by J. D. Wright
Dagan doubted Rowan would harm Adelphie, either. But she didn’t know that. And after the trouble that she had caused them in the past, he was happy to see her squirm.
Chapter Thirteen
The mysta arrived just after breakfast. Upon making introductions, Bree cleared the hall in order to provide a bit of privacy for Reeve and Rhea. She sat at the far end of the hall with Sidonie and Finn, watching with heavy hearts as the mysta recited lines that they couldn’t really hear from where they were sitting. Bree may not have been able to hear what was being said, but she could easily see what was happening. Reeve looked half asleep and Rhea seemed to be in a haze as she stood, motionless and staring at the floor.
Sidonie got Bree’s attention when she noticed the mysta was finished. Bree stood and slowly approached, trying to think of something appropriate to say to the two of them. Nothing came to mind. Instead, she thanked the mysta for rearranging his traveling schedule to accommodate them and gestured to Finn, who paid the mysta for his services. The mysta took the small bag of coins and nodded. Bree expected him to leave, but instead he turned back to Reeve and Rhea, who hadn’t moved from their positions since the annulment ritual began.
“I assume the matter of guardianship has been handled?” he asked, looking back and forth between them.
“Guardianship?” Reeve asked.
“Yes, guardianship. Of the child,” the mysta replied. “I’ve been informed that there is a young girl of whom you retained guardianship over prior to the marriage taking place. Is that correct?”
“Well, yes. I did have… I mean, I do have guardianship over my sister, Gabrielle.” Reeve was surprised by both the mysta’s knowledge of the situation and his questions.
“Why would there be an issue of guardianship?” Bree asked. The thought had never crossed her mind until now.
“Law of the land dictates that guardianship of a child prior to a marriage becomes shared upon a couple taking and receiving their vows. Therefore, even though the marriage has now ended, the guardianship will continue to be shared. That is until the child reaches adulthood or becomes married herself. Whichever occurs first.”
“I don’t understand,” Rhea said, softly. “I intend to leave Junacave. I do not plan to stay.”
“I’m afraid that you cannot abandon your responsibilities toward the child. This circumstance is very different in that the two of you are still living when most of all other marriages end with death. Since neither of you are a widow, you most both retain your guardianship duties, if and until, one of you has found a proper wife or husband and can raise the child alone.”
The mysta’s voice was kind, but his tone was firm. Bree started to interfere but stopped. She knew better than to question a mysta. Especially the mysta who would be presiding over her own wedding ceremony in the coming months.
“Seeing as the child is nearing adulthood,” the mysta continued, “I would be willing to entertain her thoughts. Is she here now? I will speak with her.”
Reeve looked away, trying to hide the cringing expression he knew he was making. He tried to think of an excuse for Gabby’s absence. The last thing he needed right now was to make the mysta believe that he was not capable of caring for Gabby. Even though at the moment, he didn’t feel very capable.
“She is not here, I’m afraid. She has been visiting distant relatives, to further her studies. She will be returning shortly,” he lied, doing his best to make it sound convincing.
“Well, then. I will be returning in the winter, to preside over the queen’s marriage ceremony. I suppose I could speak with the child upon my return. Until then, the guardianship will remain as is. Shared,” the mysta said, nodding. Then he turned, said farewell to the queen, and left the room.
Bree walked over and sat on her throne. She felt a pang of guilt for being the one who told the mysta about Gabrielle. It was the mysta who asked if the marriage had been consummated or if any children were tied to the home. It wasn’t her intention to cause another hardship for Reeve or Rhea. She didn’t realize that by mentioning Gabby, she had once again interfered, for the worse.
“Your Majesty?” Rhea asked, softly.
“Yes?” Bree said, looking up. Rhea and Reeve were still standing there.
“I know I must stay in Junacave, for the time being. However, now that Sir Reeve and I are no longer married, I believe that sleeping in the same quarters as him may not be… appropriate.” She wanted to say that staying near Reeve would be miserable and depressing, but she didn’t want him to hear her say it.
