“It’s awesome that you took down that scammer ex yourself.”
“One of the top ten moments of my life.”
“When did my baby sister get so amazing?” Ysabel’s voice finally held a trace of a smile.
“I’ve been proud of myself lately,” I said, and for once, I meant it.
I remembered that I still needed to find Ari/Araceli and confess my feelings. I felt a welling of confidence. Somehow, I knew I would find the right words to say. Whatever the obstacles of my current body and my insecurities, we would get through them together.
Unfortunately, at that point, I heard the sound of blaring horns.
Ysabel rubbed her eyes and looked out the window. “What’s going on?”
A booming, gift-enhanced voice cried, “Presenting the representative of the Conclave of Kings!”
For once, I wasn’t behind an unlocked door, and it hadn’t done me any good. Trouble had found me anyway. “Haven’t we filled our quota of crises today?” I moaned. “Is it too late to force this godawful kingdom on the Dragon Emperor?”
Ysabel paled. “I thought we’d have more time before the Conclave made a move. Can you stall them? I’ll bring Kaine and Alzira.”
The old Bora would have been too scared. The new Bora wouldn’t let her sister down. “I’ll intimidate them so badly, they’ll be shaking in their boots.”
Ysabel patted my arm. “I knew I could count on you.” She left at a run.
I’d taken off a lot of my jewelry because I found it too heavy. Fortunately, I still had most of it stuffed into my purse. I would havebeen too nervous to leave such expensive jewels lying around. As I ran down the stairs, I crammed on rings and bracelets. I tossed a ruby necklace over my head, getting my hair caught. Stopping at a mirror, I straightened my curls. I yanked down my bodice and hiked up my skirt in order to look properly like the Blood Duchess.
With my head raised high, I stepped outside. A row of guards in silver masks lined a golden carriage. The plumes on their helmets told me that these must be Gifted Knights. But I refused to be intimidated. I had my own guards standing at the palace gate and guarding the wall. The same guards who had turned tail as soon as the mob showed up, but I told myself that the Conclave’s representative didn’t know that.I’m not Bora, a simple country girl. I’m the Blood Duchess. Fierce and unconquerable. Terrifying and beautiful.
The lead knight bellowed, “Announcing the representative of the Conclave of Kings.”
I tossed back my hair and laughed wickedly. “What a fool, setting foot onmyterritory. I, the Blood Duchess, will—”
My words died in my throat. The woman who stepped out of the carriage had curly black hair, brown eyes, and a short stature supported by high heels. Those facial features had stared back at me from the mirror for my entire life.
She wasme.
Or rather, she was the real Blood Duchess.
Chapter Twenty-One
Ah. Uh,” I stammered. My mind had gone completely blank. All my fake confidence in myself as the Blood Duchess had vanished in the face of the real Duchess Hedri.
My body seemed like a foreign thing now it had been dressed up, perfumed, and bedecked in such large gemstones. I felt distant, as if in a dream.
In a flash, she’d stepped past the wall of guards to come so close I could have reached out a hand and touched her (my?) shoulder. She raked me with her eyes. A sneer pulled back her lips. “I see you’ve been enjoying yourself inside my body, thief. You made me look like a mess.” Her eyes swept the courtyard, taking in the wreckage left from the last two mobs. “Clearly you weren’t able to handle your situation at all.”
Her poise and dignity showed flawlessly in every word and gesture. It seemed so much better than my own fake confidence. Frankly, she wore my body far better than I did. Her blue dress perfectly accented her curves. (My curves? This had the potential to get confusing real fast.) In my state of shock, every last ruffle on the dress became vivid. A huge diamond necklace drew attention to the scandalously low dress line. My hair looked shinier and more voluminous than I’d ever managed to style it myself. I’d have fallen flat on my face if I’d attempted those high heels. A bit of makeup had turned my plain face beautiful. Funny, I’d always hated my double chin, but on the duchess I hadn’t even noticed.
A nasty voice in my head whispered,She’s superior to you, no matter what body. You never could have made yourself look so beautiful.Everything you have now is only because everyone thinks that you’re the Blood Duchess. Without that, you’re just a plain country mouse that no one listens to, respects, or cares about.
I knew I ought to do something. Say something. Even running away would be better than standing here waiting for her to order my arrest. But my cowardly feet refused to move. The guards were staring at us—both hers and mine. I swayed as the world around me spun.
A cloud of doom wrapped inescapably over me. Deep down, I knew it was all over.
The real Duchess Hedri raised her hand high to wave a parchment. “I am your rightful duchess. I have a scroll from the Conclave of Kings verifying my true identity. Although even without that, I’m sure the difference between me and her is quite obvious.” She gestured at me, then placed a hand on her chest. “The superior quality of nobility can’t be faked. Guards, arrest this imposter!”
I closed my eyes, waiting for the hammer to fall.
“Ours isn’t the real Blood Duchess?” one of the Arahasnor guards asked from behind me.
