The ground trembles once more, spreading fractures through the tiles. Then another figure is hauled through the floor, tangled in roots.
Verette.
And there is no sign of Eugene.
Rapunzel’s heart freezes.
Where—where is Eugene?
“Verette.” The king walks slowly, frostily down the steps of the dais, trailed by Hughes. “What do you think you’redoing?”
“Why don’t you go first,Father?” Verette shoots back. She’s the only one of their captive group to not have a root jammed between her teeth. The tendrils around her twitch and sputterwith little flares of light as she tries vainly to break free. “Why don’t you tell everyone about the apple tree you planted in the Starlight Spring? How it’s been draining all the starlight from Astera for decades, just so you can eat its fruit and prolong your life. Or how you planned to hold Rapunzel hostage to force her kingdom to let you plant another one.” Her chin lifts, eyes burning. “Tell them, Father. Tell them there was no poison in the spring. The only poison in the palace has beenyou.”
Hughes keeps pacing around the prisoners, but Enver stops in front of Verette. His smile is slow and as bitter as wine soured to vinegar. “I see…I’m afraid you’re just exaggerating again, sweetheart. I understand you’re upset with me, but this just proves you’re not ready to be queen yet.”
Rapunzel shifts and hears a papery crinkle at her hip. She looks down and sees a thin stripe of parchment peeking out of her pocket.
Enver’s demands for her parents.
And he’s too busy grandstanding at Verette to pay attention to her.
“I did plant a tree by the spring,” Enver’s saying, “oh, twenty-five years ago? I thought if the fruit concentrated the starlight, it might be able to save your mother.”
Rapunzel snags the edge of the parchment and slips it free, then adjusts her angle so it’s hidden behind her back. As Hughes passes, she feels the sheet tugged from her hand.
Enver’s still going. “It didn’t bear fruit in time to save her.If you found anything strange or problematic in the Starlight Spring, it could only be the work ofyourfriends, the People’s Dagger.”
Gasps rain through the hall at the name.
Rapunzel, however, feels like a strand of hair just snagged on a splintered board. Something about that doesn’t add up. Still, no one else seems to have picked up on it yet, the other captives’ faces all balancing fear and fury.
Then it clicks.
The only other time she felt this kind of horrified disgust was when she looked at Gothel and asked,Should I even call you that?
Rapunzel makes a decision, then, one she knows is going to be very unpleasant but worth the payoff. She bites down on the root.
Unsurprisingly, it’s tough and woody, and her teeth ache as they dig in—but she can feel the beginnings of a notch.
Enver’s brow furrows. He starts to turn to Rapunzel.
And Councilor Teophine’s voice rings out as she reads off the parchment in her hands: “ ‘Greetings to Their Honorable Majesties of Kourenne. I, Erwan Persevault, Councilor of the West and Master of Seas, bear this message on behalf of His Majesty, King Enver of Astera—’ ”
“Stop her,” Enver barks out.
No one moves.
“ ‘Your daughter, Princess Rapunzel, and her consort, Eugene Fitzherbert, are now in our custody,’ ” Teophinecontinues, “ ‘and your minister of diplomacy will remain a hostage on my flagship—’ ”
“I saidSTOP HER,” bellows Enver.
A man with a guard captain’s sash strides over to Councilor Teophine and tears the parchment from her hand.
Then he scans the words. He looks up at the king, stricken, and doesn’t fight at all when Teophine takes the declaration back.
“ ‘If you wish to see any of them again, you must cede to Astera the territory containing the former location of the sundrop flower, and allow us unrestricted access to it. To ensure your compliance, the princess and her consort will remain in Astera until at least a decade has passed,’ ” she finishes grimly. “What were you saying about exaggeration, Your Majesty?”
“This isn’t the Night of the Poisoned Dagger, Father,” Verette spits out. “There are too many witnesses this time. You can’t slaughter us all and save yourself with some lie about traitors again.”