Reeve was more than slightly annoyed by Rhea referring to him by his title. She had never called him “Sir Reeve,” even before their accidental marriage in Anestas. It irritated him that she was so quick to use his formal title when he was already feeling regret for allowing the mysta to annul the marriage. Before the queen could even reply, Reeve huffed and walked away.
Bree could tell that Reeve was upset as he left the hall. She was beginning to get irritated, herself, with Rhea. And now, she felt it necessary to share her thoughts.
“Rhea, I have interfered with your life and caused you pain. For that, I am sorry,” Bree began. “But I have also held my tongue in regards to your recent behavior. Out of respect for my knights, I typically do not lecture when their wives display poor behavior. Now that you are no longer married to one of my knights, I see no need to stay silent.”
Rhea felt too miserable to act surprised and honestly, she probably deserved everything the queen was about to say to her. She kept her eyes raised as Bree continued.
“I understand that you have had a terribly painful history with men. They used you and abused you in ways that I may not ever really be able to understand. I know that. However, Reeve is nothing like those men. If anything, he is the exact opposite. He is kind and caring and undeserving of this. I know your marriage was forced upon you, but that doesn’t mean the marriage was entirely wrong. He cares for you. Deeply, I might add. And it isn’t only because Gabby has taken so fondly to you, either. He cares for you in his own way.”
“Yes, I know,” Rhea replied, trying to keep her voice steady.
“And you care for him, too.”
“Yes.” Rhea knew it wasn’t a question, but she answered anyway.
“Do you think he only wanted to be married to you because you are a fairy? To be boastful? Because I can tell you that—“
“Absolutely not!” Rhea said, surprised that the queen would even think that. “I’ve never once thought that Reeve, err, Sir Reeve, would be so shallow. He is incredibly honorable.”
“Then, perhaps the problem is that neither of you had a choice in the marriage? You, like many unfortunate others, were forced to marry out of duty. Well, it may have been in order to escape an uncertain punishment,” Bree said, frowning. “Still… It was not out of love. But, Rhea, that doesn’t mean you cannot love the person you are forced to marry.”
Rhea looked away now as the first tear began to fall.
“I understand, Your Majesty. But I can’t help but feel that I would spend my entire life wondering if he cares for me because he loves me or because it is his duty to care for me, as a husband. I once spent time with men who do not love me. I will never do that, again. I want to spend my life with someone who marries me out of choice. I want the same for him, as well.”
“Oh, Rhea,” Bree said, beginning to cry, herself. “I am so sorry. I didn’t realize you felt this way.”
“Well,” Rhea said, wiping her tears, “it doesn’t matter now. What’s done is done.”
“Yes, I guess it is. As to your request, I agree. Since you are no longer married, you will move back to the guest chambers. And to make it easier, on both of you, I will have a servant move your belongings. So you will not need to return to your suite.”
“Thank you.”
~*~
Sidonie sat beside Finn and began to eat her supper. Tonight’s meal was smoked fish, which reminded her of the many times she had eaten fish
cooked over a fire when she lived with the Sabras. It had become her favorite meal.
“I just received a new barrel of wine from Labara,” Bree said, taking a seat across from them. “I’ve never tried it, before. It is mulberry, of course, but one of the servants mentioned it had littamum berries added to it. Neither the servant nor I have any idea what those are, but…” She shrugged.
“How many barrels do you have?” Finn asked, frowning.
“Just the one, I believe,” Bree replied, watching as a servant poured wine into her goblet.
“That won’t be nearly enough,” Reeve grumbled, taking a seat beside Finn.
“Now, now,” Bree said. “Drowning your sorrows is not going to fix anything.”
“It can’t hurt.” Sidonie picked up her goblet and took a whiff of the sweet aroma. Something suddenly struck her as odd. Something the queen said. What was it?
“I was hoping to hear back from—Ahh!” Bree yelped as Sidonie snatched her goblet straight out of her hand. Bree’s eyes and mouth flew open when Sid tossed the goblet across the hall.
“Don’t drink the wine!” Sidonie shouted.
