A Captive of Wing and Feather

by Melanie Cellier

  “Addie,” he breathed.

  I hurried toward him, sinking down at his side and letting him wrap me in a dripping embrace.

  “You reckless fool,” I said, my tears joining the lake water that already soaked him. “You nearly died for nothing. It’s too late for me, I’m already dying.”

  “Are you?” asked a new voice in calm inquiry.

  I froze before turning slowly to lock eyes with my godmother. She stood at the back of the scene, calmly observing, although she hadn’t been there before. Taking stock of my body, I noticed that I no longer felt so weak, and my head had stopped spinning.

  “Well…I was.” I said.

  “Fortunately for you,” she said briskly, “there is something more powerful than any curse, more powerful than even true love’s kiss. True love’s sacrifice. Your prince was willing to die for you—and, in fact, did so, if only briefly. Leander explained that the curse was tied to you, and to your love, but he failed to mention it was also tied to him. If your love betrayed you, you would die, but if your love sacrificed himself for you, Leander would be the one to die. Why do you think he was so reluctant to activate this particular binding? And with his death, the curse is dissolved.”

  “I’m free?” I asked, struggling to comprehend the words. “Truly free?”

  “Yes, indeed,” she replied.

  “And my swans?” I turned quickly toward the lake.

  Already I could see the strength returning to them as well, their heads lifting again, their necks curving gracefully. I let out a relieved sigh, that turned slowly to sadness. And now I would lose them, the one bitter pill in what should have been unalleviated happiness.

  “We are no longer bound together,” I murmured. “I’ll lose them now, after they saved me. Saved us all, really.”

  “Well, that is to be seen,” the godmother said. “Animals are tricky creatures, and these ladies have been enchanted for a long time now. It’s hard to say exactly what changes have been wrought.”

  “Addie.” Gabe pulled my attention back to him. Despite the news from my godmother, horror filled his eyes. “Were you dying because of me? After my announcement, I took you—Audrey, I mean—aside somewhere quieter, and that’s when I realized…” He swallowed, seeming to find it difficult to breathe. “She broke down and told me what Leander made her do, but I couldn’t understand the point of it all. All I knew was that you were gone, and something terrible was happening. I was searching for you when I saw you fly overhead.”

  He stood to his feet, swaying once but then steadying, and pulling me up along with him. He grasped both my arms, his eyes burning into mine.

  “You know I would never betray you, don’t you? All my promises were made to you regardless of who stood beside me.”

  I nodded. “I know.” A deep certainty, a peace, settled inside me. I believed him—I trusted Gabe completely. And a life with him was worth any risk that one day he might cause me pain.

  He slipped his arms around me, and I leaned into him.

  “Ahem.” The disruptive throat clearing made me draw back, my searching eyes finding my brother.

  “Dominic. You’re here. How is it possible?”

  “I sent for him at the same time as I sent for help from my parents,” Gabe said, one arm still around me. “I thought in the circumstances I might find better help from Palinar than from my own capital.” He grinned. “And I knew one mention of your name would bring Dominic running, no convincing needed.” He turned to my brother. “I’m not sure how you got here so fast, or how you found this lake in the nick of time, but I’m certainly glad you did.”

  Gabe dropped his arm from around me and held his hand out toward Dominic. The two clasped arms, whacking each other on the back.

  “We rode without ceasing is how we got here in time,” one of the men with Dominic muttered. “Frequent changes of mounts, and we took turns sleeping tied to our saddles.”

  “Plus, a little help from me,” the godmother added. “I thought they might have a little trouble finding their way to just the right spot.”

  When I looked over at her, she gave me a prim smile. “You did ask me for help, did you not? And I think there’s one last bit of assistance you might need.”

  She waved a hand, and Gabe and I instantly dried, a pleasant warmth rising from our clothes. A delighted smile broke over my face, and it must have been thanks enough for her because a heartbeat later, she had disappeared.

