In the end, the men who despised her got the last laugh. In retaliation, they formed the Honorate. They claimed it was to “advise” the ill-prepared Queen, but considering only men were allowed to serve, its true intention was clear.
Toward the end of her life, the Queen’s mind started to slip. It was around the same time that Petruvia made its attempt to seize the mountain and its resources. On the brink of war, the Widow Queen selected a member of the Honorate andtemporarily ceded her authority to him to manage the crisis. She died before he handed power back to her, making him Virdei’s first Praeceptor. Shortly after, the rules for succession were written to include only men, sending a clear message in the wake of her death: never again will a woman hold as much power as the Widow Queen.
That was their intention, but it’s no longer a reality I’m willing to accept. When the Tournament is over, when I steal the throne from my brother, I am going to ensure nothing like this ever happens again. If I can’t protect Ophera as Luc’s shadow, then I’ll do so as Virdei’s Queen.
Sef pulls her head from my shoulder. “If you hadn’t heard about Ophera, why were you so upset when you came in?”
“We lost.”
Sef looks relieved. “That’s it?” She wraps me in a tight hug. “I thought you were hurt. Or worse.”
After a pause, I hug her back. I didn’t mean to make her worry, but it feels nice to know someone cares. Nice to be held by someone trying to comfort me, and not the other way around. “Thank you,” I murmur. “For worrying.”
She helps me to my feet. “Don’t take it too personally. I’m just afraid that if you die, they’ll assign me to someone else. I doubt my next mistress will let me wear costumes.”
I laugh. “Maybe they’d even ask you to clean something.”
Sef fakes a shudder. “Don’t joke about that.”
I’m still chuckling as she guides me to sit on the bed. We lean back, shoulders against the headboard. “So, what happened?”
I tell her everything, from my journey up the mountain, to the crash, to Kaidren saving my life, then turning on me.
When I’m finished, she’s shaking her head. “You almost died.”
“But I didn’t. Told you I’d come back.”
Sef doesn’t look amused. “You take too many risks.”
“Only for now. Things will be different when I’ve taken the throne. For both of us.”
“I don’t need things to be different. I like this life.This—working for someone like you—was always my dream.”
“You dreamed of being a servant?”
“What’s wrong with being a servant?” She shrugs, then smiles. “All I ever wanted was to work for someone kind.”
“Instead you got stuck with me,” I say.
My tone is teasing, but Sef frowns. “Don’t do that. I’m glad I was assigned to you. Hate to break it to you, Mira, but you’re stuck with me.”
It flatters me more than I care to admit. Sef is so easy to love. She’s charismatic and funny andeveryoneadores her. Making friends is effortless for her in a way it’s never been for me. “I’m glad you were assigned to me too.”
“Working for you has gotten me everything I ever wanted,” she says. “It’s fun. I get to gossip, wear costumes, and call it work. Maybe I’m just a servant, but I’m happy. Happier than most people ever are, anddefinitelyhappier than you. You hate it here.”
I can’t argue, so I don’t. I stare at my tattoo, tracing it with my finger. There was a time when the sight of it filled me with wonder. A time when it made me feel connected to my home and my mother, and I thought it was the most beautiful thing in the world. That feeling died a long time ago.
“When I was a kid, I thought the mountain was everything I ever wanted,” I say softly. “I was wrong. Before, I had nothing, but here, I’m invisible. When I’m not invisible, I’m scorned. And I’m tired. All the time. I have to think for Luc, for Ophera, for the Honorate, for myself. I’m shredding myself into a million pieces, and still, no one sees me.”
“You could stop.”
My eyes flash to Sef, angry. “You mean give up?”
“Maybe.”
Mathson took everything from my mother, and she never fought back. He got the house on the mountain, the position in the Honorate, the perfect life. She got nothing.
“You’re either useful to me, or you’re nothing.”
