Crown of Coral and Pearl

I sat up and rubbed my eyes. “Have you been to the Linrose Lakes before?” I asked.

She shuddered slightly. “I’ve heard of them, but I’ve never been myself. You won’t go in the water, will you, milady?”

“No. But not because of the water spirits. Anyway, you’ll be there to keep an eye on me, won’t you?”

She shook her head. “I’m afraid not.”

“I realize I’m still new to Ilarean customs, but it seems odd that I wouldn’t be allowed to take my lady’s maid with me.”

Ebb leaned down to my ear as she helped me out of the bed. “It is odd. But the head maid said something about the need for discretion. Prince Ceren is only taking one servant—the younger brother of the page who died recently.”

“I see.” Could that be the boy I’d heard in the cave? No wonder he’d been so frightened, if his own brother had died during the experiments.

“Don’t worry, milady. Just think of how good all that fresh sunshine will feel after days trapped in here.” Her eyes flicked to mine. “Prince Talin will also be there today, I’m told.”

“You knew he was here last night, didn’t you?” I asked. “Is that why you encouraged me to go to Lady Hyacinth’s rooms?”

She grinned slyly and walked to my wardrobe. “I was told he’d be attending the gathering.”

“Well, he did not.” At least, I didn’t think he’d gone there after I saw him. “And anyway, I don’t know why you’d assume I’d want to see Prince Talin when I’m betrothed to his brother.”

Ebb didn’t even try to look chastened as she changed the subject. “What would you like to wear? It may be warm if it’s a sunny day.”

I let her choose a deep green silk dress instead of one of the heavier satin or velvet gowns. Though it was cold in the mountain, Ebb insisted summer days in the rest of Ilara were long and warm.

“When I was little, I would run through the fields on my father’s lands with my brother all summer long,” she said with a faraway look in her pale eyes.

“What does your father do?” I asked as she helped me into the dress.

“He was one of the king’s closest advisors, until the king fell ill and Ceren replaced those nobles with his own favorites. My father lost most of his land after that. I send what little money I make home to him.”

“Are you able to see your brother, at least?”

She paused for a moment. “Do you have any siblings, milady?”

Talking about Zadie was a risk, but I couldn’t expect Ebb to confide in me if I wasn’t willing to do the same. “One. A sister.”

“Then perhaps you’ll understand if I don’t speak about my brother, milady. I would do anything to protect him.”

I nodded. I couldn’t imagine what danger Ebb needed to shield her brother from, but I knew a thing or two about protecting a beloved sibling.

When I arrived in the dining hall, Ceren was standing behind his chair, waiting for me. Talin’s place was empty. I glimpsed Lady Melina at the far end of the table, speaking with an Ilarean lord. She didn’t make eye contact with me until a servant presented Ceren with a tray of pastries.

“Sleep well?” she mouthed with a smile.

I smirked, only a little embarrassed. I had slept well after the drink she gave me, probably the best I had since coming to Ilara.

When we’d finished eating, Ceren took my arm and led me toward the massive iron doors. “Are you ready, my dear?”

My heart fluttered in anticipation. “Yes.”

The guards pulled open the smaller door set into the larger doors, creating a bright rectangle of light against the darkness of the hall. Ceren urged me forward, and I stepped through, my eyes half-closed against what I expected would be blinding light after so much time in the dark. But it was like I’d stepped directly into a cloud, all gray swirling mist. Still much brighter than inside the mountain, but not the sunshine I’d been craving.

Ceren laughed at my expression. “Don’t worry, my lady. Once we descend, you’ll see your beloved sun again. Follow me, please.”

I had forgotten that leaving the mountain would mean having to climb back up tonight, but I was so happy to be outside, breathing fresh air, that I didn’t care. The descent was much faster than the ascent, and as promised, we broke free of the clouds after just a few minutes. I paused on a stair to look out at the valley before us.

Soft hills of green and gold, like the rolling waves of the ocean, were spread out below. Here and there I could see the glint of a lake or stream. The sky above us was a clear blue dotted with light, fluffy clouds. But as dazzled as I was to see it all, I also felt something dark and ominous at the edge of my consciousness: the knowledge that this was just for today, and that in a few hours, I would have to return to the darkness behind me.

“Don’t look so sad,” Ceren said, turning to gaze up at me. He wore a dark hat with a brim so large it shaded his entire face, and I noticed that his hands were gloved, despite the heat. “You should enjoy this moment. Who knows when you’ll see it all again.”

I had a fleeting desire to nudge him over the edge of the wall, just to see his reaction when he realized someone had stood up to him.

“Come along,” he said, disrupting my traitorous thoughts.

When we reached the bottom, a carriage was waiting for us, smaller than the one that had brought me here. The guards mounted their horses as Ceren helped me in. Unlike the last carriage I’d ridden in, there was only one bench. It would just be the two of us inside, and I prayed that the trip was short.

My skirts were thin enough that I could feel the warmth of his thigh against mine. I kept my hands clasped neatly in my lap so he wouldn’t be tempted to take one of them, but when the carriage went over a large bump, I threw out a hand to steady myself, grabbing the nearest thing available: his forearm.

I released it immediately, but I could feel Ceren smiling next to me. How he loved to see me squirm, like a worm on a hook.

“I’m impressed with how quickly you’ve adjusted,” he said. “They say it took Queen Talia nearly six months of sickness before she finally got used to living here. But you’re different than she was. She was so self-aware, and her actions were always calculated, like she was performing in a play all the time. It was as if she’d spent her entire life worrying about how her behavior looked to other people.”

“She did,” I said, the words tumbling from my lips before I could stop myself. “That’s exactly how she spent her life. You have no idea the amount of pressure there is on Varenian women to be beautiful, all so we can be the one chosen to come here.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

I glared at him from the corner of my eye. “It’s all such a waste. You wouldn’t care what I looked like, as long as I can provide you with healthy heirs.”

He chuckled, a low rumble in his chest. “My, aren’t we feisty this morning. Of course your beauty matters to me. If I must marry a wave child, I far prefer a pretty one. But you’re right, it does seem foolish to waste so much time on vanity. My mother was beautiful, too, but what good did it do her?” He shook his head sadly, then added, “At any rate, you’re nothing like Talia.”

I arched an eyebrow in question.

“You speak your mind, for one thing. I never heard Talia say anything sharp or angry to my father. She was always the perfect lady, as delicate as a flower.”

Not so delicate, I thought. A flower could not have survived the journey to Ilara, let alone a life in that horrible mountain.

“No, you strike me as someone who’s more careless with her beauty,” he continued. “For example, most women with your bone structure would wear their hair pulled back, to show off their cheekbones. But you’ve worn yours down today. Don’t worry, your hair still looks lovely, but it’s not as flattering. I can hardly see that delicate neck of yours.”

I bit back a growl at the memory of his hands on my throat, but he was right. I never thought about whether or not a particular hairstyle was flattering. Zadie would have.

“And while I know you’re desperate for color, the green gown was a poor choice. You should have chosen the feathered gown, or the one with the diamond cutout. You have so few chances to display your flesh for my brother, after all.”

I hated the way he made everything vulgar and ugly. “In Varenia, I wore whatever we could afford. Our pearls don’t buy what they used to,” I told him.

“See, just one of the many ways you are lucky to have been rescued from poverty. I would wager you have fifty gowns in your wardrobe right now, and I’d order fifty more if you asked for them.”

I looked out the window, grateful that the curtains had been pulled back today, so I could see out as we rode. “I have no need for one hundred dresses, nor even fifty.”

“So you don’t like them?”