Page 50 of To Wake a Kingdom

15 days left

Ronanandtheothersstill hadn’t left, and I’d given up trying to make them. As angry as I was with him, I had to admit their presence was comforting. I didn’t relish the idea of being alone with Kianna in the castle if Mare and her creature returned.

We’d burned the dead, the ground too frozen to bury them, honoring their memories as best as we could. Em, it had turned out, was a beautiful singer, her voice carrying across the snow-covered landscape, more perfect than any avenging angel’s.

As for Ronan, I did the mature thing and avoided ever being alone with him. I still took advantage of his presence, training until I nearly collapsed at the end of each day, my muscles liquid and my clothing dripping with sweat.

If I couldn’t break this curse, the combined heft of iron and the potency of my rage would be the only defenses I had against Mare. I rebuked his attempts to divert the discussion to anything other than my training and, outside the ballroom, I evaded all conversation.

In the kitchen, I got to work on the tincture. There were numerous steps, and I spent whatever time I wasn’t swinging my sword, chopping and mixing. Gideon helped me, stirring the pot whenever I was occupied with a lesson. His steady, kind presence brought warmth to the castle that made it feel like a home. Maybe I could convince him to stay when everyone woke up, but I knew how fiercely loyal he was to Ronan.

Kianna moved into my room through an unspoken agreement. At night, we lay on my bed and talked, sometimes about Mare and the curse and sometimes about nothing. Since the day of Mare’s attack, we had found a quiet peace in our relationship. She had been so apathetic about breaking the curse, but now I realized it must have been a lack of confidence in her magic. There must be a way I could help her find it. I knew too well how difficult it was to bear the scrutiny of her sisters.

It was after supper when Gideon, Kianna, and I were exploring the castle, checking on the magic that was seeping away. We stood in a hallway; there was a clear demarcation between the warm and lit side where we stood, and the dusty, decaying side across the nebulous line of magic.

The two of them were sharing some kind of secret communication I didn’t understand, looking at me and then at each other as though I was making them nervous.

“Is there anything you want to save, Your Highness?” Gideon asked, peering into the darkness.

“Save?”

“There may be things other than people you want to rescue.”

Right. We still didn’t know what would happen if anyone crossed the line of magic. Kianna thought the curse might be protecting the two of us since we’d been able to leave the castle without harm, but it was only a theory, and no one wanted to test this barrier.

“I suppose the vault?” I’d need gold if I was to mount an army against Estria.

Gideon sketched a quick bow. “I will let the commander know there is work to do.” As he turned to leave, I caught his wrist.

“Gideon, no. You don’t need to do that.”

He covered my hand, crinkles forming in the corners of his soft brown eyes. “Nonsense, Your Highness. They will be more than happy to help. Especially Master Ronan.” There was a tweak of mischief in his expression before he walked off.

The vault was packed with jewels and weapons and coins collected over centuries of my family’s rule. I picked up a slim velvet box and popped open the lid. Inside glistened a diamond necklace laced with jet black stones.

“Ooh.” Kianna’s eyes were as wide as a child’s in a candy shop.

“Do you want it?” I asked, draping it over her collarbone.

“I couldn’t.” She turned around to face me after I’d snapped the clasp in place.

“You can. It’s stunning on you. I want you to have it.” She stroked the necklace like it was a beloved pet. “Kianna, if I don’t make it, I want you to take it all.”

“Your Highness—”

“Please,” I said. “Do something good with it. Promise me.”

She took my hands in hers. “If it will make you happy, I will promise. As long as you promise not to give up. No matter what happens, you will keep fighting.”

“I can do that,” I said softly, earning myself a sad but determined smile.

Noah and Em stomped into the room then and filled the next crates, hauling them through the castle to the room I’d designated as the new vault. It wouldn’t be as secure, but the dangers that lurked in these halls weren’t the sort that cared about jewels or gold.

Something caught my eye. Another velvet box I recognized with a heavy heart. Inside was a crown made of silver so pale it was nearly white. Thin tendrils were molded to mimic vines that twisted into a circlet woven with delicate flowers and set with stones in shades of pink, blue, and violet.

As Ronan moved behind me, I studied it in the dim light.

“What is it?” His breath brushed the back of my neck, and I shivered as I inhaled his familiar scent of evergreens and cinnamon.

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