CHAPTER SIX
CARDEN
I could barely breathe. How was I supposed to play a game that gambled Arabella’s life when I was in this shape? My bones were on fire. “Promise to play fairly, Coeur,” I bit out. “No invisible fae beating us half to death before we play. No binding our thoughts or tongues.”
“I would never influence the game itself,” she sniffed. “I want you to feel every experience, including all the joy and pain that comes with triumph and defeat. And I want you to know they are real. That’s part of the fun.” She turned to Arabella. “The two of you will dine with us tonight as my personal guests. Tomorrow at dawn, the game begins.”
Coeur leaned in close to whisper in Arabella’s ear. “A word of advice: Men have fickle hearts and lying tongues. Don’t let your heart make decisions your mind tells you are foolish.” She turned to me. “As for you, Prince, I can’t wait to see the beast she awakens in you.” Turning to face us both, she added, “The game is in play from dawn to dusk each day, after which time you will celebrate with us—assuming you’re still alive.” With those ominous parting words, she turned and walked away, vanishing into thin air.
Arabella sucked in a breath. Fear shone in her eyes, and it was rightfully placed. I’d never been so scared in all my life; not for me, but for her. For us. She brushed dark strands of hair out of her face and then suddenly, the pale green irises of her eyes changed. Peeking through the unusual hue were the numerals of a clock, with two hands swirling in impossibly fast circles.
Her mouth parted. “Your eyes,” she gasped.
I pressed them closed. “Yours are the same.”
Guards approached and began to pull her away from me. Not one to go willingly, she struggled until they removed their hands, and walked proudly out the door by herself. I still couldn’t hold up my own weight and was dragged back to my room, body screaming, bones on fire, but all I could worry about was where she was and if she was safe for now.
The guards carelessly tossed me onto the floor. I tried to raise up, panting through the pain, but my legs were too weak. I heard the creak of the door behind me open and a small, emerald-colored glass bottle floated through the air. Someone I couldn’t see took my hand and opened my palm, placing the bottle into it. My fingers tightened around the cool surface.
“Drink, drink, you see. It heals,” a weak, male voice ordered.
“Who are you?”
“I am here to aid you. Drink the tonic,” the disembodied voice insisted. “You must dress for dinner, which is in twenty minutes.”
“Are you fae?”
“Not fae, but cursed. Cursed and Unseen, that’s all. Now drink.”
I swirled the liquid around in the bottle. “How do I know it’s not poison?”
“The Cursed cannot lie.”
Unless that’s a lie, too… But I had to risk it. If I started the game in this shape, I was as good as dead already. And if Arabella was forced to go to this horrid dinner, I was going with her. Resolved to whatever elixir awaited me, I worked the cork out of the bottle neck with a pop and sniffed the contents. The magic inside stung my nose and a cloying odor filled the room. Placing the bottle to my lips, I gulped it down and waited.
For a few seconds, nothing happened. I looked from the bottle to the spot I thought the Cursed man occupied. “It will work,” he reassured me.
Taking this opportunity to survey the room around me, I saw that it was far grander than the dank cell I’d been locked in for the past few days. Teal and turquoise vines crept up the walls, coiling and crawling and so vivid they looked real... right down to the little creeping hairs that held the vine to the tree trunk and wall. The bed was enormous, covered in the striped fabric that matched the walls.
The more time passed, the better I felt. Breathing became easier. The pain in my ribs ebbed and then faded entirely. I held up my arm to the light and watched as the patchwork of blue, purple, and yellow bruises faded before my eyes.
“See? It works,” the invisible man crooned.
“How long have you been Cursed and Unseen?” I asked.
Footsteps trailed toward a large, gilded wardrobe and the doors parted, revealing an array of clothing in every color. “Tonight, the color is teal. You must dress quickly.”
Teal, like everything in this room.
I stayed on the floor. Nothing hurt or prevented me from rising and walking over to the man or taking the clothes he held out, but I couldn’t stop thinking about her. Did she have someone Cursed and Unseen assisting her? We needed answers, and there was only one way I knew to get them. No one wanted to disappoint the Queen. No one wanted to be tardy for her events, either.
“Come along now. We must be quick,” he insisted.
“How. Long?” I insisted stubbornly.
“One hundred eighteen years, six months, two days, and fourteen hours,” he gritted. “Now, get dressed, or you’ll be preparing yourself alone. I know better than to be late. I will not die for you.”
“Wouldn’t dying be easier than living this way?”
“No, it would not,” he countered simply. The clothes floated across the room and landed gently on the bed. His footsteps strode across the room, where he poured water from a carafe into a basin. “Use the cloth to clean your skin. Then I will assist you in dressing.”
