Luna stands in the distance, tapping her foot against the stone and holding her hands against her hips. This can’t be good.
A faded blue dress, the shade of her favorite color, ripples along the ground and tightens perfectly around her bewitching curves. Her dark skin holds patches of flour and she constantly looks over her shoulder, checking the bakery she helps run with her parents.
“What have you done?” she whispers.
“What are you talking about?” I play stupid. “Shouldn’t you be working?”
“Shouldn’t you be married?” she snaps, but then lowers her voice as a couple walks by whispering to each other, and I bet all the coins I have that their exchange is about me. “Is theresomething you two would like to say aloud?” Luna gives them a cautionary look. “Go on. Share it with all of Foxhead then.”
Taking her arm, I pull her to her parent’s bakery, dragging her inside. “What is wrong with you?”
“Me? Ri,” she calls me by the nickname only she uses. “Do you know what you’ve done?”
The scent of fresh bread rattles my stomach, and for a second, I forget about the conversation entirely.
“I don’t see why other people care. They act like I’m the first person to ever say no to council.” I take a seat behind the counter, flopping down on sacks of flour.
“Umm, you’re the first person in decades to do so. The last is now a spinster that the town is afraid of. Is that what you want to become?” She folds her arms across her chest, and I know I’m going to have this very conversation at least two more times with my sister and parents. “So, what happens now?”
“They will try to marry me off again. I have no doubt about that. But until the order comes from the Queen herself, my answer will remain no.”
She clunks down next to me. “So, how pissed off were they?”
“I imagine they are preparing a spike for my head to sit upon at the village entrance as we speak.”
She nudges my shoulder. “You’ll be okay.” Her voice falls to a whisper. “My parents think you are a fool, but I have your back no matter what.”
“You seemed pretty upset outside.” I chuckle.
“Upset? Never. Surprised is more like it. Those men are relentless. They are coming after Ma and Pa for over ten thousand coins. They say the bakery broke some kind of tax regulation, but Pa swears everything owed to the Queen was paid. Pompous bastards. Pa thinks the real reason is because we screwed up one of the council members’ orders last month. Well, actually, his wife’s order. She had her monthly garden party…”
“That one where they get together wearing those big, ugly hats?”
“Exactly. And they all think they look really good. But anyways, she ordered orange blossom scones. I remember clearly, because I was the one to help her. When Pa took the delivery to her she griped about having asked for vanilla cream.”
“Ten thousand coins for scones!” I shout and feel a warm palm over my mouth.
Ten thousand moinlings is a lot more than this shop makes in a year. I’d be surprised if it has made that since its establishment.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Dropping my voice to a whisper as the bakery’s little bell chimes and a shopper comes in.
Luna shrugs. “It was around the time when you got your letter requiring you to show up at council. I figured you had bigger issues to deal with.” She stands up and smooths her apron before offering me a hand.
“That is huge news. You could have told me. No more secrets. Promise?”
Extending my right arm, I hold my hand sideways with my palm facing the left. She looks at it, unsure what to do, but then I see a sly grin on her face and she holds out her hand. We slide our arms together until our palms meet and then wiggle our fingers.
“You’re so childish.” She playfully pushes me. “No more secrets, though. Promise.”
Someone intentionally clears their throat trying to get our attention. When I turn to the stranger across the counter, my heart forgets how to function and a snow-white beard is the only thing I can focus on.
Crap.
4
IANN
“Who here thought azaleas would be a good choice for tonight’s celebrations?” my mother snaps, and there isn’t a soul that would dare interrupt the Queen while on a tangent. “Tonight is to celebrate our freedom from the tyrannical reign Haymel held over us for decades. You think displaying their kingdom’s flower is what people want to see?” She snatches a handful out of a vase. “I want every last one burned and replaced with the hydrangeas and long-stemmed black grass I requested.”
