Page 18 of A Heart Too Tender

After I had eaten to near bursting, my eyelids drooped, as shadows crept in from the window. Night was upon us at last. I stretched my arms above my head before sinking farther beneath the covers.

I could not fall asleep.

The bed had turned to stone.

It wasn’t—logically, I knew this. Yet every position had pain throbbing through my back, spine, neck, and shoulders.

As the moon rose higher, and sleep was still far away, I kicked the covers off, and flung myself out of bed. Standing beside it, I pressed my hands into the mattress and was aggravated that it felt soft. I pulled sheets off, using the moonlight to see, and checked for the stones I felt digging into my back—there were none.

My groan was stifled against the pillow I squeezed against my face. I ripped all the pillows, blankets, and sheets off the bed and piled them all on the floor, and crumpled into the heap. I managed a very fitful sleep.

The first trial was tomorrow and I needed rest.

But I did not find any.

I watched as the first rays of dawn broke outside my window. A timid knock on the door had me grinding my teeth.

Maude walked in with a breakfast tray and froze in horror.

“No—it wasn’t comfortable?” She stared in shock at my position on the floor.

“It was not,” I whined, pushing a pillow against my face.

“You look positively dreadful,” she crooned, setting my breakfast tray on the bed. I heard her footsteps pad across the room, and the clatter of the dinner tray being set on the desk. She pulled the pillow from my face and stared at me with pity.

“Oh, dear … I have my work cut out for me today.”

She pulled me from the floor, her long limbs surprisingly strong, and she had me on my feet in the blink of an eye. The change in position had the room spinning. Maude blew her long green hair out of her face and handed me a steaming cup of tea.

“Do you think it’s just nerves? A new environment?” She asked as she started my bath.

I sipped the tea she handed me, the robust floral flavor soothed my throat. “No. It felt as if I were sleeping on stone.”

“Hmm,” she hummed and tutted as she appeared in front of me again, brushing my hair behind my shoulders, and placing the back of her hand upon my brow. “You’re not getting sick are you?”

I shook my head and took another sip. “The first trial is today—and I feel like a trudging troll.”

“Well, the good news is the trial is merely walking. You will be fine,” Maude said with a warm smile.

“Walking? The first trial is walking?”

“That’s the gossip in the kitchen this morning. A princess has charm, but a queen has elegant composure in the face of duty. You’ll need to prove that you have both.”

I sighed with relief. I could definitely walk, and gracefully, at that. I had been dancing across the battlements of our home since I could wander the halls alone. Light steps and steady movements, each foot meticulously placed.

“Eat quickly. I have much to do!”

She really did have her work cut out for her. Maude placed teabags over my eyes as I bathed, and she scrubbed my skin within an inch of my life. Then she put on an astronomical amount of cosmetics under my eyes to hide the bluish bruises that had rendered my face gaunt and hollow.

Now, slumped against the hallway wall outside the gallery, I waited my turn to speak with Julian. My mind whirled as I pondered what he might ask and how I should answer. These questions were no doubt part of the trial—I just didn’t know how.

A yawn had me covering my mouth as Zuri slipped out of the gallery, her red gown resembling a rose. The layers of her skirt fell over each other like petals. Her skin glowed and her eyes were alight with what could only be the result of a full night’s rest.

I turned green.

My gown was made of emerald gossamer and resembled a willow branch, the skirts not nearly as full as hers, but I preferred it that way, it made it easier to move.

“Are you ready?” Zuri asked with a supportive smile.