Chapter 24
Twenty-Four
“Sabina!”
I leap up and throw the covers off the bed. Someone is yelling at me from the hallway.
“Sabina, open up!”
“Juliette?”
“Yes, it’s me. Tell these assholes to open the door,” she shouts.
“Let her in!” I yell just as I reach the door to open it myself.
She flings herself into the room and falls against me. Sobs shake her, and I wrap my arms around her. She’s in a robe, and her hair is a frizzy mess.
“It’s going to be alright. I’ve got you.
” I’m thrust back into memories of doing the same thing for my best friend, Anya.
She would scream and thrash in her bed, soaked in sweat, reliving all her worst days.
I’d wake her and hold her until she could catch her breath.
My chest aches. Who was comforting her now?
She was doing better when I left, but there was still the occasional bad night.
“Don’t worry, you’re safe,” I tell Juliette as I smooth her hair. “You’re safe.”
She takes a few deep breaths, and the crying eases. When she pulls away from me, she wipes her eyes. Her jaw trembles, and her face is blotchy and red. She’s been crying a while.
“What happened?” I ask.
“They woke me this morning to prepare me to see the earl. He’s here. He rode all day and night to meet me. Sabina, he’s not going to let me get out of this. I can’t marry him. I just can’t.” She wipes her nose on her sleeve.
I know nothing about how marriages work for nobles. And she’s the emperor’s niece, which makes her royalty.
She paces the room, wringing her hands. “I can’t go to a temple. Everyone knows I’m not a virgin. They wouldn’t take me, even if I wanted to go.” She looks over at me. “Which I don’t. But I can’t marry him.”
I saw arranged marriages growing up. People wed for safety and security rather than love quite often. But there was usually some choice. Or at least the illusion of it.
“Is there another man? Someone else you can say you already pledged your heart to?” I ask.
“No.”
“What about a temple to Mara? She doesn’t require the same things the others do.” As much as I don’t want to see her go, it feels like a better option.
As much as I don’t want to see her go? I’m losing it. I’m sinking too deep into this persona. It won’t matter if she leaves. I won’t be here, either.
“You think they’d take me?” she asks.
The acolytes of Mara are considered a dangerous and desperate group. While nobody knows what they do inside their temples, many of their recruits have bloody or scandalous pasts.
“I think they might,” I say. “It’s not the easiest path, and it could be worse than marriage, but it might be your only other option.”
“It would be a life confined to a temple. Never seeing the rest of the continent or doing anything that brings me joy,” she says. “Then, a death of working as one of her ravens.”
“Have you met him yet?” I ask.
She shakes her head.
“Do you want to meet him first? See if he’s a better option than the temple?” I suggest gently.
“He wants to visit the market with me today,” she says. “You’ll come, right?”
“Of course,” I say.
“What about your ladies? Bring them? Maybe one of them will catch his eye instead. They’re all from noble houses.”
“And they are interested in marriage,” I tell her.
She crosses to me and takes my hands in hers. “Please, please bring them. Tell them I don’t want him. Tell them they can flirt and bat their lashes all they want.”
“I will,” I say. “Maybe he’s kind. Maybe it won’t be so bad.”
“Yes. Maybe.” She offers a weak smile, then she drops my hands and looks down at herself. “Oh! I can’t go out like this.” She races to the door and pulls it open. “Ten o’clock?”
“Yes. That sounds perfect,” I say.
“I’ll meet you at the entry. Don’t let me sit in a carriage alone with him,” she pleads.
“I won’t,” I assure her. She waves as she hurries away.
I don’t know any of the legionnaires who are standing outside my door.
Brevan wasn’t joking when he promised me he would be taking the night off.
I look at the closest one. He’s young. Probably younger than me.
He’s got hazel eyes and light brown hair.
Might have even been blonde when he was young. “Can you get word to my ladies?”
He straightens. “Of course, Your Highness.”
“Can you tell them to dress and join me for breakfast?” I ask. “Oh, and can you tell someone we’ll need breakfast?”
“Right away,” he says.
“Thank you.” I close the door and rush to my wardrobe. If I dress quickly, they won’t have to make a fuss over getting me ready.
By the time my ladies arrive, I’m in a day dress. I already washed my face and braided my hair. I even put a little rouge on my cheeks so it looks like I spent more time getting ready than I did.
