She and Calista followed me into the bedroom, where Calista stood at my closet, tutting as she scraped the hangers across the bar. “What color would you like to wear today, my queen?”
“Something pretty for the king to admire.” Moira gave me asweet smile. “Though I imagine he finds you pretty when you’re wearing almost anything.”
Calista huffed and actually scowled, though she smoothed it quickly.
By the time I’d stepped out of the bath and dried my body, steam clung to the air and a subtle perfume lingered on my skin. Calista waited with the gown draped over her arm. I recognized it from the ship, the one with a split skirt made for both ease of movement and elegance.
“Perfect,” I said, and Calista beamed, her mood restored. Her fingers brushed my shoulders as she adjusted the fit. She only paused when I reached for my belts and strapped my blades around my waist. Her pinched expression was a whisper rather than a shout, but I caught it nonetheless. Ignoring her was easier than explaining why I’d never stop arming myself, not even while I wore a crown.
“Your hair?” Moira asked from nearby, holding up a handful of pins.
“Keep it simple. Maybe a braid?”
Calista huffed and spun to go through the jewelry.
Moira frowned her way. “As you wish, my queen.”
Once my hair had been arranged and the tiara Calista selected was secured in place, I rose from my chair and turned, spyingEmber’s Shadowlying on the newly made bed.
Had one of them found it while straightening the blankets or…
“Could you both leave for a few moments?” I asked. “I need a bit of time alone.” I started toward the bathing area as if I had an overwhelming urge to sit for a while.
“Of course.” Moira tugged on her mother’s sleeve and after shooting me an odd look, Calista went with her daughter, the two women walking out into the sitting area, closing the door behind them.
Pivoting back, I dropped down onto the bed and liftedEmber’s Shadowonto my lap. I’d periodically tugged it out from beneath the mattress to see if it had anything to say, but it hadn’t so far. But if it was making itself known… Well, my heart was thrumming much too fast in my chest.
Please, please, please, give me a hint into the curse.
After peeling back the cover, I started flipping through the blank pages, my frustration growing with each one. Maybe it hadn’t inserted itself into my morning. Moira might’ve found it beneath the mattress and placed it on the bed.
Except, I found something near the end.
Words scrolled across the page as I read them aloud.
Beneath the crescent’s trembling glow,
Where rivers twist, and shadows flow,
A pledge of twin-born hearts was cast,
Weaving a bond too vast to grasp.
The elder scales, the crown’s first claim,
Together bled, bound flame to name.
Through kin of sky and earth combined,
A kingdom renewed. A fate aligned.
With hearts betrayed by fractured trust,
What once was whole, now turns to dust.
The path unclear, yet calls to dare,
A chosen bond will lead you there.
