Chapter 7
With Aunt Violet at her side, Ro made her way to the guest wing where Star had been housed.
Luena had dressed Ro in a gown of deep marine blue silk accented with intricate silver embroidery and tiny trillianite beads. She wore a pair of trillianite and diamond studs with a matching ring and circlet. On her feet were silver slippers.
As she and Aunt Vi walked through the palace, those they passed bowed or curtseyed. Ro wondered if Star really understood the reality of this realm. She’d soon find out.
At the door of the guest suite assigned to Star, Violet knocked. It took a moment, but then the door opened.
Star grinned as soon as she saw them. “Sparrow! And Aunty Vi! It’s so good to see you! I’m so glad you’re not dead.” She embraced Violet so quickly that Violet gasped as Star’s arms closed around her.
“I’ve glad about that, too.” Violet patted Star on the back. “It’s good to see you, dear.”
Once she’d disengaged herself, Violet smoothed out her gown, a lovely floral print. “Are you going to invite us in?”
“Oh, of course.” Star stepped out of the way. “Come on in.”
Vi let Ro go ahead of her. The suite wasn’t the nicest or the largest on purpose. Ro didn’t want Star getting too comfortable. It had a small sitting room with a tiny fireplace, a small bedroom that overlooked the palace’s front lawns, and a bathroom. No bathing pool. Tub only.
Star plopped down on the couch, crossing her legs under her. “I didn’t know you were coming to visit.”
Ro refrained from saying she felt the same way. She settled into a chair. “I thought it was best that we talked about a few things.”
“Uh-oh,” Star said, still smiling like this was all big fun. “Am I in trouble? That sounds serious.”
Ro was pleased to see Violet wasn’t smiling either. “It is serious. I am genuinely queen of this kingdom. It’s a huge responsibility. I have citizens who look to me for guidance and stability. Who expect me to protect them and keep order. I’ve had to learn a lot since I arrived—”
“Wait,” Star said with sudden curiosity. “Did you die, too?”
“No. I pulled a sword from a stone, where it had been magically stored for safety reasons. Being able to free the sword meant I had been chosen as queen.”
“How about that?” Star leaned forward, eyes twinkling. “Pretty sure I saw that movie. Also, go you! That’s pretty epic. You must have been freaked out, though, am I right?”
“It was an adjustment. And this isn’t a movie.
” Ro tried to remind herself what it felt like when she’d arrived in Summerton, figured out she was fae, and queen, and what that all meant.
“In some ways, this is a very different world. In other ways, there are a lot of similarities. I understand it must seem fun and exciting and not quite real.”
Star nodded. “You can say that again. To be honest, when I first woke up in that field, I thought I was tripping.” She laughed. “Been trying to cut back on some of those recreational habits, if you know what I mean, but still.”
Ro was unamused but trying to find grace for Star. She shifted the conversation. “What do you expect your life here to be like?”
Star hesitated. “I…I don’t know. Maybe you should tell me more about this place.”
Violet spoke up before Ro could. “It’s a wonderful place to live.
Free from a lot of the problems that exist in the mortal world.
But everyone is expected to pull their weight.
There are no free rides. No handouts. You’ll have to get a job.
Find a place to live. I went to work at a bakery when I arrived and eventually managed to buy it. ”
That seemed to get Star’s attention. “I don’t know much about baking bread. Why can’t I live here?” She looked at Ro. “You’re my daughter, after all. Aunt Vi lives here. And your son, right?”
“My son is next in line for the throne.” A muscle beneath Ro’s eye twitched.
“We need to be very honest with each other. You may have given birth to me, but the three of us know very well that you have never been my mother. Aunt Violet raised me after you handed me off and disappeared. In all those years, the only time I ever saw you was at her funeral. You cannot claim to be my mother.”
She was on the verge of no longer caring what Star might do or say. “I’ve never had a relationship with you. I don’t even know you other than what Violet’s told me about you over the years.”
“Sparrow, you don’t understand—”
“I understand very well. You can make all the excuses you want about being too young or unprepared or whatever you need to tell yourself, but you could have stayed with Aunt Violet and been a part of my life. You chose not to. Now, you think somehow I’m going to forget that you abandoned me?
That things between us will just magically repair themselves?
” Ro shook her head. “That isn’t reality. It’s not going to happen.”
