Chapter 5
Chapter Five
Jacinth
Nightmares always found me when I slept. It was an inevitable part of my life, making me dread every night when I closed my eyes and went to sleep. Outside the typical danger that came with lying your head down on a street in some dodgy neighborhood, the nightmares were what I always feared most.
It was always the same thing. Always the same guard shaking me awake and shushing my questions before pulling me up and into his arms. A dead little girl with a head of hair only a shade lighter than mine dropped by his hand into my bed. A little girl I instantly recognized as my cousin, Peony.
The horrified cry that left my mouth was insanely smothered by his hand, as he raced out of the door and through the halls, passing into the main room where my family usually gathered.
By the light of the moon, I could tell it was only an hour or so since I’d gone to bed, and my parents, along with my aunt and uncle, should still have been there.
And they were, in a fashion. I’d twisted my head and thrown up when I realized what I was seeing.
The blood splattered over the walls. The dead eyes of everyone who loved me looking back.
I felt like I’d been ripped in half. I had never known pain before, not really.
A stubbed toe, a hairbrush pulled too harshly through my hair. But this?
This was pain that ripped through you and incinerated the person you once were in its wake.
I’d fought my way out of the guard’s arms and raced to my father, his usually vibrant pink eyes lifeless and staring at where my mother’s body was slumped against the wall.
I ran a shaking hand over his hair as I struggled to catch a breath, afraid to touch him and make all of it real.
Like the nightmare might end and let me wake if I didn’t prove it true.
I’d tried to crawl to my mother then, reaching my hand to her with tears streaming down my face in torrents I didn’t even know my body was capable of producing—that it hadn’t before or since that day.
My mother’s usually shining eyes were so blank, her expression so slack, and her curly hair was matted with blood where her head must have been bashed with something.
I ached to grasp her hand, her own still extending out toward my father even in death. I could almost pretend she was reaching for me, ready to pull me into her arms one last time.
But then voices echoed from the hall, and the guard grabbed me back up, despite all of my kicking and flailing as he tore me away.
I tried to scream for my family, grief and pain like I’d never known making a home in my heart, but a hand over my mouth stopped any noise before it could escape.
The guard raced with me in his arms to a nearby closet door, sticking me inside and telling me to hide—and then once the opportunity came, to run as fast and as far as I could.
I only realized then that I knew this guard.
In my shock, I hadn’t registered who it was, but now I recognized it was Cor, the guard who usually watched over me and who had been for as long as I could remember.
He’d play with me when I demanded a tea party, and help me sneak around the castle to steal sweets or play outside when I was supposed to be at lessons.
He’d shut the closet door, and I wanted nothing more than to pull him back in with me, to keep someone familiar by my side. But I knew Cor was a loyal guard, and his actions only proved that tenfold. He would never hide when he could defend.
I’d watched through a small hole in the wall while a man wearing a black mask entered the room.
Cor drew his sword, and the ensuing fight was hard to follow.
All I could remember was watching in horror as his body was cut down and added to the piles around the room.
Yet not before he took the man down with him.
He’d given his life to save mine. And now everyone was truly gone.
I’d smothered my own screams, forcibly keeping my lips pressed together and holding both hands over my mouth. When more masked men came, I’d made myself listen, even while shaking in the small, dark space. Somehow knowing, despite being all of ten years old, that it would be important.
Their words stuck with me even fifteen years later.
“The girl’s dead, looks like Aron got her before he got cut down.” One of them chuckled, and I realized with a cold pit in my stomach that he was talking about me.
“Good, we can’t have any of Marit blood left to claim Pearl.” Another spoke in a gravelly voice. “He’ll be pleased, at least. The first step to getting lords he can truly trust in place.”
One of the others chuckled, “All hail the High King.”
Later, I heard the gossip about what had happened.
A robbery gone wrong, they all said. Only I knew the truth.
That High King Azurill had killed my entire family, all to clear the way for another lord he could trust in their place.
I didn’t know why he thought my family couldn’t be trusted, but I knew that they were good.
And the king had proven with this act of cold-blooded murder that he was decidedly not.
Waking up, the nightmare felt especially vivid. The knowledge that today was the day was clearly affecting me. I would finally come face to face with the monster responsible for the destruction of my entire family, of my entire life, today.
I reached for my wrist, lightly touching the silver bracelet dotted with pink pearls and accented by diamonds.
My parents had given it to me for my birthday only a few weeks before they’d been killed.
It had been passed down in my family for generations, and they thought I was now old enough to respect its history and take care of it.
I’d luckily fallen asleep that night with the bracelet still on, having passed out fully dressed on my father’s lap at the party. They must have just stuck me in bed once I drifted off, not bothering to have the maids wake me up to change.
Thank Erodite they did, as it was now the only thing left from my life as the noble daughter of Pearl Court.
I only cursed the presence of the diamonds on it. A reminder of the man responsible for their deaths. Diamond and Pearl forever, horribly, intertwined.
I could never bring myself to sell it, even at my lowest. Maybe if I had, Ula would be safe now. But I couldn’t let go of this last piece of my parents. Despite the diamonds on it, it still made me feel like I had a piece of them with me every time I looked at it.
Plus, not selling the bracelet had inadvertently led me to this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to kill the High King, which was a gift I’d never expected.
I sighed, forcing myself from the bed and shaking off the nightmares. I had to be strong today. I would face the king and remain resolute. I wouldn’t cry. I wouldn’t scream. I would be the perfect lady. One who would gain his attention.
I couldn’t let myself do anything different.
I closed my eyes for a moment, sending a prayer to Erodite, goddess of Pearl, to make my work easier. She oversaw love and affection, and if she could inspire such in the king, it would certainly make my life easier. I knew it was futile even as I prayed, however.
She inspired matches between Elves, sure, but only fated ones.
They were few and far between, and she only inspired them; she did not force them together.
She couldn’t make the king love me any more than she could make me love him.
Something so impossible would mean erasing free will, and the gods refused to do that to their disciples.
But I could ask for her help, and I begged for it today. I needed any help I could get to ensure I got the vengeance my family deserved.
I’d avoided going to Diamond Court since the night I fled my home. I hadn’t been there since I was very young, and could barely remember it in truth. Thus, today would be my first real sight of the court ruled by the monster I’d always feared.
The carriage rolled along the road, winding through the city of Theiapolis.
It was a hive of activity, with a sprawling market that I itched to explore.
We passed restaurants and shops, houses and townhouses, a park and a large arena.
There was so much to see, and despite myself, I found I was actually excited to do so.
It was a beautiful city, with bright colors, gorgeous plants and flowers dotting the area, and gems sparkling from everywhere I looked.
A large silver and blue gate was wide open before the palace itself.
And the palace…my mouth actually dropped open.
I remembered my palace perfectly to this day.
The pink pearl and white marble had been uniquely stunning, but the diamond and kyanite that Diamond’s palace was made from was certainly impressive.
It sparked under the sun, the gems reflecting the light.
The bones of the palace were silver and then studded with diamonds, while the blue kyanite covered twisting domes that crested the top of each tower.
Ornate scrollwork and arches ornamented every window and door, adding elegant touches to an already gorgeous building.
The front entrance was covered with a dome as well and had a scalloped-patterned roof that was covered in rows of gems representing all of the other courts. It was a nice touch, especially at the entrance, welcoming everyone equally.
Scenic gardens surrounded the palace, and I eyed them as we made our wat through the gates. There were clusters of naturally growing gems shooting out of the vibrantly green grass, with manicured trees and flowers sprouting around them and making the place look like something out of a dream.
I knew it was anything but, however.