Chapter Twenty-six
spend the next few days recovering in bed, the healers tending to meI twice a day with fresh bandages and a steady supply of painkillers. They say it was a clean cut and is healing nicely. I’m told Halo comes to my door more than once, but I decline to see her, not all that interested in hearing what she has to say. I’m still furious that she nearly got me thrown out of the competition. I thought she was my friend. I expect this behavior from Apricia, but not from her.
I also can’t get over the conversation I overheard between Atlas and Gabriel. What is his problem with me? As far as he knows, I’m a mortal prisoner from Nostraza and couldn’t hurt a flea if I tried. I also have to consider Atlas’s true intentions, knowing he’s been cheating for me. I wonder
if he’s been doing the same for any of the other Tributes.
I also can’t stop thinking about the previous Sun Queen Trials.
Who can I ask for more information?
Mag ignores me completely every time I bring it up, changing the subject.
The only other person who comes to my room is Atlas, but after Mag said
speaking of the Trials is forbidden, that doesn’t feel like the right move. Then there’s Gabriel, who treats me like I’m something he’s considering having lanced. I definitely can’t ask him.
It occurs to me the other Tributes must know. They were all alive and living in Aphelion two years ago. Perhaps I will go find Halo, if only to ask her. She at least owes me that.
With that thought in mind, I decide to go for a walk, feeling stronger and stir-crazy from lying around. I slip out of bed and dig out some comfortable clothes. A yellow tunic and leggings made of buttery soft suede, along with a pair of soft golden slippers. I check the locket around my neck with a reaffirming tug, thinking of Willow and Tristan. What are they doing right now? I’ve been gone for weeks—do they know I’m alive? Surely no one has told them what really happened to me.
My hair has continued to grow, thanks to Callias’s magic, and is well past my shoulders now. I comb it out with my fingers and shake my head, loving the way it feels swishing against the back of my neck.
Exiting my room, I choose a random direction and proceed through the
halls. As usual, the palace is alive with activity, parties in full swing, stuffed with Fae and mortals drinking, eating, and carousing in various states of undress. I wonder if all the courts are this liberal in their carnal enjoyments or if this is a characteristic unique to Aphelion.
Though I understand the Fae are generally enthusiastic when it comes to
matters of the bedroom, I can’t imagine anyone in The Aurora having this much fun. It’s far too dark and gloomy. The Aurora Keep seems more appropriate for funerals and raising the dead.
With a smile, I watch the people as I pass, infected by their joy. What a life this must be, to just exist for pleasure. Is that the reality that awaits if I
become Aphelion’s queen? Would that satisfy me? It’s not the kind of queen I’d ever imagined myself to be.
As much as the parties seem happy and warm, I’m not in the mood for a crowd today, especially when I catch sight of Griane and Apricia sipping champagne. I wonder why Apricia isn’t also subjected to endless lessons with Madame Odell, but I suppose I can already guess the answer to that.
As I pass, they both spot me. Griane offers me a tiny smile now that she’s no longer in contention. Really, she owes me a thank-you for helping her survive the gauntlet, but I’m not holding my breath. Apricia’s stony stare is the same as always. I shudder at the notion of becoming one of her handmaidens and wonder if going back to Nostraza might actually be the more pleasant option.
Not letting her ruin my mood, I continue past and find a wide set of glass doors. Pushing them open, I emerge into a tranquil garden. There are rows and rows of bushes bursting with sparkling golden roses. They bloom in every direction, the sun’s reflection infusing them with life. The effect is mesmerizing. Trailing my fingers along the soft petals, I make my leisurely
way down the paths.
The roses are so soft they feel like pillows wrapped in velvet. I bend down to sniff one, the scent rich and luxurious. It transports me back to Nostraza and that tiny sliver of soap that smelled like a phantom shadow of these potent buds. That innocuous bar of soap that landed me in the Hollow and
then led me here to this garden, tossing me into the unpredictability of fate’s path.