But it was too late. Finn had already taken a sip and was falling backward, off of the wooden bench. Reeve barely caught him before his head could hit the stone, then eased him onto the floor.
“What happened? Was it the wine?” Bree asked. She started to climb over the long table, but there were too many dishes. So she got up and ran around it, instead.
“The wine is poisoned!” Sidonie said, kneeling next to Finn and removing a bottle from a pouch attached to her belt. She was suddenly thankful that Dagan had constantly encouraged her to carry a few potions with her.
“I will stop the kitchen maids from pouring any more of it,” Reeve said. He got up and ran to the kitchens.
Sir Nicholas, who had been sitting at the far end of the table with Cicilly and her sister, Celeste, began walking around the room, checking to see if anyone else had the wine in their goblets.
“Are you sure it was the wine? What are you giving him?” Bree asked, watching as Sidonie poured a small bottle of shiny blue liquid into Finn’s mouth.
“It’s elixir. Made from sootaberries. It should stop the poison. Unless it’s gone to his heart. Then, we’re too late.” Sidonie watched and waited, but Finn didn’t move. “Rhea. Someone find Rhea!” she shouted, looking around the hall.
“I’m here!” Rhea said, running toward them and collapsing onto the floor. “What happened?”
“Littamum berries. They were in the wine,” Sidonie said, barely able to breathe because her heart was beating frantically. “I gave him some elixir.”
“It won’t work,” Rhea replied, shaking her head. “Littamum berries do not attack the heart. They attack the blood.”
“Can you heal him? Please say you can heal him,” Bree said, pleading.
“I can try.” Rhea put her hands on Finn’s chest and closed her eyes. She started reciting a song in her head that her mother taught her, a song to heal a broken body. After she found the rhythm of the song, she began to pull magic from all around her, channeling it through her hands and into Finn’s chest.
Reeve returned to the hall just in time to see Finn wake, gasping for air. He sighed in relief and tried to catch his breath after running all the way down to the cellar and back. His heart was still beating out of his chest.
Once Finn had enough strength to stand, Reeve helped him to his chambers to lie down and stayed by his side until he woke the next morning.
“How do you feel?” Reeve asked, yawning.
“Sore,” Finn said, sitting up. “What happened?”
“You don’t remember?”
“I vaguely remember you helping me upstairs, but that’s mostly all.”
“Poison. In the wine. Thankfully, you were the only one who drank it before Sidonie realized it.”
“Just my luck. What did she feed me?” he asked, scrunching up his nose. There was a terrible taste in his mouth.
“An elixir, I think. But it didn’t work. It was Rhea that saved you…”
“Having a fairy in the castle is useful. I’m glad you haven’t run her off yet.”
Reeve pressed his lips together to stop himself from speaking. He decided to ignore Finn’s comment since the man had almost died from poisonous wine and the woman he loved was missing.
“You look terrible,” Finn said. “Are you sure you weren’t the one who was poisoned?”
“I couldn’t sleep,” Reeve said, flatly. “You were snoring all night long.”
“I’ve never snored before,” Finn replied. “It must have been a very deep sleep.”
There was a light knock on the door and Nick stuck his head inside. “The queen is holding a council meeting. I’ve gotten permission to allow you to sit in the meeting, in Rowan’s place. If you’d like.”
Reeve glanced over at Finn, who was grunting as he tried to stand. “Maybe I should stay. He doesn’t look very steady.”
“No, go to the meeting. I’ll be fine,” Finn said. He waved them away, then slid back down onto the bed. He was too sore to care that he was missing a good opportunity to eavesdrop on the meeting, which he had always done. He knew Bree would tell him about it later, anyway. His head had barely hit the pillow before he was drifting off to sleep again.
~*~
Bree knew the people in the room were talking, but she couldn’t seem to pay attention long enough to comprehend what they were saying. Her mind kept wandering to the nightmare of what could have happened if Sidonie hadn’t recognized that the berry was poisonous. What if she hadn’t overheard the servant say the berry’s name? Everyone sitting at the high table would be dead, including her. And Rowan would return to find his fiancé, father, and brother were all gone, in addition to his missing daughter. Dagan would be without Sidonie. The thoughts of what might have happened if one small detail had been overlooked weighed heavily on her.
