Page 27 of Oracle of Ruin

“If? Darling, I’m counting on him coming for you.” Her gaze turns serpentine. “Do you think he won’t?”

I feel the heat blooming in my cheeks and dip my head to hide my embarrassed blush. The last person I should confide my relationship troubles to is my lover’s ex-fiancée. Still, my lips traitorously open and I amend my previous statement. “I’m sure he will. But what will you do when he does?”

“You’ll have to find out. Now get ready.” Mavis halts us before a wide set of engraved doors that resemble those that used to stand guard to our throne room. She spins on her heels to face me and tucks my cloak tighter around my shoulders, straightening the collar of my tunic. “There are many pieces at play, Vera. Just because I haven’t made my move doesn’t mean I don’t have one.”

“You two and your riddles,” I grumble sourly.

Mavis barks a laugh before motioning to the guards who stand on either side of the door. They jut their chins downwards in respect and pull open the doors. I blink against the light that shines through before I hear it.

Laughter. Children’s laughter. It comes from everywhere within the room. Some families walk hand in hand while other children roam freely on their own. There is music, food, and games throughout the large cavern.

Someone has strung candles around the room, the tiny flickering flames creating an ethereal glow along the walls. There’s a ribbon tied to a pole in the center with some girls twirling around it in a strange dance I’ve never seen before. They giggle and place flower crowns on some of the boys present or dance around each other. The adults lounge in comfortable chairs and sip fine liquor or sample some pastries that have been laid out in baskets.

It reminds me of the village parties Blaine and I would sneak out to back when we were just kids trying to get away from Irene for a day. We’d sneak out at dawn and spend the day hiding from the guard, stealing baked goods from stands. He kept note of the names of the stalls we stole from and the owners would miraculously receive a large “donation” from an anonymous benefactor days later. I’d weave crowns like that for him and he’d retie the ribbons that kept falling from my fine hair.

Untouched. All of it remnants of a world I had forgotten could exist.

My eyes mist before I can stop myself, and I wipe at my face with the back of my hand. Mavis watches curiously before we are interrupted by a little girl tugging on the hem of my pants. She stares up at me with wide eyes before breaking into a toothy smile and dragging me back to her friends.

The girls speak so quickly I can’t understand them, but soon, I am swarmed. I sit on my knees beside them while one braids my hair and another fiddles with my fingers, admiring the many scars that lace them.

“Pretty,” she murmurs.

A little boy with green eyes like Rowan’s plops a flower crown on my head. Buttercups, daisies, and orange lilies. I smile and pat his cheek, to which he blushes. They drag me to join a dance next, the beat foreign to my clumsy feet. They laugh as I bumble around, eventually inventing a new dance all together that is more hopping than dancing. I wave to a familiar face in the crowd and Emi hides behind Neris in embarrassment. The soldier laughs and mouths something I cannot hear over the roar of the music.

I haven’t felt this light in months.

As the last song ends, I dizzily trip my way towards the two women I recognized. Neris has her fist digging into Emi’s scalp affectionately, while the younger girl struggles to get away.

“Get off you oaf! I’ll cut you!”

“Cute,” Neris chuckles under Emi’s furious gaze, as if she is nothing more than a kitten.

“I had no idea any of this was here,” I huff between breaths. “It’s beautiful.”

“Of course you didn’t know. We didn’t tell you for a reason.” Emi puts it plainly and rolls her eyes. Her gaze narrows in on a bag of blue candies in Neris’s hands. “Those are for the children.”

Neris brushes off the slight and extends the bag my way. “And adults. Try some ‘Rosa.”

I blush at the nickname and dig my hand into the bag, ignoring Emi’s disgusted gaze. The simple taste of sugar explodes in my mouth the moment I pop one of the candies between my lips. My eyes widen and I eat a few more before laughing. It’s so sweet, I fear my teeth may rot out.

“Your lips are blue,” Mavis notes with an amused look as she approaches us.

I respond maturely by sticking my equally blue tongue out at her.

“Laei, your teeth too!”

My chest rises and falls heavily, but I feel light. If I wanted, I could run back into the dance circle and maybe learn the correct dance, or eat a few more candies and drink with the adults. My father, the Kijova, and Lucius all feel so far away. If only Rowan were here to…

Rowan. He’s out there searching for me because I was kidnapped. These people are acting like my friends, but if I asked to leave, they would still tell me no. They’re using me to hurt him.

I stumble and my smile falls. Sensing a shift in the atmosphere, Mavis grips my elbow and leads me from the beautiful room without so much as a goodbye. She doesn’t speak until we are back in my room and I settle for sitting at the edge of my bed.

“Out with it.”

“If I asked to leave, you’d say no.”

Mavis rolls her eyes. “Obviously.”

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