Page 1 of Vicious Princess
PROLOGUE
Three years ago
Fane pullsa card from the deck. Before she even sets it on the low table, I know she has a winning hand.
Again.
“No fucking way,” I murmur.
Her hazel eyes—identical to mine—flick up from the card to me. A corner of her mouth curves. She sets the card down, keeping my gaze, and winks. “Better luck next time, Sister.”
With a groan, I toss my cards on the table. Fane snickers.
“No way can someone be this good at cards!” I tell Mom, who watches us with a little grin on her lips. I turn to Dad. “She’s cheating! Quint, back me up here?”
“All three of you have gifts,” Dad says, trying to stifle a smile. “Fane has an eye for strategy, Quint is empathetic and caring, and you, dear?—”
“Have the temper of a mountain goat,” Fane interrupts.
I roll my eyes.
“But hey, sis, your fire is perfect for the Royal Guard,” Fane offers, shuffling the cards. “All the best soldiers are stuck-up, and quick-tempered?—”
“Fane,” Mom and Dad say in unison.
Fane grins. I grind my teeth.
“Seriously, don’t you see the steam coming out of her ears?” Quint teases me.
She pinches my ear, and I bat her hand away.
“I’m the oldest, and they treat me like I’m the youngest,” I say, eyeing our parents.
“By a mere ten minutes!” Fane scoffs, right as Quint says, “Fifteen minutes means nothing!”
“I can’t wait to move into the Royal Guard’s base,” I say.
Fane pokes her tongue out at me, but Quint looks hurt.
“I’m joking.” I bump my shoulder into Quint’s.
“I don’t find the idea of us separating funny,” she murmurs.
“Yeah, as if that could last long,” Fane says, dealing another round for us all. “We were born together, and we’ll die together.”
Quint and I chuckle at the finality and drama in Fane’s statement.
“Now that you bring up the Royal Guard… Phoenix, we need to talk,” Dad says, all humor and warmth drained from his face. He exchanges a silent glance with our mom.
“What?” I urge them when they don’t speak. I have a bad feeling.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to join King Francis’s soldier unit,” he says firmly.
I’m so taken aback by his words, I’m speechless for a heartbeat.
Confusion and surprise don’t last long, though. The anger that bubbles to the surface is hot and thick. It coils in my chest like a snake getting ready to strike.
I slam my cards on the low table. “Excuse me?”
