The sun set in the theatre’s windows, coating the space in complete darkness. All the chatter of the audience settled down. Just as our eyes adjusted to the conditions, a bell rang out, and every lamp and candle within the building went aflame in sequential order, from the front edge of the stage to the braziers suspended from the timberwork overhead. I clutched the sides of my seat.
“Magic?” I whispered, overlapped byoohs andaahs from below.
The prince smiled, shaking his head. “I’m afraid not. It’s only science, though they often look similar.” He leaned closer. “Beneath the stage, there’s a network of twine soaked in saltpeter. As one end lights backstage, the flame travels. Then, as they train the eye to the stage, cloaked men tend to the lights above.”
Quinn leaned forward. “I thought you didn’t care for the theatre.”
“I don’t,” replied Nicolas. “There was an investigation on the matter when I was a child. The first time that inventive stagehand pulled his little trick, the viewers had such an outcry that they barely made it into the first act before he was taken prisoner.”
From his side, Queen Adelaide chortled. “I remember that. Your father punished the nobles of Caermont by sentencing them to reading assignments. He said if they wished to conduct themselves like superstitious villagers, they were welcome to vacate their manors and live in dirt huts.”
I arched my eyebrow. The late king certainly sounded interesting.
An actor walked onto the stage and the crowd fell quiet. As he launched into his opening monologue, I felt a set of fingers dance atop my hand. My gaze dropped and they went still, and Nicolas watched me with nervous invitation.
I flipped over my palm, grazing my fingertips along those digits, then intertwined our hands. He held on carefully, like he wasn’t sure this was allowed. Then his thumb traced an arc, a gentle up and down sweep, and inch-by-inch, I let my head fall on his shoulder.
Chapter 18
Midnight came andwent by the time we reached Castle Altaigne, but the queen insisted on our return. Evidently, there was business to attend to in the morning, and she did not wish to offend her distant family by staying only for one night.
By morning, I could hardly rouse myself. Winnie brought tea to help, then began laying out the wardrobe for the day. Recalling my deal with Angharad, I shook my head and pointed to the Hadrian chest.
“No.” I yawned, my breath making waves over the tinted drink. “The burgundy ensemble.”
Winnie’s shoulders slumped. “My lady, Angharad is a bold woman. She’s not shy of offending others when it might amuse her, but she would never deliberately upset the queen.”
I huffed. “Come on. We’ll accessorize it, make it acceptable, and if my frienddoesparticipate, as she stated she would, I will merely need to disassemble until we match.”
Winnie set the dress down and crossed her arms.
“I think you’re putting too much trust in yourfriend.Dealing with Percy might have been favorable to her. For all you know, it’s all a fabrication meant to help her get rid of a political enemy.”
“Forgive me, Winnie. I didn’t take you for the suspicious type.” I grimaced, slipping out of my shift and into the flattering gown. “Why the sudden hatred for Angharad? You were the one who worried that I would upset her by avoiding her presence.”
“I do not hate the woman! Gods, do you think me some jealous wench?” asked Winnie. “I’m suggesting temperance, Alana. You cannot rush a friendship with a courtier, it will only leave allowance for manipulation.”
“You and I are friends.”
Winnie groaned, balling her hands into fists. “Put your trust into Lady Angharad and see that your amity is fragile as glass. You did not grow up in court, my lady; you do not know what these people will do for the chance to humiliate one another.”
Something ugly bubbled up inside of me until it reached a peak that I could no longer contain. I snapped, my nose crinkling into a snarl. “Oh, woe is me, I’m the stupid girl from the forest! I am naïve and ripe for taking advantage of! I cannot think for myself!” Winnie flinched at the volume of my shout. I lowered my voice, but kept my venom. “Go and fetch my handmaidens. They will dress me today, if you will not.”
Winnie softened, lowering her eyes. She didn’t move for several moments, carefully considering her next course of action. Then, she came over and helped me, adding furs and swaths of lace to bring some semblance of modesty to the gown.
“I only wished to look out for you,” Winnie said quietly. “But I shall be here, even if my fear comes to fruition.”
“It won’t,” I insisted, but my bitterness had lessened. I didn’t know why I’d been so defensive; I almost apologized, the words lingering on the tip of my tongue before I chose silence. I might have been wrong for yelling, but Winnie had pressed me into it.
My self-assurance didn’t stop the anxiety on our walk to the dining hall. I hadn’t given due consideration to the possibility of Angharad’s betrayed promise—the womanhadeven given herself an out. “If Trefor allows me to leave the bed,”she’d said. She could sit out dinner in her room and not be a liar.
I tried not to show the worry on my face, focusing more on the occasional turning head as we walked. Delicious disapproval wore itself plainly in the women’s glares, and they couldn’t say a word about it because of station. Sometimes it felt good to take advantage of the situation I often resented.
“Lady Alana, dear.”
I stopped at the peak of the stairs, finding Florence as she swept nearer in a long, velvet gown. It was unfittingly colorful, like a rose blooming in winter.
“What do you think?” she asked, twirling her dress. “Am I convincingly wholesome and pure of heart?”
