“The scars that I bear on my back…” Memories of the day beneath the dungeon slammed into me. “Well, a few of the scars, that is…they are a result of wishing I had a mother todo just this with,” I admitted, never realizing how pitiful it all sounded once spoken aloud.
The brushing faltered, but then continued a second later. “That’s such a horrible thing to hear. I’m so very sorry. How old were you?”
“Thirteen,” I whispered. “I had always watched the queen with her brushes and how I wished I had a mother to share one with. One day, I was caught sneaking into her chambers…”
“Oh my,” Lynelle whispered nervously.
A sad laugh left me. “I combed it through my hair a single time, and when I looked up into the mirror, the queen was staring back at me in disgust. You would have thought the dirtiest peasant in her city’s slums had ravaged through her finery.”
“And you were punished for this? As a child?”
“She had her personal guard take a whip to my back three times. Let's just say the entire ordeal kept me in line for quite a few of the following years. My father never heard of its occurrence.”
Silence blanketed the room for a few seconds. “I’m so sorry you were treated so horrendously, Elianna.”
“It’s quite alright. Her cruelty made me stronger. At least that’s what I would like to believe.”
“But it’s something you shouldn’t have had to endure, and for that, I am sorry.”
“Thank you,” I whispered.
Her hand then reached out toward a vase on the table that held freshly trimmed flowers and greenery from the estate’s front garden. She plucked a few of the vines andsubtle blooms from the vase and began intertwining them in my hair, lacing them into braids that she twisted back from my face.
“May I help you into your dress?”
“Of course.” My voice was hoarse from trying to hold in all the emotions that threatened to flood me from her kindness.
The robe I wore fell to my feet as she moved to grab the gown that hung on the wall and then assisted me into it. Her movements paused as my scars became visible to her, and the weight of her stare made my stomach tighten, but I was grateful she didn’t comment on them further. She carefully guided my arms through the flowing lace sleeves and then laced the back with a cream-colored ribbon that matched the gown itself.
When I turned to face her, a kind smile tilted her lips. “Please, Your Majesty, take a look.” She gestured to the mirror.
“Please don’t feel that it’s necessary to call me that,” I said with a small laugh as I turned to face the mirror once more.
My lips parted at the sight that I beheld in my own reflection. I thought I had felt beautiful during the disastrous night of Kai’s wedding—when Lorelai had placed me in her finery gown and dusted my cheeks with rouge—but what I saw now held no comparison.
My hair pulled back from my face, with beautiful flowers woven between each braid as the rest of the curls fell down my back. The kohl that lined my eyes made their color flare beneath the candlelight, and the faint pink placed upon my lips made them more plump and pout-like.
The gown was breathtaking—its form-fitting bodice adorned with delicate embroidery in champagne thread, with a sweetheart neckline elegantly framed with a trim of tiny pearls. Its sleeves were long and tapered, fitting closely to my arms while extending into a slight flare. The gown's skirt flowed in cascading layers to the floor, with a train that extended several feet behind me.
I didn’t recognize myself in the mirror—for the fierce, blood-soaked warrior was no longer who stared back at me, but a queen.
“I look…”
“You look as if you’re the most beautiful bride and queen that the realm has ever seen. It will bring my nephew to his knees.”
A choked laugh left me at her words, but when my eyes found hers once more in the mirror, I watched as she wiped a single tear away that had slipped down her cheek.
“Are you alright, Lynelle?”
“My nephew…he has always been a boy filled with so much anger. So muchragebecause of all he had been forced to hold knowledge of from such a young age.”
“I know,” I whispered, as my heart thudded at the reminder. “And I will forever love him with every breath.”
“Yes, I know that, sweet girl. It is just…I never would have even dreamed of him loving someone else so deeply in return. He’s a changed man because of you, and that is for the better. His mother would have been so proud and would have adored you to no end.”
Tears finally escaped me and slid down my cheeks.
She caught them with the tip of her finger and smiled. “Neither of you have parents any longer, but my door will remain open for the rest of my days. That is a promise.”
