Every time my rage latched on to the roiling magic in my bloodstream, I’d have to look off to the side where Clement stood with Bryn. He would widen his eyes or shake his head, and I’d channel my irritation into digging holes in my palm. The magic wouldn’t fail me this time.
My dress, which was embarrassingly sheer, clung to the curves I’d rather keep hidden. It was the same silvery gray as his eyes, but also a perfect match for the shackles he’d chained me with only days ago. The prince’s thin lips twitched as my gaze sucked back to his.
The congregation was vast. Hundreds of townspeople lined benches and filled the walls, spilling out into the snow-laden courtyard beyond. If I wanted a subtle place to end things, this was not it.
The magic thrummed in my veins, pooling in my extremities, yearning for an escape.
As did I.
“We are gathered today under the benevolent eye of the Goddess to ask for her blessing.” The priestess’s gauze veil fluttered as she spoke. The diadem nestled into her smooth gray hair glittered in the candlelight. She gave no indication as to whether she approved of the match, nor of her opinion of the banns disaster, but she must know this could never be a Goddess-sanctioned unity.
“Prince Bellinor, heir of the queendom, and Lady Lilyanna, daughter of the people, you will both swear to uphold the traditions and customs of our fine country. Lead and be brave. Love and be generous. With the Goddess’s blessing, you will be bound to each other for eternity, in this life and the next.” The priestess lifted her head and raised her arms. “If there any objections as to why this match should not be cemented, either in this realm or the other, speak now.”
Both Clement and the prince drilled me with identical stares, Clement’s a warning, the prince’s a challenge. I pursed my lips, willing the deafening thump of my heart to recede so I could concentrate.
The silence hung in the warm room, candles flickering noiselessly as the guests held their breath, refusing to move an inch.
The priestess lowered her arms and life returned to the room. She opened her mouth to finalize the blessing when the double doors to the hall were flung open. They cracked against the stone, the candles guttering in the rose-tinted air that swarmed inside.
As one, the entire crowd turned to the back. A ripple of excitement washed over them. My heart sank, the magic sputtering in my fingertips.
The queens had arrived.
I’d never laid eyes on them in real life but the resemblance to the prince was uncanny, in the perfect physical characteristics of one and the casual elegance of the other. Both were dressed in identical snow-white gowns with fur lined stoles and gloves. Pearls were strung around their necks and danced multi-colored hues in their crowns as the candlelight speared through. A gust of snow-spiked wind chilled the air.
I released a strained breath, adrenaline zinging through my system. All I needed now was for Siobhan to make an appearance, and I was completely screwed.
The queens’ languid strides devoured the silence, the gap between us narrowing rapidly. Twenty guards marched after them, spears angled toward the crowd, polished boots ringing on the marble floor. They halted at the front, lowering their spears in unison with a solitary bang.
“Mothers,” the prince beamed. His smile was all tooth, the same wolfish grimace he gave me.
Good, make him uncomfortable. Make him squirm.
“Carry on, carry on.” The taller of the two queens with matching chestnut hair and eyes flapped a hand, dismissing him. “It’s about time you finally made it up the aisle with no more unfortunate occurrences, my boy.”
The prince’s smile stiffened as mine widened. Clement glared at me in a clear warning.
“Don’t let the small matter of our invitation being lost in another raging winter storm, which seems to only ever befall your fair city, keep you from delivering us a live heir.”
The prince paled. His knuckles grew skeletal as he gripped Lilyanna’s hand. She gritted her teeth, refusing to flinch.
“Continue,” the prince barked.
The priestess nodded her head, the veil shimmering. Out of the corner of my eye, Clement stiffened and paled beneath the long beard. I could feel the change as well.
Dark shapes unspooled from crevices, filtering through the door jambs, rising silently from beneath the benches. The vaulted ceiling filled with their heavy presence, but today they were silent. No incantations, no curiosity, no rustling as they interwove. They were ready.
The gathered crowd shivered, rubbing arms along goose-pimpled flesh as they cast furtive glances at the dying fires and dwindling tapers.
The priestess raised Lilyanna’s crown above her head, the gold glistening and moist. “With this matrimony, you are fated to serve the queendom, princess to all.”
Lilyanna knelt upon the hard marble and bowed her head. Prince Bellinor took the crown from the priestess and pressed it into her hair, the golden spikes meshing with the blonde strands. Lilyanna pitched; one hand outstretched on the step above to steady herself and the other pressed to her chest.
I leaped forward and helped her to her feet. She trembled, her heart racing. I wanted to embrace her, to dip her head onto my shoulder and rip the crown from her hair with pointless murmurs until she calmed. But she was braver than me.
I unwound my arm from her waist and stepped back. She turned to face the queens, looping her hand through the prince’s outstretched arm.
The spirits pressed closer, a chill cloud dripping down the walls.
