The Mirror in the Mountain (The Mirrored Trilogy #2)

8. Adrian

Chapter 8

Adrian

T he entire room seemed to be looking at me except for her.

After the High Queen’s pronouncement, the hall had exploded into an uproar—our parents loudly exclaiming about how fate had ensured this meeting, my mother already planning the royal wedding of the century.

No one but me seemed to notice that my betrothed had gone cold as ice, pulling away when I attempted to hold her hand once more. And she remained that way as the High Queen demanded we all stay here in Morehaven, the bonding ceremony to be held while everyone was gathered.

“Estelle…”

She didn’t so much as look at me, though a muscle in her jaw clenched before she turned away, slipping through the crowd as I tried to follow. One of the queen’s courtiers stepped in front of me, blocking her hastily retreating form from my view.

He cleared his throat as I tried to step around him. “Let me show you to your room. Preparations will need to be made quickly of course.”

“Of course,” my mother said, coming up to my side and patting my arm.

I craned my neck, looking for any glimpse of my soul bonded who had somehow disappeared into the crowd in mere seconds. “I need to talk to?—”

“Plenty of time for ‘talking’ later,” my father said with a loud guffaw. My mother pursed her lips.

“As I was saying,” the courtier continued. “You have been granted rooms here until the ceremony.”

He prattled on as he led us into a sparkling white hallway teaming with people, many too inebriated to walk in a straight line. A few clapped me on the back, shouting words of congratulations that I barely heard, wondering how I was going to find her in this maze of white marble and shining silver.

A throat cleared beside me, breaking into my thoughts. “Your room.”

From the way the courtier was looking at me, it wasn’t the first time he had said it. Hastily, I nodded my thanks, pressed a kiss on my mother’s cheek, and, after promising to help my parents plan in the morning, closed the heavy door behind me.

As soon as it shut, I leaned back against it, my head hitting the wood with a thud. My anima. I had finally found her. She was smart, quick-witted and even quicker with a blade in her hands, effortlessly charismatic, and so beautiful I hadn’t been able to look away from her the moment she had walked out on that balcony.

The thought that she was unhappy about our union in any way brought my delight crashing down around me.

I barely looked around my room before leaving it, heading back into the now-darkened hallway. There was a buzzing under my skin, my throat dry as I swallowed. I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep with her reaction on my mind. Not until I got to the bottom of it.

A few drunken revelers were still stumbling away from the festivities, some mumbling toasts as they recognized me. I nodded serenely, even as the hallways blended together. For some reason I thought I would be able to…find her. Like a magical golden arrow would point me to her room. Instead, I was only getting hopelessly lost and increasingly frustrated with myself, my elusive anima feeling more and more like a mirage.

Take a breath , I told myself. Count each second. Breathe out. Now count the same.

Without the crowding of my thoughts and the frenzied pounding of my heart, I felt the faintest of tugs. Not within the castle, but outside it. My hand trailed against the wall next to me as I rounded the corner, the feeling getting stronger.

I didn’t question that pull, just obeyed it. Perhaps our bond would take me directly to her if I just got out of my own head.

Silently, I snuck through the now empty ballroom, the formerly festive scene now faintly ominous in the cool moonlight. An enormous, ostentatious mirror covered in shining silver feathers rippled inquisitively as I passed, following that tug to the balcony outside.

I was entirely unsurprised to see Estelle standing in the very spot we had first met, wearing a pale silk nightdress that made me want to fall to my knees. It fluttered gently in the breeze; a matching silk robe had fallen from her shoulders to reveal the gooseflesh on her upper arms. Her golden eyes met mine. My heartbeat picked up so quickly I pressed a hand against my chest as if to keep it in place, its frenetic pulse urging me onward.

You’ve finally found your anima.

Her eyes narrowed. “What are you doing here?”

“Looking for you,” I replied baldly.

Estelle’s mouth twitched in annoyance, whether at my presence or how easily I had been able to find her. Her obvious reluctance slowed my stride.

“I wouldn’t lie to you, Estelle.” I drew out her name, loving the way it felt on my tongue. Dying to get another taste of her mouth. My gaze dropped to those rosy lips unbidden, and I saw the answering flush in her cheeks creeping up her elegant neck.

She flinched almost imperceptibly, taking a small step back. I froze, taking another deep breath as I forced myself not to run to her.

Whether it was me, or who I was to her, something about this scared her. Based on our easy banter prior to the discovery of our bond, I had a feeling it was the latter. But we could work through whatever it was that was stopping her from giving in to this—to us . I just needed to get her to talk to me.

“Come on,” I said, reaching out my hand. “My turn to take you somewhere.”

Estelle eyed my hand like it was an asp waiting to strike. “Just because you’re my anima doesn’t mean I can trust you.”

“I’m pretty sure that’s exactly what it’s supposed to mean,” I retorted wryly, even as something twisted in my chest.

Her eyes flared, then fell to where my hand was still reaching for her.

“Come on, Princess,” I chided, trying to fall back into that easy rhythm from before. “It’s only fair. But if you get there and want to turn around, I’ll return you to your self-proclaimed spot and then leave you be. I promise.”

Estelle stared at me appraisingly, the silence so long I was sure she was about to say no, until…

“Fine.”

