Chapter 28 Lily
TWENTY-EIGHT
LILY
Iran quickly and quietly to my room, my thoughts crashing through my mind.
I didn’t care what the guard thought about my randomly opening and closing door this time.
The first thing I did was grab a heavy wool blanket and throw it over the mirror, with a shudder.
No more would Grimelda spy on me. I’d have to order all of those mirrors removed from the house later today, but I had other things to deal with first.
The spell book was untouched on my bed, and I turned the pages as rapidly as I dared, searching for the rune to make me visible again.
Finally, I found one that looked as though it would work if I had the right intention, although I paused.
I really should have thought about this part before, but apparently I had a little of Rose’s impetuousness after all.
I stashed the book under bed, pushing it as far into the shadows as I dared so that I could still reach it. Then I drew the rune, not as carefully this time, instead trusting myself to get it right. Again, nothing about me felt different as the silver lines faded into a shimmering mist.
I opened my door and looked out. The guard turned in my direction. “Good morning, Your Majesty.”
“Good morning. Could you send word to Iris that I will meet her in the dining room shortly?”
He drew his brows together briefly. “Captain Keane informed me I wasn’t to leave your side, Your Majesty.”
I put on a stern look as I stepped out into the corridor. “Did Captain Keane also inform you that you are to obey my direct orders?”
He hesitated for a moment then nodded.
“I wish you to take a message to my sister,” I said.
He didn’t move.
My look grew colder. “Do I need to repeat myself?”
He shook his head. “No, Your Majesty.”
“Good. Then both of you will find me in the dining room.” I hurried off down the corridor as fast as I could without breaking into a run.
I didn’t want anyone to see the true heir to the throne looking desperate as she darted around the castle.
More thoughts clashed in my head. Grimelda planned to poison me, and no one would be around to help.
She was poised to take the kingdom and no one but I knew about her plans.
It was time to find my former Captain of the Guard and inform him his resignation was being denied.
But he wasn’t anywhere inside the castle, so I walked out toward the gate, trying to look as though I might be taking a morning stroll through the overgrown grounds.
I caught sight of the apple tree out of the corner of my eye, and my stomach rolled, pushing bile up my throat.
She’d tried to poison me with apples before—what would it be this time?
I grimaced as I raised my hand to hail the guard standing at the closed gates. He lumbered to one knee and bowed his head as soon as he saw me.
“Have you seen Captain Keane?” I asked.
He rose to his feet. “Yes, Your Majesty. He left at first light this morning. I watched him through the gates myself.”
The pain was physical, almost bending me double, and I clutched my arm across my stomach. “He…left?”
The guard reached out toward me. “Your Majesty, is something wrong?”
I tried to gather myself at the alarm in his voice, and straightened, forcing a smile onto my lips. “I’ve simply waited too long to sit down to my breakfast.” I waved a hand as casually as I could manage. “Thank you for doing your job so well.”
Then I turned and began to walk back to the castle, my steps slower as the view in front of me blurred with my tears. I tried to blink them away but they escaped and rolled down my cheeks.
Keane had left me.
I shook my head as despair tried to swallow me whole. There was no time for weakness nor regret. Riala had already set too many of her plans into motion and came closer to success each time she attacked me.
And without Keane, I would have to deal with it all on my own.
My guard and Iris should have been waiting for me in the dining room, but I had no time for that.
What I was about to do was most improper, so it was better if I acted alone.
I stole back into the castle through one of the small doors set into the base of a turret and climbed the winding staircase inside up to the east wing.
That was where Grimelda—no, Riala—had said she’d arranged rooms for my suitors when we’d arrived.
I crept softly down the corridor. This one was even more barren than the one outside my room with simple stone floors and no wall hangings of any kind—except for another one of those dreadful mirrors.
I paused at each door, listening for signs of life and trying to identify which man might lay behind it. I moved on quickly after sounds of violent sneezing and snoring, and avoided the room I already knew to be Vasso’s.
The corridor outside one of the rooms smelled particularly fragrant, like woodland greenery in the rain and the scent of delicate flowers or herbs. I knocked on the door, but when no one answered I pushed down the handle and peered inside.
Danzin’s glasses lay on a small chest of drawers next to the bed, and the silent lump in the bed proclaimed him to still be asleep. I couldn’t linger half inside and half outside his room in case anyone spotted me, so I walked in and closed the door softly behind me.
The entire room smelled of herbs and crushed leaves, and he had a microscope set up on a small desk in the corner. His medical bag was tucked half out of sight behind an old, overstuffed armchair that was too big for the small bedroom space. I approached his bed and stood next to him.
