by Angel Lawson
“If I may,” Isla said, approaching the dressing table.
“Yes, you may speak freely. You don’t have to keep asking me that, you know.”
“Thank you,” she said, blushing. “This look, it will provide the desired effect from members of the kingdom and the visiting Queens.”
“How? I look twelve years-old.”
“Oh no,” she said. “It’s hard to explain, but I think it will make more sense once you see the other Queens.”
I’d seen images of these women in Liam’s memory. They looked like powerful, seductive women. Not like a little girl. I wondered if this was part of a larger plan to take me down. Isla had been there when my nails were painted. For all I knew, she may have orchestrated all of this.
“I think you should wear this, just in case,” she said, handing me a knife attached to a leg holster. Just like that, she shattered my fears. I lifted my skirt while she attached the sheath to my thigh.
Before I could argue with Isla, Mrs. Graves swept past the guards and into the room, unannounced. She stopped when she saw me and clasped her hands together. “You look outstanding, Nadya. Just gorgeous.”
“Thank you.” Maybe Isla was right about this look and I’m just being paranoid. “Any change?”
“No, I’m afraid not. The wound is still open and he’s unconscious.”
“Maybe I should try healing him again?” A panicky feeling rose in my stomach. “Maybe we need to postpone this whole thing?”
“Absolutely not. There isn’t time now to heal him or to back out. You must get in position. Fiona and Eleanor will be here soon.”
I followed her from the room, shaking off Isla and the other girl as they tried to make last minute adjustments to my dress and hair. Mrs. Graves and I were escorted by two guards through the castle to the grand hall. Just before we reached the doorway I stopped and said, “I’d like Colleen to accompany me.”
“She has an assignment.”
“Well, give her a new one. I’m not going in there alone.”
“Fine,” Mrs. Graves said, her voice a shade cooler. She turned to one of the guards. “Cover her position and send her in. Dressed appropriately.”
I approached the grand hall and peered in. The room sparkled as though it had been scrubbed clean. The lamps shone bright from brass fixtures, the marble floors gleamed, and the tapestries on the walls looked freshly cleaned. A roaring fire blazed in the pit, giving the cavernous, stone room a warm feel. Nothing about this place implied it had recently been trapped in a purgatory type vacuum and considering the lack of modern cleaning devices, the result was impressive.
To my surprise, the room was already filled with groups of people—or Sidhe to be more accurate. They sat in groups around the fire and at small tables arranged around the room and were dressed in various states of finery.
“Who are these people?” I asked.
“Your guests. Supporters of your kingdom. Some are members of the rebellion. Others have worked quietly in honor of your grandmother and mother for years.”
“Oh, should I meet them all?”
“No,” Mrs. Grave said. “Not today. Today is about you making an appearance and meeting with the other Queens.”
“And we do this in public? That seems…strange.”
“Maybe in the human world, but here things are a bit more transparent. Plus you’ll dine at a private table. You can take care of business there.”
Isla and the hair and makeup team emerged from nearby and immediately began adjusting my dress and hair to their liking.
“Stop,” I finally said, slapping them away with my hands. “God, I feel like I’m on Real Housewives or something.”
“Real…excuse me ma’am?”
“Never mind.”
“Television,” Colleen said, entering a side door. “These Sidhe will never understand it. Don’t even try.”
“You made it. Thank goodness,” I said, taking in her “appropriate” outfit. She looked stunning in green sheath dress. Not exactly formal, and definitely not a gown or even military uniform, but it looked like the type of outfit a political aide or personal assistant would wear.
She gave a curt nod to Mrs. Graves, who turned to leave. “After you’re announced, you’ll walk to the throne. As your confidante, I’ll follow at your side and then stand to your left. Once the Queens arrive you’ll offer Eleanor and Fiona one of the seats to your right or you can just go directly to dinner.”
She nudged me forward and a servant stepped forward and rang a bell, gaining the attention of room. The crowd hushed and stood. In a smooth, loud voice he announced, “Nadya, the Lost Queen, Daughter of Claudia, Granddaughter of Celeste, Niece to Eleanor and Fiona, Heir of the Original Goddess.”
