One day, I’ll find someone who’ll love and admire me for who I’ve become. My mind drifts to Antoni as Rosa returns. Is he thinking of me?
Rosa wipes her fingers on her skirt. “Follow me.” She escorts me up a set of narrow stairs and down a corridor that’s just as thin. At the very end, she opens the door of a small bedroom with a round, wooden tub. “My brothers filled them with warm water from the village well.”
“Your well has warm water?”
Even though she hasn’t touched anything, she wipes her hands again on her skirt. “They didn’t use their powers.”
Her defensiveness tells me that her brothers—probably a water-Fae and a fire-Fae—used their elements to fill and heat the bath. “If I had power, I’d use it forallmenial jobs. Even if it prematurely depleted my limited stock.”
A frown mars her smooth forehead, which is partially hidden behind blonde bangs. “Aren’t you a half-blood?”
“I am.” I sigh. “My power never manifested. I’m still hopeful, though.”
“I’ve never met a half-blood with no magic.”
“Well, now you have.”
She presses aside a lock of hair tangled with her eyelashes. “I’m sure you know this, but using magic is illegal.”
“Ridiculous, if you ask me.”
Her pupils widen at my candor.
“The prince agrees with me. Not that you should wield your magic in his presence.”
She doesn’t talk for a full minute, but then she slides her lips together. “Spiky-ears don’t frequently travel to these parts. What brings the prince here?”
“We’re heading back east.”
“This isn’t the usual route.”
“We wanted a scenic one.”
The door hinges groan, making Rosa jump.
I’m half expecting to find Dante or one of his two friends standing in the jamb but there is only dark air.Verydark air. I narrow my eyes on a particularly obscure patch.Lorcan?
Yes, Fallon.
Get out of my room.
What makes you think I’m inside?
My eyebrows rise. Did I imagine the shifting shadows?
Rosa turns toward where I stare, then walks over. “Cobwebs are a real problem in these parts. You’re not scared of spiders, are you?” When she swipes her hand through the air, my heart stills.
Sure enough, the shadow disperses.I can see you.Lips pinched, I say, “I don’t fear spiders.”
“The small red ones sting, but as long as you’re a halfling, their venom shouldn’t have lasting consequences.”
“I’ll make sure to watch out for small, red, spindly-legged creatures. Thank you for the bath.” I try to shoo her out of the bedroom to have words with Lore and shoo him off in turn, when I remember one more thing I need. “Any chance I could trade this dress for clean clothes? Preferably trousers and a shirt?”
Her head rears back as though I’ve asked her to fill my bath with red creepy-crawlies. “Trousers?”
“Perhaps one of your brothers would have a pair?”
“I—I—” She looks me up and down. “I’ll see what I can find.”