Hoping no one minds, I pluck one of the blooms to carry with me, spinning
the stem between my forefinger and thumb.
The sound of the ocean roars in the distance, and I make my way to a low
stone wall on the far side of the garden that overlooks the sea. “Lor,” a voice calls, interrupting my reverie. Halo stands with Marici, both of them watching me with wary expressions.
“Hi,” I say in a clipped tone, still harboring the sting of her betrayal.
“How are you feeling?” Halo asks, coming closer, Marici keeping at her side.
“I’m…fine. I guess.”
“I came to see you. Many times.”
“I know,” I say.
“I wanted to explain.” Halo bunches her skirt in her hands and casts an uncertain glance at Marici. The other Fae steps closer, laying a pale hand on Halo’s arm and nodding.
“Tell her,” Marici whispers. “She deserves to know.”
I frown, wondering what’s happening. Is there anywhere I can escape secrets in this place?
“Marici and I,” Halo says, and then stops. Marici squeezes Halo’s arm again, and they share a look filled with so much tenderness and raw emotion
that I let out a small gasp.
“You’re in love,” I say, and both their faces transform with surprise and relief.
“Yes,” Halo says, but then her expression dissolves into panic, her eyes widening. “But you can’t tell anyone.”
I hold up my hands. “It’s okay. I’m not going to say anything.”
A shadow falls over her eyes. “It is treason to be with anyone but the king once you join the Trials.”
I run a hand down my face as several things click into place.
“This is why you wanted to throw the challenge.” Halo nods, her lips
pressed together. “What’s your plan? To live together as handmaidens and…” I trail off as that knowledge settles between us. Standing up from the wall, I shake my head. “This is dangerous. You could both be jailed or hanged or whatever it is they do to traitors in Aphelion.”
Halo’s eyes drop to her feet. “We could,” she says softly before looking back up at me. “But we’ve been friends for a very long time…”
“Our families have no idea,” Marici adds. “They were expecting one of us to bond with the king. We had no choice but to enter the Trials.”
“I’m so sorry I nearly got you killed on the gauntlet. You have every right to be furious,” Halo says.
She did, and I was, but my anger has already dissipated as I note the sadness and tentative hope in the slope of their postures. “You’ll have to keep it a secret,” I say.
“Unless the king decides we no longer belong to him in that way,” Halo says, a blush creeping up her cheeks. “Tribute handmaidens can never take a bonded partner, but some have gone on to have other relationships if the king wasn’t interested in them. With his blessing.”
I scowl at that. Aphelion really has some issues with how they treat their females. And they call me the uncivilized one.
Marici is leaning against Halo like a tiny flower seeking shelter against a tree. “If you win…” Halo says, not finishing the thought.
“I’m not going to win,” I say, sure that despite what I heard between Atlas
and Gabriel, the odds of me actually making it in front of the Sun Mirror are
infinitesimal.
“But if you do,” Marici says.
I cut a sharp look her way. “I’m not going to win,” I repeat. Atlas might have forbidden Gabriel from harming me, but that doesn’t mean I’m safe. It
would be so easy to make anything look like an accident during a challenge.
Marici nods, her eyes downcast, and I feel guilty for snapping at her, but I don’t want her getting her hopes up. Or mine, for that matter. I let out a sigh and run a hand down my face.
“If I win, I’ll see what I can do. Trust me, if I win, I won’t abide my partner welcoming anyone to his bed but me.”
Both women perk up, smiles on their faces, but my words carry a bravado I have no claim to. If I win, then it’s clear I’ll still be second to the Fae who holds the real power in this realm. Could I stop him even if I wanted to? Does he answer to anyone?
“Thank you, Lor,” Halo says, taking my hands. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me,” I reply. “I haven’t done anything yet.”
“Of course,” Marici says. “Thank you anyway.”
I sigh again, the weight of the world pressing down on my shoulders like a
ceiling of stone.
Tristan. Willow. Halo. Marici.
The list of people counting on me to win the Sun Queen Trials is getting
longer and longer.
