The Princess Search: A Retelling of The Ugly Duckling (The Four Kingdoms Book 5)

by Melanie Cellier

Well, the only unattached princesses of marriageable age, I conceded. Sailing away from my new niece, possibly the cutest button of a baby to ever exist, had been the hardest part about leaving home. Sophie and I had been so excited when the second child of our brother Max and his wife Alyssa had been a girl.

  Three figures emerged from below deck and came to stand behind us. I felt my muscles loosen a little at their solid presence. The middle-aged couple and the older woman carried the same sort of reassuring authority as a parent. If something was wrong, they would see it put right.

  Gregory and Helena, the Baron and Baroness of Lilton, were the official head of the Arcadian delegation, and the Duchess of Sessily led the Lanoverians. Sophie and I had been strictly enjoined to follow their direction in all things. The duchess was a highly respected negotiator throughout the Four Kingdoms, and everyone knew that Lanover never considered a new treaty without her input. In fact, so great was my parents’ admiration for her wisdom and shrewd intelligence, that they had instructed us to take careful note of any directions she might give Celine, and to match our behavior to any restrictions she chose to bestow on her own charge.

  The Emissary, who was still on the dock talking with the group who had come to greet the ship, noted the arrival of the delegation heads and hurried back on board. He bowed low before launching into a speech that only made me more nervous.

  “I’m afraid there has been an unforeseen occurrence. Entirely unforeseen, I assure you.” He paused and rubbed his hands together.

  “I’m sure, whatever it is, we can find our way through it together.” The duchess’ calm tones should have given anyone confidence, but the Emissary simply threw her a wary look.

  “Yes, yes, certainly. Of course, we will do all we can. Our greatest desire is to see a profitable alliance established between our two lands and we would never willingly do anything to jeopardize that.”

  I caught Celine’s eye roll just as Sophie projected, Gracious, he’s not good at getting to the point, is he?

  Apparently our guardians shared this opinion. “Perhaps you might enlighten us as to this new development,” said the baron with admirable restraint.

  “Yes, indeed. It has all happened in my absence, you understand. I had not the smallest inkling. How could I?”

  “How indeed?” said Helena, the baroness, with apparent sympathy. No doubt our parents had hoped we would learn from her example when they had chosen her as a joint head of the delegation. She hadn’t been born to her station, as we had, but she carried herself with more dignity.

  The man who had originally hailed the ship strode on board. “I’m afraid we really can’t wait any longer.” He cast an exasperated glance at the Emissary. “Their Highnesses will need to accompany us immediately.”

  “Excuse me?” A lining of steel appeared around the duchess’ calm.

  The man gave her an apologetic look. “You are welcome too, Your Grace, of course. But we only have room in the carriage for three. We didn’t realize there would be so many. Another carriage is on its way. But we cannot wait for it. The ceremony is about to begin, and we don’t know what will happen if Their Highnesses aren’t present.”

  “What ceremony?” Baron Lilton stepped forward as if to shield Sophie and me with his body. I appreciated the gesture, but I also noticed a group of guards standing uneasily on the pier. Our small Arcadian honor guard looked equally uncomfortable, hanging back on deck and awaiting some sort of direction.

  “The opening ceremony of the Princess Tourney,” said the Emissary unhappily. “Apparently it is beginning even now.”

  The Princess Tourney? That sounds ominous. Sophie had her eyes on the Marinese guards as well.

  Tourneys had long gone out of fashion in the Four Kingdoms, but our great-grandparents had apparently been fond of them. I had never heard of one with princesses, however. They can’t possibly mean us to joust with each other, can they? I tried to picture it and failed.

  “The Princesses need to come with us now.” The newcomer reached forward and gently gripped my upper arm, attempting to lead me off the ship. “The Emissary will remain to explain everything. And you may follow as soon as the extra carriages arrive.”

  I dug my heels in and glanced back at the baron and baroness. They both looked concerned, but I could read the truth in their eyes. They could do nothing against the might of this entire land. Even the ship we stood on was theirs. We would have to acquiesce and hope for the best.

  I stopped resisting and gripped Sophie’s hand, dragging her along behind me.

  Don’t worry, Lily, you know they can’t separate us. Not truly. Sophie looked at me knowingly, and I felt a renewed sense of justification for keeping our secret.

  No one in all the kingdoms knew about our connection. Not since Nanny had passed away the previous year. She alone had known the true effect of the gift our godmother had given at our Christening. A greater bond than ever twins have shared before. And she had always advised us to keep it to ourselves.

  “Your special secret,” Nanny had told us as children, and “Your special weapon,” as we had grown older. “It will unnerve others, unnecessarily,” she had warned. “You have no need to speak of it.”

  I had wondered, sometimes, if she was wrong. If we should have told our family at least. But now I tucked the knowledge of the secret close. There was no way anyone in Marin could have heard of our connection so, whatever happened, we had one unexpected advantage.

  The Marinese herded Celine along behind us and within moments had bustled us all into a waiting carriage. Their attempts to shut the door were hampered by Celine’s outstretched foot. “Wait,” she said. “Where are we going?”

  “To the Palace, of course, Your Highness,” was the reply, before the door was forcibly closed. Celine collapsed back onto a seat, and I took her place, peering out the window.

  The carriage jolted and started to move, and I watched the distant figures on the ship recede farther and farther away. Was it only minutes ago I had been comforted by the presence of the older nobles? It looked like I wasn’t going to be able to rely on them to fix things, after all. My earlier instinct had been right. If we wanted to stay safe, we would have to rely on ourselves.

  Read on in A Dance of Silver and Shadow

  Acknowledgments

  The Princess Search wasn’t part of my original plan for the Four Kingdoms series. I intended to finish once all the princesses from The Princess Companion had their stories. But, in the end, I couldn’t end it when the crown prince of Lanover still hadn’t found true love. Or Cassian and Clarisse for that matter. And many lovely readers seemed to feel the same way, so I decided to add one last book. Hopefully you enjoyed the unplanned extra chapter to the Four Kingdoms story!

  Of course, as always, many people assisted to bring the story to this point, and I rely on and appreciate every bit of their assistance. My lovely beta readers, Katie, Rachel, Greg, and Ber, and my editors, Mary, Dad, and Debs.

  Thanks once again to Karri for the perfect cover. This time I had it before I wrote the book, and it was a fantastic inspiration in the hours I spent at my computer bringing the story and Evie to life.

  As always, those hours at the computer were only possible due to the support of my family. In this case, thanks go both to Marc and to my parents who kept me fed and mostly sane while covering more than their share of the parenting duties.

  And, of course, thanks to God, an unchanging rock in the midst of a life that currently feels full of change.

  About the Author

  Melanie Cellier grew up on a staple diet of books, books, and more books. And although she got older, she never stopped loving children’s and young adult novels. She always wanted to write one herself, but it took three careers and three different continents before she actually managed it.

  She now feels incredibly fortunate to spend her time writing from her home in Adelaide, Australia where she keeps an eye out for koalas in the backyard. Her staple diet hasn’t changed
much, although she’s added choc mint rooibos tea and Chicken Crimpies to the list.

  Her young adult Four Kingdoms and Beyond the Four Kingdoms series are made up of linked stand-alone stories that retell classic fairy tales.