Page 196 of Frost and Death
due to the choices you’ve made.
But if your son so chooses to learn from your mistakes,
Only in faithful consummation with love
will then the curse break.
I slouch against the chair, pinching the bridge of my nose. Tension and exhaustion take over my body as my thoughts run.
Mother hadeveryintention of ruining Palaena. She signed not only King Ivan’s death sentence, but Jerrick’s as well.
He never would have had a chance to break his curse because she orchestrated us to marry.
Arranged marriages hardly ever turn into love, especially when it is with an enemy kingdom. And there is not even the possibility that he loves me, especially when he finds out everything I have kept from him.
Love is built with trust and respect, and I’ve done nothing but withhold information from him. But Jerrick doesn’t strike me as someone wholoves.
He cares about others, yes, but love? I’ve seen how he keeps everyone at a safe distance. I try to do the same, but he excels at it.
My heart breaks at the revelation.
He has to be in a faithful relationshipandin love.
Maybe this new information will convince Jerrick to divorce me so he may give himself a chance to break the curse. It would be a strenuous process, but it gives him the freedom to remove the need to kill.
He would divorce me happily then, right?
We have good relations with all the kingdoms, and they all would authorize it because the world would shift back to what it once was. And if we divorce, I return to Axidoria, keep the peace and trade routes, and get to be with Niko.
If he still even wants you, Tove.
My thoughts do nothing to ease my heavy heart.
“Deities, Mother!” I shout up to the ceiling in frustration at everything she has done.
If she had told me and allowed me to help, maybe we could have researched our home for clues about my father’s disappearance. Instead, she put blame on Palaena and set herself on a path of vengeance without any concrete proof.
She left me an entire kingdom to take, but I don’t want it.
I don’t want it when there is a perfectly capable king already here.
I run my fingers along my hair in guilt and pity for the trials Palaena has been through, all because of my mother. My insides twist in guilt, frustration, and worry as the burden of everything sinks in.
Not only do I have to convince Niko to stand down but also inform Jerrick of his only chance to break his curse. Both conversations are tied to feelings and emotions, and I have a strong sense that neither of them will take the news well.
41
Words Are Hard
Isearch frantically for pins to secure some loose strands of my hair. My hands shake in anticipation of the ball tonight. I had hoped it would be excited nerves, but it is only dread.
Dorit arrived to help me about an hour ago, and I almost broke down. Even now, as she helps with my hairstyle, I still can’t seem to gather myself.
Dorit takes my hand. “There is no need to be nervous,” she says, rubbing my hand.
I shrink inwardly, trying to keep my distress at bay.
Jerrick greeted me this morning with that damned dimple of his, and instead of telling him everything right then, I ran in the opposite direction.
