Page 48 of House of the Raven
“Hello?” I say.
She curtsies, then walks toward the tub. I had assumed they didn’t have internal plumbing—normally, small towns like this lack such luxuries—but it seems I was wrong. If I’d known, I would have drawn the bath on my own.
I busy myself with retrieving a few toiletries from my luggage, but when I don’t hear the sound of running water, I glance back toward the girl. Her hands are hovering over the tub. Staring, I take a few steps in her direction and notice the water level rising inside the tub.
Espiritu!She’s using magic to fill it.
My eyes flick upward, immediately trying to get a glimpse of her ears, but they’re covered by the cap. I keep on staring and wait until she’s done.
When she pulls away from the tub, she’s surprised to find me watching. Her cheeks turn bright pink. Curtsying, she clasps her hands together in front of her and stares at the floor.
“I hope the temperature is to your liking, señorita,” she says.
“You’re fae,” I say, stupidly pointing out the obvious.
She takes a sideways step toward the door, looking scared.
I’m half-fae,I want to say, so she doesn’t have to feel afraid of me, but I bite the words down.
“Your talent is really amazing.” I gesture toward the tub. “I wish I could do that.”
A shy smile stretches her lips. It’s surprising that she has espiritu. Her parents must be powerful and full-blooded. Since the veil fell, few of the fae trapped in Castella pass down the gift to their children.
I want to talk to her, want to ask her a million questions about her family. Where did they come from? Are they from the fae capital, Riochtach? Did they ever visit Nilhalari, my mother’s village? And so many more questions that always assault me whenever I’m in the presence of one of the fae. But as always, I must hold back. No one can know my true heritage.
The child’s meek demeanor likely stems from a lifetime of enduring discrimination, consistently treated as an outsider in our lands. No, Castella’s citizens would not respond well to knowing their former queen was a full-blooded fae, and their current one is a half-fae.
I offer the girl my warmest smile to let her know I think nothing less of her because of her heritage, then let her go without revealing any of my questions.
While I luxuriate in my bath, I find immense pleasure in a whimsical notion. Silly as it may be, I imagine the water holds tracesof espiritu and pretend it can reach into the depths of my being to rekindle the espiritu I once used to save my mother.
Being able to wield espiritu would be far better than having been born a man. Controlling espiritu would mean I would not be helpless and to the mercy of a meddling little man, a guard with a heart of stone, and a queen who may or may not be my sister.
If only…
13
VALERIA
“The fae healer will be here soon, my dear. Just hold on a little longer. Please, please, do not fall asleep.”
Conde Ricardo Luna y Figueroa - Conde de Mursiya - 725 DV
Later that night, I put on a valiant performance. Around twenty-two hours, I drape a robe over my nightgown and walk out of my bedchamber. The youngest of the guards stands in the hall, looking bored. He straightens when he sees me and acts as if he hadn’t been about to fall asleep on his feet. He blinks large green eyes and twitches his thin mustache.
I give him a bleary-eyed look. “Can’t sleep,” I say, then head down the corridor.
“You shouldn’t leave your bedchamber, prin—” he cuts himself short, then adds, “señorita.”
I keep walking. “Why not?”
Guards are used to following orders without questions, so I take advantage of that to stall him.
“Um… because of your safety,” he stammers.
When I glance back, I find him checking out my butt. His eyes quickly snap to mine. He clears his throat.
“Am I not perfectly safe in your presence?” I asked with a suggestive smile.
