9. Chapter 9
Chapter nine
Leena
“ Y ou look lovely already, My Lady,” the woman who’d freed me and whom I now knew as Theodora said as she continued lacing up the corset, squeezing my waist. I stared at my reflection in the mirror, not completely present. My body was in this new realm, but my mind was elsewhere. I barely registered that I was the one staring back from the other side of the glass—the pale maiden whose hair was getting pinned into intricate ringlets atop her head while simultaneously being dressed in a black-and-green gown of fine silks and golden accented leaves. The mirror was an oval portal to another existence, or maybe just one welcoming me to this strange new world.
The intricate wooden patterns surrounding the glass held me in place as everything finally sunk in. In the small dressing room within the hollowed quarters of a large pine tree was the first step into my new life as the bride of the Leshy—the creature in charge of the life and well-being of the forest .
The strings on the outer corset and bodice of my dress tightened against my ribcage, and I was reminded of those vines on my wrists and ankles. Would I be a slave? Would my sole purpose be to let him use me as he saw fit? I shuddered at the thought.
My mind drifted back to when I’d slapped him—those striking eyes blinking down at me, wide and impressed, and his broad, looming figure towering over me.
Frustratingly, I thought of his lips again and how they knew exactly where to go to make my mind go numb.
I’d rather you save that fire for tonight.
My face burned. I couldn’t think about what tonight might entail and whether or not I’d have a say in anything that transpired. If his kissing and soft caresses were any indication of his lovemaking, it may not be so bad…
I couldn’t meet my own gaze in the mirror.
“Lift your arms, My Lady,” Theodora chirped, and I did as I was told, soon being covered by another layer of dark green, and then a matching veil was placed upon my head. After two golden leaves were tucked behind each of my ears, Theodora and the small female who’d still not told me her name held out a hand to help me off the stump in the middle of the hollowed tree.
“You look absolutely breathtaking. Doesn’t she, Ani?”
I peered surreptitiously at the female to my left. Ani. A fae-like creature half the size of Theodora but larger than the pixies fluttering around the realm in various colors of pastels. She had cropped black hair and sad, drooping eyes. Her lips were a tiny bow in the middle of her blue face. Her skin was the shade of an icy lake, but her eyes were as dark as the depths of the ocean floor. At first glance, it looked like she had no eyes at all. Somehow, the look worked for her, though there was something unsettling about her countenance. I tried not to think too deeply about it. I was hardly in a place to judge anyone or think clearly.
“I suppose,” Ani sighed.
Theodora cast a disapproving look at her companion, then turned to me and took my hands in hers. “Come. I’m sure His Majesty is waiting for you. He’s awfully excited about this.”
I swallowed a snort. I’m sure he is.
“Melora will be excited, too,” Ani grumbled. “Their little plan will finally come to fruition.” She shot me a glare. “As long as this human isn’t completely useless.”
My stomach dropped. “What plan?” I turned to Theodora, whose eyes were wide with what appeared to be both shock and rage as she stared Ani down. “Theodora?”
“Don’t talk about this maiden like that, Ani,” she hissed, her voice low as if she’d get scolded if someone heard. “You know she is to be our queen.”
“She will never be my queen,” Ani scoffed.
“She sure will, and do you really want to be on the receiving end of His Majesty’s wrath when he finds out you insulted his bride and were spreading rumors before his wedding?”
“It’s not a rumor, and you know it. ”
“Hush!” Theodora said, then turned to me with a forced smile. “Come, My Lady. I will show you to the willows where you will be crowned our queen.”
I wished I could speak, but my voice had abandoned me. Too many questions were warring in my mind. Slowly, my body went numb. Theodora draped the veil over my face and guided me out of the hollow tree.
I floated along, unable to see anything as Theodora shuffled me to my fate. I stumbled on rocks and almost fell on my face a number of times, and the corset made it hard to breathe. Worst of all, I couldn’t get Ani’s words out of my head. This was the second time I’d heard the name Melora, but it was the first I’d heard of a plan. Did Bratan have more up his sleeve?
Light warmed the top of my head, beating through my veil until, finally, I could see through the gossamer fabric. “Are you ready, My Lady?” Theodora asked when we approached a similar curtain of vines as the one Bratan and I had walked through.