“Your Majesty?” Sid said, leaning in closer to get Bree’s attention. “Would you like a moment?”
Bree looked around the table. Every eye was on her. “Who ordered the wine? Who accepted the delivery?” she asked. “Have we at least been able to get that far?”
“Yes,” Nick replied, then repeated what he had just told the rest of the council. “The wine came from Labara. We ordered forty barrels for the tournament and received forty-one. The kitchen maid who counted the barrels assumed the extra barrel was a gift from King Nolan. That is why the barrel was opened early. Tonight.”
“Why would King Nolan want to kill the queen?” Sir Luthias asked. “We have been nothing but gracious allies to their kingdom for decades now. What reason would they have to do this?”
“We can’t be certain that the barrel actually came from King Nolan,” Bree said, “or from Labara, at all. It could have easily been added to the count after the wagon was unloaded. Anyone could have placed it there.”
“Perhaps, it was the wizard? Mereck?” Nick asked.
Reeve leaned back in his chair. “He already has the princess and my sister. If he wants that stone so badly, why would he kill the people who are trying to get it for him?”
“I don’t think he did,” Sidonie said, her voice barely above a whisper. “I think it was another wizard. And I don’t think it was intended to kill the queen. It was intended to kill me.”
“You can’t be certain, Sid,” Bree said, reaching out to put her hand on Sidonie’s arm.
“I knew fighting the wildfire in the open would reveal my status as Elder Mage. I knew word would spread that I was here. We knew they would come for me. And whoever it was, used littamum berries because they knew an elixir would be useless. If Rhea hadn’t been there…”
“Rhea was there and Finn will be just fine. Sidonie, this wasn’t your fault,” Bree said.
Reeve asked, “How are we supposed to fight an enemy if we have no idea who they are? Better yet, when they are wizards?”
“I should have gon
e with Dyna, to search for Adelphie. If I were gone, maybe they wouldn’t have tried to poison me. Or anyone.” Sidonie felt tears beginning to form and she fought the urge to run. Fleeing would not fix her problem and she didn’t want to show weakness as the Elder Mage. Even though her world was crashing down around her, she had to be brave. For Sarita and Gabby. For her sister. For everyone.
“There is no way of knowing whether the barrel would have still come if you were gone, Sid. And without you, a third of this room would be dead. You were the one who recognized the name of the berry. You saved us.”
“Rhea was the only savior. I put you all in danger.” As hard as she was trying to stay strong, she knew the tears were coming and she didn’t want anyone to see it. Without saying another word, she stood and left the room. She was able to control her emotions until she got back to the wizard’s tower. The moment the door closed behind her, she fell to the floor and began to cry. Rhea heard Sidonie and came down from the casting room.
“Oh, no,” she said, running to Sidonie’s side. “It’s going to be alright. I promise. Everything will be fine. Everything will be just fine.” Before she even finished her last sentence, she was sobbing along with her. They sat on the cold stone floor and cried together.
Chapter Fourteen
Rianne was beginning to feel confident about her ability to escape Hallowood without being recognized. She had received strange looks from several people, but she knew it was because of her unusual hair and not because she looked like the princess. She had spent the first day hiding in the forest, afraid to come out and go near the town. After eating her last piece of dried beef, however, she was left with only two pickled turnips to survive on. She needed to buy food and knew the only way to do so would be to venture into Hallowood.
So on the second day, she had put her disguise to the test and walked straight through the center of the town, stopping by the market to browse the stalls. No one seemed to care who she was as long as she had the money to purchase the goods. She bought food and a pre-made gown from the town’s seamstress. The fit was a bit loose, so she bought a thin belt to hold it in and a few small pieces of scrap fabric which she intended to use to sew hidden pockets into the gown. And the belt also allowed her to hang a few small pouches from her waist, which was helpful by taking some of the weight out of her sack.
