Page 58 of A Thread of Breath and Bone

“Well, I know Anders is next in line, as he should be, but I think Cole was still hoping that since he and I Bonded first, and then knowing that we would have a wedding first, well, it was just foolish thinking. I told him that’s not how that worked. Cole can be a little—” She pauses and her cheeks flush. “Egotistical at times.”

My first reaction is annoyance toward Cole. He should know that’s not how this works. Just because he chose to give away his Bond doesn’t mean he gets to step in line for the crown. Besides, that’s a whole other topic I need to discuss with Ryker.

What happens if his father returns?

“Well, I’m very sorry if we’ve caused any trouble. Are you and Cole married?”

“No. I mean, we Bonded accidentally, of course. To be honest, I’m not sure there will be a wedding. We don’t need people talking.” She sighs, rubbing her belly.

“How are you feeling?”

“It’s very surreal. She’s getting stronger and bigger every day.”

A sense of longing floods my system, and I realize that soon, I too will need to produce an heir. A little Ryker that will make us a family. A son who will, unfortunately, have to carry the weight of the prophecy as well. I wish I could talk to the gods. I need answers. “Well, I think you should definitely have a wedding. I hope you’ll both be in attendance for ours.”

We sit in silence for a few minutes with only the sound of the distant waves to fill the room. There’s something so settling about the ocean. It can be terrifying at times, but for the most part, it’s a calm, beautiful, and reliable force.

“How have things…been?” she asks, breaking the silence. “Being home and all.”

I study her for a minute, the way she continues to rub her little bump. “It’s been different, but okay. I mean, I miss Ryker all the time, but I have my two best friends at the palace with me. Kellan and Ciara basically grew up there.”

“Kellan? Kellan Hyston?” she asks, her features scrunching.

“Yes? The same one. How do you know him?”

She smiles. “Intel. He spent a lot of time in Veker’s dorm in the Intel rooms.” Oh, right. I guess that makes sense. “I just thought—” She pauses, looking away and then back to me with a small blush on her cheeks. “Never mind.”

Curiosity makes me push. “Please, tell me what you thought.” I shake my head in amusement because she’s living with the royal family, having the prince's baby, and still, she’s unsure if it’s okay to speak to a royal.

She swallows and, with a sheepish smile, says, “I heard what happened with Sienna.”

Huh? “Sienna?”

“Cole told me. I mean, we were already here, but what happened with the paint?”

Now I’m even more confused. “I’m sorry, but what does that have to do with Kellan?”

She searches my face. “Are they not in a relationship?”

My world tilts. “What? Kellan and Sienna? In a relationship? Are we talking about the same people?”

“Big boobs, annoying, can’t keep her hands to herself?”

“Same Sienna.”

“Freckles, tall, adorable?”

“Same Kellan,” I mutter.

Her features fall. “You didn’t know? They spent a lot of time together. I mean, in the evenings, if she wasn’t with Gunnar, or flirting with our men,” she says this with a grumble, “then she was usually with Kellan. He spent a lot of evenings in Veker, and she would be sitting with him or talking. I saw them before we left school. They were locked in a very heated kiss in the hallway…”

I feel like I’m going to be sick. All I can hear is Sienna’s words in my ears: A little birdie told me you’re still untouched.

I study Linnea as she rubs her swollen stomach, her expression a mask of soft, glass-blue sympathy. A sharp instinct, one honed by years of court politics and my father's recent warnings, pricks at my mind. Why is she giving me this information now? Is she truly offering the kindness of a new sister, or is this a calculated strike to isolate me?

As a future queen, I wonder if Linnea is playing her own game, subtly dismantling my trust in everyone I once called family to ensure Cole’s position in this palace remains secure.

"Excuse me for a moment." I stand quickly. I rush to the terrace, gripping the railing, taking slow, deep breaths. In through my nose, out through my mouth. Something similar to betrayal settles in my chest as my eyes water. Whether Linnea's intentions are pure or poisonous, the truth she handed me is a blade that has successfully cut my heart in two.