“We’re going to the market,” I tell them while we eat. “Juliette’s betrothed will be attending with us.”
“I heard he’s very rich,” Genevieve says.
“But he has sixteen dogs. And he lets them sleep in his bed,” Charlotte wrinkles her nose. “I like dogs, but that’s too many.”
“At least you can demand your own room in an estate of his size,” Genevieve suggests.
The ladies chatter about the earl for a bit, but Antonia doesn’t say a word. I catch her eye and whisper, “Everything alright?”
She sighs, then sets her silverware down loudly enough that everyone turns to her. “I can’t be the only one who’s heard the rumors?”
“What rumors?” Charlotte asks.
“About his previous wives?” she clarifies.
“I didn’t even know he’d been married. I suppose it makes sense, he is old,” Genevieve says.
“He’s had seven wives.” Antonia looks at all of us.
My eyes widen. “Seven?”
Antonia nods. “All died mysteriously.”
“Why would the emperor agree to let him wed his niece then?” Katherine asks.
“Because he has ties to the mines in the Shatterlands,” Antonia says.
“I thought it was illegal to bring in any of the minerals,” I say.
“It is. But do you think the emperor or his inner circle follow those rules?” She waves her hand.
“How did they die?” Genevieve asks. “His wives?”
“Two while with child. Rumors were that he beat them.” Antonia shudders. “Two while traveling by ship. They just simply didn’t arrive back in Pendralia.”
“The others?” Charlotte asks.
“One was said to have killed herself,” Antonia says. “The last two, nobody knows. He just returned to court in need of another wife.”
“We can’t let Juliette marry him,” I say. “What would prevent a marriage like that from happening?”
“I’m not sure you can stop it. I think her best bet might be to ask to live apart from him. Convince him that she will be his bargaining chip when he needs one. Perhaps her status will appease him enough that he keeps her.”
“What if he had an accident?” Charlotte asks.
“Before or after the wedding?” Antonia asks.
Charlotte shrugs. “Either.”
“Then I suppose she’d be free,” Antonia says.
“You can’t talk like that,” Genevieve warns. “Women have been hanged for less.”
My mind wanders to the garden in the tunnels. All those poisons. Maybe I should show Juliette.
No. What am I thinking? It’s getting harder to remind myself I’m not here to make friends. But maybe it wouldn’t hurt if I gave her the books the late empress left behind.
“Maybe you can talk to Prince Caiden?” Charlotte asks me. “Maybe you can ask for a favor or convince him to end the engagement?”
“That’s a great idea. I’ll do that.” Caiden seems to like me. It’s possible he’d help. Even if this isn’t real, I don’t want Juliette in danger. It’s not right that she can’t choose how she lives her own life.
Conversation shifts to the marketplace. The ladies talk about what they want to purchase or eat and the things they want to see.
When Katherine leaves the table, I excuse myself, leaving the others to continue eating.
Katherine stands near the window, a nervous expression on her face.
“What is it?” I whisper.
“My contact didn’t show. The note was still there this morning,” she says. “They’ve never taken this long to pick up a message.”
My heart sinks. “So they don’t know about the relics or where his room is?”
She shakes her head. “I’m sorry. I’m not sure what to do.”
“We keep our eyes peeled at the marketplace,” I say. “If we see anyone we recognize, we’ll get their attention. One of us can cause a distraction and the other can share the information.” It’s not the best plan, but it’s all we have time for.
“Alright.”
The other ladies join us, all smiles and good cheer. I don’t blame them. Even though it’s dreary outside, it’s nice to be leaving the castle.
When we step into the hall, Brevan has returned to my door. The dark circles are gone, and color has returned to his face. I hate how relieved I am to see him looking better.
“And where might you ladies be off to?” he asks.
“The marketplace,” Katherine says cheerfully.
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea.”
“I am not a prisoner,” I say. “Besides, we’re going with Juliette and the earl. He wanted to go there, and she invited us to join them.”
“I hate the marketplace,” he complains.
I want to tell him that he can stay behind, but he’d never agree. “Well, we both know you’ll be following along so maybe try to make the best of it?”
“Like you make the best of training?” he asks. “Don’t think we aren’t returning to that tomorrow.”
“I know. But no training today. Today, we do something fun.” I link my arm with Katherine’s. “Shall we?”