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I remembered her name. I remembered a sweet laugh, pudgy fingers, and the screams of kakkas who got a face full of her soiled wrappings, but try as I did, I couldn’t remember what my youngest sister looked like.
I sat at the vanity, methodically combing through Emiana’s long and lovely hair. Behind me, Alisdair lay on the bed—his trueform unleashed. I gazed at him, then at the delicate, glass comb trapped between my fingertips. How easy it would be to break it, then plunge the jagged pieces in his throat.
And what a waste of time that would be. Precious, precious time that I was quickly running out of. There was no outrunning Alisdair Shadowsoul. No outsmarting him. No fooling him. And no killing him.
There was only one thing left for me to do. The one thing I swore I wouldn’t do. The option that wasn’t an option... because it was doomed to fail.
I glanced out at my unwanted kingdom—its people rising under the burden of a terrible curse. Just like me.
“Meya, never let it be said I don’t know when it’s time to stop fighting and accept your will,” I whispered. “I’ll do it, All Mother.
“I’ll make the man with no heart fall in love with me.”
I WATCHED ALISDAIRout of the corner of my eye. We were in the training yard. After that first lesson, Alisdair declared that every morning I’d learn the running of the kingdom, and every afternoon, I’d be in the training yard, learning how to defend it.
Despite my resolution to break the curse by making him fall in love with me, I had no idea how. I’d never been in love. I’d never seen love. I knew not a single thing about love.
That’s not entirely true,I thought.Mama used to tell stories about the things Papa did that made her fall in love with him. Stories about how even when she rolled out of bed with ratty hair and stale breath, he’d kiss her and say she was the most beautiful creature he’d ever seen.
Compliments.I stood up straight, nodding to myself.That’s as good a place as any to start.
I cleared my throat. “Alisdair?”
He paused his explanation, lowering his bow. He’d been in the middle of telling me how to aim for the eye. “What?”
“You... You look...” Truthfully, it wasn’t hard to think of a compliment for him. He’d let his hair down that day, allowing his ebony waves to whip and roll with the wind. At some point, he shed his cloak and shirt for training, and now all that stood before me was six feet of tall, hard, and handsome. “You look well—nice—handsome,” I finally got out. “You look very handsome today. Actually, not just today.” My face warmed under his gaze. “You look handsome every day, but today you’re particularly... handsome. A very handsome man.”
He gave me a long, flat look—stretching out the silence until I could literally die from embarrassment. “All this I know,” he said flatly. “Are you finished?”
Lifting my chin, I nodded.
“Good. Now, take a breath before you notch the bow,” he said, returning to business. “That will steady your aim. After, you will...”
We continued on with the lesson. I wasn’t sure whether to be annoyed that he ignored my compliment, or relieved that he didn’t comment on my nervous rambling.
After the lesson, Alisdair strode off without a word or look back. Aeris ran over to take my bow and bundle me in a warm shawl.
“Where does he go in the evenings?” I asked her. “I mean, in the time after lessons and before he begins the chase. I am having my supper, but what is he doing?”
“Why, he’s having his supper of course.” She vigorously rubbed my arms, spreading warmth into my frozen limbs as we headed inside.
“So he does eat.”
She laughed. “Of course he eats. You say the funniest things, my lady.”
She may laugh, but I’d certainly never seen the man eat. Alisdair made sure I ate, by barking at the nearest servant to feed me, but he’d never sat down to eat a meal with me. I told Aeris as much.
“That’s because my lord takes his meals in the dining hall with us while you dine in your chambers.”
“What?” I halted, pulling her up short. “Why? Why am I eating alone? Did he decree that I had to?”
“No,” she cried. “It wasn’t my lord, it was...” Discomfort ruffled her feathers. “It was I who thought it best for you to dine in the peace and comfort of your chambers. I told our lord it was for the best.”
“Why would you do that?”
“I’m truly sorry, Lady Ana.” She grasped my hands. “We know what the other fae think of us. That we’re beasts and savages and we can’t control ourselves.” She winced. “All of those rumors are confirmed when you watch us eat.”
“Aeris.” I looked her straight in the eyes. “I will be eating with my husband and our people tonight. End of discussion.”
