Chapter 4
Chapter four
Iwas immediately escorted back to my room, but I didn’t remember the walk back.
Too much had changed for me to focus on the familiarity of the stone walls and gawking servants.
I was alive, but everything was different now.
My entire life, I’d relied on Damon to survive, but now I needed to train Diaspro to save me.
The guards locked me back in my suite without another word, leaving me with the list of princesses who had become my newest enemies.
Mara and Beckham were relieved to see me return unharmed, but the ghastly state I was in left them a bit apprehensive to ask questions.
I kept it simple, leaving out the details of Lochlan’s initial visit, which puzzled me more than anything.
“A competition?” Mara asked as I handed over the list for her to peruse. “He’s really going to make you battle these other girls?”
She read through the names, her brows knitting as she likely tried to pick apart the more unusual ones.
“He didn’t say battle specifically,” I explained, moving over to my desk to grab a fresh sheet of paper and an ink well.
I was running short on ink, but I could always scratch my thoughts into the walls if I needed to.
The princesses may not be here yet, but the competition had already begun in my mind.
“If these girls are typical princesses, then they’ll probably be skilled in things like dancing, music, and other dull things that I never took much interest in. ”
I bit my cheek, imagining the humiliation that would come from losing my life over a round of embroidery. The whole thing seemed childish, which was what made it so strange… Septimus was conniving and vengeful, but rarely immature.
What’s his angle?
“I didn’t think the king cared about such trivial things such as whether or not a lady could play the harp.” Beckham browsed the list over Mara’s shoulder, his eyes narrowing on one of the names. “Nor do I think some of these ladies will be able to impress him with such skills.”
“What do you mean?” I looked up from my desk, quill in hand. “Do you recognize any of the names?”
“Sort of…” he said, taking the list from Mara to read over again. “I’ve heard of Princess Avalyn Richelle from Taynia, but all I know about Taynia is where it’s located on a map.”
“Yes, I recognized her name too,” I said, scratching out notes at the top of my first paper.
“From what I’ve read, Taynia is an island made up of a nearly uninhabitable jungle that’s ruled by a powerful tribe leader rather than a king.
They’ve completely isolated themselves from the rest of the world and have never shown interest in trade or alliances.
It’s strange to me that they would choose now to send their daughter to try for the hand of a prince. ”
Beckham’s right, though; she doesn’t sound like the type of girl who enjoys ballroom dancing.
“Maybe her family decided it’s finally time to make an alliance?” Mara suggested, the idea sounding just as flimsy out loud as it did in my head.
“Or maybe someone decided for them,” I considered, scratching a few more notes under her name. Septimus must have convinced her to come somehow… Clearly, he wanted her here because he saw her as a match for me. “Can you read off the next name for me, Beckham?”
“Sure, Princess Ciara,” he read out. “It’s strange, it says she’s from Shadoyan. I’ve never heard of that kingdom before, but there’s an ocean to the north with the same name.”
Right, the Shadoyan Seas. Could it be?
“Are you sure it says princess?” I asked, my quill hovering over the page before I stained the parchment with my fearful theory.
“Yes, Princess Ciara of Shadoyan, daughter of Ravenlore,” Beckham repeated.
“Captain Ravenlore.” I sighed, my wrists tensing as I wrote out his daughter’s name. “I should have expected as much. Captain Ravenlore is the self-named pirate king of the Shadoyan Seas.”
“A-a pirate?” Mara gasped. “Does that mean that Ciara is a pirate princess? Do those exist?”
“Officially, no.” I grimaced, imagining what other rules King Septimus was planning to bend. “Frankly, I didn’t even know he had a daughter. What I do know is that the Shadoyan Seas are avoided by every merchant and sailor who values their life. Ravenlore is well known for his ruthlessness.”
“Oh.” Mara swallowed. “Maybe Princess Ciara is…nicer?”
“If she were, I doubt she would have been invited.” I stood, crossing the room to take the list back from Beckham. There were only two other names, and neither had a kingdom attached to it.
Princess Avalyn Richelle of Tanyia
Princess Ciara of Shadoyan, daughter of Ravenlore
Lady Brisa of the South
Sybil
The further down the list I went, the less information I got.
But based on the first two girls, I imagined the last two were equally formidable.
I understood now why the king was confident in my failure.
He wasn’t matching me up against proper princesses; he was throwing me to the nastiest wolves he could drag out of the den.
Perhaps this will be a battle, after all.
A soft knock on the door interrupted us, startling Mara as usual. She ran a quick, panicked lap around the room in search of anything that we needed to keep out of sight, but the king himself had given me the list of names, so for once, there was no reason for her to be concerned.
She answered the door, then stepped aside to reveal an Aemastian servant waiting at the threshold.
“Lady Diaspro has been requested to present herself in front of the princes,” the servant instructed in a hushed tone.
All the princes? That didn’t sound promising…
“Has the king approved this meeting?” Mara asked, causing the servant’s face to pale.
I stepped around her, placing a gentle hand on her arm as I eased her away from the door. “Remember,” I told her, “there are some questions you’re safer not asking.”
She nodded, then stepped back while biting hard on her lip. I knew they wouldn’t want me to go, but they didn’t know that I needed to keep the princes happy now more than ever. Plus, I desperately needed to know what Lochlan’s motives were for keeping quiet.
“Take me to them.”
I followed the servant, who moved through the halls so quickly I could barely keep up with him.
It was like chasing a leaf being blown through the trees, but he did an impressive job keeping us out of sight of any guards or prying servants. I’d have to write down the route we took when I got back to my room.
He brought me to the princes’ study, the familiar door reminding me of the time I’d nearly lost my head trying to find a way inside. This time, they were the ones trying to sneak me in.
The door swung open like the lid to a coffin, my hands already going cold as I immediately spotted Cedric and Atlas standing in the middle of the room waiting for me.
I’d barely stepped inside before the door shut behind me. My heart skipped a beat as I locked eyes with Lochlan, who was now blocking the exit. “We need to talk.”