Bloodleaf (Bloodleaf #1)(18)

“My people hate me because you told them they could. That they should. You and your stars-forsaken Tribunal.”

“I may be a member of the Tribunal,” Toris thundered, “but I am loyal to the crown. When my betrayal is discovered, I stand to lose everything. My fortune, my friends, my good name . . .”

“How devastating for you,” I said flatly.

“One hour,” Toris said, upper lip curling. “The carriage house. Don’t be seen.”

“I’ll get them there,” Kellan said. “The prince and princess both.”

Toris left with a slam of the door.

My mother busied herself taking my wedding dress down from the dress form, folding it carefully, and tying it into a linen parcel. After a moment of watching her, I turned to Simon. “Is there a way for us to get across Achlev’s Wall without you?”

“Yes,” he said slowly. “You must be invited into the city by someone of royal descent, of Achlev’s direct line. I brought with me three of those documents: one for you, one for a maid, and one for a guard. Anyone else will have to turn back or wait in the encampments outside the wall for the king to issue another invitation for them.”

“That’s all we need,” I said. “One for me, one for Conrad, and one for Kellan. Simon, could you stay here, with my mother? As a blood mage, you’re the only person who can offer her any kind of defense. Please. You just tied your life to mine. There must to be something you can do to protect hers.”

He frowned. “I might be able to seal us in these chambers, but I can’t guarantee how long it will last. If the seal fails at all, the Tribunal could still get in and then . . .” He didn’t finish the sentence. We knew what would happen then.

“Do what you have to do.”

He brought out three envelopes from his jacket pocket, sealed with the three-pointed-knot symbol of Achleva’s flag.

“These will get you across the wall,” he said, handing them to me. “May the Empyrea keep you.”

“And you.”

“We need to hurry,” Kellan said. “There’s no time to waste.”

“Mama?” Conrad asked with glistening eyes.

“Be brave, my prince,” she said to him. “You’re going away, just for a little while. But Aurelia will take care of you; don’t you worry.”

He cast a disbelieving gaze at me, and I squared my shoulders to keep from flinching.

Mother presented me with the parcel containing my wedding dress before taking me in a formal embrace and saying in her queen’s voice, “Travel safely, my daughter. I love you and will miss you terribly.” She touched her lips to my cheek, and I heard her whisper as she shoved something else into my hand, “Keep this with you always. It is a gift. We’ve protected you with our lives. I’m trusting you to protect Conrad’s with yours.”

It was the silken square, now blemished with three circles of blood. A reminder of how much those closest to me were willing to give up to keep me safe.

“Aurelia,” Kellan said urgently. I turned and looked at him. At Simon. And finally at my mother. If the Tribunal were to overthrow Mother, I was the only hope of returning our family to the Renaltan throne. I needed to keep Conrad safe. I needed to become queen of Achleva. And once I had the power required, I would return to Renalt and reclaim what was rightfully ours.

Throat constricting, I said, “I will.”

It wasn’t until I was down the dark passageway that I realized I’d forgotten to tell her that I loved her too.



* * *



The passageway led out to the Kings Hall, lined on either side with ceiling-high portraits of twenty generations of Renaltan royalty. Beneath their stoic gazes we dashed—?Kellan, Conrad, and I—?as distant, angry shouts seeped through the walls. We rounded the corner to my chambers to find the door ajar. Pressing a finger to his lips, Kellan drew his sword and pushed it open.

It had been ransacked. Everything that I owned, everything I ever considered mine, was scattered across the floor. The tapestries were torn, the wardrobe overturned. My bed was upended and snapped down the center, jagged slats reaching into the air like the ribs of a long-wrecked ship. Scrawled across every wall were the words Malefica, malefica, malefica. Witch, witch, witch.

“Gather what you need as fast as you can,” Kellan said. “We’ve got to get out of here.”

“There’s nothing to gather,” I said. “Everything is gone.”

There was a scraping sound as a large piece of my fractured desk was moved aside. Kellan brandished his sword and Conrad ducked behind him, but the face that peeked out was a familiar one.

“My lady?” Emilie asked timidly. “Princess, is that you? Are you all right?”

I helped her from her hiding place. “Are you?”

“I hid when I heard the other servants coming. It’s a wonder they didn’t find me.” She shivered. “The things they were saying about you, my lady . . .”

“They’ll be back,” Kellan said. “We must go now.”

“Wait!” Emilie said, “They’ll find you for sure wearing that color. There must be one of your others in here somewhere . . .” But the closet door was hanging crookedly on its hinges, the dresses it still held were slashed and torn, and the rest were gone, likely looted. There was nothing still wearable inside it. She picked up a scrap and then immediately put it down. “Trade me clothes,” she said, determination on her face. “We’re about the same size. They’re looking for a princess in a bright green ball gown. They won’t look twice at a servant girl.”