  “I hate it when they do that,” Dominic muttered, and our eyes met, my mood instantly falling.

  I knew my brother and I were in the same place in our minds—the last time we had stood together in the presence of our godmother. On that occasion, both of our parents’ broken bodies had lain below us at the bottom of a long flight of stairs thanks to my father’s rage. A sob from deep within my belly broke free.

  “Dominic,” I gasped, as he whispered, “Adelaide.”

  And then we were embracing, the years of separation and pain falling away.

  “I’m so sorry,” he murmured, his voice low and broken. “I’m so sorry.”

  “I forgive you,” I said, and I knew I meant it, no shade of anger or betrayal remaining behind to poison my future. “It was so long ago, and we are different people now.” I paused. “I hear you’ve changed.”

  He pulled away and smiled, the expression reaching deep into his eyes in a way I never remembered seeing before.

  “I have,” he said. “And I swear to show it to you. And I’ll also show you the girl who helped me do it.”

  “I’ve heard about her,” I said. “Sophie.”

  He nodded, a new glow lighting up his face at her name. “She was desperate to come along to meet you, but she couldn’t have managed the ride.”

  “Ah yes,” Gabe interjected, “congratulations. Double congratulations, I’m told.”

  “Thank you?” Dominic said.

  “Ha!” Gabe clapped him on the shoulder. “That’s not supposed to sound like a question, you know. You might want to work on that before Sophie hears you.”

  “Double congratulations?” I asked, looking between them.

  “I might have forgotten to mention that.” Gabe looked guilty. “I’ve had a few other things on my mind.”

  My head whirled as I struggled to absorb the new information, my capacity for the day long since reached.

  “I’m going to be an aunt?”

  “Twice,” Dominic said with a smile, but Gabe laughed again.

  “You might want to work on that hint of fear, as well. It’s not kingly.” He winked at me. “He’s just afraid he’ll get two small versions of himself. It would be enough to terrify the mightiest of men.”

  “Very humorous,” Dominic said, eyeing Gabe.

  How strange it was. Like old times—and yet different in so many ways. Dominic turned to me.

  “I know Sophie will love you, and you will love her. And the babies will love to have their aunt around. I can’t wait to finally bring you home.”

  “Ah. About that.” Gabe stepped sideways and wrapped an arm around my waist. “I’m afraid Adelaide has already agreed to make a new home here—with me.”

  “So you’ve found her just to steal her away?” Dominic didn’t sound impressed.

  Gabe, however, was undaunted. “You didn’t think it would happen any other way, did you? She’s altogether too lovable.”

  He dropped a quick kiss against my hair, and the glare I was giving him softened.

  “No one is stealing me,” I said sternly to them both. “I choose my own home.” I gave Dominic an exasperated look. “And don’t even pretend you’re going to withhold your blessing. We both know the crown prince of Talinos is a worthy alliance—even for the king of Palinar.”

  “I don’t care about alliances,” Dominic said. “I only care about you.”

  I blinked and then smiled. He had changed indeed.

  “How fortunate,” Gabe said. “I feel precisely the same way.” He turned to me, shutt
ing Dominic from the conversation. “So, tell me, my love. Where exactly do you choose to make your home?”

  I drew close, letting him pull me into his arms. “With you, of course. My home is with you.”

  And then his lips were on mine, while the swans bugled from the lake behind us, and my brother awkwardly cleared his throat. I wasn’t sure whether I wanted to laugh or cry from happiness, so I settled for kissing my prince instead.

  Epilogue

  Once again the courtyard of the Keep had been covered with greenery, soft fabric, and lights and filled with all the inhabitants of Brylee. But this time the children from the haven ran merrily between the adults’ legs, laughing and calling to each other.

  “It’s perfect,” sighed Audrey, beside me. “I just wish it was a double wedding.” She grinned cheekily at me.