Star opened her mouth, but Ro realized she had more to say.
“You also can’t go into the kitchen and tell them you’re hosting a dinner party in my home.
I’m sure they agreed because they didn’t know what else to do.
I know you told them you were my mother and because they’re good people who want to keep me happy, they didn’t question it.
They will soon know otherwise. That isn’t how things work around here.
There isn’t going to be a dinner. I’ve had a long day.
The rest of my evening will be spent on my own terms.”
“You’ve had a long day?” Star snorted. “Do you have any idea what it took to get here? I had to ride in the back of a wagon with chickens.” She picked at her gown. “I probably still have straw on me.”
Frowning, Violet shook her head. “Oh, Sheridan. You are so unaware of what’s been happening here that you should probably stop talking before you make yourself sound even more foolish. Sparrow was nearly assassinated today.”
Star’s mouth came open. She looked at Ro. “Is that true?”
Ro lifted her chin a tiny bit, pleased that Violet had her back. “Yes. It’s also not the first attempt on my life that’s been made since I became queen. The queen of Malveaux, which is the kingdom across the sea, desperately wants Summerton for her own.”
“Well, maybe you should assassinate her.”
“She was, nearly. But not by my hand. And that’s not how I go about things anyway.” Ro exhaled. “Aunt Violet’s right. There is a lot you don’t know.”
“I guess so.” Star sat back, her light-hearted attitude shifting to something more introspective. “Are you safe here?”
“Yes. The man you saw with me earlier, Lord Nightborne, is my personal bodyguard and the head of palace security. He’s very good at his job.”
“Did he save you from being assassinated?”
“In a roundabout way.” Ro let a tiny smile bend her mouth. “I sent him into the mortal world to buy a protective vest. The vest saved me from the dagger that was thrown.”
Star’s eyes rounded slightly. “A dagger?”
Ro nodded. “They’re commonplace here. Everyone carries one. I usually have two on me at all times.”
Aunt Violet whipped hers out. “This is mine.”
“Wow,” Star said softly. She nodded as she looked at it.
“You’re right. I have a lot to learn.” She glanced at Ro.
“I’m sorry about the dinner and any trouble I caused.
I just thought since you were queen, it might be nice to get the family together and…
” She seemed to lose track of her thoughts mid-sentence.
She leaned in. “Did you say you sent that man to the mortal world?”
Ro nodded. “Yes.”
“Does that mean I could go back to the mortal world?”
“No,” Ro answered. “Once you’ve died there, you cannot return. The possibilities for causing confusion are too many.”
“But you didn’t die there.”
“No, and I’ve been back several times.” Ro wasn’t sure where Star was going with this.
Probably wanted her things retrieved. Maybe Ro could use it to make some kind of deal with her.
“Is there something in the mortal world you want? It would take some doing, but I might be able to send someone after it.”
Star seemed lost in thought a moment. She shook her head. “Are you saying it’s impossible for me to go back? Or just not allowed?”
“It’s impossible because it’s not allowed.” Ro wasn’t about to tell her that Uldamar had told her a fae who’d passed in the mortal world might go back with special permission. She’d never hear the end of that.
Star inched toward the edge of the cushion. “But what if it’s really important?”
“No. What is it you want there?” Ro could only imagine. Maybe her yoga mat. Or her stash of something that probably wasn’t legal in either realm.
“Please. You’ve got to find a way for me to get back there.” There was something in Star’s eyes that made Ro think it was more than just a yoga mat.
“Why? What’s so important to you?”
Violet nodded. “Tell us, dear. Ro might be able to help. Or know someone who could.”
“It’s nothing someone else can take care of.” Star chewed her bottom lip. “I need to do it. I need to get back there.”
“Again,” Ro said. “What’s there that’s so important?”
Star’s brow crumpled. “I can’t tell you. You’ll just get angry at me all over again.”
“I won’t,” Ro said. “Whatever you’ve done is your past, not mine.”
“You don’t understand,” Star whispered. She looked very emotional. Like she might cry. She clenched her hands together. “I need to go back.”
Ro squeezed her eyes shut. “Just tell me why.”
Star swallowed, glancing at Violet while refusing to make eye contact with Ro. Her voice came out soft and thin. “I need to tell my daughter I’m all right.”