Page 44 of A Court of Masks and Roses
Standing before the fireplace in her room, Violet watched the flames consume the last bits of her favorite dress. The cloth crackled and smoked, but the raging storm outside kept Violet’s windows closed. She was severing ties with the Dark God, and he had no intention of making it easy for her. She coughed and turned away from the choking fumes until the worst of them passed, then picked up the next bin, this one filled with childhood toys.
She had neither use nor time anymore for the silliness in her hands, not when the great battle was coming and she had so much to do. The Messenger needed her; the whole True Family did. And unlike her brother—a princeling stuck in childhood mischief—Violet had become a reliable soldier.
The time had come to let the world know.
Violet’s one regret was how long it had taken her to hear the Goddess’s call. Had she been paying better attention, she could have saved her mother. If Violet had embraced the truth earlier, her mother’s death wouldn’t have been needed toawaken Violet to the truth. Swallowing, Violet pulled up the floorboard and added the wooden box and velvet puppy to the pile.
Her hand felt empty immediately and Violet dipped into her pocket, wrapping her fingers around the yellow memory stone Joshua had entrusted to her. A tool to replace a toy. When the Goddess’s victory was assured, the acolyte who’d tuned it would be overjoyed to learn how much good he’d heralded into the world. For the acolyte, for the Messenger, for her mother’s soul, Violet would make the stone count.
At first, Violet mistook the insistent pounding on her door for the wind rattling the shutters. The horrid weather was unusual for this time of year, and Violet’s initial suspicions of the Dark God’s presence behind the change were growing more and more vivid. First Wil, now a brewing storm out of season—something dark was trying to keep Violet from the temple.
Then her brother’s voice penetrated the walls. “Vi? Vi, are you all right?”
More banging. “Princess Violet, it’s Luca.” The guardsman’s voice that had once quickened Violet’s heart now sounded flat to her ears. “Is all well?”
Violet turned her back to the noise. Joshua and Zalia had warned her to expect the Dark God to interfere. They’d prepared her for this trial as much as they could, and Violet had prepared herself as well, keeping a vigil throughout the night. Her vision was clear now. There was evil in the world, and that was of the Dark God. All that was good was of the Goddess. The Messenger was the embodiment of the Goddess’s teachings. If Violet followed the Messenger, the Dark God would be defeated. If Violet counterbalanced her mother’s sins, they would reunite in the Goddess’s embrace.
“Vi!” Wil called again, shaking the door. “I’m coming in.”
Violet threw the first handful of toys into the hungry flames and picked up more. Cathy, a doll she’d slept with when she was small, stared at her with large painted eyes. Violet’s mother had made Cathy’s clothes by hand, down to the tiny shoes with yellow flowers. Then they’d started stitching little plush animals together.
Thuds echoed through the room as someone struggled to break down her door. Violet’s chest tightened as she realized how the Dark God was blinding her brother to the Goddess’s truth.
The doorframe collapsed with a crash, admitting Wil and Luca. Both men panted and stared wide-eyed at what remained of Violet’s suite.
“What are you doing, Violet?” Wil asked. “Where are the servants?”
Violet sighed. “I sent them away.”
“Are you insane?” Wil demanded, while Luca used a bucket of water to douse Violet’s flames to a hissing wetness. “You could have burned down the whole palace wing.”
A smile touched Violet’s lips. She wouldnothave burned down the palace, but explaining the Goddess’s influence to Wil would take more time than she could spare. One day he’d understand and feel foolish for his worry, but for now...
“The Goddess has plans for me, William.” Violet squared her shoulders and faced the brother in whose shadow she’d once lived. “And I’ve heard her call. If you listen, really listen, you will hear it too.”
“Stars, Violet,” Wil whispered, staring at her. “When did you last sleep? Or eat? You look like—”
Violet stepped away from him.
Wil held up his palms. There was something different about him now, as if he’d grown more in the past week than he had in years. His voice was a gentle caress when he spokeagain. “That’s Cathy, isn’t it?” he said. “I remember you sitting beside Mother for hours, making her dresses and hats. I was so jealous of how happy Mother was, sewing and singing with you.”
Violet’s hands tightened on the doll. The Dark God cackled.
With a will to rival a mighty army, Violet shoved the darkness away and threw Cathy into the remaining blossom of flame that the Goddess had protected. “You may take anything you wish from my room, William,” she told her brother before turning to Luca, surprised to find the enchantment that had once surrounded him gone, revealing a bewildered guard. “Arrange an escort for me to the Temple of Dansil. Now.”
Wil blocked what was left of the door. “No.”
Violet sighed, but Zalia and Joshua had predicted this very moment and prepared her for it. They’d practiced the words together until Violet could say them without effort or thought. “I claim the protection of the Goddess, as is the right of any woman,” she said formally, confidently. “To stand in my way is to raise a sword against the Order. Let. Me. Through.”
The temple courtyardwas predictably empty when Violet arrived. Shedding her oilskins and the few belongings she’d brought in the foyer, Violet descended the stairs and strode to the Revelations Room, only to stop in the doorway, staring in bewilderment at the chaos of Children rushing about and huddling in small groups, each talking urgently.
“The weather kept them . . .”
“. . . coming in now.”
“Well, wake them up. We need all hands!”
“Violet?” Brother Joshua, busy issuing orders to a trio of unfamiliar boys, was the first to notice Violet’s appearance.Dasha, Zalia, and many of the others Violet knew were nowhere in sight. “An unexpected surprise,” Joshua said with a frown.
