“That is…” Hellebore’s voice came out far breathier than she wanted it to, but she couldn’t seem to make it any stronger with him so close. “That is precisely my point. Whether it is a few weeks or tomorrow, this ends the same way. So it doesn't matter if I try to refuse; it means nothing to you. So, to save us the trouble of delaying so you can pretend like you care about changing my mind, let's instead pretend as though I have any choice in the matter and we'll say I accept.”
Taiyo pulled back, his hand dropping as he took her in. She hoped she wasn’t shaking. That was second only to crying.
Once he’d studied her enough for his liking, he rose from his seat, brushing off his clothes. “I'm sorry it's come to this.”
She shook her head and laughed. “No, you're not.”
He took a deep breath, and the sparks from before almost rekindled, but they were gone as he exhaled. “I would not do this unless it was necessary. I know you may not believe me, but you and I are in the same position. Neither of us have a choice in this marriage.”
Then he headed for the door.
She just stared at her bandaged wrists.
He was right; she didn’t believe him.
When the door creaked open, she looked up. He paused in the doorway and looked back over his shoulder. He whispered, “Please, don't make this more difficult than it needs to be.”
He should have thought about that before deciding to marry an alchemist.
But she was tired and her shoulders still hurt, and she desperately wanted to run to her aunt and ask her how this could have possibly happened. She wanted to grab Callahan and scream at him for betraying her like this. While she was many things, she was not going to start a war because she wasn't as good an alchemist as she'd believed herself to be.
It was a miracle she hadn’t started one accidentally, and she would certainly not start one on purpose.
“I'll see you at the wedding, Your Majesty.”
Then he was gone, and Hellebore pressed her fist to her mouth as the tears welled up, refusing to let them fall. She would not cry.
If this was her fate, she would bear it well.
But even that, she failed to achieve.
Chapter 6
Hellebore was dozing on the sofa, sleeve stained with tears, evidence of her weakness and unsuitability to be the next King’s Alchemist, when a knock sounded on the door.
She scrubbed her cheeks and called out, “Yes?”
The door creaked open and it was the two servant girls from before, one carrying the potted Sunrise Iris and the other a dinner tray.
“From His Majesty, Your Highness,” the first one said, holding out the pot with a note attached to a ribbon tied around the pot.
Hellebore rose from her seat as the second girl set the tray on the table. It seemed as though these two maids were going to be permanently assigned to her. They were both pretty, as almost all elves were. The taller one was of a fairer skin tone, more closely matching Hellebore’s than Taiyo’s, and she had blonde hair that faded into a soft pink. The other one had a warm, light brown skin tone and a wide smile, her hair brown mixed with shimmering gold. If they were going to be sticking around, Hellebore supposed she’d better get used to it and use them.
Hellebore took the plant and asked, “Just so I know, how old are the two of you?”
“I'm Phoebe, Your Highness. I just turned forty.” The taller of the two gestured to herself with a smile before pointing to the other. Although both were taller than Hellebore. “Elaine is thirty-five.”
Hellebore did not return the smile. Her voice was still clipped and cold. “Which would make you how old if you were human?”
Phoebe and Elaine exchanged a look, seeming to speak to each other in the silence before Phoebe said, “I'd say we're roughly around your age.”
Hellebore picked at the ribbon tied around the pot. “And King Taiyo?”
“Oh, he's only fifty-six,” Elaine said. “Which I believe if you were counting in human years, that makes him around twenty-eight?”
Phoebe laughed. “That sounds so young to our ears.”
She supposed that made sense. Her father had been thirty-two when he married her mother, who'd been a few years older than Hellebore was now. Besides, Taiyo was an elf and this was clearly a political match, so it wasn't ideal, but it wasn't repulsive to her. Rather, it wasn’t his age that was repulsive to her. It did at least put things into perspective.