She ignored my outstretched palm but took one step toward me, that fire in her eyes making my blood heat. I swallowed against my dry mouth, not even daring to smile should it scare her off.

Dropping my hand to my side, I discreetly rubbed my damp palm against my thigh as I turned toward the exterior stairwell that I had noticed earlier. Before she could change her mind, I started walking down to the gardens, silently praying she would follow. I was grateful she couldn’t see my face as I heard her footsteps behind me, or hear my soft, shuddering sigh of relief as she hurried to keep up.

“I thought we’d take a walk, Princess,” I drawled, only turning to look at her when we reached the bottom. “Get to know each other a bit.”

She followed as I stepped onto the cobblestone trail. Night blooming jasmine lined the path, and I took in a deep inhale, letting its sweet scent calm my nerves.

“Why?”

“We’re bonded until eternity, and you don’t wish to learn more about me?”

Estelle paused. “And if I don’t want to accept the bond?”

My stomach dropped, but I forced myself to keep walking, trying not to make it obvious how much that question terrified me as I carefully asked, “Is there some reason you’re so against finding your soul bonded?”

She flinched away from my gaze, then threw her hands up in exasperation. “I don’t need another person to control me. And maybe there are a few things I want to do before being tied down in matrimony.”

“Do you think I plan to stop you?” I came to a stop so quickly I put my arm out to steady her as she almost crashed into me. She stiffened at my touch, and I knew she felt the crackle of energy that passed between us before I let go of the bare skin of her arm. “Perhaps you’ll even allow me the honor of tagging along.”

She stared at me, a bit dumbfounded, and I found myself lost in those ethereal eyes—hazel with flecks of gold that encircled her pupils like a crown. I drank in the sight of her, forcing myself to drop my hand back to my side, even as I ached to touch the chestnut curl that perfectly framed her heart-shaped face.

“I’m not sure where you got the idea that an anima bond was a prison sentence, but I happen to be quite happy about the thought of accepting it with you,” I said, acutely aware of how vulnerable I was making myself. “Or I was .”

“Of course you are,” Estelle sniffed, brushing past me to continue down the trail.

It took a second for her words to register, having been distracted by the view of her sauntering away.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I caught up to her in a few long strides, resisting the urge to spin her around and make her look at me. “Of course I’m happy about finding the person who I get to spend my life with. Doesn’t everyone dream about getting to know the other half of their soul?”

So why aren’t you? I bit the words back, knowing my hurt feelings wouldn’t help me here. But if she meant what she said, and she didn’t accept our bond…it was unthinkable.

She stopped walking, warily crossing her arms as she looked downward. “And the fact that I’m the Solearan heir has nothing to do with it?”

There was something heartbreakingly soft behind her question. An uncertainty she was failing to hide.

Gently, I lifted her chin with my forefinger, bringing her eyes to mine. “What exactly are you implying? Because you seem to forget I wanted you before I knew anything about that.” I swallowed hard. “Or do you find me so unfit to rule at your side?”

Estelle blinked, looking at me strangely. “That’s not—It’s not about…”

“Then what’s it about, Princess?”

Her eyes narrowed. “Where shall we live? Do you plan on taking me back to Esterra?”

I laughed. “I’m the second son of the Eastern King, and you’re the Northern heir. I’ll take you home with me if you wish, but it’s entirely up to you.” I took a small step toward her, closing the distance between us, just as she took a matching step back. “If it means spending our lives together, I’ll follow you wherever you want to go.”

“So your plan is to come to Soleara and…” She cut herself off, looking upset at herself.

And suddenly I realized what this was. The reason she was pushing me away.

“I’m not planning on usurping your throne,” I said in a low, urgent voice. “Though I think the best partnerships are the ones that learn to share the load—who work together. And while I’d like to rule by your side, it’s your people. Your kingdom. Even though I hope they might one day be ours.”

She gave me such a startled look I was certain I had guessed right.

“I thought…”

“Are Solearans so puritanical that a female in charge is such a strange thing, even with a High Queen as the leader of our realm?” I smirked at her. “Because Esterrans have no such idiocy. Or if they did, my grandmother sorted it out long before I was born.”

“My parents have always been…protective. The High Queen told them at my birth that…” Estelle trailed off, shaking her head. “We lost my mother before she could produce another heir.”

I frowned. With heirs determined by power, not birth order, was her magic not…strong enough? Somehow, I couldn’t imagine that. Especially not when our every touch seemed to spark with whatever lay beneath her skin, like her magic was trying to reach out to mine. But if that wasn’t it, what had the High Queen told her parents that had scared them so?

“My father has been committed to finding me a strong match, a strong alliance ever since,” Estelle continued softly. “Someone he felt could lead.”

That careful admission, and what it implied, set my throat on fire. “I’m very well aware you can rule Soleara all by yourself, Princess, and I barely know you.” Though I tried to keep the anger on her behalf out of my voice, I only somewhat succeeded. “How your father can’t see that is beyond me. Or perhaps he’s afraid. I knew how strong you were even before you bested me with your sword. And even if I didn’t, I have no desire to control you, now or ever.” I held out a hand, pleading with her silently to take it this time. “But maybe you can find some use for me, anyway.”

Her eyes fixed on my outstretched hand for an endless moment, like she could see the heart I held out to her in offering.

Something swooped low in my stomach as she took it.