22. Raea
Raea
“Can I sit next to her?” Clara whispers into her mother’s ear.
I pretend not to hear, so she doesn’t think I’m eavesdropping. We’re gathered around a table that is much more intimate on the sprawling deck outside of the living space. Their rooms here are so different from the palace on Kyrr.
Only two guards stand watch. My new guard, Theovan, and one of the palace Regils.
“I believe your brother would like to sit next to his bride, my love,” Queen Priana replies.
The two are nearly identical. Both Queen Priana and Clara have beautiful golden hair that reaches to their waist, bright blue eyes, and pink, rosy cheeks.
With a pouty face, Clara turns to us. “Anders, can I sit with you?”
I try to hide my smile by glancing down at the plate in front of me. There’s a wonderful mixture of greens and vegetables with fresh fish.
“How about you sit on the other side of Raea?” Ryker suggests.
The seat next to me is empty, which only makes this whole thing more hilarious. Sure, she’d be further down the table, but it’s an option.
“I believe my sister likes you,” he whispers to me.
I reach under the table and squeeze his hand. He brings our interlaced hands to his mouth.
“Oh, there you are, dear. I was hoping you would join us,” Queen Priana says to Cole and Linnea as they enter. I recognize her from a few classes and in passing, but I think she must have been a transfer because I don’t remember seeing her before in other Orders.
“Sorry, Mother, Linnea had a meeting with the healers. Baby looks great,” Cole says. They take the seats directly across from us as Clara has now moved to my right side.
“Linnea, you know Princess Raea from school, yes?” Queen Priana says.
“No, I’m sorry we never had the chance to meet.”
She is a striking contrast to the golden Okenen palette.
Her skin is a rich bronze, drinking in the Malayan sun, and pregnancy has given her an ethereal glow.
A collection of chokers draws the eye to the sharp, elegant lines of her collarbones—a detail I’ve never noticed on anyone before, yet on her it looks like armor.
A single jewel pierces her left nostril, catching the sunlight.
An aquamarine gemstone, wrapped in bronze, rests against her brow, dangling from a delicate diadem.
She is a sight to behold.
“Anders and Raea will be getting married in two weeks, after her Ceremony,” Queen Priana croons, taking a leisurely bite of her food.
Cole’s head snaps first to Ryker—then to me. His fork clatters against the China, the sharp sound echoing in the sudden quiet. “You’re not of age yet,” he says, his voice vibrating with resentment he doesn’t bother to hide.
Ryker doesn’t even look up from his fish. “Says the pot to the kettle,” he drawls, lethally indifferent. “We know the outcome, Cole. The Ceremony is a formality. The wedding is a necessity.”
This whole interaction is strange. Stiff silence settles over the table, and for a split second, a line from the Lost Prophecy echoes in my mind: “Yet in the wake of dawn, a shadowed crown will rise—not in harmony, but in hunger.” I look at Cole—his jaw set, his gaze burning with a resentment he isn’t bothering to hide.
He used to worship Ryker, but now he looks at his brother as a barrier rather than a hero.
Could he be the one the scrolls warned about? Is his ambition for the throne turning into the kind of hunger that breaks kingdoms? The thought sends a chill through me.
Ryker squeezes my hand beneath the table, sending the quiet promise that we’ll talk later. He looks perfectly at ease, but I know better. Beneath the surface, anger and disappointment simmer, written in the tight pull of his jaw.
“Well, that’s wonderful,” Linnea finally says, forcing a subdued brightness into her voice. “Will the wedding take place here, or on your home planet?” She offers us both a small, careful smile.
“The wedding will actually take place here,” I say. I glance at Ryker, and he gives a subtle nod. We haven’t confirmed it with our parents yet, but it’s the right choice. “And afterward, I’ll be moving here.”
“So it’s decided?” Queen Priana jumps in with a happy gasp. “We are so excited to have you.”
Both brothers are silent and stiff as they eat.
Clearly, there is something going on between them beyond the wedding plans and our sudden announcement.
I haven’t talked to Cole since he left, but I don’t remember him being at odds with Ryker.
In fact, as much as he teased his brother, he still worshipped him.
“Can I be in your wedding?” Clara asks beside me. Her blonde curls drape around her shoulders, and her grayish-blue eyes are so big and round, I could never say no to her. She’s absolutely adorable. Pink tinges her pale cheeks as she waits for me to answer.
“Clara—” Queen Priana scolds before I cut her off.
“I would love that. Could you hold the flowers?” I ask.
She nods and a full beaming grin spreads across her cute little face.
“I’m so excited to finally have a real sister!” Clara squeals.
The word real lingers. Linnea’s expression barely shifts—a flash of hurt, expertly concealed.
She has carried a prince’s child for twenty-nine weeks, and still, she remains invisible.
I make a silent vow to change that. I know Clara said it innocently, but I can see the lingering effects on Linnea’s face.
We finish lunch with light conversation, moving to more cheerful topics that don’t involve my Ceremony or wedding.
After lunch, I excuse myself to my chambers.
I want to lie down and read for a bit. I’m feeling a little overwhelmed.
I’m not used to sibling dynamics and it’s clear that Ryker needs to speak with his brother.
Mera helps me out of my gown so that I can slip into something lighter.
She chooses a mauve pink simple slit dress that hovers above my knees.
It’s something I only wear in private. The doors and windows are open in the sitting space and because the room sits on a corner, I have two walls opening to the wrap-around terrace.
I can see why the palace was built here instead of Saedn. Malaya is quieter, tucked away from the world, and the weather feels almost impossibly perfect. The sun shines most days, warming the lush forests and fields, and the once-a-week rainstorms breathe life into everything that grows here.
