Leanna stood with a firm hand positioned on her hip, her head tilted, shaking at her brother’s remark.
I rose to my feet, realizing she’d expected me to return with her. I moved to leave but found Ryder tugging my hand, pullingme back to him. Reluctantly, I waited.
“We’ll be taking a walk first,” he commanded, leaving no room for question. All three faces dropped, but Leanna lifted her chin, let out an exaggerated breath, and guided the women away.
“I don’t think your sister likes me much,” I muttered as I watched the outlines of the trio become smaller in the distance and collected my daggers.
“She doesn’t like anyone—it has nothing to do with you.” Ryder paused. “She takes her position seriously, and she’s yet to secure my marriage, which is … well, problematic.”
I waited silently, not knowing how to respond.
He stepped in front of me and lifted my chin. “But maybe that’s just because I hadn’t found the right person until now.”
A moment hung between us, and I thought he might kiss me, but he turned instead. Leading me out of the ring, he effortlessly lifted me and guided me down to the ground below. I’d never felt small, but between both his physical size and his presence, I was tiny in comparison. It was an odd juxtaposition to feel vulnerable yet protected all at once.
We walked along the gravel path in silence, both of us lost deep in our own thoughts. In the distance, waves crashed against the steep cliffs bordering the rear of the castle grounds. Whoever erected the castle directly on the coast was both stupid and brilliant. At the right angle, the enormous area of flowers looked to be an extension of the sea; the constant coastal breeze kept them swaying with the waves.
“I wanted to show you this,” Ryder mused as we turned the bend. “I thought you might appreciate it considering you tend your own garden at home, though it’s only food bearing, right?”
Several rose bushes were placed just off the path in a semicircular pattern around a small pond. The roses appeared almost normal, but they weren’t; the aquamarine petals atop the thorny stems suggested fraud.
“How?” I muttered as I knelt down and brushed a finger along a petal. “Roses don’t produce in this color—it’s … unnatural.”
Ryder moved to my side, so close I could still feel the heat of his body. “It is,” he said matter-of-factly.
“Have your land wielders grown these?” I shook my head, totally bewildered and unsure how to replicate the creation on my own.
“It’s a bit more complicated.” He paused and pursed his lips. “My mother’s favorite flowers are roses. But as you can see, my father prefers everything in order and … blue. Or at least some shade of it to match Rivale’s official hue.”
I plucked a petal and brought it to my nose. It wasn’t the familiar sweet scent I was used to. Instead, there was an underlying sour note wafting from it. Everything about it was wrong.
Ryder continued, “He found someone who specializes in a different sort of magic. It forces something as natural as a rose to bend into whatever the wielder demands.”
“I see.” I turned my head to hide the grimace. “It’s not actually the same rose bush though. It might look the same to you and me, but I assure you, it doesn’t recognize itself as it once was.”
“It doesn’t matter as long as everyone else thinks it’s a rosebush. Who cares what it thinks of itself? It’s just a flower.”
I cleared my head and pivoted the point. “I’d like to meet your father and learn more about this. Learn how it’s possible for him to attain such beauty.” Keeping my goals front and center needed to remain my priority. I couldn’t let myself get distracted by the prince, no matter how easy it was.
“No.” Ryder shut me down in an instant and rose.
“What? Why?” I stood on the balls of my feet to lessen the distance between us. “Don’t you want to introduce me?”
“He’ll only meet my betrothed, and refuses to meet anyone else.” He paused. “My father’s a complicated man—very fewunderstand him.” The soles of his boots crunched against the gravel as he meandered down the narrow path.
“Surely he’d want to meet anyone you’re considering,” I pressed as I caught up to him. “I imagine he would want to have a say in your decision. It’s such an important one.”
He ignored me and kept his eyes focused on the darkening sea.
“And your mother? Will I get to meet her at least?” If I couldn’t meet the king directly, she could lead me to him, maybe even help me gain access to the damned study.
“If not roses, then what?” Ryder stopped in the middle of the path and turned to me.
I fidgeted with my tunic. “I don’t know what you mean.”
He took a step toward me and looked down, his lashes practically resting on his upper cheek. “What brings you joy, Audryn? If not uniquely colored roses, what evokes happiness in your heart?”
I contemplated my choices. Killing his father would bring me great pleasure. Finding the name of my brother’s executioner would bring me enormous satisfaction. Gradually removing the executioner’s head from their body would be the highlight of my entire life. Perhaps killing Hunt would tide me over temporarily until I could kill those responsible for destroying my family. But I couldn’t relay my thoughts out loud, so I contemplated what else had filled me with joy.
