I had made sure Katrinka wanted for nothing. And I had found my own stay last night to be lovely. I had slept harder here than I could ever remember sleeping in my life. No dreams about ravens following me around or killing my family. No icy chill to keep me tossing and turning to get warm. I was not on the road—either by foot or carriage—and I had not found my mind spinning with all the things to do and discover and uncover. I had simply relaxed into a deep, dreamless sleep that had left me well-rested and comfortable.
In fact, the only times I found myself uncomfortable in this castle were at the mealtimes Katrinka and I shared with Ravanna.
The queen was clearly not used to constant houseguests or other people sharing meals with her. She kept forgetting we were at the table, only to look up and startle every time her gaze alighted on us.
It probably didn’t help that Katrinka and I were being as quiet as possible so as not to annoy her. Supper last night had been painful. And breakfast this morning was something more than excruciating. So much so that I had suggested to Mrs. Blythe that Katrinka and I could eat earlier or later than the queen so as not to disturb her. But Mrs. Blythe had only looked at me like I was a fool and continued walking.
“I am wondering...” my sister started with a trembling voice. “If you would go for a walk with me. I know you are fond of exploring the grounds. And I just... I just can’t stay inside much longer, waiting for her to yell at us.”
“Or talk to us like a decent person,” I added, understanding her pallor now. Katrinka offered a meek smile. “I would love to go for a walk. There is nothing a little sunshine and fresh air cannot cure.”
I slid the spell book under the covers and hopped off the bed. Shiksa sat up abruptly, shaking off her slumber. She had been restless since we arrived at the Keep last night, but she could at least stop her pacing when she was with me.
Apparently, when I left for a meal, she would pace the room and scratch at the door. Clesta was worried she’d gotten pregnant somehow. And I had to keep assuring her that would be impossible since we hadn’t seen any male foxes since I found her as a baby.
Scooping up Shiksa, I decided to take her with me. She wouldn’t wander far if I let her walk. And it would be good for her to stretch her legs after so much travel.
“Should we tell someone?” I asked as we navigated the winding hallways of Fenwick Keep toward the throne room. Neither of our guards was permitted on this side of the castle because Ravanna insisted that hers didn’t need their help, so ours had been forced to guard the foyer. They were ill pleased with the setup, but I relished the freedom.
Or at least the façade of freedom.
Ravanna’s whole employ had learned to stay so well out of sight. The only other people we had seen since Barstus was Mrs. Blythe and our maids.
We got lost somewhere on the way, though, and ended up in a different part of the castle. When we tried to turn around and go back the way we came, we found the ballroom. Katrinka stepped inside first, smiling at me.
“Ballrooms always lead to gardens,” she whispered.
I knew her to be right, so I followed. Both of us gasped at the sight of the ballroom, even in the light of day. It looked like the night sky but as though we were aloft in it. The same black marble that made up seemingly the entire Keep was more speckled here. There were sprinkles of gold and silver and white saturating the glossy obsidian. Everything around us sparkled in the sunlight, a breath of whimsy in an otherwise dark existence.
And sure enough, along the back wall were glass panes that showed us the gardens.
We hurried for doors that had been left open to the afternoon breeze and slipped outside, breathing deeply. I had not realized how tight my chest had coiled until the sun was on my skin again. Even Shiksa stretched in my arms and tipped her face toward the sky.
Katrinka sighed happily beside me. “Thank you for joining me. My head feels as though it’s been spinning for months, and this... this place is too much for me to comprehend. I felt as though I was going mad in there.”
I smiled to myself at her admission. It wasn’t much, but this was a small step toward trust. Sure, her other options for companionship were Ravanna Pressydia or Mrs. Blythe—the ancient servant who refused to speak to us—but I would treasure this small victory. This tiny invitation to be more than acquaintances.
We walked down onyx cobblestones and stepped onto a garden path with trellises on either side, splendid with climbing flowers. Shiksa wiggled until I let her jump from my arms. She landed gracefully on the trail and began trotting happily in front of us, leading the way.
Katrinka and I were silent for a few minutes, but this question about magic was scratching the inside of my mind. I needed a second opinion. There was a letter for Taelon in the deep, inset pockets of my dress, but until I could find Finch, the topic seemed to swarm throughout my body like an angry hive of bees.
“What did Barstus teach you of magic?” Her head snapped quickly to the side so she could measure the severity of my question. “I’m quite serious, Katrinka.”
“Well, like the monks in Heprin, I’m sure you learned the same thing. Magic was once vibrant in our realm, but after the war and the Marble Wall was built, the Seat of Power, etcetera, it was used less and less. And eventually banned.” She plucked a flower from the hedge, rolling it carefully between her fingers. “I had heard of the Century War, but what I read was diluted compared to what Ravanna shared on the way here. And I had never heard of magic being attached directly to the Crown of Nine. Hundreds of years don’t seem very long ago in the grand scheme of things.”
“My thoughts exactly.”
She hummed thoughtfully, then glanced over her shoulder. “Did it seem that Ravanna thought there might still be magic in the Crown of Nine? She seemed... I don’t know, confused or particularly thoughtful about the subject.”
“Yes, you’re right. I had not thought of that till now. I suppose, if you believed in magic, it would matter greatly if it had been removed from the Crown or merely hidden. The difference would be great.”
“But why, Tessana? Why would it be great to someone who would never wear it?”
I remembered my trial and said, “She nearly did, though. Before I arrived in Elysia, the council was set to vote on a new Seat of Power. They were going to move it from the Allisand bloodline. I had thought it was meant for Uncle Tyrn. But do you think...?”
She pressed her lips tightly together and considered. This was the most the two of us had spoken to each other without interruption, and my heart swelled at the possibility of a more familiar relationship. “Do you know, I blamed you for sending me away to Barstus? Well, not specifically you. But my family. I foolishly blamed them for getting murdered because it made my life so difficult. In the early years, when I was so cold and so alone, I would think things like, why didn’t they love me enough to take me with them? Why would they abandon me in this wretched place? Why would they do this to me?” She laughed quietly and pushed her glasses up her nose. “Dreadfully selfish, I know, but I couldn’t imagine life without the family I loved so much. I couldn’t reconcile why they’d been taken away from me and why I’d been left to navigate this cruel, harsh world all alone. But then, well, then I got to know the Zolotovs. They were kind to me, accepted me as one of their own, and became the family I had lost. When Maksim offered to marry me into his family, I leaped at the chance. I... I didn’t care about losing Elysia or the realm or the Seat of Power. All I cared about was staying at home.” She cleared her throat and added, “Although I had truly never expected him to have Alexi in mind. I thought...”
“Andre,” I filled in for her when she trailed off. “Anton told me.”
