Samara looked up at the ceiling. “He’s a brute, he deserves some time in there.”
It had been years. Years of the same thing, of sneaking around and late-night meetings. Of Nina having to look at Samara with disgust in public instead of what she truly felt. Nina didn’t know when exactly it happened. It had started as subtle glances, then accidental touches. Nina never dared anything more, for fear Cas would slay her. Then, one night, Nina accidentally walked in on her and her mother having a heated disagreement, one that ended with Gina throwing Samara off the rooftop training rink.
From the entrance to the area, Nina had Earth Called the ground below into the thickest flower beds she could conjure, then ran all the way down to the side of the castle with a box of healing gear in hand.
Samara had landed on a mattress of interwoven tulips, so distraught and embarrassed that Nina had tended to her small cutsin silence. Nina never learned what happened that night between her and her mother, but she had also never asked. They spent the night on the bed of tulips before resuming their lives without explanation. After that, Samara started sneaking into Nina’s room at night, using her Shadows to open her window and slide through. Nina didn’t complain—she also learned that Shadows can be used for way more than just destruction.
“Sol will not easily agree to the Coronation Vows, you know,” Nina whispered, stroking Samara’s loose hair. “I may have just met her, but I know her enough to know she doesn’t like being told what to do.”
“Too bad. Ruling a kingdom has plenty of that.”
Nina peered at her. “You can’t truly agree with it.”
“It’s fun. Rimemere needs alliances, what better way than with a marriage?”
The Coronation Vows were an abomination, to say the least. By Southern law, a Royal must rule beside a political partner, be it man or woman, but never alone. Semmena ruled beside Mel until—well, until he didn’t.
There was no stipulation about having to remarry if the first one fell through. And the citizens didn't care. All they knew was it was a time to drink and dance and watch the prospects tear themselves apart for a chance to wed into Royal bloodlines.
The Rimemere Coronation Vows had always proved most heated, since marrying into a Yarrow line was the closest thing to the divine one could get.
“Irene hated it, too,” Nina commented. “Almost got herself exiled by breaking the rules at the end.”
“Which is exactly why your little Princess should just deal with it. I’ll be sure to select suitable prospects from the other territories for her.”
“She won’t agree to it.”
“She has to.”
“She doesn’t.”
“The king will find out she was in Yavenharrow, you know,” said Samara. “Jinn talk. It’s kind of one of their main skills.”
Nina scoffed, easing Samara off her. “Your point?”
“That you should’ve told the truth back there. Tell me, did you find her or were you just following Jinn and got lucky?” Her violet eyes flared. “Because it’s quite a blow to think you all searched for, what, three years with no luck, but a single Mind Slayer and finds her in a month.”
The words buzzed in her ears. “What?”
“You think you three were the only ones trying to find her? The entire South has been praying for their shot at her.” Samara leaned back, her gaze roving over Nina’s. “You’re being quite uncharacteristically defiant for this girl.” She reached a finger to Nina’s lips, tracing them with her thumb. “Do I have to worry about competition now?”
Nina stood. “What are you talking about, Samara?”
“Lots has changed, Nanette. People are starting to see Rimemere’s weaknesses, despite Semmena trying to show the opposite. Sol won't be a good ruler. You’re better off killing her and letting Arnold be.”
Nina turned to look at her slowly, the ground beneath her shaking. “Let me make one thing clear, Samara.” She lowered her voice. “You so much as breathe the wrong way at Sol, and I swear to the gods the number of years we have known each other will not matter. I will protect her. She is the rightful Queen. And you better understand your place.”
Sixteen
MASK OF FURY
THE DAYS WENTby incredibly quickly.
Sol was tossed from meeting to meeting, greeting professors, students, and all the officials in between with forced smiles and laughs. She wore painfully tight corsets and ridiculous shoes, mostly accompanied by Nina and Sawyer everywhere she went. Cas was nowhere to be seen, which proved to worry her more than anticipated.
Since the day of the Lineage Trace, no one had seen him. Nina mentioned the last time she saw him was in the throne room and hadn’t heard of him since—but the darkness that flickered through her gaze every time it was brought up made Sol think Cas had not just gone out for a stroll.
Alix swam in occasionally, but was mostly occupied in the libraries, scribe duties ticking with the need for invitations to be distributed to the rest of the continent. Because Rimemere was isolated by the wall, courtiers had to cross it before being able to send the invitation by transport.
