Gild (The Plated Prisoner #1)(37)

It didn’t take long for the news of King Fulke’s death to spread like a heavy snow, drifting over the land, coating every tongue. Midas managed to come out heroic, to give the people a villain to blame, while he gained more power in one fell swoop.

And now, he’s sent for me to join him—though it’s a secret.

Most everyone thinks I’m already there in Fifth Kingdom, that I traveled with him. However, Midas didn’t want me there until he deemed it safe, so he left me behind.

But Midas knew that leaving me alone in the castle was a risk too, so he used a decoy. A woman traveled with his caravan—not gold-touched, but painted to look like me. In the meantime, I’ve been guarded day and night while I’ve waited. Not even the servants have been allowed up to these levels. Not even the queen was told that I’m still here.

The only people I’ve seen these past few weeks are the small number of guards Digby apparently hand-picked to watch over me.

But now it’s time to go.

Giving one last glance out the window, I turn away with mixed feelings roiling in my stomach. I head for Digby, who’s holding the cage door open for me, and I try not to show the apprehension on my face.

Just as I pass through the threshold, I cast one last look at my cage, my eyes running over all of the things I’ve had around me every day for as long as I can remember.

It’s strange, but I feel a sense of loss when I turn away and follow behind Digby and the other guards as they escort me out. My cage...I’ve relied on it for so many years. I resented it, too, yes, but it was still a safe haven—one I’m now leaving.

We take the stairs all the way down to the main floor, the five of us quiet, the castle itself subdued. When we make it to the bottom level, I can’t help that my eyes dart to the right, seeking out the closed door to the letter room.

I wonder which servants were made to clean the blood up. I wonder if those servants are still alive or if they took those blood-soaked rags to the grave with them, because—

No. Don’t think of that now. Loyal. I’m loyal.

Forcing my eyes to peel away from that room, I see that the great doors leading to the dark outside are already open, letting gusts of chilled air blow in. Past the stone steps and courtyard, I can see a procession of carriages and horses waiting to take our party to Fifth Kingdom.

Feeling the back of my neck prickling, I turn to see Queen Malina standing on the second floor, her hand curved over the banister as she looks down at me. Her face is blank, sleek white hair coiled around her head like a crown, while her eyes watch me, watch with an intensity that makes my throat clog.

Hate. That’s hate in her eyes as she glares down at me, as she realizes that Midas lied, that I’ve been in the castle all this time. That I’m now going to him because he sent for me.

If I were her, I’d probably hate me too.

“My lady?”

I turn back around, finding the guards waiting for me by the open door, one of them holding up a thick fur coat for me. “Thank you,” I murmur, taking it from his outstretched hand before I slip it on. I don’t turn back to the queen, but I can feel her stare follow me all the way out into the night.

I clutch the coat tighter.

It’s heavy but soft, the fabric lined with leather and fur to keep me warm during the brutal nights. I lift the hood over my head as I walk down the front steps, feeling the last of the castle’s warmth leave me. But feeling the tension start to leave, too.

My chin tips up as soon as I pass the doorway, and my face points at the sky.

Ten years.

That’s how long it’s been since I’ve stepped foot outside.

The cold wind drifts over me with a lazy current, whispering across my face like a gentle welcome. The guards share a look, their feet shifting from side to side as I stand there, not moving, but I ignore them.

Because this moment—this is mine.

When I chose to hide away, I was barely more than a girl. Vulnerable. Battered. Scared. Utterly sick of what the world had to offer.

So I hid in a cage, and I was content to do so. After the things I endured, I wanted it. I accepted the bars, embraced them, even—not to keep me in, but to keep others out.

But I missed this. The fresh air in my lungs. The smell of the breeze. The cold against my cheeks. The feel of the ground beneath my shoes.

I missed it so damn much.

“My lady,” one of the guards says hesitantly. “We should go.”

I let my eyes scan the dark sky above me for one more moment, the clouds glowing gray before a hidden moon. But I swear, for one fleeting second, I see a glimpse of a star winking at me.

So I wink back.





Chapter Sixteen





The seat of the carriage is velvet, the wood-paneled walls lined with leather, the floor plush with woven carpet. The entire thing is luxurious and golden, though I’m sure after being stuck inside of it for the long journey, it’ll start to feel cramped.

For now, I’m content looking out through the window and feeling the chilled air pass through the gap in the frame as our procession moves away from Highbell Castle.

A dozen other saddles are traveling in separate carriages, all of us called to join Midas in Fifth Kingdom, while the guards on horseback escort us down the long winding road along the rim of the frozen mountain. It’s achingly slow, but I don’t mind the pace right now. I relish in the peace of the night, in the steady steps of the horses as they pull me forward, away from the cage in the palace, toward something new.