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I didn’t even give her a smile before turning back to the long hall, careful to follow Silas to who knew where.
“Exactly. It’s good to see my lessons are finally getting through that thick head of yours.” Any frustration at having been cut off faded as her lip twisted, her nose wrinkling in disgust.
I was well aware that she was prodding, trying to force me to rise and probably give her an excuse to ban me from the ceremony. I wouldn’t give it.
I would not rise, but I would not cower either.
I kept my features firm, defiant, even though everything from the tip of my nose to my toes was shaking.
“Are we calling them lessons now?”
“They always were, girl. You needed to know what your true place was somehow.”
The mask I had been wearing slipped as I flinched, the motion so slight before I put my scowl back in place that I was sure she would have missed it.
She smiled regardless, having nothing better to do than to come and see how deep she could slice against my soul.
“What do you want, Mother?” I snarled her title, knowing she would hate it. It was the best weapon I had right then.
“I wanted to see you. To see if you had survived, or if I would have to dole out further punishments to that Boy for failing me and my orders. Again.” She was inspecting me, like I was nothing more than a piece of meat. It wasn’t that that made my toes curl, it was the reminder that the Boy, that my guard, worked for her.
No, that he was trapped by her.
Her prisoner.
The fury that was boiling under my skin turned to an explosive, my palms ached with the intensity of it, my bones rattling with the force. As soon as it had come, however, it faded into an ice chill. I shivered, the slice of her grin as icy as the chill that was strangling me.
“Well, you will be overjoyed to know I am alive and well.” I turned slightly, holding my arms out in display, only to realize too late all I was doing was showcasing the blood I was covered in.
“Yes. I’m thrilled.” If the look on her face was any indication, she was something near giddy. Well, giddy if it had crawled out of the bowels of the underworld.
“Your clothes for the wedding will be waiting for you,” she continued. “You will be expected to be scrubbed, and dressed, and every bit of the princess I expect you to be for this wedding. Then, after that–” she paused as she came to a stop, one of the priestesses stepping away from the wall as though she had been carved from the stone. “You will be taken back to your carriage, and then once we return to the Runturin you will be escorted to your room, where you will remain.”
“But I–” I began. I wasn’t sure if I cut myself off or if she did with the look she was giving me. The words faded to nothing as her smile stretched and she lifted her hand, letting her magic dance over her fingertips in shards of ice that promptly fell to the ground and shattered like the most dangerous of tear drops.
“You got what you wanted, Elara. Bastian told you what was coming, none of this should be a surprise. It’s for your benefit, really. I would hate to think what harm would befall you if you were to step out of line.”
A single sliver of ice rose from her finger before it fell to the ground, shattering in a sound of deadly punctuation.
I could only stare at her, exactly what she was saying burrowing into me with as much pain and chill as the ice she controlled.
Bastian had warned me yes, and it was that warning that had led me to decide to leave. I would, tonight. I had a plan, and after that kiss I was sure the Boy would leave with me… but why did I feel like everything was melting and cracking like the shards of her ice that were left on the floor. The ice that was coating my bones.
“Do you understand?” I could only nod, my head buzzing as she turned, following the priestess into some dressing room.
“Good, the wedding will occur at sundown. I expect you to be bathed and dressed by then. It will be your last show, you better make it a good one.”
The faceless priestess closed the door, leaving me with the grumbling Silas in the hall, the small wet puddles on the ground.
Silas yanked me back down the hall to a priestess who stepped away from the wall on our approach. She pulled down that heavy ruched hood with spider-like fingers, eyes like coals twisting toward me as she smiled with lips nearly as pale and perfect as the rest of her features. She looked as though she had never seen sun.
“Princess.” Even her voice was wind, as though she wasn’t even there. She gave a slight nod, stepping to the side as Silas nearly threw me into the room.
The door closed before I found my feet, leaving me trapped inside a stone cloud.
Well, great. This was great.
I had wanted to go to Batian’s wedding, not get eaten by a cloud. If I hadn’t been driven mad by the events before now, this room would surely drive me toward madness and disaster.
