Keldarion looks over his shoulder at them, then stalks up the stairs and into the Winter Wing.
Dayton sighs and rips the handcuffs off the boys. “Come on. We’ll get you set up in a room in the Autumn Wing. But I’m taking your knives.”
“That’s fine,” Billy says. “I can make a shiv out of a splinter and a shard of glass.”
“Fascinating.” He pushes on their backs, leading them up the stairs.
“Let us reconvene this evening to discuss our next course of action.” Ezryn turns to me, and I can feel the severity through his helm. “You are High Prince of Autumn, Farron. Decisions will need to be made, and soon. Only you can make them.”
I stumble away, pushing myself out of the castle and into the open air. Rosalina calls my name, but I don’t stop. “I just want to be alone,” I mumble.
Out on the bridge, the cool air and earthy scent of the Briar wafts over me. I can’t catch my breath, my whole body trembling. My hands reach out to grasp the railing, but there are thorns everywhere. One slices into my palm, and I retract, holding my wrist as blood oozes down my hand.
For a second, I’m grateful for the pain. It reminds me I’m real. The last few months without Rosalina have felt like a haze. I haven’t even checked in with my family.
I squeeze my hand into a fist, and the blood seeps out between my fingers. My people are suffering. My family has forsaken me.
Autumn deserves a true High Prince, not the shadow of one.
19
Rosalina
MyheartachesforFarron, but I need to respect his wishes and give him the space to sort out his thoughts. As much as I’d like to avoid Keldarion, there are things more important than my pride.
First, I check the Winter Wing, which has become an ice rink. I navigate by clinging to the banisters or hanging off the thorns. Hey, they might as well be useful for something.
Where are you?
And then I feel it: a glittering string bursting from my chest, urging me forward.
The mate bond.
It takes me to the door of High Tower. Carefully, I tug on the handle. Unlocked.
The stairway is a patchwork of thorns. Caspian created them, and the princes say they’re sucking the life from Castletree. That’s part of the reason Kel sent me away.Caspian wants you.I don’t buy it. He’s tormented me, sure, but with the intention to antagonize the princes. What would the Prince of the Below want with me?
I pause at the entrance to the chamber, and Kel turns to face me. He’s dressed now, wearing a fitted black tunic. His white snowflake necklace glimmers on his chest.
“You might as well come in,” he says.
Sunlight blazes through the stained-glass panes, making the chamber appear painted by an artist’s brush in vivid red, blue, orange, and green hues. Yet, the briars grow thicker here than anywhere else in the castle. They ensnare my gown, carpet the floor, and stretch up toward the ceiling as if they are the very bones of Castletree.
The tiled floor, barely visible beneath the thorns, depicts a breathtaking mural of a starfall. Amid the tiles, four roses flourish from a small patch of fertile earth. One for each of the princes: a rose of pink, turquoise, orange, and blue.
Their wilted petals are scattered on the floor.
“I just want to talk.” I walk up beside Keldarion.
“Do you think it’s me?” he asks. “Freezing the Autumn Realm?”
Kel’s magic has spread across Castletree. If it’s that wild here, then why not across the realms?
“No,” I say after a breath. “I don’t.”
He looks down at me, face filled with weariness. “Well, thank you for that.”
Something catches my gaze at the back of the room, a small piece of stained-glass peeking out from the thorns. I walk toward it, then quietly mutter under my breath, “Would you mind moving a little so I can see the picture, please?”
