“I want to make conditions of my own.” She stays quiet and almost a little too still. “If I do what you ask, you not only make their debt disappear, but you make this absurd practice vanish. No more elders intruding on another’s life. And…” I really have nothing else but might as well see what I can get. “And I get to make a dress for you to wear to your most attended event.”
“Is that all?”
“You clear my best friend’s parents’ debt so she doesn’t have to marry Beetlerum.”
“That one isn’t possible. I’m going to attend her wedding tomorrow. It would cause too much of a fuss, and since I have no real reason to end their union, it’s a waste. However, I will agree with your previous terms. Your parents’ debt, erasing strategic practices, and you may design a dress for me. The two extra promises come with two extra years.”
Three years in servitude to the Queen, I should have known she would counter with her own stipulations.
Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would get to meet Queen Cayleen, nor did I think our meeting would result in finding out my parents were in some kind of a cultish group thatserved her and potentially lead them to do unspeakable things—things the Queen might ask of me.
She makes her way to the door, but before she knocks for her guards, she looks back at me. “No need for an answer right now. You can give it to me tomorrow at your friend’s marriage ceremony. Your demands are high and could cost my kingdom a lot, especially that marriage clause of yours.” She knocks twice before a guard opens, and she slips away.
And just like that, I must make a choice again. This time between two options of which I have no desire for either.
9
IANN
My carriage vibrates as I shake my leg. No one brings it to my attention, but if it’s strong enough to annoy me, then I can only imagine how irritated the driver must be.
Gripping my knee, I force the nervous tic to stop. I don’t know why I’m uneasy. I shouldn’t be. Can’t recall anything I’ve done that may have solicited attention, but there is something about having a discussion, especially one with my grandmother, that makes me wary.
She isn’t cruel, blunt undoubtedly, but she has always been kind to my brothers and me. I would even go as far to say that I compete to be one of her favorites. The other being Deean, of course. She respects Marcel because she has to as her future king, but I would bet all of Saden’s coins that she would rather have someone else be the future figurehead of the kingdom.
Esha told me this morning that she requested me to accompany her into town today. Unlike the rest of my family, she and Deean are the two who interact with the townspeople the most. Maybe that’s why she has a fondness for him. It’s often athing the two of them do together. I wouldn’t mind joining them more often, but being away for great lengths of time makes it difficult.
The carriage door swings open and there is a sudden sway of the box, causing me to shift in my seat as someone joins me inside.
“What are you doing here?” Deean’s face scrunches at my presence, and he looks at me like I don’t belong. Pointing his head to the seat in front of me, I take the hint that I’m in his spot, and with a quick eye roll, I move.
“Does it really matter where we sit?” I adjust my coat, trying to get comfortable.
The carriage moves yet again as he plunks down. “You’re a guest on this little trip of ours, so you sit where I tell you. Remind me again why you’re here. I thought you hated going into town.”
“You’re getting me confused with our brother. Grandmother asked me to join, if you must know.” We bicker like we did in childhood. “Where are we going, anyway?”
He folds his right leg over the left, resting it on his knee, before adjusting the button of his coat. “You’ll find out.”
After the last conversation with our father, I’ve concluded that even if Deean can locate a map of Farella for me, he can no longer accompany me. If stopping in Haymel is first, it would be unwise to take all three Saden heirs. Right as I’m about to tell him, the carriage door swings open once more and my grandmother gets inside.
She gives Deean’s hand a pat and then sees me in the seat across from them. “Glad you made it, Iann.” She gives the roof two quick thuds, signaling to the driver to leave, and gives me an anxious expression. “We have a special treat for you.”
This better not be a repeat of last night. Between my mother and the unexpected visit from Thana, I’ve had my share of surprises.
Deean and my grandmother gossip the entire way. Some of it is interesting, but most a waste of breath. As they continue, I gaze out the window. Part of my mind watching the pristine cobblestone streets and the other, picking up small pieces of their conversation.
Just beyond the gates of the castle lay the city streets. Saden isn’t the most colorful place I’ve seen. The buildings alternate between an eggshell and cream color, each with a bronze or copper roof that shines for all of Saden to see. The neutral simplicity is still a breathtaking view.
City streets bustle with people who make way as we pass, leisurely strolling about without a care, visiting and chatting amongst each other like they have time to spare. Most dress in a similar style to the designs of the city. Nothing vibrant, yet still elegant. My favorite hues are those of evergreen that mix in with the peachy browns or washed-out golds.
Deean is talking about one of our many lords being caught with his wife’s sister, but I stop listening as the carriage comes to a halt.
Outside is a shop called Iffa’s Collectibles, painted in gold leaf on an eggshell canvas with sage green trimmings that run along the window and door frames of the two-story building.
By the time I turn back to the two gossipers, they are already out of the carriage and waiting for me on the path that runs in front of the building.
There is a light breeze outside but nothing that requires a coat, and across the road is the sound of trickling water where several small waterfalls flow down beyond a bridge.
