There was nobody outside, the noise of the ball fading into the distance. The night sky was a wash of deep, dark blue, still and mysterious like the sea. The veranda looked out over the palace’s outdoor gardens, though there wasn’t much to look at thanks to the season. There was very little greenery save for a couple pine trees in stone-carved planters, as well as a few hedges here and there with a few leaves on skinny and naked branches. The palace’s gardeners had recently installed lights along every cobblestone path leading through the gardens, twinkling gently just like the stars above. The moon was full but hidden behind a few grey clouds.
I walked up to the railing and leaned against it, facing the knight as he joined me at my side. “Thank you again for saving me,” I giggled. “Are you going to catch me if I throw myself over the edge too?”
He laughed, booming and bright. There was an ease about him, something that made me feel calm and safe. I still didn’t know a thing about him, but there was something weirdly familiar about the way he spoke. I just couldn’t put my finger on it.
“Third time’s the charm,” he said, “but I wouldn’t want to risk it.”
“You weren’t really invited to the ball, were you.” I said this as a statement, not a question.
The corners of his mouth ticked upward. “What makes you say that, Princess?”
“Father only invites members of parliament and other officials.”
“I could be an official.”
“No. You’re too much fun.”
“Thank you?”
I giggled, nervously brushing a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “It was a compliment.”
“I’m flattered,” he hummed gently, leaning in a bit closer. “There’s no need to worry, Princess. Crashing parties isn’t really my thing. I’ve got my invitation right here.” The knight reached into his pants pocket and pulled out the corner of the cream cardstock invite.
“I wasn’t worried,” I insisted.
“No? Are you normally this quick to trust strangers?”
I shook my head. “You’ve said we’ve known each other for a very long time. If that’s the case, we’re not strangers.”
“Very true, Princess. Very true.”
“Can you at least give me a hint?”
“That’d be cheating.”
“Cheating would be pulling off your mask,” I joked. “Come on. I see hundreds of different people in the run of the day.”
The knight gawked and gasped dramatically while placing a hand over his offended heart. “So you’re saying I don’t stand out from the rest?”
I laughed, placing a hand on his forearm. The cool metal of his costume made it impossible to really get a better sense of the man underneath. Even still, I liked being this close to him, even if he was only playing games. I’d normally never tolerate such behavior, but there was something fanciful about this man, something alive and exhilarating and not at all boring like the rest of the guests. He was wrong to say he didn’t stand out. He stood out too much, enrapturing me with his carefree attitude and mischievousness.
I wracked my brain long and hard, tried to come up with a list of young men in my life. Apart from Brandon and a few members of my security team, I really didn’t know that many, and this knight didn’t match any of their descriptions. The people who surrounded me were normally very serious, bordering on stuffy, which was why I was having such a hard time placing him.
“I give up,” I sighed. “I’m sorry. I have no idea who you are. Please don’t be offended.”
The knight leaned in slightly. We were standing less than a foot away, practically drawn together like magnets.
“You could never offend me,” he whispered, loud enough for only me to hear.
Because his face was obscured by his mask, I was only able to concentrate on the shape of his lips. They were perfectly plump and smooth, the curve of his cupid’s bow pronounced and beautiful. Part of me really wanted to reach up and run a finger down the line of his jaw, just to feel how sharp it truly was. The scent of his rosewood cologne filled my head, left me tingling all over. There really was something familiar about him, like I’d seen him in a dream long since forgotten and was just now pulling the memories of him back to the surface.
It was then, and only then, that I realized there was something hanging above our heads. I caught the red and green of fresh mistletoe out of the corner of my eye and looked up. The air caught in my lungs as the knight looked up as well, glancing back at me with one of those incredibly charming, irresistible smiles.
“Would you look at that?” He chuckled.
“This is turning out to be an incredibly wild night,” I said.
Very gently, he placed his hand on my cheek and leaned in. “Wouldn’t want to go against tradition,” he whispered, warm breath tickling my face.
