that touching Beatriz’s head would be beneath me.

“Is something wrong?” Beatriz perched on the chair before the mirror with an impeccable posture that anyone else might confuse for confidence. She didn’t trick me.

“Of course not, I-I was wondering if you would mind if I took a walk?” A beat passed, and I added, “With Jaime because I would never consider going on my own, and I love Jaime’s company.”

She flicked a deadpan stare in my direction. “You aren’t a prisoner. Though I would love if you could be back here before the banquet so we can enter the hall together.”

I dropped a quick curtsy. “Of course, Princess. Of course.” My feet skipped across the floor with a much too lively step, so I tried to slow them down to play a dignified lady-in-waiting. Granted, I should have stayed with Beatriz if I wanted to be the picture of perfection. Then again, when you get a word on the wind, you must test it.

The passage, in all its polished glory, wound on the outskirts of the building until it reached a set of stairs in the corner. I decided to take the back way so as not to arouse suspicion about my comings and goings.

Every step downward pulled me faster to this unknown entity across the sea. What if I had to use the blade and this whole thing would cause our trip to end before it even began? I cringed at such a thought. When I reached the bottom floor, there was yet another set of winding passages to maneuver. The waning light made me want to spark my finger, but the servants started lighting sconces in their rough stone part of the palace. They gave me strange looks as if they’d eaten something sour. I tried to purse my lips like Beatriz and act unaffected. Inside, my blood pumped hard at such judgment.

Come on, Laude, you have a mission.

When a back door opened to the outside world, I could have leapt out with delight. Of course, I maintained the regal pace as best as possible and darted out the door to the side of the palace. There were a million stairs to climb down, but eventually, I made it to shore. The long deck stretched before me with only sailors tending the two galleons on this dock.

The heavy clomp of my boots along the wooden planks punctuated my heartbeat.

Whistles pierced the air from sailors appreciating my beauty.

I spun my head around to meet two men on board the ship to my left. They wore rough-spun tunics, wide grins, and thick wagging eyebrows. These twins leaned against the side, eagerfor my attention. Though they might have passed for handsome only a few months ago, they had nothing on Jaime, so I kept my nose high and sped past. Maybe I should have searched for Jaime first.

But the closer I got toLa Lavia, the more I could see the new ship headed toward us.

“Señorita Laude?” asked a fellow from our galleon. “Would youalsolike to board?”

“Also? Who else is in there?”

The young man grabbed a wide plank. “The prince and the rest of the Dotados.” He set the plank betweenLa Laviaand the dock for me.

“Thank you! Thank you!” I rushed up onto the deck. Why were they meeting out here rather than inside the gigantic palace with all the nice rooms and comfortable furnishings?

By the time I made it into the corridor with my former quarters, my skin crawled with apprehension as if a million spiders had decided to attack all at once. No one stirred inside the sturdy walls ofLa Lavia. I stepped toward the end of the passage to the room Beatriz and I had shared and opened the door. Light cut through the one high window onto the space between the narrow beds. It remained empty and untouched since the morning. Where could they be?

I placed each foot gently on the floor, but the wood seemed to groan in response with every footfall. The only place I could think of going was the tiny meeting room. If what’s-his-ears attended the meeting, he might spook, and I might end up at the end of magical fingertips.

Every step downward and closer to the room had my mind firing double time. Did anyone really know about my parents? Could little me be a threat to anyone’s rule? I should turn around and stay with Beatriz. I should forget I ever learned how to use a blade, albeit I couldn’t fight someone like Cosme who’d beentraining all his life. I could only take someone by surprise. When it came down to it, I’d always been happy being small and having a simple duty. Why mess with a good thing?

Then, voices drifted through the walls. I creaked the last few arm spans to the room. A slice of light shone beneath the door to a room that should have been empty.

A groaning plank from within quickened my heart rate. I turned to leave but steeled my nerves despite the tremors wracking my body. The door opened, and a shadowed face said, “It’s only Laude.”

“Tell her to join us.” Cosme’s voice carried an authoritative note.

A sigh escaped my parted lips, and I pressed forward into the tight space. The fellow at the door had been what’s-his-ears, and all the Dotados, including my very own Jaime, squished inside the four walls around an overgrown table.

“There’s another ship on the horizon,” I said.

A tip of Cosme’s head sent Ears out the door. Jaime met my gaze with a warmth brewing in the green and honey speckles in his eyes, and my tummy did a little flip. How did he manage to turn me over like a pancake with just a look? But I had to focus on the task at hand.

“It has to be the Black Knight, right?” I closed the door behind me and slid onto the end of the bench on the door side.

Fermín, Lucas, and Zichri took up all the space on the bench beside me. Cosme, Minerva, and Jaime had their same spots across from us, but they fit much better without me squeezed next to them.

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