“That’s you,” Colleen said, pushing me into the room. She followed closely behind, whispering encouragement and information in my ear, including the directive to “look royal.”
“I don’t know what that means,” I hissed, keeping my eyes forward and a plastered grin on my face. I didn’t want to look at the people bowing as I walked by. My people, as Liam would say. Liam. I hoped he was improving.
“Perfect.”
I’d only been seated for a moment when a commotion at the door caught my attention. “They’re here,” I heard from an unknown source. My stomach churned with nerves.
After all this time I would face them. Fiona and Eleanor. My mother’s sisters. Her murderers. The ones who set all of this into motion.
I swallowed and lifted my chin. “Send them in.”
***
In a fast whisper, Colleen prepped me for their entrance. They would be announced in order according to their birth. Yes, they were twins (or triplets, including my mother) but Fiona was still two minutes younger. Thank goodness Mrs. Graves prepared me for announcement of their titles. I was able to keep a straight face. Sometimes this place was too much.
“Fiona, Queen of Solar, Daughter of Celeste, Sister to Eleanor and Claudia, Heir of the Original Goddess,” a man dressed in formal clothing announced, followed by the Queen’s entrance.
The guards and staff stood at alert, only moving to bow as she passed. Two handmaidens in equally beautiful gowns followed close behind. Fiona wore a dress made of gold and white fabric, her hair long and flowing with an exquisite crown resting on top of her head. My god, she looked like Cinderella. I expected birds to come and carry the train of her dress. Absolutely star struck, it took a moment to gain my composure and proceed as I was instructed. I moved to stand just as she arrived in front of my throne. Then I bowed. Fiona’s lips twisted into a gracious smile.
“Your Highness,” I said, repeating what Mrs. Graves had taught me to say. “Welcome.”
“Nadya, child, aren’t you gorgeous.”
“Thank you.”
“May I approach?”
I glanced at Colleen and she gave me a tight nod. “Of course.”
Fiona stepped forward and I was hit by the delicious scent of vanilla. She caressed my cheek with a gloved hand. “Yes, I see the resemblance. You’re definitely part of the family.”
“Please, have a seat,” I said, and a servant ushered her to a high backed seat near the fire. I didn’t like the mention of family, seeing as how she’d played a part in my mother’s death. But I would address that later. From the noises coming at the entrance to the hall I had a feeling Eleanor was tired of waiting.
“Eleanor, Queen of Ravenwood, Daughter of Celeste, Sister to Fiona and Claudia, Heir of the Original Goddess.”
I braced myself for the woman who thrived in the land of cold and darkness, hunters and soldiers. On first sight she didn’t disappoint. She strode down the hall, shoulders back, chin up. Her dress was black and close fitting, trailing dramatically at the cuffs and down the back. Her crown was made of a black metal in the design of vines twisted together. She was a goth’s dream. I never could have imagined a more stunning dress, and her makeup—heavens her makeup. Her eye-liner was dark and heavy. It almost
looked like paint. But my eyes were glued to the black-red shade of her lipstick. Divine. Three servants trailed her, dressed in what looked like military garb.
Without averting my attention, I whispered to Colleen, “I feel like I’m in some sort of Disney movie.”
“Shhh…” she replied, with a choked laugh.
Eleanor stopped in the same spot as Fiona, who was lounging in her chair down the way and made no effort to stand when I did. Okay, then. I was getting a feeling why these two identified separately with dark and light. It was in their nature.
“Welcome,” I said, feeling the cold wave of hostility.
“Nadya.”
“I’m glad you came,” I said, searching for the right words. If Eleanor’s intention was to intimidate me then she was doing a good job.
She glanced behind me and said in a quiet voice, “That was my mother’s throne.”
I looked down at the fur covered seat. “Oh, I didn’t know…”
“I’m sure you didn’t.”
“Ignore my sister,” Fiona said, from her chair. “She has no manners. I, for one, am thrilled to be in the old castle. It’s been ages.”
