“Father!”
Hellveig had the man collect Willem again, and I felt faint.
“No!” I fought.
I forced my fingertips beneath the leather of Elías’s gauntlet, scratching his arm deeply enough that he let go with a sound, but before I could rush Hellveig and leap onto her back or strike her with whatever I could find, his shape barricaded himself in front of me.
I screamed at him. “Stand down andmove!”
The ironsmith was rigid as he swallowed. He picked up the skew left resting in the flame—theEisson’s Crestskew and brand for our team.
“Lord Commander!” I ordered in rage. I tried to circumvent him in both directions, and though his expression told me that he did care, his body would not let mine around. “You will move, or I will moveyou!”
But he did not. He said,“Close your eyes, Svana,”but I refused and began to strike him. He knelt, coiling his armsaround me, and found my ear. He whispered,“There is nothing you can do but remember this moment for what it is.”
“You must stop them!” I begged.
“Remember this moment, and when you are Queen,”he said,“give justice a louder voice in your court.”
“Willem!”I cried.
Chapter 1
Five Years Later
The smell of burnt flesh never quite left my memory. I could barely recall the sound of metal tinging against rock, my skirt ripping, Willem’s screams, or even how the crevices of Miss Hellveig’s cruel intent shaped her face, but I remembered, perfectly, the God-awful scent of skin and heat. It appeared in everyday things, like rotating chicken over a tiny flame in the kitchen. My stomach churned if I stopped to acknowledge the similarity for too long.
Ser Elías was by my side and on his duteous guard. With my eighteenth birthday and the Treaty’s impending fruition, whispers of a threat had come, too. Despite the promise of peace by marriage, the haze of uncertainty and Chalke’s traditionally misogynistic inhabitants lingered in the air. He checked high and checked low, and he checked every face that came and went around me in every room, fueled by the same paranoia that cursed my father. Until my wedding night, I would suffer it, and out of respect, I would do so brightly, even when the only enemies were the new cook and a nervously well-meaning footman, who constantly asked for directions from the knights.
“Will there be a non-birdoption?” I asked Ms. Krog. “Something less… recently alive?”
She frowned. “I can try, young miss. Er, Your Highness.” She squinted, watching as I nudged the Lord Commander off scowling at the boy. “I could perhaps construct you a hearty sort of salad?”
“For breakfast?” I asked. I didn’t catch her response, whispering to Elías instead.“That one’s been here at least a month. Leave him alone.”
“You insult me,”he whispered back.“I’ve never forgotten a face. He just looks strange today.”
“Strange? Really, Eli? He’s fourteen at best. Men’s faces grow long at that age. Besides, how is he supposed to look with you inspecting him so?”
“Your Highness,” Ms. Krog chimed. “I will find something for you, I promise.” She took a bowl from one of the other girls and moved around the counter. “But itisthe morning rush, so if it pleases you, we have much to do before the hour. Your father is having the Baron for lunch.”
Elías sighed. “Yes, we are well aware,” he said. He urged me toward the door. “I’m sure we can find someone else to harass, ma’am. Don’t fuss over the Princess; I’ll see her fed in town.”
“Oh, you’ll see me fed, will you?” I checked. “How kind. Just like the dog I am.”
He exhaled, unamused, and the cook looked utterly distraught.
“Lovely, isn’t he?” I asked her. “You know he’s looking for a wife–”
Elías grabbed my arm and basically shoved me into the hall. I could not help but giggle.
“What?” I joked. “You don’t think I’m funny?”
“Hilarious, Princess,” he said. His voice was flat.
“Oh, is she not pretty enough?” I asked.
Elías said,“Mrs.Krog is married.”
