Page 66 of The Queen's Crown
“Yes, Mother.”
She wanted to slap him for the jab. “Are your knuckles scabbed from fighting Rainer?” She hoped nothing else had happened that she didn’t know about. Either way, she wanted to hear what he had to say about it.
“They are. He insisted on testing my fighting abilities. If I didn’t pass his test, I would’ve had to return to Bakley.”
“It’s a good thing you passed.”
The corner of his mouth turned up in a half smile. “Was there any doubt I wouldn’t?” He stood and tapped the table. “I’m not going to learn anything from sitting here.”
“Go,” she said, shooing him away.
The music reverberated through the room, the sound loud and pulsing through Sabine’s body. She really wanted to dance—it looked like so much fun. Couples spun about, stomped their feet, and clapped to the music. People were laughing and cheering. Lottie was out there in the middle of it all, looking like she belonged. As if she’d done this a hundred times before. Maybe she had.
“How come you’re not out there dancing?” an older man at the table to Sabine’s left asked.
“I don’t want to dance,” she lied. As the future queen of these people, dancing with other men while engaged to the king didn’t feel right to her. It might be what people here in Lynk did, but it wasn’t something done where she came from. She couldn’t forego her morals just because the people here had different ones. And yes, she sounded so much like her mother it made her inwardly cringe.
“I’m not much of a dancer myself,” the man said.
The last time Sabine danced with such joy it had been with her sister. Tears filled her eyes at the memory. Overwhelmed with emotion, she needed to leave before she broke down crying. She glanced around, looking for her guard who stood near the door, still wearing his mask, watching her. She waved him over. “I want to go.”
He escorted her from the tavern. The rest of her guards stood waiting for her on the steps. She hoped Lottie wouldn’t be upset she’d left her behind. She exited the stairwell and bumped into Axel.
“What are you doing here?” they each said at the exact same time.
Sabine took a step back, away from him.
“I came here in search of my sister,” he said. “Did she drag you down there with her?” He pointed at the stairwell she’d just exited through.
“She did.”
“I’m surprised you’re leaving already. I thought that would have been something you enjoyed.” He tilted his head to the side, eyeing her.
“How do you know it wasn’t?”
“Because you seem…upset.”
He didn’t know her well enough to determine such things, and she didn’t feel like standing in the corridor having a heartfelt conversation with him. It was late, she was tired, and something about tonight felt off. “I’m exhausted from the day.” She bid him goodnight and hurried to her room.
After changing into her nightclothes, she heard the distinct patter of raindrops. She went over to the archway leading to her balcony. In the darkness, she could barely see the rain, but she could hear and smell it. It reminded her of home. A pain gripped her chest, and her eyes filled with tears. She missed her sister so much.
“I’m so sorry,” she said out loud to the sky, as if Alina could hear her. Tears started to fall. She’d been so wrapped up in wanting to find the murderer and dealing with being in a foreign kingdom that she’d shoved all her emotions aside. Not facing the pain had been easier than dealing with it. Now, everything came flooding in and grief overwhelmed her.
Stepping out onto the balcony, she tipped her head back and let the rain bathe her face. She gripped the fabric near her chest, as if that would help stifle the hurt. Her sister should have married, had children, and lived a full life. Sabine shouldn’t even be in Lynk. Everything was a disaster.
She stood there until there were no tears left to cry.
The next morning, Sabine awoke feeling exhausted instead of refreshed. Her sleep had been a mixture of nightmares about someone chasing after her, trying to kill her, intermixed with sweet memories of her and Alina playing together as children.
The sky remained gray, and soft rain continued to fall outside. It was the first gloomy day since she’d arrived, and she welcomed it. It matched her mood.
Someone knocked on her door, and she called for the person to come in.
Claire entered. “You’re supposed to train with the king before breakfast,” she said, cringing when she saw the state of Sabine. “He sent me to find out what is keeping you.”
“It won’t take me long to get ready.” Sabine climbed out of bed, stripped her clothes off, and went to take a hot bath. The warm water enveloped her, waking her up, washing away the tears from last night. This was just what she needed before starting her day.
When Sabine got out, a simple shirt and pants had been laid out for her to put on. Claire was nowhere to be seen. After dressing, Sabine went over to the adjoining door and knocked.