Eleanor’s eye twitched, betraying the annoyance her sister caused her, but did not address her. Mrs. Graves appeared in the side door way and gave me a quick nod. “Um, I think now would be a great time to have dinner, don’t you agree?”
“Yes, wonderful,” Fiona said, finally rousing off her seat. Colleen followed us to the table on the far side of the fire pit. She carried herself with such a professional aloofness it was hard to reconcile her with the woman that worked with me for years at the airport. The good news was that she showed no fear, and that bolstered me a little. Thank god, there was no room for fear tonight. Not from our side of the table.
When we sat down, one associate of each queen sat with them. Colleen sat by my side in the seat Liam should have occupied. His absence was obvious to everyone and finally Fiona asked, “Where is Liam?”
“He’s, uh, occupied with some work.”
“Something more important than this?” Eleanor asked. Her eyes swept across the table at her sister, reminding me that even though they were different they had a shared interest.
“Yes, I expect him back soon, though.” They didn’t need to know he was injured. Or that I had done it myself. Sort of.
“Good,” Fiona said with a small smile. “I can’t wait to see him.”
“I’m sure he feels likewise,” I replied trying to keep the bitterness out of my tone. I wasn’t sure I succeeded. I reached for the silver goblet filled with wine and took a deep swallow. That must have been a signal of some kind, as maids and servers swooped down on the table and began filling it with platters of food and carafes of wine. I was happy to see them both dig in. Even with my nerves I was starving.
Like Mrs. Graves said, the pheasant was delicious. Both Eleanor and Fiona kept their tone pleasant, although I suspect it was the wine more than anything else.
“Tell us about your time in Otherworld. Where have you traveled?”
I thought for a moment, trying to ascertain if this was a trick question or not. They both had kept tabs on me for most of my time here. “I had the opportunity to travel through both of your kingdoms. They are both lovely. I can see why you are so protective of your land.”
“We’ve sunk our souls into Otherworld. Centuries of hard work and sacrifice to our people.”
“I can tell; your personalities are linked so closely to the landscape. To the people, too—they are very loyal.”
“Most, at least. Is that loyalty why you chose to kill my soldiers?” Fiona asked, nonchalantly.
“I didn’t choose to. I was forced to when they attacked me.”
Eleanor narrowed her eyes. “Tell me more about your use of the birds. Very inventive.”
“That was an accident.”
“Was it?”
Colleen gave the slightest shake of the head. She was right. Eleanor didn’t need to know I didn’t have full control over my magic. “Can we talk about something else?”
“If we must,” Eleanor said, eyes narrowed. “Let’s talk about your plans for the castle and land surrounding it.”
“Well,” I said, trying to measure my words to sound informed. “It’s my understanding the Deadlands were encroaching on your kingdoms, threatening your vegetation and animals. I’m hoping that will stop now.”
“That is true,” Fiona said, reaching for a chocolate covered strawberry from a bowl a server had just placed on the table. “But it’s more complicated that. Everything in Otherworld works on a fine equilibrium. You coming here upsets that balance.”
Eleanor gave me a patronizing grin. “For example, the dark magic in Ravenwood balances the light magic in Solar. Warmth versus cold. Positive energy against negative. We’re two sides of a coin.”
“We’re just not sure where you fit into this equation.” Fiona glanced at me after inspecting her nails. “There aren’t three sides to a coin, after all.”
“And it’s my understanding that there should only really be one queen. Yet Otherworld has three,” I said.
“I’ll give you another example,” Eleanor said. “If a subject from Solar came to me with the intent to betray her Queen, I would take her in…just to keep an eye on things. I’d punish the traitor, of course, but then use her for the greater good of our kingdoms. Using her skills to bring me useful information. In the end she would suffer for her original duplicity.”
A small smirk appeared on Fiona’s face. Her eyes cut between me and Colleen. Eleanor continued, “You betray my sister, you betray me.”
“That is, until a third party gets involved,” Fiona added. “Some people need to mind their own business.”
