Page 17 of A Crown Without Mercy

She could taste the blood on her lip and feel the tears running down her cheeks as she tried to keep up with her mother’s long strides. Once they rounded a corner, her mother placed her hand over her stomach, leaned against one of the stable walls and took a deep breath, before she kneeled down.

“Sylvie, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you.” She cupped her cheeks in her hand and wiped away her tears. “We must remain diligent. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Mother. I’m sorry.”

Myrine lifted her chin after having pricked her finger with one of her canines. She then gently slid it across her lip and healed the small gash. “How about we pick out one of those beautiful flowers? How does that sound, my darling?” Her words were once again as gentle as a kitten's caress.

Sylvana’s arm slid off the edge of the copper tub and splashed into the water, pulling her from the memory. She reached for a rag and washed her face, desiring nothing more than to be wrapped in the protection and comfort of her mother’s arms again.

Sylvana scowled as she brushed the knots from her freshly washed hair before braiding it along the sides and top. She then walked across the chamber and pulled a clean pair of black, wool trousers from a drawer in her armoire along with a gray, cotton shirt. It was not customary for a female of her status to dress in trousers, but she had little choice. Her father kept them relatively secluded, which left most of the labor for Sylvana and her siblings. Had Sylvana been mated, she would be sitting on satin cushions, adorned in jewels, and waited on hand and foot; her life, however, resided within the muck of the fields and stables.

Once she finished getting ready, she headed downstairs only to run into Mira.

“Alaric is mad at you,” she offered with a sneer.

“He’ll get over it. Don’t you have work to do? You should be with Calista, feeding the animals.”

“You want sis and I to work while you can sleep in like someone’s mate?”

“Mira, enough.”

“You should be nicer to me. One day I’ll be mated, and I’d be happy to leave you here.”

“It would be a welcomed relief.” Sylvana chuckled.

“So be it,” Mira snarked as she slammed the front door behind her.

What she needs is a hard hand,Sylvana thought. She wandered around the manor looking for Calista. “Calista?” When she did not get an answer, she went outside to find her and headed toward the stables when out of the corner of her eye noticed the cart was sitting beside the barn.What the hell?

She walked into the barn looking for Calista and Mira, who were nowhere to be found.

“Good morning Sylvana,” a deep, velvety voice said.

She jumped back and turned around, only to see Nicolai appear from the shadows in the back of the barn. “Nicolai?”

He slowly approached her. “You remembered my name?” he joked.

“What are you doing here?” she asked nervously.

“I came to see you.”

“The cart’s back. Did you bring it?”

“No, I had the stable boy do it earlier.”

“You shouldn’t be here.”

“Why not?”

She did not know how to answer. After all, he had the right to go anywhere he pleased without an invitation.

“Well?” he questioned again.

“I didn’t tell my brother you escorted me home last night,” she admitted.

“Why not?”

“I would’ve had to explain what else happened.”

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