Page 6 of Tale of the Heart Queen

The guard narrows his striking blue eyes.

“Who are you?” he asks.

“I’m . . .” What do I say? I can’t just blurt out that I’m the Heart Queen. First, who’ll believe me? Second, too many people in Ouranos view my family in a less than favorable light. I’m just as likely to be gutted with a stake and left for the vultures as offered the welcome mat.

“I’m Serce’s granddaughter,” I say, hoping that’s vague but also specific enough. I wait for some sign these words mean something to this pair.

“Who is that?” the guard on the right asks. “And why should we care?”

I blow out a breath and scratch the back of my scalp.

“Please. Will you just go and tell your king that? He’ll know what it means.”

The guard scoffs. “Run along, sweetheart, unless you want to spend a night in His Majesty’s dungeon.”

“Just for asking a question?”

“For disturbing the peace.”

I make a show of looking at the empty space around us, at the deserted beach where not a single other soul is present, and then raise an eyebrow with a pointed look.

He clears his throat. “Nevertheless. No one demands an audience with the king.”

“I’m not demanding. I’m asking. Very politely.”

The guard sighs and shakes his head before he exchanges a look with his companion.

“Very well,” the first guard says. “Follow me.”

“Really?” I say, hardly daring to believe my luck. This still doesn’t guarantee Cyan will see me, but at least it’s progress. “I mean . . . yes, okay. Good. Take me to your king.” I throw my shoulders back again, trying to pretend I belong here.

He starts to roll his eyes but catches himself like the well-trained soldier he is. He opens the dark blue door made of some kind of shimmering material and gestures me ahead.

“Walk directly in front of me and don’t touch anything,” he says. I nod, lifting my hand in promise before I’m ushered into the palace’s cool interior. I blink as my eyes adjust to the shift. Though high windows let in plenty of light, it’s an abrupt change from the blazing reflections outside.

The watery blue tiles are cool on my feet, and I wince at the sensation of a reverse burn against my sweltering soles. I lift the hair on the back of my neck, attempting to expose it to a lick of cool air, savoring a break from the beating sun.

“Walk,” the guard says before we march down a hallway towards a large chamber through an arched doorway. As we near the end, he calls out, “Halt.”

He brushes past me. “Stay there.”

Two more guards flank the entrance. One male and one female, both stiff with attention. My escort exchanges a few words with the High Fae female in a low voice that I strain to hear. She casts a look at me and then back before jerking her chin.

The first guard then passes me by and walks in the direction we came, shaking his head as though I’ve ruined his entire day.

“It was nice meeting you too,” I call to his retreating back.

Not surprisingly, he doesn’t respond or acknowledge my existence.

“Come with me,” the female guard says as I turn to face her.

She has deep olive skin, her nose and cheeks covered in a dusting of brown freckles, likely garnered from hours in the sun. Her brown hair is tied in a high braided ponytail that accentuates the hard lines of her face, and her dark green eyes flash with anger. I can’t tell if it’s because of me or because she’s just having one of those days.

I’m led through the palace and its winding halls, hearing the crash of the ocean in the distance. Otherwise, it’s quiet here, no one passing us as we walk. The woman stares straight ahead as she marches at a brisk pace.

We pass high windows made of stained glass in various shades of blue and green and walls embedded with the fossils of seashells and sea life, all dusted with sparkling silver. As we head down another long hall, I see more guards waiting at the end.

We approach them, and the woman says, “Take her.”