  “So does Gabe,” I said with a chuckle. “But just remember, this way you get to be an attendant twice—and you get a trip to the capital as well.”

  She brightened immediately before shrieking and rushing off to stop Juniper from throwing herself into a patch of mud, white dress and all. Part of me wished it was my wedding day, as well, but I couldn’t get married without my brother by my side. And the price of being a princess was that I couldn’t get married in a remote location in the middle of the forest, either.

  Dominic and Gabe’s parents had fought over which capital would host our wedding, and King Clarence and Queen Sapphira had only won because of Gabe’s status as crown prince. But my new sister-in-law, Sophie, had sworn that she would find a way to get herself there—regardless of how enormous she had become by that point. When I left Palinar to return to Talinos for Wren and Ash’s wedding, she and Dominic had still been debating whether a boat or a well-sprung carriage would provide a softer journey.

  A month in their company had been more than enough to convince me that my brother had truly changed. And it hadn’t taken more than a day to know that I would love my new sister just as well as Dominic had claimed.

  But neither would I forget the sisters of my heart. Wren had already promised that she would join Audrey as one of my attendants. Ash’s assistant was going to be taking charge of the bakery during their short wedding trip, so Wren had convinced Ash to leave his store for a little longer and take the whole family to the capital to join me.

  “The Keep has shined up nicely for the occasion, I think,” Cora said proudly from beside me.

  I turned to smile at her. “It looks completely magical. Wren is going to be delighted.”

  “Well, it was the only way,” Cora said with a snort. “It was hard enough moving all the oldsters out here in the first place, I wasn’t carting them all back into Brylee for a wedding.”

  “Who are you calling old?” Vilma asked, a sparkle in her eyes.

  “Vilma!” I gave her a hug, and she squeezed me back.

  “I heard you’d arrived,” she told me. “But I had to see for myself.”

  “I missed you,” I said. “And I promise I’ll be back to visit as often as I can.”

  “Which won’t be often enough, I’m sure, what with all your royal duties.” She shook her head and laughed. “Royal duties! Just imagine! A princess living among us. Gregor is still in shock, you know.”

  “I wish you could both come to the capital for the wedding,” I said.

  “Oh, goodness no.” She clasped my arm. “We would be out of place in a palace. But we’ll be thinking of you on the day.” She drew herself up and winked at me. “Cora’s asked us to keep an eye on the place in her absence, and it’s a big responsibility.”

  Cora rolled her eyes. “I don’t know what came over me.”

  I grinned at her, still pleased I had convinced her to come to my wedding despite its distance from Brylee. It helped that there were various official tasks she needed to complete in the capital, now that she was Lady Cora.

  Even after all these weeks, the inhabitants of Talinos were only slowly coming out of Leander’s enchantment. King Clarence and Queen Sapphira had been overcome with gratitude when they learned how the kingdom had been saved, and it had only taken a suggestion from Gabe for them to agree to grant Leander’s now empty titles and lands to Cora in thanks for her role in freeing them.

  I knew it hadn’t been just gratitude that motivated Gabe’s request, however. He had seen first-hand that no one deserved the title and role more. Cora had already dedicated her life to helping the people of this area—the official position would just mean she had the resources she needed to keep doing it, and the recognition she deserved as well.

  With a new, larger building, and all the wealth attached to the title, Cora would never have to worry about how to keep the haven running again. And the inhabitants of Brylee already knew to direct anyone who turned up at the old haven’s doors out of town to the Keep.

  Audrey delighted in coming up with outrageous suggestions for how the old building could be used, and even Cora and I had spent an enjoyable hour the night before discussing the topic while we wove flower garlands for the wedding and tried to avoid the smell of Audrey’s awful tea. No one liked to tell her not to drink it now we knew how important it had been. Audrey herself was convinced her noxious fumes had helped protect us all and was terribly smug about the whole thing.

  A flash of white drew my eye upward. A wedge of swans flew overhead, bugling loudly as they glided down below the level of the Keep’s walls to splash down into the lake beside it.

