“No . . .” he whispered.
During the first moments of his study, Corvin had politely averted his eyes, though he clearly fidgeted with curiosity. Leon showed no such self-restraint, craning over the table to read upside-down, and after some glaring at his twin, Corvin’s defenses crumbled to join.
“She really did warn me not to climb the castle, even thoughsheclimbed the—Baron, how did you not ask for more details on that?”
“I amnotafraid of heights,” Leon said. “I’m just not stupid. Why is so much of this about us, anyway?”
“She’s under a curse,” Baron said softly. “She’s hoping I’ll break it.”
“I don’t see that anywhere,” said Leon.
Baron ran his finger across a few of the details he’d picked out. “In her very first letter, she says she requires the aid of a Caster. Here, she asks about Artifacts, specifically wanting to know if destroying one will break a Cast. She asks about length of Casts, permanence, application.... She even mentions how she’s studying the account of the last member of court known to be cursed. Here, she asks if one Caster can interfere with another, and then, here, about my strength as a Caster.”
Leon nodded, then reached over to slap Baron’s shoulder. “You’re right. Good luck.”
“Very funny. You remember you’re the one who first encouraged me to speak to her.”
“I said ‘get a voice at court.’ How was I supposed to know this voice runs around drinking everything Casters hand out? I thought she swallowed your tea too quick.”
“Aria’s just kind,” said Corvin.
“Kindness is ‘let me show you the kitchen,’ not, ‘let me drink something that might turn me blind.’”
Baron gave him a flat stare, and Leon held his hands up. “Iknow you wouldn’t, but she didn’t even know you. All anybody sees is the brand.”
Baron’s eyes lingered on the words of her very first letter:The man behind the mark. He’d really believed she saw him that way—as Guillaume Reeves, son, brother, lemon keeper. The individual, not just the Caster. In the same way, he’d felt he had started to see her as the woman behind the crown. He’d grown comfortable referring to her, at least in his mind, as simplyAria.
Though they’d discussed magic in every message, they’d also discussed siblings and interests, the way she looked forward to daffodils blooming in spring, the way he wasn’t certain he made the best decisions for the hamlet.
It’s a hard thing to bear direct responsibility for others,she’d written.In truth, I worry every day that I’ll fail as queen, but I can’t seem to stop trying anyway. You care for those people, Baron. That means something.
He’d told her about his first spectacular fails in swordplay, about how he loved reading the legends of Einar. She’d related some of her favorite historical accounts, including the story of a woman named Leah, who stood before an angry mob and prevented them from burning a town.
If I could be half the woman she was,she’d written.Brave, resolute, caring.
And Baron had been bold enough to say,It seems to me you already are.
Now he realized she’d been using him all along. Even her favorable view of his magic made sense if he could do for her what no one else could.
In his very first letter, he’d told her,People are content toacknowledge that magic exists when it might benefit them. Nothing else.Somehow, he’d forgotten his own words. Gotten carried away in the dream of something different and forgotten one thing:
When it came to how people viewed Casters, it was always the same.
“Baron?” said Corvin. “Do you think you can break the curse?”
Leon said, “Imagine what kind of reward you can ask for saving a princess. They’d give you the title back for sure.”
Corvin’s face brightened, and Baron took a deep breath. Leon was closer to the truth than he knew. Baron was an opportunity for the princess, but she was one for him as well. Nothing more.
“We’ll find out at the joust,” he said.
Either way, their relationship—whatever it was—would end there.
30 days left
It’s today!” Eliza squealed. “It’s today! It’s today!”
She danced around the room in a way that made Aria’s tired legs twinge even while standing still. But inside, she was dancing too.