I ask for tea to be delivered and Aza leaves.
I open my romance book, excited to disappear for a while and allow my brain to rest. I’m only three chapters in when there’s a soft knock on my door.
Mera opens it. I don’t even have to look up to know it’s not Ryker.
Theovan stands on the other side of the door.
“Princess Raea,” Linnea appears.
I glance up, and she’s alone.
“May I?” She gestures to the chair across from the sofa I am lying on.
I nod and close my book, dropping it on the table in front of me as I sit up.
“I hope you’ll excuse lunch. Cole is struggling to adjust.” Her hands fidget in her lap as she keeps her gaze on them.
“I’m not sure I know what you mean,” I say, moving to sit on the edge of the sofa.
“Well, I know Anders is next in line, as he should be, but I think Cole was still hoping that since he and I Bonded first, and then knowing that we would have a wedding first, well, it was just foolish thinking. I told him that’s not how that worked.
Cole can be a little—” She pauses and her cheeks flush. “Egotistical at times.”
My first reaction is annoyance toward Cole. He should know that’s not how this works. Just because he chose to give away his Bond doesn’t mean he gets to step in line for the crown. Besides, that’s a whole other topic I need to discuss with Ryker.
What happens if his father returns?
“Well, I’m very sorry if we’ve caused any trouble. Are you and Cole married?”
“No. I mean, we Bonded accidentally, of course. To be honest, I’m not sure there will be a wedding. We don’t need people talking.” She sighs, rubbing her belly.
“How are you feeling?”
“It’s very surreal. She’s getting stronger and bigger every day.”
A sense of longing floods my system, and I realize that soon, I too will need to produce an heir.
A little Ryker that will make us a family.
A son who will, unfortunately, have to carry the weight of the prophecy as well.
I wish I could talk to the gods. I need answers.
“Well, I think you should definitely have a wedding. I hope you’ll both be in attendance for ours. ”
We sit in silence for a few minutes with only the sound of the distant waves to fill the room. There’s something so settling about the ocean. It can be terrifying at times, but for the most part, it’s a calm, beautiful, and reliable force.
“How have things…been?” she asks, breaking the silence. “Being home and all.”
I study her for a minute, the way she continues to rub her little bump. “It’s been different, but okay. I mean, I miss Ryker all the time, but I have my two best friends at the palace with me. Kellan and Ciara basically grew up there.”
“Kellan? Kellan Hyston?” she asks, her features scrunching.
“Yes? The same one. How do you know him?”
She smiles. “Intel. He spent a lot of time in Veker’s dorm in the Intel rooms.” Oh, right. I guess that makes sense. “I just thought—” She pauses, looking away and then back to me with a small blush on her cheeks. “Never mind.”
Curiosity makes me push. “Please, tell me what you thought.” I shake my head in amusement because she’s living with the royal family, having the prince's baby, and still, she’s unsure if it’s okay to speak to a royal.
She swallows and, with a sheepish smile, says, “I heard what happened with Sienna.”
Huh? “Sienna?”
“Cole told me. I mean, we were already here, but what happened with the paint?”
Now I’m even more confused. “I’m sorry, but what does that have to do with Kellan?”
She searches my face. “Are they not in a relationship?”
My world tilts. “What? Kellan and Sienna? In a relationship? Are we talking about the same people?”
“Big boobs, annoying, can’t keep her hands to herself?”
“Same Sienna.”
“Freckles, tall, adorable?”
“Same Kellan,” I mutter.
Her features fall. “You didn’t know? They spent a lot of time together.
I mean, in the evenings, if she wasn’t with Gunnar, or flirting with our men,” she says this with a grumble, “then she was usually with Kellan. He spent a lot of evenings in Veker, and she would be sitting with him or talking. I saw them before we left school. They were locked in a very heated kiss in the hallway…”
I feel like I’m going to be sick. All I can hear is Sienna’s words in my ears: A little birdie told me you’re still untouched.
I study Linnea as she rubs her swollen stomach, her expression a mask of soft, glass-blue sympathy.
A sharp instinct, one honed by years of court politics and my father's recent warnings, pricks at my mind.
Why is she giving me this information now?
Is she truly offering the kindness of a new sister, or is this a calculated strike to isolate me?
As a future queen, I wonder if Linnea is playing her own game, subtly dismantling my trust in everyone I once called family to ensure Cole’s position in this palace remains secure.
"Excuse me for a moment." I stand quickly.
I rush to the terrace, gripping the railing, taking slow, deep breaths.
In through my nose, out through my mouth.
Something similar to betrayal settles in my chest as my eyes water.
Whether Linnea's intentions are pure or poisonous, the truth she handed me is a blade that has successfully cut my heart in two.
Kellan.
My rock. My constant. The boy who looked me in the eye and swore he loved me—who let me carry the weight of his devotion while he sought comfort elsewhere.
With her.
The dry scent of cinnamon—his scent—lingers in my mind.
He couldn’t have done this. He wouldn’t have.
He said he loved me.
My lip trembles as I bite down hard, rejecting the tears that burn behind my eyes. It shouldn’t matter. He’s allowed to be with whoever he wants. I don’t own him.
But Sienna?
Of all the women at school, it had to be her—the one who tried to humiliate me, who wore cruelty like a second skin. That’s what hurts the most.
Warm hands wrap around my waist, and Ryker’s presence hits me like a cooling wave.
I don't have to explain. He knows all of my emotions, my hurts, my joys all without ever having to ask thanks to our Bond. I bury my face in his neck, the scent of salt and citrus finally drowning out the cinnamon. I let the tears burn my cheeks—hot, angry, and final. I decide I’ve given Kellan enough of me and if he wants to be my friend again, he has some explaining to do.