Page 19 of A Queen's Game
Elyse
Elyse’s heart threatened to burst as it pounded in her chest. Gods, she knew Grytaine would talk about Keyain’s wife; yet, her mind still had blanked, unable to come up with a retort. Once again, Queen Valeriya had to step in to stop the situation from escalating—the Queen must find her irritating. After all, what lady in the Queen’s Court couldn’t hold their own?
Her throat remained tight as she raced to the library. Her father would learn about her reaction at tea, which meant his scolding was inevitable. Elyse tensed her shoulders at the thought of her father’s raised voice, of sitting in his office as he told her how stupid she was. That’s what it all led to—any other lady could handle the blow of a called-off engagement. Elyse, who struggled to look people in the eye as it was, didn’t possess such skill. She was, as always, a disgrace to her father.
Voices carried from the adjacent hall, causing her to pause. She sighed, wanting to be alone. She darted across before they could say a word to her.
The worst was still to come. Keyain had kept his wife hidden away besides a few personal gatherings. What would people say once Keyain introduced her to court? She could already hear the whisperings of how once again Elyse ruined something else. Itdidn’t matter if the broken-off betrothal wasn’t her fault; Keyain held a powerful position. Elyse had more to gain from the arrangement, which meant she also had more to lose. Her breath quickened at the realization that Keyain was gone and no one stood between her and her father.
She darted around a corner, only to backpedal as she heard another voice from down the hall. More people? Her luck had run out.
With a peek around the corner, she squinted to see Keyain escorting Lady Marietta by the arm. She seemed off. Her face was too happy, her body too loose. The only reason she moved through the hall was because Keyain half dragged her. Though her heart pounded in her chest, she followed the two. Even from behind, Elyse could tell that the half-elf was beautiful. Her light brown skin glowed in the golden light, with thick black curls tumbling down her back. Curves graced her hips and waist.
Odd. Neither anger nor jealousy lingered in her emotions like Elyse thought they would. She noticed Keyain’s expression, the smile and the soft voice he used with Marietta. He was with the person he loved—someone Elyse would have never been.
Someone she never wanted to be.
Marietta stopped at a statue with a grin, but Keyain pulled her along. Grytaine had been wrong—Lady Marietta wasn’t brainless, just drugged. Elyse was familiar with the drug’s effects, one that made you complacent and your body light. The same drug her father forced her to take and she despised. Often she ignored her recurring head pains to avoid taking it, hiding the symptoms from her father.
Keyain and his wife rounded a corner. Elyse took one last look before turning back towards the library.
Large doors of oak and paned glass lead to the library. Beyond them lay the cavernous room, calling to Elyse. It was her safe spot, away from her father and away from all people. Itwas the only place in the gods’ damned palace where she could breathe.
Flanking the entrance, two guards paused their conversation as Elyse approached. The one guard was a tall, dark male who always had a slight smile. If she were bolder, she’d ask him for his name; but every time she went to speak, her hands grew sweaty and her mind emptied. Instead, she kept her head down and offered a tight-lipped smile to the floor as he held the door open for her.
Like a cloud relinquishing its rain on a muggy day, Elyse took her first full breath since tea time that afternoon. Refreshing, relieving. The smell of old parchment and leather, the quiet atmosphere, and the dim golden light soothed her mood. Thank gods no one was coming to look for her here. Not yet, anyway.
She walked through the library lobby, the floors above open to the first with balconies guarded by a railing. Light globes hung above the entry, flanked by two grand staircases to both sides, rising to the two floors.
As expected, it was empty as she passed rows of bookshelves, heading to the back of the first floor. There sat her sanctuary: an alcove half-forgotten by the palace dwellers. Most took the books out of the library, never lingering long. The alcove was small but cozy, with a table settled between two cushioned benches. The top swung open to the hidden storage underneath. Elyse rifled through her stash of books, pulling out the pillows she hoarded. From her pocket, she took out a light globe and set it adrift, the alcove filling with a warm glow. With the curtains drawn shut, she sank into her spot.
What would her father make her do this time? Her betrothal to Keyain ended, so he was likely to reprimand her when gossip from tea time reached his ears. A hard pit formed in the center of her stomach, thinking of her father’s punishments. Elyse was useful for sweetening his deals, loaning his daughter out as adate for his friends. Those dinners were long and unnerved her, and her father always ignored their wandering hands. At least with her betrothal to Keyain, that hadn’t happened in the past five years.
She shuddered. No, she wouldn’t think of it in her safe spot. With the pillows propped up behind her and her legs stretched out across the bench, she began reading. Her book offered adventure beyond the walls of the dreaded palace.
“Elyse?” a male asked through the curtain, causing her to jump. So engrossed in her book, she hadn’t heard the approaching footsteps.
Her head jerked up towards the source of the voice. “Yes?”
The curtain pulled back, revealing a square-jawed male with mousy hair. She sighed at the sight of Kurtys, at his smirk and his stupid face.
“Apologies for bothering you. I saw you walk by, and you always come here. Mind if I sit?”
Annoyed, Elyse turned back to her book. “I mind.” She sighed into her book as he slid into the booth across from her, closing the curtain behind him. Elyse dug her face deeper into the pages.
“I understand that you’re busy,” he said, “but we haven’t spent time together lately.”
“That’s by choice.”
“But you haven’t given me an answer.”
Looking up from her book, she flared her nose with a sigh. “I have, and it’s no. I will not accept your proposal. How many times do I have to tell you this before you leave me alone?”
The young elf, still her senior by half a century, asked to marry her the day after Keyain broke off the betrothal. Unaware of Kurtys’s proposal, Elyse hadn’t seen the point of telling her father. For the minor noble to think her father would allow it was laughable. It didn’t matter that Kurtys worked for her father.
“As many times as it’ll take until you say yes.” Kurtys leaned onto the table towards her.
With a scathing glare, she met his gaze. “First, you know that isn’t up to me. Second, if it were up to me, I still wouldn’t marry you.” She lifted her book to cover her face, ending the conversation.
