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“I know,” I said. “My father—the duke—is not my real father. He told me himself. My mother was pregnant when she traveled from Starcrest to Daybreak to marry him. He raised me as his daughter in the same way you were raised, Adora. To eventually be a player in the Choice. I just hadn’t known it.”
“It makes sense,” Fina said. “You two look so much alike. And you don’t look anything like your father, Reyna. I’d assumed it was just that your mother’s genes were stronger.”
Adora and I glanced at each other. We did look a lot alike—which was a fact I tried not to consider too much.
“I’ll contact my court,” Adora said. “I’m sure our augurs have information about this prophecy. And perhaps there’s even information about your mother.”
The implication hung in the air. If there was information about my mother, there may be information about my real father, too. “Thank you,” I said. “Really. This—this wasn’t how I expected this Choice to turn out.”
“Me neither,” Adora said with a sigh. “But it seems a lot of this is out of our hands, doesn’t it?”
“More than I ever imagined.”
“We should get back,” Fina said. “You’re the future queen, Reyna, your guests will be looking for you.”
As much as I wanted to stay out in the cold catching up with my friends, I knew Fina was right.
We slipped back into the party. My father’s gaze found me as soon as I re-entered the hall. I whispered a thank you to the girls and hurried away from them as quickly as possible, moving through the crowd as graciously as I could. I didn’t want the duke to see me with them. If he saw my friends, I had a feeling he’d try to use those friendships against me.
The king was still seated on his throne, in conversation with Cyran, seated in the low chair next to him. I returned to my seat at his side. As I started to return his cloak, he held up his hand.
“Keep it,” he said. “It looks lovely on you.”
I pressed my lips together. But with all the guests watching us, I couldn’t find a reason to push back. So I simply nodded and took my seat. A servant swept in with wine and I shook my head. If I were to have a drink in this ball, I’d want to see the bottle it was poured from.
The king paused in his conversation with Cyran and leaned toward me. “Do you need anything, Reyna?” he asked. “You’re well?”
I nodded. “Yes. Just tired.” Tired of playing this role. Tired of tamping down my grief. Tired of smiling for all these strangers. “There’s been so much wedding planning, it’s hard to keep up.”
The king searched my face but I kept up a carefully impassive expression. My wolf whined internally, longing to open up to him and seek comfort. But the king couldn’t bring me the kind of comfort I needed. All I could do was smile, and hope this night ended quickly.
26
“Welcome, welcome!” Micah said brightly as he waved me, Fina, and Adora into Camille’s. His shoulder barely reached my waist. I hadn’t seen the dressmaker’s assistant since our first day in this shop, but he still greeted us like old friends. “Camille and Aerika are both thrilled to have this opportunity. We all are. Please, come this way.”
Even though Micah was small in stature, he bubbled with energy and moved with quickness. I couldn’t help but wonder—did he have Fae lineage? I knew the Fae worked here, though I hadn’t seen them in person. I itched with the desire to ask him, though I knew that wouldn’t be polite at all. Even if he wasn’t Fae, he had to know more than I did.
I was dying to ask what had happened to the Fae in Efra, what neighborhoods they had lived in, and what had happened to their homes—but I couldn’t ask those kinds of questions while I was preparing for the wedding. It wouldn’t reflect well on me, and it might be offensive to them. What if it was a sore subject? Or what if my interest in the topic raised suspicion? Was the king attempting to bring back the Fae on purpose, or were they doing this under his nose?
My questions would have to wait. First, I had to survive this wedding. Exploring the history of the Fae would be a lot easier with the strength of the crown behind me.
We took our seats on the couch in the center of the shop, and Micah arrived with crisp champagne and delicate canapes. As he poured the wine, Aerika stepped out of the back room. She looked as striking as ever, her silver hair matching the color of her silk jumpsuit as it glowed in the warm light of the shop. She smiled, her warm brown eyes sparkling.
“Good afternoon, ladies,” Aerika said. “We’ve been hard at work since the king first requested we make the gown for your wedding. I do hope you’ll be pleased with the result.”
“I have no doubt,” I said with a smile.
“And we received the request from your escort as well, Lady Reyna. It should be no trouble.”
“Request?” I asked. I hadn’t asked Barion to send a request. I hadn’t spoken to Barion at all since that fateful conversation with my father.
“Yes,” she said, then shot me a conspiratorial wink. I was supposed to be in on this, I assumed, so I just nodded in agreement.
Camille herself stepped out of the back room. She was wearing a similar jumpsuit to Aerika, and with her dark hair cropped to her shoulders, they looked like opposite sides of the same coin. Both striking in their beauty. Again, I wondered about the influence of the Fae. I didn’t have time to think much about it, though, because Camille was pulling a dressmaker’s mannequin behind her.
“Oh, wow,” Adora whispered.
My jaw dropped. I’d seen a lot of beautiful gowns during my time in Efra, many more than I’d seen in Daybreak. But this was beyond anything I’d ever seen or worn. Camille and Aerika had designed a masterpiece.
