The Bride Tournament (Hexed Hearts Book 1)(25)

A tipsy burp bubbled up. “Excuse me.” Scratchy wool bit at Ellie’s fingers as she patted her chest.

“We will giggle at the silly ones and cheer on our favorites.” Rachel grabbed Ellie’s hand and urged her from the manor into the chilly air. “It is our patriotic duty.”

“It’d be nice to encourage the smart, capable ones,” Ellie agreed. Fifty women entered and over the course of the tournament, the number whittled down to a handful of serious competitors who had one final, magic-induced, chance to claim the prize.

The crown.

In that second, the clouds cleared and a single beam of moonlight dripped from the heavens to illuminate the two women sauntering from the forest’s edge to the Citadel’s gate.

“Who knows, you could enter too.” Rachel shrugged as they entered Meera’s Tea Shop. The front of the shop was crowded with glittering women and sparkling flutes of champagne. Floral perfumes fought for dominance in the dimly lit space while the scent of sugared pound cake wafted upward. They slipped past the laughing groups of excited women and ducked into the back room.

Thoughts muddled from the wine, Ellie accepted an ice-blue velvet cape and silver gown from Meera. She could enter, if she wanted to, but to what end?

She secured her simple black mask over her eyes and nose. The silken ribbon disappeared into the curled mass of hair pinned atop her head.

“Thanks for doing our hair, Meera.” She smiled and sipped a fresh glass of wine.

“Thanks for letting me tag along. I never thought to see another one of these political races.” Meera smiled and finished her own cup. “I’ll pretend to be your mother and they’ll let us right in.”

“Did you do this when the current queen was vying for the crown?” Ellie asked and swirled the golden wine in front of the cheery fire. Rachel tied her own red cape along slender shoulders.

“Sneak in and cheer on my favorites?” Meera clarified. “Certainly.”

“I’m sure you wanted our queen to win,” Rachel said.

“Actually, yes, I did. Picked her out from the crowd right away.”

The older woman’s eyes clouded over and a frown decorated her wrinkled face. A boom of laughter from the main room billowed in.

“What?” Ellie poured a fresh glass of wine for Rachel and checked the grand clock in the corner. Dame Lange, Lady Irene, and the girls had gone to a different women’s parlor for more drinks and gossip before the Entering Ceremony, which didn’t start until the stroke of ten in the evening.

They had an hour yet. The ceremony took place at night to lend an air of solemnity. After all, these women were trying to become queen, a position that lasted one’s lifetime.

“There was a scandal last time, if I remember correctly.” Meera sat and pulled a hanky from her pocket to dab her nose. “One of the young women was desperate to win the crown, and the king’s affection.”

“Only one?” Rachel winked.

“Oh pish, yes, all of them wanted to win. But this one woman…she was…desperate.”

“Did she win?” Ellie asked. “I can’t imagine the current queen acting desperate.”

“No, our lady was the epitome of grace.” Meera scratched her chin. “This other woman was kicked out in the last competition, the wielding of magic. She tried to maim—murder, in my opinion—our current queen in the middle of thousands of witnesses.”

“How?” Rachel asked, shocked.

“Well, our queen was weaving a stunning illusion on one of the ballroom walls when the other woman, the spiteful one, charged her. She used old magic to start the current queen’s gown on fire, trying to ruin her chances. The gown was a beautiful taffeta confection and burst into flames, charring quite a bit of the queen, as well as a few onlookers who tried to suffocate the flames. Because old magic was used to start the fire, the blaze was nearly impossible to put out. A gentleman died as he struggled to cut the skirt of the gown from the queen.”

“That’s why old magic’s been banned, right? What happened to the contestant?” Rachel asked.

Meera nodded. “The king, then a prince, saw the whole thing and launched himself at the woman, but she raced off before anyone could catch her. The queen was announced the victor that very night.”

Ellie gasped. She had heard rumors, but nobody discussed details and she hadn’t asked. “Who was it? The woman who tried to kill our queen?”

“We never found out.” Meera shrugged. “As a stipulation of the old tradition, every woman is granted her right to absolute privacy.”

“Even at the expense of the queen?” Eyes wide, Rachel sauntered closer and sipped from her glass.

“Well, the coward escaped before anyone could expose her. And everyone claimed not to know her. By royal decree, old magic was banned from then on. It wasn’t the first time the old ways caused destruction. Fear made people worry it wouldn’t be the last.”

Ellie’s stomach clenched. She could personally attest to the destructive behavior of the old ways.

“Come, let’s go support our favorites.” Meera stood and grasped Ellie’s hand.

In response, the gem around her throat glowed a cheery, pearly-blue to match her cape. Once the trio had arrived at the ceremony, much happier and tipsier, they found a gargantuan crowd entering the great castle’s gates. The myriad sentinels and butlers paid the trio no heed as they meshed with the nobility.