Page 1 of A Hunt So Wicked
Chapter one
“AndthenI’llbeQueen Sophie. The most beautiful and powerful woman in the realm!”
“Wrong. I’ll be queen and you can marry Evander!”
If I had to hear anything else about Prince Torin or any of the other available princes and noblemen who would be choosing a wife over the coming weeks, I was going to scream.
“Girls!” I interrupted, causing my entire class to quit their whispered discussions and give their attention to me.
“Sorry, Miss Evie,” Sophie and Sarah said at the same time. Their embarrassment at being called out showed quickly as their faces flushed red.
I held up a hand and shook my head. “It’s okay. I know everyone is excited for the month break from lessons and for the celebrations.” I had been battling the class all week, and each day we got closer to break, the harder it got. “There’s just one more thing we need to go over before the end of the day.”
I turned and grabbed my remaining piece of chalk. My last, tiny, pathetic piece of chalk. I cursed our king for not getting more supplies to us. The leaky roof, the broken window, and the general condition of everything in this one-room schoolhouse was utterly unacceptable. Swallowing a growl of frustration, I started writing on the board.
The Recurrence.
Several echoes of‘yay’and‘yes’ rang out behind me, and I grinned. If I couldn’t keep their focus with regular lessons, at least this would count as a history lesson, and it tied in perfectly with why not one child in my class could focus.
“Now,” I turned around to face the twelve children who spent more time with me than anyone else in their lives. “Who can tell me what The Recurrence is and why we celebrate it?”
Every hand in the room shot up.
“Nikolas,” I said, nodding at the blond, curly-haired boy who never raised his hand. His shyness often got the best of him, so if he was willing to volunteer, I would absolutely call on him. He straightened in his seat and cleared his throat. “The Recurrence is a month-long celebration across the whole realm that happens every ten years!”
I nodded, and Nikolas beamed a big smile back at me. “Correct. And Luke, can you tell me why we celebrate it?”
The boy sitting next to Nikolas nodded eagerly. “We celebrate it to honor the alliance between the four kingdoms of our realm.”
“Fivekingdoms,” Nikolas corrected.
“But there aren’t five. Not anymore!” Sarah shouted.
I held up my hand. “Alright, alright! When The Recurrence began centuries ago, it was because the five kingdoms in the realm signed a peace agreement. One that ensured no more needless fighting between the kingdoms. Each kingdom would rule over its own lands, but agreements were put in place that everyone would work together to build a better realm for all of us. But Sarah is right—there are no longer five kingdoms.”
Sarah stuck her tongue out at the boys and quickly put it back in her mouth when she saw my brow lift.
“So, who can tell me who the fifth kingdom was?” At this point, Sophie was practically dancing in her chair, so I called on her next.
“They were the Sova family!”
“Very good and—” My sentence was cut off when Sophie decided to continue talking.
“But it’s just so tragic! I can’t bear to think of—”
I held up a hand. “Thank you, Sophie.”
“Sophie’s right! It was a tragedy!” Sarah piped in.
“It was a horrible, terrible loss to our realm. This will be the second celebration since the loss of The Sovas, but now we honor and remember them during this time, too.”
“And Miss Evie, don’t forget! Don’t forget about The Hunt and The Choosing Ceremony!” Sophie was practically vibrating out of her chair with excitement.
I sighed. “Yes. Every Recurrence kicks off with a special event. Maidens around the entire realm are randomly chosen to travel to The Roaring Isle, where they will meet all of the eligible royal bachelors. A hunt takes place where we give thanks for a bountiful year, and following that, some of the maidens will be offered a proposal from one of the men.”
Every eye was on me now. There was something about The Hunt that fascinated people. It gave everyone something to focus on that wasn’t how much food we had left or how much work needed to be done in our fields. I thought the entire thing was ridiculous. How was anyone supposed to make a life-long commitment in a situation like that?
“And the weddings, don’t forget about the weddings!”
