Eimarille smiled slightly. “The Duchess of Auclair mentioned you when we chatted earlier. You were her ward for several years, were you not?”
“Yes, Your Royal Highness.”
“How have you found living in Amari?”
“Quite to my liking, thank you. The duchess and her family have been nothing but kind.”
“I’m sure.”
Eimarille studied her for a few seconds more without saying a word before moving to the next guest. Caris let out a breath she hadn’t been aware she was holding, tightening her grip on Nathaniel’s arm. The princess’ attention was a weight she was glad to be rid of, along with the Urovan lady-in-waiting’s regard.
Caris could have done with some air, but leaving would’ve been rude. Lore and Nathaniel maneuvered their small group deeper into the crowd, allowing others to take their place for introductions. Honovi chose to stay with them.
They mingled, because that was expected of them. Caris found herself keeping up sides of conversations she had no interest in. Everyone gushed about the princess, and Caris was hard-pressed to find a lie in anyone’s words.
She knew some of the bloodlines present weren’t in favor of Eimarille, even if they paid lip service to the Daijal court. Everyone did that night—through dinner, through more dancing, and through the end for the fireworks that exploded over the capital above the new palace.
The spectacle was made more extravagant by the addition of starfire cast by Eimarille. The white-hot burn of magic streaked away from the princess’ raised hands to erupt against the starry night sky. A pressure dug roots through Caris’ chest, coiling deep, as Eimarille called forth starfire. Caris’ hands twitched as she stood there in the garden, surrounded by the elite of Ashion, a secret burning in her soul.
Cool fingers wrapped around her left wrist, squeezing tightly. Caris glanced sideways, meeting her mother’s clear-eyed gaze.
“Don’t,” Portia warned, the word barely a sound falling from her lips, but the fear in her eyes was easy enough to read.
Caris swallowed thickly and faced forward again. As she did so, her gaze caught on the face of a woman dressed in a long-sleeved gown who wasn’t staring at the night sky but right back at her. Caris blinked, and when she opened her eyes again, the woman had disappeared, as if she’d never been.
Frowning, Caris cast her gaze upward, watching starfire explode amidst fireworks, yearning for something she could not explain.
Eight
MELERI
Meleri had chosen a spot deep in the palace gardens to watch the fireworks show. She was accompanied not by any of her children, but by the North Star herself.
“The aether calls to the girl,” Aaralyn said from her spot on a marble bench.
Meleri gripped her cane tighter, keeping her eyes on the star god and not the sky. “Should we be discussing this here, in this place, with the princess in residence?”
Aaralyn looked over her shoulder at Meleri, the star god’s eyes shining in her face. “My husband holds no sway here, no matter what he likes to believe.”
“Eimarille does, for she is still a Rourke.”
“If that were the case, she would have taken her chance with the starfire throne well before now. She hasn’t, and there is a reason for that.”
Meleri walked farther into the small area of the garden, with its bubbling fountain and high hedges that kept them hidden from the crowd. If it were anyone else out there with her, Meleri wouldn’t trust their conversation could be kept secret.
“Did you know that Caris had magic? That she needs no wand to channel the aether?” Meleri asked.
“I am the North Star.”
Meleri pressed her lips together, hands shaking with a sudden fury that left her light-headed. “She’s headstrong and stubborn. We could have lost her on that raid.”
“You didn’t, but you will lose her anyway if you block her from the road she is meant to walk.”
“She is meant to rule, not to fight.”
“What is ruling but a type of war?” Aaralyn stood, the Wolf constellation tattoo on her right arm shining through the sleeve of her ball gown. “She will not learn to survive if you do not let her fight. Allow her the freedom of her choices, or the queen you hope for will be a bitter ruler lost to you.”
Aaralyn walked away into the darkness, leaving Meleri alone beneath a cascade of fireworks. The explosions echoed in her ears, the sound not loud enough to block out the North Star’s admonishment.
