AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Zoya appeared confused. “How can I save him?”
“Rothbart doesn’t want me to tell you, and I don’t have time to explain, but only you can help him. But it will change everything. Your life, everything from now on, will be different.”
The banging on the door continued, and the desk scraped across the floor. They were almost in.
“Odette, stop,” Rothbart pleaded.
Zoya looked down at her brother. “I’d do anything for him.”
So would Odette. She reached under her dress, pulled out the diary, then grabbed the last bean hidden between her breasts.
“Odette, dammit. Think aboutyourselffor a second,” Rothbart snarled.
But there was no time. Soldiers spilled into the room. Odette threw the bean at the side wall and pulled Zoya through the portal. Leading them into the main ballroom.
The portal snapped shut, and they stumbled into the unburdened world of dancing and celebration.
Heat from the ballroom swirled around them. Music. Talking. Laughter. The melody coming from the band was too loud. Odette could barely shout over it. But she had to try.
“May I have your attention?” A few glanced her way, but most people moved around her, oblivious. Shit. She needed to find a way to get their attention. Then, getting an idea, she grabbed Zoya and dragged her up to the steps leading to the queen’s throne.
“What are you doing?”
“Trust me.”
When they stood in front of the throne, she spun Zoya around and pulled down the back of her dress, revealing the birthmark on her right shoulder blade.
“Behold!” she shouted. “The Mark of Kings!”
Chapter 25
Odette
“Odette, what are you talking about? That’s…that’s just a birthmark,” Zoya whispered.
There was no way Zoya had never heard of the King’s Mark. Every child learned about it, talked about it, played pretend games around it. Hell, the symbol of the monarchy, painted outside every gate, was the royal cornflower.
Except Zoya’s stepfather was a sorcerer. Could he have cast a spell to hide it from her? At his death, the magic probably had worn off. But then Rothbart had disguised her as his maid. She may not have ever beheld it in its true form.
“Have you not seen this before?” Odette touched the image on Zoya’s shoulder.
“I’ve seen it, but it’s not the King’s Mark.”
It was very much the King’s Mark. The cornflower was plain for everyone to see.
“Stay with me, Zoya. Rothbart’s life depends on it,” Odette whispered in reply.
The music in the room slowly died, and the people gathered at the base of the throne. They looked over them, and Odette tried not to flinch as she imagined how they must appear. Two women, half covered in blood, standing before this finely dressed audience.
An older gentleman with a long gray beard stepped forward. “What foolery is this?”
“As you see, sir. This girl bears the Mark of Kings.”
The man took a few steps closer and squinted at it, and then his eyes widened, his face growing pale. “Who is this girl?”
“Who are you?” Odette asked the man after a moment of hesitation. Even though she planned on presenting the information to everyone in the room, she at least wanted to hand the documents over to the right person.
“Boris, magistrate and a high-ranking member of the court. Now answer my question, woman, whose child is this?”