“Why does the Queen insist on these color themes?”
“Queen Coeur prefers color to gray,” he answered, not elaborating further.
I washed quickly and let him help me dress, wondering what I’d gotten me and Arabella into, and whether I could get her out of this mess alive. Arabella. The Queen gave me her name before she arrived at the castle. Since the day outside the tavern, I’d wondered what name could possibly match her beauty. Arabella suited her perfectly.
“The guards will take you now,” the man spoke quietly.
My stomach fluttered with anticipation and dread. “What is your name?”
“I cannot speak it. It is forbidden,” he responded sullenly.
“Can I speak it? If I knew it?”
My unseen assistant paused, thinking. “That is not forbidden.”
I nodded. “Are you fae or human?”
“I was human, sire. Now, I’m Cursed. Now, I’m Unseen.” He opened the doors and the guards, now dressed in suits that matched my own with thick, teal goop slicking their hair back so their pointed ears showed, leveled glares at me. Spears in hand, one led me out of my room while the other followed closely behind.
ARABELLA
The guards left me in a bedroom four times the size of my father’s shack. It was even larger than the room I used to have in our manor house, before we became destitute. The walls were painted a pale blue green, and each boasted a mural that depicted the four seasons. There was a tree with plump branches laden with Springtime blossoms; followed by a tree whose leaves reached out for the sunlight above them and whose branches were so full, not a branch could be seen; and on the third wall, there was a tree whose branches were nearly bare, its leaves raining to the ground below. But it was the Winter tree that broke my heart. Cold and alone, it stood bereft and solitary, withering in despair.
Breaking me out of my quiet inspection, the door unlocked by itself and footsteps trailed across the floor, stopping directly in front of me. I expected someone to materialize, but nearly jumped out of my skin when a disembodied voice came from less than a foot away. “I’m here to serve you, Miss Arabella,” she greeted in a sweet, almost child-like voice. From the angle of her voice, I deduced she must be taller than I was.
“Who are you?” I scanned the air to see if I could catch even a glimpse of her in front of me, but only found the four walls with their trees, the door, and the furniture that was made to fit such an expansive room. The bed could easily hold twelve adults.
My invisible helpmate answered, “I am Cursed and Unseen, my lady.”
Cursed and Unseen?
“What’s your name?” I tried again.
“I no longer have a name, but I’m here to help you prepare for your test. I promise that while I’m around, you’ll not be harmed. While we get you ready for dinner, I’ll answer any questions I can for you, dear.”
“Am I going to die in this game?” I asked tremulously.
The Cursed woman hesitated. “Queen Coeur is a very skilled opponent.”
I sighed. “So that’s a yes.”
“It’s not a yes,” she responded quickly. “There is always hope that someone will defeat her. Without that hope, there is no life.”
Intrigued by her elusive answers, I queried, “What do we have to do to win?”
“Every game is different,” she began, “but she hasn’t played in quite a while, so I expect it to be quite extravagant. She loves to boast her power. But don’t worry; the Queen likes to make examples out of her opponents. You won’t die immediately, or else her fun will end.”
Great, so she won’t kill us tonight at dinner because she wants to use us to impress her subjects. But before long, we’ll be fighting for our lives... and we will probably lose.
“Bets will be taken, my lady. I hope I can place my wager on you,” my unseen visitor prompted.
Curious, I asked, “Have you bet on others in the past?”
“I have,” she drawled.
“Did you lose?”
“Yes, but this is a new game with new players. You seem different than the others,” my veiled guest declared.
“How so?”
“You know pain. I see it in your eyes. Maybe you can find a way to channel that pain and use it to your advantage.” Pausing for a beat too long, she spoke again, musing, “I’ve never seen Queen Coeur experience pain. She is a cruel, spoiled ruler.”
A piece of my hair floated in front of me as she lifted it. I could almost see the curve of her fingers beneath the strands.
“We should get you cleaned and dressed. The Queen is not a patient woman.”
“Thank you. I need all the help I can get,” I admitted, looking down at my filthy skirts. My legs were itchy from all the scratches and scrapes, not to mention the mud and specks of golden fae blood. A large washtub appeared, filled with steaming water. I undressed and sank into it, trying to commit the feel of it to memory in case this was the last time I’d get to enjoy such an extravagance.
I scoured my skin until the grime and blood were gone, and the Cursed woman brought a folding screen for me to change behind. “I’ll get your gown,” she insisted, her footsteps trailing across the enormous space. My eyes focused on the ornamental screen, which featured creamy fabric that was almost see-through, accented by the golden head of a lion.
