34
Amouse was nibblingmy hair when I opened my eyes. I jerked up. My head spun and my eyes strained to take in my surroundings. I was back in the dungeons.
Memories flooded in all at once. The Masquerade Ball. The duchess’s confession. The scuffle that ensued afterward. Then nothing. I brushed off the straw on my skirts and pounded the cell door.
“Release me at once!” I shouted. “Take me to Prince Ash! I must speak to the prince!” I didn’t cease my pounding until the slot above my head slid open. Ken peered in, his brows furrowed in displeasure.
“How long have I been in here?” I demanded.
“Two days,” Ken said. “And hopefully many more.”
He closed the slot but I pried it back open. My head swam. “There must be some sort of misunderstanding,” I said. “The duchess confessed her crimes. I saved Queen Cordelia!”
Ken guffawed. “You? Save Her Majesty?” he said between wheezes. “Then I am a princess in disguise!”
I stared at him in disdain as his freckled face turned puce. When he recovered, he said, “Look, witch. The duchess might have confessed her crimes but that doesn’t excuse you from yours. Ol’ Captain Greenwood’s name was cleared and that’s all that matters to me. I suggest you make yourself comfortable because no one is looking for y—”
“Royal summons for the witch Amarante Flora to the throne room!” someone hollered.
I harrumphed as Ken’s mouth fell open. He grumbled as he unlocked my door. Captain Greenwood stood waiting for me with a couple of other guards, one of them I recognized as Peter. He was back in uniform, which meant that he, too, had been pardoned. It seemed that I missed quite a bit.
Captain Greenwood’s eyes crinkled when he saw me. “Thank you,” he whispered, offering his arm. “Thank you for bringing my daughter back to me.”
As he escorted me out of the dungeons, I felt lighter than I had ever before.
But my mouth grew dry when we entered the throne room. I marveled at the sheer amount of people present. King Maximus and Queen Cordelia sat on their thrones, flanked by their sons. Ash gave me a wink. To the side, there was a congregation of old men dressed in politicians’ emerald robes, no doubt the king’s council. Most of them wrinkled their nose at my entrance, but several were smiling. Erasmus was among them. He gave me an enthusiastic wave.
Debutantes and strangers filled the rows of wooden benches near the doorway. I spotted Olivia and Tori in the crowd and caught a glimpse of Genevieve’s blond hair. To my surprise, Lana was sitting near the front along with Elowyn, Rowena, and Theodora.
Ihadmissed a lot.
They all gave me encouraging looks when Captain Greenwood brought me to the center of the room.
Silence fell. I was suddenly aware of the debris clinging to my hair as I curtsied before the dais.
“Miss Amarante Flora.” The king’s voice boomed through the throne room. “Do you know what you have done?”
Was that a trick question? I looked to Ash, but he had hidden his face with his hands, as if exasperated. “Please enlighten me, sir. I mean, Your Majesty.”
King Maximus stared at me, his heavy brow and heavy mustache making him look extremely displeased. What was there to be displeased about? Queen Cordelia looked healthier than ever seen. I began to sweat.
“You have used witchcraft in my kingdom. You have given strange elixirs and potions to unknowing subjects. You have hidden your identity and deceived my son. All this you have done in my palace,” the king said, his voice crescendoing with every word. “Do you know the consequences of such actions?”
