Page 28 of Grave Flowers
How might I get inside? I couldn’t pick the lock, and the rooms were located several floors up, meaning I couldn’t access them from outside. I was certain that the king’s chambers would connect to the queen’s quarters, so they might have private access to each other, but Aeric occupied those. The task seemed impossible. Already, I was failing Inessa. Sitting back on my heels, I thought of her in Bide, alone, hungry, and cold.
Footsteps and voices approached, making me rise. I couldn’t give up. At least I might still visit the garden. I headed down the hall. Trying to enter the queen’s quarters reminded me of a time I’d successfully gained access to the chambers of others. It had been with Inessa. All my best mischief was with her. Our tutor had been executed a month before, and a replacement had yet to be chosen. I never learned what our tutor had done and only remembered we hadn’t been shocked when Father calmly informed us that she was gone and another would be coming.
Until then, we were left to do whatever we wanted from dawn to dusk and spent much of our time in the hidden passages. We giggled, weaving around pipes leaking water at every seam, stones speckled with green mold, and sawdust from the ravages of termites. Inessa always led the way. She held my hand, tugging me along when I was frightened, which was often. Eventually, we found a passageway that fed into our parents’ chambers. Neither Inessa nor I were ever allowed in them, but when Mother was alive, they shared chambers, unlike other royals who kept separate quarters. It was considered terribly promiscuous at best and vulgar at worst. Father and Mother remained undeterred. I was in their chambers only once, and it was nearly the last thing I ever did.
We hovered at the door, giddy with excitement and terror.
“I dare you to go in and take something,” Inessa whispered.
“I won’t!” I gasped.
“Of course you won’t.” It was too dark to see her expression, but disdain dripped from her words like the brackish water dripping from a nearby pipe. “Sometimes I wonder if you’re really a Sinet.”
“How?” I demanded. “We’re twins.”
“I suppose its undeniable.” She sighed, disappointed by my irrefutable proof. “But everyone takes something in this family, and you don’t take anything.”
“What do you mean?”
“Father took the throne from grandfather and began his reign. Mother took Father’s hand in marriage and made herself a queen.”
“And you? What have you taken?”
“Your face.” She smiled sadistically. “I take it as mine whenever I need to.”
“Inessa, don’t say that,” I cried. “It gives me the chills.”
“Oh, settle yourself. Will you take something or not? You don’t have to if you’re scared, though Sinets aren’t supposed to be scared.”
I fell silent. It was true. Danger surrounded us, but while I’d seen my parents and Inessa angry or sad, I’d never seen them afraid. Mother, I knew, had learned to hide it. Father and Inessa were different; they didn’t seem to feel it.
“I’ll do it.”
I entered the chamber before I lost my nerve. The smell of minerals, sea salt, tallow candles, and herby tobacco filled my nose. Water ran down a wall into a constantly draining puddle, an ancient wound in the palace. It must’ve been doing so for centuries because it eroded the stone, liquid winnowing rock.
“Hurry, you Primeval pigeon!” Inessa hissed from the door.
I looked around. What should I take? It had to be a worthwhile item but also something Father wouldn’t miss. An inky-blue scarf was wrapped around one of the bedposts. I didn’t know whether it belongedto Mother or Father, but it would do. I stole toward the bed, my heart thundering, and snatched it. Quickly, I looped it around my neck.
To my right, I noticed a low table used as an altar. It had to be Mother’s altar because it was covered in figurines along with wood plaques painted with scenes, some of the Primeval Family and others of divine beings related to the Family but only acknowledged by the Felys. One of the paintings caught my attention. It featured a flower, perhaps a grave flower, but one I wasn’t familiar with. Each petal was as clear as a pane of glass. Impulsively, I grabbed the plaque.
As I did, there was a creak. I spun around. Father rolled over on the bed. He stared right at me. I nearly dropped the plaque. I didn’t know what to do or say. Father’s mouth fell open, and a loud snore rumbled from it. Asleep. Father was asleep, his eyes open but sightless. I dashed back to the passage where Inessa waited.
“He’s in there!” I cried once the door was closed behind me. “He’s sleeping!”
“Run!” Inessa shrieked.
Together, we fled.
“Your Highness!” A cheerful voice called to me, startling the memory away. Yorick approached. His long strides brought him quickly to my side.
“Hello,” I said. “How are you today?”
“Very well, aside from the fact that I’ve been banished. My room is backstage in the theater, and Prince Aeric’s rehearsals have made it much too noisy for reading. And you?”
“Off to the garden.” I smiled. “Would you care to join me?”
“Certainly.” He fell in step with me and glanced at me sidelong. “Though perhaps you might need a nap first?”
