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“Yes,” she said, gesturing behind me.
Turning around, I fell on the crowd of villagers—all smiling, watching me, holding baskets of some type or other, and waiting.
I blinked. “What’s this? Is something wrong?”
Eadaoin stepped forward. “Nothing is wrong, my lady. They’re honoring you by paying tribute.”
“Me?” I squeaked. “Tribute to me? Because I dealt with the wolves?” I groaned under the heavy basket of pranganuts shoved into my hands. “Wow. You all forgive so easily.”
“Easily?” repeated the mango man. “Do you mean because we intended to kill you?”
We?
Eadaoin shot between us, growls hazing the air.
The man looked at me over her shoulder. “That’s in the past, my lady.”
“It was yesterday!”
“Exactly, yesterday,” he said, inclining his head. “Yesterday when our lord risked himself and sacrificed his people to protect you. We thought this marriage was forced on him by enemy kings seeking to destroy our home. Now we know we were wrong.” A beaming smile split his face. “You will save us, Queen Emiana of Lumenfell. You were his choice, now you are ours. And if that wasn’t so, why would we be celebrating you and your blessed marriage?”
I couldn’t have been more confused if he slipped into another language. The festival celebration was in honor of me? An honor they were bestowing before I apologized for unleashing the wolves.
“What do you think, my lady?” Eadaoin whispered.
I blew out a breath. “I think if they’re willing to forgive, so am I. Would you mind helping me get everyone into orderly lines?” I asked. “Also, I’ll need my carriage if I’m to carry all these baskets back to the castle.”
“Uhhh...” She looked from me, to Castle Riagin, to the line of people that was only growing longer. “Okay, but stay here,” she ordered. “I won’t be long.”
“Of course.”
As soon as Eadaoin ducked out of sight, I turned and left.
“I’ll be back to accept your tributes in a few moments,” I called back. “Keep those mangoes safe for me.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Mango Man replied.
Quickly, I hurried through the square, letting my mental map head me around carts and stalls to the quiet part of the village where they made their homes. I went farther still, lighting on the horse stall.
Riordan lifted his head from the horse’s coat when I slipped inside. “My queen.” He dropped his brush bowing to me.
I almost snapped at him to bow deeper, respecting my station.You’re not Emiana,I snapped at myself.Remember who you are.
“Stand up, Riordan, and call me Ana.” I reached to help him up, but he jumped back—nose wrinkling. I nearly forgot about Alisdair’s wretched marking. “I only came to make sure everything is in order for tonight,” I said, backing away until the tense line of his shoulders relaxed. “We have to leave at sundown. Exactly at sundown.”
“Everything is ready, my queen. As you said, the villagers all accepted an upfront payment with the promise of even more when their crops are sold in Lyrica. We have more carrots, sprouts, broccoli, cabbage, spinach, and peas than we’ll know what to do with.” He beamed at me. “And may I say again, what an honor it is to have been personally chosen by you for this position.”
“It had to be you,” I said absentmindedly. I moved from stall to stall, inspecting the horses. They had to be quick and strong enough to evade a beast.
“Me? Why did it have to be me?”
“The change hasn’t taken you yet.”
He inclined his head, accepting that easily. Which was good because it was the only reason the curse would let me give him.
“And the other matter that we discussed?” A lovely white-and-brown horse with a brown mane pushed against the wood to lay its head over my shoulder. I couldn’t fight a smile as I stroked her. “Olene, Meliora, Jaclan, Gisela, Savia.”
“Yes, Lady Ana. I understand that you want me to find and take you to them, but I don’t understand why.” There was shuffling behind me as Riordan resumed his task of preparing the horses for our trip. “You said you don’t know them.”