“Lord Danzin,” I whispered, but he didn’t so much as mumble. I raised my voice a little and tried again unwilling to touch him or startle him awake.
“Princess Lily?” He sat up, leaving his sheets in disarray as they pooled at his waist. He fumbled for his glasses and pushed them into place on his nose. “Is everything all right?”
My gaze strayed to his chest then back to his face. Danzin was a handsome man, but seeing his naked form did nothing for me—proof my heart belonged to Keane. “Perhaps I should come back.”
“No, it’s all quite fine,” he insisted as he reached for his shirt and pulled it over his head. “How can I help you this morning?”
“I’m afraid I’ve come to ask for a favor.”
“Oh?” He sounded interested more than suspicious. “I’m sure you already know I’ll do anything you request, Your Majesty.”
Shame and sympathy coursed through me at the thought I might be using this kind man, but I had no time for either of those emotions. My life and the safety of my kingdom hung in the balance.
I quickly told him my idea, and we put together a plan. I prayed to the Sun and Moon it would work.
After I left Danzin’s bedroom, I hurried to the dining room, as the next part of my plan formed in my mind. I had to begin by gathering all those loyal to me, and the only nearby people I could trust were my suitors, each with his own intention to marry me.
When I arrived at the dining room, Iris stood from her seat. “Where have you been? I’m starving, and Grimelda said we had to wait for you.”
I arched an eyebrow. “You’re this hungry, even after your pre-breakfast snack?”
She shrugged. “I’m growing. And practicing magic is hard work, apparently.”
I brought my hands together in front of me. “I’ve had an idea for this morning. A small change of plan. I’d like us all to eat together.”
Iris lifted her eyebrows. “We always eat together.”
“Yes, but not with the lords.” I turned and addressed the guard at the door. “Could a message be sent to each of the visiting lords? Please let them know their presence is cordially requested for breakfast with Princess Lily.”
The guard nodded. “Yes, Your Majesty.” Then he turned and hurried away.
“Let’s move to the large banquet hall, Iris.”
“I’m not sure Grimelda will appreciate this,” Iris muttered. “She doesn’t seem to like sudden change.”
Yes, that was exactly the point, though I didn’t tell Iris that. I needed to get the upper hand on Riala somehow, and this was all much harder without Keane. I missed his constant, watchful presence and the feeling of safety he brought me. I knew he would have a solution to this problem.
But if I had to do it alone, so be it.
Riala, wearing her illusion of Grimelda, responded quickly to my request, although her hurried movements suggested she hadn’t planned to make time in her schedule to prepare the banquet hall.
Very quickly, large platters of sizzling meat were brought to the table, alongside bowls of steaming mounds of scrambled egg.
My stomach growled, but I fingered the pouch of herbs in my pocket. Danzin had stressed the importance that this was administered on an empty stomach.
The lords arrived in pairs or by themselves and I stood as each of them joined me at the table.
Each of them looked confused, but somewhat resigned to their fate, as they sat around the table.
They probably thought I was about to announce my choice of husband.
I still had to make a decision about that, but I had to survive this meal first.
“Thank you so much for coming,” I said when they were all seated.
“Meeting all of you has been a lovely experience, and I wanted another occasion for us to celebrate our new friendships. Please enjoy this breakfast, created in honor of us all.” I gestured at the array of dishes and Iris clapped her hands excitedly.
“Now this is what I call a breakfast,” she proclaimed, and everyone laughed as she reached forward and helped herself to two sausage links.
Grimelda bustled from the kitchen, a plate in her hands. She walked directly to me and set the plate on the table. “This is for you, Princess Lily, with all my best wishes for finding love and a long life.”
A beautifully presented apple sat in the center of the plate, cut into a delicate lily as before. Did she truly think I wouldn’t suspect poison again? How big of a fool did she think me?
I met her eyes, but she smiled guilelessly at me.
As she watched, I took a long sip of water, then used my knife to dislodge a petal.
I placed it in my mouth and reached for a napkin to wipe my lips.
“It’s certainly very juicy.” I pushed the apple out of my mouth with my tongue. “But very delicious.”
I cut off a second petal and Grimelda walked away, apparently satisfied that I was eating her poisoned offering. I dabbed my napkin at my lips, then took another long sip of water.
Immediately, the room began to spin, and my glass slipped from my hand. I opened my mouth in horror as I clutched my throat, glancing between my suitors and Iris. Many of them jumped to their feet as I dropped from my seat and hit the floor.
Fear raced through me as my vision faded. The world turned black, and my last thought was, what if I’d gotten this wrong?