“Is the lion image important to the Queen?” I asked curiously. I’d noticed the door knocker was a golden lion, and I’d also seen it on a few things scattered throughout the castle as I chased O’Hare down the halls. Door handles. Carved into the bottoms of sconces along the walls. In the fine stitching on O’Hare’s jacket.
My helper responded, “It is the Royal crest; a lion holding a human heart between its teeth.”
A shiver worked up my spine as I contemplated its meaning. “Why does she hate humans so much?” Wrapping a dry cloth around me, I stepped out from behind the screen.
“I don’t have an answer for that, my dear. However, I believe if you can find the answer you can win the game.” A gown floated from the wardrobe to me. “The color for tonight is teal,” she said.
Color for tonight? A confused look crossed my face. “You mean everyone will match? Even the guards?”
“Yes, my lady.”
“Why does everyone have to match?”
“It’s the Queen’s way.”
“She changes the color every day?”
“Sometimes once each day, sometimes several times a day. It varies according to her wishes,” she explained. Apparently, the Queen liked to control everyone, and was moody. I’d seen Glenlyn in purple, then red, and finally blue before he…
“Are you wearing teal?”
“I am Unseen,” she answered simply, handing me a dress that looked like it was wrapped in layers of thin, gauzy material. Upon closer inspection, I realized the fabric was silky and fine, like the delicate wings of insects and the palest color of blue-green, or teal, as she called it, that I’d ever seen.
Motivated by a feeling I couldn’t quite name, I blurted, “Can I give you a name? Just for me to use while you’re helping me? You’ll be helping me throughout this week, right?”
“I will be your chambermaid throughout the game, my dear, and I suppose you can give me a name if you wish. As long as I do not speak my given name, no rule is broken.”
“And you still can’t tell me your given name?”
I heard her sigh, and she paused a moment before speaking, as if the admission was painful. “I am forbidden from speaking it, but truthfully, cannot remember what it was. I’ve been here for a very long time. Hundreds of years.”
Hundreds of years? “Are you fae?”
“I am not.”
“Are you human?” I asked, hoping her answer wasn’t yes.
“Yes. Or at least, I was...”
Seized by a sudden premonition, I queried, “Were you once a player in this game?”
“Yes,” she breathed.
My heart lodged in the pit of my stomach. I couldn’t imagine being forced to remain here in the castle, forced to do the Queen’s bidding for hundreds of years and watching countless players fight and lose. “If we win, will you be set free? Will the curse be lifted?”
Instead of answering, the gown lifted from the hanger with unseen hands and gathered into folds. I let her tug it over my head, down along my waist and over my hips, the gossamer fabric whispering on my skin. Cinched at each shoulder and crossing my body at the breasts, the swaths of fabric wound around to my back where the Unseen chambermaid and former player tied them tightly. The skirts cascaded to the floor with long slits all around the circumference, revealing my legs when I walked.
“It fits perfectly,” I marveled.
“Queen Coeur does not make mistakes.” It sounded like a warning coming from her mouth, despite the tinkling voice through which it was expressed.
“Duly noted,” I commented dryly. “Now, we can’t give you a human name in case it’s accidentally your given name…”
She gasped. “I hadn’t considered that, Miss Arabella. Now that you mention it, I’m not sure this is such a good idea.”
Undeterred, I cut off her protests. “Can I call you Brave?”
Silence. Then, “Why would you give me such a name? I’m not brave in the least.”
“You’re wrong,” I argued softly. “In the short time I’ve been speaking to you, I can already tell you’re one of the bravest people I’ve ever met. You played and lost and were cursed, but you’re still living. You’re still fighting. You’re a warrior, and Brave is a more than fitting name. If I lose, I hope I can be as courageous as you are.”
She was quiet for a moment. Did I offend her?
“I would be honored to bear the name, my lady, but we must not tell anyone else about it. Names are powerful things.” With that, she began brushing my hair with soft strokes and braided it down my back, pulling it up and arranging it like a crown on my head.
Seeing the result in the gilded mirror, I smiled and asked, “Did you turn my hair into a crown to anger the Queen?”
I could almost hear Brave smile. “She gave strict instructions that you and your partner should be treated like royalty. I’m only doing as she ordered.”
Perhaps Brave was one of many Cursed and Unseen who might rise up against their queen. If she could be convinced to overthrow Coeur, so could the others. If we took a chance and began a game the Queen didn’t realize she was playing, one where she didn’t make the rules... we just might win. And winning was our only chance to survive.
More than that, we needed to end the game once and for all, so no one else fell prey to Queen Coeur’s warped need for entertainment.
As a child, I used to play Hide and Seek and Capture the Flag, but now Carden and I had to invent a new game.
Kill the Queen.