  “So they really did follow you to Palinar and back.” Cora shook her head. “You have a way of inspiring devotion, Lady. A quality that will stand you in good stead when you’re queen one day.”

  “I’m glad I didn’t lose them,” I said. “After everything we’ve been through together, they deserve a life of ease as royal birds.”

  I couldn’t talk to them as I once had, and they no longer seemed quite as attuned to my wishes, but neither did they behave like wild swans either. Snowy and Sweetie had attached themselves to Sophie, seeming to instantly sense her physical discomfort, and I had almost been afraid they might stay behind when the rest of us left. Eagle, on the other hand, had tried to bite Dominic on three separate occasions. Apparently my godmother had been right, and you couldn’t enchant an animal in such a way without making permanent changes.

  Gabe had been pleased for me but also concerned initially, wondering if his forests were now to be filled with aggressive wolves and bears with heightened intelligence. But his anxiety had proved unfounded. No reports of animal attacks had come in, and the bears hadn’t been sighted at all, apparently choosing to head deep into the uninhabited parts of the forest once they were freed. Most of the wolf packs had dispersed as well, although we had begun to hear tales about a woodsman who had somehow acquired a pack of wolves to hunt beside him.

  The hounds had been the only ones to make their way into town, and many of the townsfolk now had new members of their households, while the Keep itself had gained a whole family of hounds. Already the stories of their feats were spreading beyond Brylee, and I imagined the creatures would soon become legendary.

  “Lady! Cora!” Audrey called to us from the doors of the Keep. “I mean, Lady Cora and Princess Lady.” She began to giggle. “You two are so confusing.”

  “Did you save Junie’s dress from the mud?” I asked.

  “Yes, she’s inside now. And we need both of you. It’s nearly time to start the processional.”

  Cora and I hurried in, ready to take our places beside Wren who had insisted we both be attendants. When I saw the bride, dressed in softest pink accented with pearls, and with flowers through her hair, I stopped.

  “You look beautiful.” Tears filled my eyes.

  “As do both of you,” she said, reaching to clasp hands with both of us.

  “Just wait until you see the courtyard,” crowed Audrey, almost bouncing in place. “I think I outdid myself.”

  We all laughed, but from what Cora said, it was true. Audrey had thrown herself into the weddin
g, devoting herself to giving her sister the perfect day. We had all assured her over and over again that none of us blamed her for what had happened, but she seemed to need a physical outlet to demonstrate her remorse.

  Leander’s threats against Juniper had been enough to keep her from telling us the truth, but I had been right that she had been hoping she could help us secretly defeat Leander before the date of her betrayal arrived. We hadn’t succeeded, but it had all worked out in the end, and no one was going to hold any of it against her.

  The rest of us were already dressed in the deep rose-pink gowns I had brought from Palinar for the attendants. I had insisted that since I couldn’t be around to help with the other preparations, I would bring all the dresses back with me. Wren had already taken me aside this morning and told me that it was too much. The pearls on her dress were worth more than the rest of the wedding put together. But I had laughed and told her it was royal privilege and that I would soon be her crown princess, so she couldn’t refuse my gift.

  “Just make sure you sell them afterward and use the money for Junie—and any future babies who might soon be on their way,” I had said with a wink.

  She looked down, blushing rosily, and I laughed and nudged her with my shoulder.

  “Junie would love a younger brother or sister, I know. Or two or three.”

  She had chuckled at that and pushed me away, refraining from commenting further on the dress. And seeing her now, I was pleased at my choice.

  The look on Ash’s face as we joined him in front of the gathered townsfolk only reinforced my pleasure. And when I glanced sideways at the appreciative look on Gabe’s face as he gazed at me, I blushed as well. Before I knew it, it would be my turn to stand in front of my family and friends and promise to spend my life with the man I loved. And the moment couldn’t come too soon.

  Note from the Author