Page 36 of Once Upon a Woven Wish
Ah, but now you have a different dream.A deep, guttural chuckle.How foolish of you.Did you think this girl, this simple mortal, would want you?
His jaw locked as he walled off the ache, but the runes throbbed in time with his heart, betraying him.She had come to free him.She had come searching for his true name—a name no one had spoken for centuries.A name lost to time.
He lifted his hand.The runes still glowed faintly, pulsating magic’s aftermath he’d forced into her.His throat tightened as he stared at the darkness where she’d vanished.
And then, for the first time since his bondage began, he tilted his head back and whispered his own wish into the wind.Not for release.Not for death.
But for Serena.
Chapter 13
Thecarriageridetothe castle was awkward and uncomfortable.
On the bright side, she did not have to ride with the king and queen.They had already left and were a few hours ahead.
On the not so bright side, she rode with the Grand Duke.
Papa and Maris saw her off at first light.He hugged her, squeezing so hard it was as though he expected her not to return.Maris did her best to look happy for her, but Serena could tell the little wench was pea green with envy.
She didn’t sleep at all that night after leaving the stranger behind on the mountain.Since then, her gut had been in a tight knot, her chest ached, and she felt she might be sick at any moment.When King Leonidas told her she was to ride with the Grand Duke, the blood whooshed from her head so fast she saw black dots in her eyes.
“Are you well, my dear?You look pale?”the duke had said.His expression was one of smug satisfaction.Like he was looking forward to exposing her for the fraud she truly was.
She muttered under her breath she was fine as she climbed into the most luxurious carriage she had ever seen.
Her clothes paled in comparison to the richness of the nobles.Her threadbare cloak.Her worn-out shoes.Her woolen dress that had seen better days.All drab in color.At least her wool stockings did not have any holes.
Thankfully, though, her hands had stopped glowing gold.She worried about that at first when she returned home, but by the time she reached their cabin they were back to normal.
Normal.
What was normal anymore?From the moment she made the decision to find the Well of Wishes, her life had been turned upside down.
Across from her, the Grand Duke kept a steely eye on her.Sometimes he gazed out the window.A few times he dozed off.But Serena remained stiff and tall in the plush velvet seat with her hands clasped in her lap.She looked everywhere but at him.But sometimes, she would catch his glittering gaze and it sent a jolt through her.
And not the good kind, either.
Not that kind she felt when she stood in front of the stranger when he looked at her with his mesmerizing eyes.In them, she saw so much depth, so much emotion.He spoke to her silently that way.That last moment they shared together, she was certain he regretted granting her wish.
She regretted it, too.
She glanced down at her clasped hands.Every now and again, a slash of pale sunlight would come through the window of the carriage when it turned a corner.When it did, and the light landed on her hands, she noticed her skin shimmered.
It had never shimmered before.
The carriage rattled over cobblestone streets.Her heart leapt into her throat as her head snapped up and she peered out the window.She was too shy to move toward it, to peer out with unabashed curiosity.If Maris were here, she would do it without hesitation.
“Ah, we are arriving in the capital,” the Grand Duke said.The first he’d spoken since they boarded the carriage.He motioned to the window.“Perhaps you’d like to see?”
Serena said nothing as she scooted closer to the edge of the bench to look out.There she got her first glimpse of Ebonvale Palace, rising like a crown upon the distant cliffs.Its spires pierced the wintery sky, pale and ethereal against the swirl of falling snow.Heraldry of plum and gold snapped in the cold wind from every turret, the roaring lion of Leonidas emblazoned proudly as if to remind all who entered whose power reigned here.
They passed through Ebonvale Village.Onlookers lined the streets despite the late hour and the cold to watch the royal processional pass through.Children smiled and waved, their eyes wide and round with wonder.
The carriage headed up the slope of the hill to the gates, through them, and then halted at the front door.Serena waited, shivering.Not from cold.From nerves.
She was unsure of protocol and did not want to misstep.The Grand Duke pulled on his gloves and scooped his fur-lined cloak from the seat next to him.He cast her a glance and then something in his expression shifted from smug to…kindness?
“Here.It appears you need this more than I.”He held out his cloak to her.
