Page 15 of If The Crown Fits
“And if Cai finds out I’m lying?”
“The Crown will deny any knowledge of this and hang you as an imposter.” The choice was made then. I didn’t have one.
* * *
I was taken to a room in one of the guest wings and the door was locked behind me. I walked over to one of the open windows and peered down. It would take more than a few bedsheets to reach the bottom and even then I would be stuck in the heavily guarded gardens. The forest was a better idea if I wanted to escape.
I remained standing at the window, watching the sun’s rays leak over the horizon, when keys jangled and the bedroom door swung open. Rhen stood in the doorway with a young woman, around my age, by his side.
“This is my sister, Cordelia,” he said, and she smiled at me, her dark eyes piercing.
“Nice to meet you.” She placed a tray full of breakfast in front of me.
Proper food. The bread was warm enough that it melted the butter on top. There were fruits of various kinds, some of which I’d never even seen before, and a selection of jams and tarts. I didn’t have to be asked twice before stuffing my face.
“She will be your lady-in-waiting and aid me in your training.”
“My training?” I said with a mouth full of strawberry jam.
“You are to be presented to the heir of the throne of Norrandale and he needs to be convinced you’re a princess. Prince Lance has placed me and Cordelia in charge of dressing you for the part, but also educating you on the history of Everness, as well as the mannerisms of a lady at court.”
“Excellent,” I muttered. “As you can see, I’m bursting with excitement.”
“Rule number one.” Rhen didn’t seem very amused. “A woman of royal blood does not use sarcasm.” I rolled my eyes and Rhen looked towards his sister.
“Get her dressed. We leave in less than an hour.”
“I’m still eating.” I held up my plate.
But I was beginning to understand why Lance had appointed Rhen for this specific task, as he wouldn’t take nofor an answer. I was hauled towards the bathing chamber adjacent to the bedroom, and before I could so much as protest, Cordelia had stripped me of my clothes and dumped me into a bath of warm water. She was surprisingly strong for such a skinny girl.
The more I tried to explain to her that I was perfectly capable of bathing myself, the harder she scrubbed the sponge down my arms. However, I did eventually manage to take possession of the sponge while she worked soap through my hair.
Despite the lack of privacy and the fact that I was being blackmailed, it was nice to be clean again. Cordelia pinned my hair up with pearls and painted my lips red after placing me in a very uncomfortable dress. The material was pale pink with a few too many frills for my taste. Cordelia laced the bodice up tight and the silky skirts were a lot heavier than I had expected. As a final touch, she added the necklace, hanging cold against my skin. I could hardly recognise myself in the reflection that stared back at me.
“Won’t the servants be suspicious of what’s going on?”
“There’s a passage that the servants don’t use this time of day. We’ll go through there. My brother and I, along with a few guards, will be travelling with you. Those are the only people that know.”
“And Lance trusts all of you with his little secret plan?”
“The prince has his ways of getting what he wants.” Her words suggested more than she was telling me, but I didn’t know her well enough to ask further questions.
A carriage with four white horses stood outside in the courtyard. The early morning air was deadly quiet and filled with slumber. Lance waited by the door of the carriage and I gathered all my courage as I approached him, head held high.
“Good morning, dear sister. I trust you slept well.”
I gave his acting a disgusted expression before our heads turned as Rhen came running down the steps towards us.
“Rhen, you’re late.”
“I have news, Your Highness. We’ve found Prince Cai’s carriage and his guards’ uniforms abandoned near the border.”
Lance clenched his teeth. “The horses?”
“Gone, Your Highness.”
“Bodies?”
