Page 102 of Songs and Spun Gold
It was enough to make Axel very, very uneasy.
CHAPTER 29
Katy
Absolutely not!” King Steffan declared.
Katy stirred her porridge, keeping her head down. She wanted to help Axel, but she wasn’t sure how much help she could be in this fight.
“Father, you’ve known about this for weeks.” Axel had a tight rein on his frustration, but Katy could see it in the slightly narrower opening of his mouth as he spoke. “Katy and I have been in the rehearsals. We’ve discussed this. How can you change your mind two days before the performance?”
The king’s eyebrows drew together. “That was before I heard the rumors about the poltergeist at the theater. I will not risk my only son and heir, nor his bride.”
“Does that mean you’re not even going to let us attend the performance?” Axel asked incredulously.
“Of course, it doesn’t,” the king said dismissively, picking up his fork. “I have not heard of any accidents occurring in the audience chamber, and it is unlikely that you would be hurt in the center of it. I simply don’t want you on the stage.”
“How am I supposed to leave the cast in the lurch like that?” Axel demanded. “I committed to doing this performance. And you want me to back out because of a ghost? There’s no such thing!”
“As I understand, there are always understudies for key roles,” King Steffan replied calmly. “I am sure that they will bepleased to fill in.”
Katy listened as Axel continued to argue with his father. She understood why he wanted to do the show, and she was flattered by his insistence on her inclusion. But the idea of performing a leading role in front of a crowd was rather daunting. Especially the night before their wedding.
She had enough on her mind with just that; she didn’t need to worry about succumbing to stage fright.
Lifting her spoon, she took a bite of the porridge. It had more flavor than when she or Adele made it, but porridge was porridge. The salted meat and eggs weren’t appealing this morning, though. Not when their wedding taunted her with its nearness.
She couldn’t be happier about marrying Axel. But it was soured by the memory of the red-haired stranger.
All I ask is your firstborn child. You see? Nothing too costly.
Could she really have made that deal? What could possibly have possessed her to do so?
Promise you won’t forget me?
The sound of the baritone voice almost caused her to drop her spoon; it hadn’t invaded her thoughts in weeks. Could she have made the foolish deal regarding her noble friend, and the stranger had somehow twisted it to cover the prince?
She hoped not. Because while she couldn’t envision herself agreeing to that deal for someone she’d never met…could she be so certain that her besotted eleven-year-old self wouldn’t have made it abouthim?
“Fine,” Axel sighed as Katy focused back in on the present. “I’ll walk down to the theater after breakfast and inform the director.”
“You’ll do no such thing,” the king replied. “I won’t have you in the building until the performance. A messenger has already been dispatched to inform him.”
The muscles on Axel’s jaw stood out for a moment before they relaxed. “Of course, Father. Thank you.” Too quiet for his parents to pick up, he muttered, “I hope the note-writer doesn’t find out.”
~
“Does the train really have to be this long?” Katy asked, twisting her upper body to search for the end of the trailing fabric.
Queen Carina clicked her tongue at her. “My dear, you are marrying the crown prince. If anything, it should be longer. Besides, it’s far too late to ask the seamstress to change it. The embroidery is already complete, and the train has already been affixed to the dress. To change it would require ripping out that entire seam.”
“I know,” Katy sighed. “And I appreciate the dress. Really, I do. But it’s just so...”
“I realize that it’s more elaborate than you are used to,” the queen said gently, coming in front of Katy and folding her hands loosely in front of her waist. “But you’re going to be a princess tomorrow, Katrin. You have to dress the part.”
Tilting her head, Katy observed the queen’s relaxed pose. “May I ask a question, Your Majesty?”
“Certainly,” the queen replied with a smile. “But you must dispense with the formalities, Katrin. You’re marrying my son tomorrow.”