As ready as I’ll ever be was what I wanted to say, but I opted for a polite nod instead. This woman was the only one here who’d been nice to me, at least without a jagged edge. Of course, I knew that nice people weren’t always good people, so I couldn’t trust her yet, but I at least needed to be nice to her. She was the only person close to a friend I had, and I needed someone on my side.
Theodora swept her hand along the curtain of green and revealed a scene I had a hard time comprehending. Sparks of fireflies buzzed around the darkened sky and moonlit ceremony like dancing stars ready to lead me into my new life.
To lead me to him.
I looked up at the sky and wondered what magic could make the moon feel like the sun, because it was indeed the moon that had warmed my head and cast beams against the trees to guide us here. I scanned the small clearing, passing various fairies and woodland creatures seated in neat rows of wooden stumps fashioned into chairs. Sprouting from the backs of the stumps were intricate patterns of woven branches adorned with cherry blossoms, whose petals slowly drifted into the wind and then re-grew in place.
At the front of the clearing was an arch of the same intricately woven wood with matching cherry blossoms, but it was adorned with a variety of other flowers as well, sitting like jewels encrusted overhead. The most striking were the blood-red roses and the occasional black one, outlined with matching rubies and onyx.
The only thing missing from the grand display was the groom.
Fireflies gathered and illuminated the path stretching from me to the arch. It was awkward walking down the path of fallen cherry blossoms with no one at the end of it, and the only music playing was the chirps of birds nestling into their beds for the night. I kept walking in awkward, near-silence, staring straight ahead. There wasn’t even a priest at the end of the walkway, though such a thing was probably unnecessary when wedding a deity. But I did need a groom.
Unease twisted my gut. I’d only known about the Leshy for a short time, but what I did know was that his absence could mean something malevolent—something that would make my life even more of a mess. I cringed at the endless possibilities. As the unease spread, each of my footsteps was heavier than the last. The sensation felt so physical that I had to look down to make sure I wasn’t treading through mud.
I was almost to the end of the aisle, naively hoping he’d changed his mind, when a gust of wind rushed through the clearing, spinning cherry blossom petals into a whirlwind and shaking the flowers along the wooden arch. As if summoned by my thoughts, there he was. Standing in a finely crafted suit, double-breasted with long sleeves and buttoned cuffs, with a thick, regal black cape thrown over it all. The sight of him sent a warm shiver across my skin, and the tightness in my stomach eased. His intricate attire was impressive, and I found myself inspecting it before reaching him. When I did, his floor-length cape fluttered by his feet like a train moving with the wind. I couldn’t help noticing the way it also swept through his dark hair, which was styled in neat, shining waves and tucked behind his ears. His back was rigid, but his face was soft. He offered me his hand with a smile that made my insides liquid.
Theodora nudged me forward as I momentarily forgot how to move. There was something about him that sucked me in and immobilized me. Something that made me want far more than I was comfortable admitting. I couldn’t let him notice the redness inevitably creeping up my face. “Do you always make such a dramatic entrance?”
His smile widened, and he grabbed a loose curl atop my head, pulling it softly as he glanced down at me. “Only when such a beautiful bride awaits me.”
I rolled my eyes, trying to formulate a snarky response, but a shimmer of dust fell from the sky, and harps began to sing. The colorful powder fell like shooting stars, twinkling against the harps’ strings and the gentle whistles of the accompanying flutes. It was like magic captured in a bottle, shaken to brilliance. A wedding present just for me.
I looked back at Bratan and at his hand once again outstretched instead of playing with my hair.
“Come, little dove, our new life awaits.”
The words carved into my chest. Our new life.
Thoughts and memories of my old life shuffled through my mind like playing cards. I didn’t have much in Woodsmeadow and hadn’t known happiness for years, but being married to a monster had to be worse.
I had no choice, though, not one I was satisfied with anyway. If I wanted my grandmother to have that better life I so desperately wanted her to have—one free of starvation and abuse—this was the only way to do it. And if I wanted to stop the torment of my people, I needed to take this crucial step.
“Will the bride and groom please step forward?” a creature resembling a mole said as it stood at the end of the aisle. It looked disturbingly human, like an old man with small spectacles and a worn-out suit. A minute ticked by and then another. I couldn’t move. When another went by, the mole officiant cleared his throat and repeated, “Will the bride and groom please step forward?” Bride. I was the bride. Still frozen in place, I couldn’t even beg my legs to move.