“Are you talking about Grace?” I asked. Neither woman replied. I had a feeling they got off on vague accusations and manipulation. Plus they conveniently failed to realize the hypocrisy of their involvement with my mother’s death. As though that wasn’t a betrayal of its own. “Because I’m pretty sure she did what you asked. Why did you torture her?”
“Not everything we asked,” Eleanor said, dryly. “Or we wouldn’t be here right now.”
“She brought me to your castle. The gates slammed shut on their own accord. That wasn’t her fault.”
“But she’s here, correct? Living with you?” Fiona asked.
“If I may,” Collen interjected, “Why don’t we talk about traitors later? There are many issues between the kingdoms that need to be discussed.”
“Right,” I said, happy for the focus. Colleen nodded and I removed the small slip of paper I’d tucked into the small pocket of my gown. It was a list of ideas I didn’t want to forget. “You both know I am new to this and it is not a job or title I am exactly comfortable with yet. But I won’t pretend I don’t feel a connection to this land and to the castle and even the people here, including you both. I would like to work with you on a reasonable truce for the time being.”
“Why would we consider a truce?”
“Because you know this land rightfully belonged to my mother. And you not only killed Celeste but you killed my mother, too. I don’t know how the law works around here but in the human world there is a severe punishment for that level of crime. My mother cared enough about Otherworld to spend her life monitoring the portal and keeping both worlds safe. And from what I understand, she was willing to return to Otherworld and you were willing to kill her to keep her away. That is enough motivation for me to stake my claim. And that scene with the birds and the soldiers I have taken on in this world and my home world should be enough to motivate you to back off. At least for now. Otherwise all this talk about how you care for your people isn’t very meaningful.”
“Aren’t you smug?” Fiona said with a snarl. “I see a little of my sister in there. I wonder if you’ll look the same begging for mercy.”
I tapped my sharpened nails on the table. “I will take you out before you get the chance to kill me.”
Fiona’s eyes widened, unused to being spoken to that way, but Eleanor just laughed. “You’re a strong little girl with some definite potential, but fighting with birds and stealing the energy of the dead can only take you so far. I will admit that losing Claudia was probably a mistak—“
“You killed her.”
She shrugged as if the semantics were unnecessary to justify. “We acted rashly. You are correct about the land. We need the entire kingdom whole so it can begin to repair itself. The three of us need to work together—equally—to make this happen.”
Fiona opened her mouth to argue but Eleanor shot her a firm look. She didn’t look happy about the admonishment but remained quiet. Increasingly, it became clear that Eleanor wasn’t just the older sister. She was the dominant one as well.
“How do you propose we work together?” I asked.
“As far as a truce goes…we’re willing to discuss, but on our terms.”
Colleen spoke up and said, “Explain.”
“We agree to recognize Nayda as the Queen of this land. We will remain peaceful with the intent of healing the land, making it fertile and habitable for all. We will trade with one another and maintain a healthy economic relationship.”
“So far this only really benefits Solar and Ravenwood,” Colleen said. “What is the value for Nadya?”
“We will maintain this truce for three years, giving you time to build your kingdom, an army and any allies. We will have time to heal and fortify ourselves. The Guard will maintain the portal like they have since the beginning of time.” She smiled without a trace of bitterness. “After that we can reassess. I mean, it’s possible by then we’ll all be friends.”
To my surprise Fiona nodded in agreement. I wasn’t even sure she’d been paying attention. “We’ll think it over,” Colleen said.
“Of course,” Eleanor replied. “And please, add in any additional criteria you have. Should we meet again in three days?”
She looked directly at me and I nodded. “Three days sounds fine.”
I realized during all of this discussion the table had been cleared. The servers came forward with delicious-looking dessert of chocolate cake covered with berries. I lifted my fork and took the first, sweet bite, hoping maybe things would work out after all. When I looked up from my plate I saw Eleanor watching me, fork poised gracefully at her mouth. My father always said, “Don’t make a deal with the devil.” I never fully understood it. Not until now.
