“Eternally yours.”
My heartbeat slowed down. Even though I was mere minutes away from committing several crimes, I had one lifeline.
The heir to the House of Hyton still loved me.
The carriage stopped. I quickly folded up the letter and placed it in my trunk. Starlight filled the carriage as the door swung open and Brandt smiled as he offered his hand to help me out.
He and the coachman wore plain peasant garb so no one suspected either of them of being part of an illicit army, but I wore a deep crimson dress, proudly bearing the color of the House of Bloodstone. I had altered the dress during the journey so that the hem skated just above my feet, perfect for a night of dancing.
If I could even make it that far into the palace without being apprehended.
Brandt kept a gentle hold on my hand as he escorted me to the palace steps.
I looked up at his boyish face. “Will you be joining me inside?”
He shook his head. “Someone like me doesn’t belong in there. I’ll meet up with a few of my old mates from the military academy, but I’ll be checking in on you.”
I smiled. “Because Captain Mydina will ream your ass otherwise?”
“No,” he replied with a smile of his own, “because you are the North’s last hope.”
His words weighed on my heart as he released my hand. The doors swung open and candlelight flowed out into the evening. His eyes flicked toward the doors. “I would wish you luck, but you don’t need it—I’ve seen how well you can dance.”
I turned from Brandt and chewed on my tongue as I stared at the open palace doors. Duke Hyton was inside…but so were the answers that would lead to Riyan’s freedom.
I could not waste a second more. I picked up my skirt with shaking hands and ascended the first step.
The sounds of cackling laughter and swirling music drew me in, making each step feel lighter and lighter. Fragrant perfume tickled my nose. I could nearly taste the sweet wine on the cold edge of a silver goblet.
The promise of the dazzling spectacle within was almost intoxicating.
My slippers met the marble floor of the foyer. The palace doors closed behind me, sealing me inside.
My heart beat faster as I stepped through the foyer and into the halls. I passed a large tapestry of Fraleigh wielding her green and golden flames as the soldiers of the Sudrian empire begged on their knees for mercy.
Fraleigh had defeated the largest army in the continent yet was still trapped with the Hytons. The famous battle happened centuries ago, but it still made no sense.
The din of chatter and revelry grew louder and louder. A few nobles lingered in the hall outside the doors to the palace ballroom. Their eyes snagged on my crimson dress before they turned to their companions. Their lip paint crinkled and their teeth gleamed as whispers filled the air.
“The half giant did not eat her after all!”
“Do you think she consummated her marriage?”
“Of course not! She is still walking!”
I swallowed the bitter words that my white flame tried to push out my throat. Two servants in Hyton Blue livery each opened a door with a gloved hand and welcomed me inside the ballroom.
A lively violin tune bounced off the marble columns around the room. Starlight streamed in through the tall windows. The candles in the iron chandeliers were ablaze beneath the mural of prancing bulls on the domed ceiling. A rainbow of House colors swirled on the black and white tiles of the dance floor.
My stomach turned when I spotted Duke Hyton. He was sitting on his throne with a golden goblet in his hand.
I tore my eyes away from him and scanned the crowd for any sign of the tall man with hair like snow under the midday sun—General Hyton.
He was the only person in the Dukedom with knowledge of his mother and his son. He was not too keen with me the last time we spoke, but maybe I could find a way to loosen his tongue. If General Hyton gave me the right information, I could escape Hyton long before the moon fattened in the sky.
No sign of the General, but a smile flicked up my lips as I watched the dancing feet and flaring skirts in the center of the ballroom. It was a cadleigh dance. We had practiced them in school, but I had never seen a real one before.
So many colors. So many smiles.