After another long moment, Bratan grabbed my hand, placed it on his large bicep, and ushered me to the center of the odd stage before the human-like mole. I would have been irritated at his forcing me forward, but I was caught in a daze from the impossibility of everything around me, still unconvinced I wasn’t dreaming.
The mole priest uttered a long string of words in a language I didn’t understand, but even if he’d been speaking my native tongue, he was going too quickly, and my mind was too foggy for me to comprehend any of it. Until I swore I heard the word “eternity” and then “immortal”. I blanched, suddenly reminded of all those fairytales and stories I’d heard of beasts, demons, and deities. I would be bound to him for eternity. Of course I would. What was I expecting? To go home?
At some point, my brain stopped trying to wrap itself around what was going on or what would come. It was hard enough to keep my eyes away from my groom, but when those dreaded words came, I had no choice. “You may kiss the bride.”
My heart pounded as my eyes flicked to Bratan’s. Without hesitation, he grabbed me by the nape of my neck and kissed me, one large hand sliding down my back. He pressed me against him, and my breath went ragged, my blood warm. I shouldn’t enjoy this. I really shouldn’t enjoy this.
But I did, and I felt guilty that it didn’t feel wrong.
This was my life now, though. I might as well enjoy it.
My fingers moved up his chest, linking behind his neck as I kissed him back. He tasted like sunlight and morning dew and something so primally male, matching his scent, that it sent me into a ravenous flurry. I clutched his shoulders, kissing him more deeply. His hands roamed my body, his fingers finding my thigh beneath the layers of fabric. The sudden heat that shot through me pulled a gasp from my throat, forcing me out of his spell. Remembering we were in front of a crowd of our subjects, I looked out in bashful horror, but no one was there. Not even the mole.
Bratan tilted my chin until I faced him, and he kissed me again.
This time, I pushed away. “No. You’re a monster. I can’t—”
“You’re my wife now, Leena. And the ceremony isn’t over.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
His mouth pursed like he was trying not to laugh. “It’s not what you’re thinking. It’s for your reign.”
I lifted a brow, surreptitiously trying to cool myself down. “What about my reign?”
“Come. We scared off the officiant before the most important part.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me into a portal between vines and trees. “You’ll be filled with powers beyond your comprehension,” he said, leading me through the thickness of the forest.
“What?” I jumped over a rock before tripping over another and tried to keep up.
“You are the wife of the Leshy. You have duties to perform.”
I dug my heels into the dirt and slid my hand from his grasp. “Don’t I get a say in this?”
“You’ve already had your say. You’ve given yourself to me.” He turned around and grabbed my wrists, getting far too close. “I told you before. You belong to me.” He might have been scowling with fire in his eyes, but I shot him a glare fierce enough to burn down the woods with him in it.
“I may have wed you, but I have not given myself to you.” I ripped my wrists away and eyed him up and down with disdain. “Nor will I.” I expected him to bite back, but he didn’t, and I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. He stared me down in what looked like puzzled awe.
“Is that so?” The impish grin he gave me spoke of what I already knew: that I was doing a poor job at keeping my desires for him at bay.
“Yes,” I said, but his grin didn’t move, and I hated how immature I probably looked with my chin up in the air. “You and I will be cordial companions, but I like my independence.” I tried not to let the fear creeping up my spine stop me from speaking my mind. I wanted to feel out his expectations and see his reactions. I needed to understand the way his mind worked .
“Well, you still need your powers. Let’s hurry. That damned mole is hard to track down, and I want to get this over with.”
I barked out an appalled laugh. “You want to get this over with? What about me?”
He didn’t look at me. “Why don’t you talk to me after you get your powers? Then tell me what you do or don’t want.” I narrowed my eyes, but I was glad that he wasn’t biting back as hard as I’d thought he would. Was he not taking me seriously, or was he as apathetic of our union as I was? Other than the obvious physical temptations…
I needed to stay strong and show him he would never fully have me. We may be wed, but I would never be his. Not fully, not truly.
“Fine,” I grumbled, which appeased him enough for him to grab my hand and continue forward. There was so much unknown in my future, but for now, I let him drag me along to find that blasted mole and to find out what lay in store for me in this odd life I would share with the monster of the woods.