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“No.” She shook her head. “Not to the dungeon. Not to that part of the palace. Deeper below, there is a cave left behind by the god Vix. There is a lake called Näkt Lykenzel. It is god-touched. Every mizrah must bathe in this lake the night of the ceremony. It is where the dead speak to the living.” She paused, looking down at her hands. “Mizrahs are sometimes given visions by the gods. If the gods deem them unsuitable to be the king’s mizrah, she may suffer.”
“How do you mean?”
“Some have been given painful visions that damage the female fae. Some have never come back up alive.”
I stared in shock for a moment. “You are telling me I could die?” My voice rose with a sudden spike of anxiety.
“King Goll is certain that you are meant to be his. He claims this will not happen to you.”
“I suppose if King Goll says it, then it’s all fine.” I crossed my arms to stop the tremble of dread as I stared up at the statue. “What then? If I survive my bath in the lake.”
“We will take you back to your bedchamber and paint your body in the sacred symbols. Then you will be taken to the throne room where the king and his court await.”
“Painted?” I asked, unsure what she meant.
“Your entire body. From your neck down so all can see your demon sign and that you are healthy to bear his child. In that state, you will walk a circle through the court for all to see. Then you will take your place, kneeling within the circle beneath his throne. He will light feyfire to surround you, a symbol of his protection, then he will say the ceremonial words of the Servium. He will then take you within that circle. And bite you.”
By now, I was trembling, trying to imagine how I’d possibly be able to walk and parade through his court naked, so that what? They could all inspect my body to be sure I was worthy to carry a wraith fae royal child? The humiliation of it. Then my attention snagged on to the last part.
“Are you saying that he will consummate the union in the throne room in front of”—I swallowed hard—“in front of everyone?”
“It is common of wraith kings. It is a way to show everyone that he has chosen her and that no one has the right to bed her but him. That it is his seed that plants the child and no other. It is tradition.”
It wasbarbaric.
My stomach rolled with nausea. All words stuck in my throat, I couldn’t even question for what purpose he would bite me. “Excuse me.” I jolted to my feet and walked swiftly away.
“Do not fear, Mizrah,” she called after me. “It is an honor he bestows upon you.”
I half-laughed at her parting words, swallowing hard against the thickness in my throat, the tears pricking my eyes, and the bitterness in my heart.
Ferryn stood not too far away, waiting for me. He was assigned to me today. His frown deepened when he saw my distress, scowling past my shoulder at Dalya.
“Are you well, Mizrah?”
I swept past him. “No. I am not.”
He quickly stepped in line beside me. “Should I summon the king?”
“Why would you summonhim?” I asked, dumbfounded as I hurried toward the back entrance of the castle. “He cannot help me. He is the cause of my distress.”
Ferryn remained quiet, following close behind me into the palace and up the back stairwell, as if there was some way for him to protect me against the emotions now spinning me into a wild panic. I bit my lip to keep from making a noise, but the tears came, nonetheless.
“Mizrah, please let me help you,” he said with deep sincerity. He had once seemed colder than his twin Meck. Now, his kindness somehow made me cry harder.
I stumbled on a step and inhaled deeply, the tears coming hot and fast now.
“Please, Mizrah.” He offered an arm.
I took it and let him lead me up the staircase, leaning my weight against him so I wouldn’t crumble in a heap on the stairs. “I can’t do this,” I whispered to myself.
“You can,” Ferryn encouraged me, continuing to carry most of my weight up the steps. “You are the mizrah our kingdom has been waiting for, my mistress. Beside the king, you will lead Northgall into a new era of strength and prosperity and beauty.”
His words of encouragement only made me sadder. I didn’t feel like this person he described. How was that to be me?
I stumbled again, my eyes blurry from tears.
“It’s all right.” He helped me with a gentle arm around my waist. “I’ve got you.”