I closed my eyes just as he pressed his lips to mine. He was every bit tender and sweet, our lips brushing against one another so gently I could have mistaken it happened altogether. It left me wanting more, inciting a flame of curiosity deep within my core. I allowed myself to rise onto my toes, pressing into him to get a better feel of his embrace. It was easy to melt into his grasp as he slowly wrapped his arms around my waist, holding me against him. My hands wandered upward as we deepened the kiss, the tips of our tongues teasing against one another. An invigorating fire within me grew stronger and stronger as we explored the shapes of each other’s mouths, my hands trailing upward to comb through his short brown hair.
I wanted to know who this mystery man was. I needed to know who was kissing me so passionately that it knocked the breath right out of my lungs. The edges of my fingers grazed against the knight’s mask, seconds away from lifting it off his face. But before I could get hold of it, he pulled back and chuckled.
“Now, now,” he said. “Don’t you know it’s rude to undress someone without their permission?”
I giggled. “You’re right. I should have asked.”
To my disappointment, the knight took a single step back. He bowed to me, once again sweeping an arm before him. This time, however, he placed a single red rose in my palm. “I’m afraid I have to get going,” he explained.
“W-what?” I stammered. I swallowed at the lump in my throat, trying to keep my cool. “So soon? The ball’s supposed to keep going until well over midnight.”
“Are you going to miss me?”
I rolled my eyes but was unable to hide my amused grin. “What if I need saving again?”
“I’m sure you can stand up for yourself. You seem like a very capable woman.” He dipped his head out of respect, a few strands of his brown hair falling before his mask. “Goodnight, Princess Marina.”
As he turned on his heels to leave, I called after him, “W-wait!”
“Yes, Princess?”
“Tell me who you are,” I demanded. “How am I supposed to see you again?”
The knight smiled from ear to ear, eyes twinkling beneath the moonlight seeping past thin clouds. “We’ll meet again, Princess. I promise.”
And just like that, he was gone, leaving me with a single rose to sniff as I stood there alone, dazed, and dreamy.
3
Rodrigo
I loved the smell of paintballs in the morning.
Dashing behind a wooden plank, I narrowly avoided Oliver’s orange paint pellets as they splattered against the hard surface. I stayed in a crouched position behind the plank, attempting to peek around the corner to see if I had a clear shot. St. George’s Preparatory School for Boys had a wide variety of extracurricular activities for its students, and it just so happened to have a competitive paintball team—of which both Oliver and I were on. Since the weather was getting so cold, fewer people were signing up to use the old paintball course located in the east district. It had been a long time since we’d gone a couple of rounds, so it was a nice way to get the blood pumping at the crack of dawn. We even got a holiday discount on supplies because the owner of the range was in such a fantastic moo
d.
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see a couple of bushes moving about. I fired twice in the general direction of the movement, hoping to drive Oliver out of his hiding spot.
“You missed me, sucker!” he sang, chipper and energetic thanks to the gallon of coffee he chugged while in the car. And maybe because of something else entirely.
“Why are you in such a good mood today?” I asked, shifting from my position to hide behind a larger, sturdier steel barrel. Old paint was caked on its side, drip patterns marking it all the way down to the cold dirt ground beneath.
“I met the hottest guy last night,” he explained.
“Was it that chef I spotted you with?”
“His name is Brandon, and he’s adorable.”
I fired three shots over the edge of my cover. Nothing landed. “Is it going to be a spring wedding?” I asked.
“One step at a time, my friend.” Oliver shot four pellets at me in retaliation. One narrowly missed the protective padding of my shoulder. “Plus, I’d kind of need to get his number and ask him out first.”
“Why didn’t you do that while you were there?”
“I, uh… I panicked, okay?”
I jumped out from my hiding spot and fired in Oliver’s general direction, hitting him once in the chest, once in the thigh, and once in the center of his helmet’s visor. He put his hands up in surrender, rising from the barren little bush he was crouched behind.
“Was he really that dreamy?” I asked, pulling off my helmet.
“He really was,” he sighed distractedly. “But never mind me and my problems. I should really be the one grilling you.”
“What? Why?”
“It’s the talk of the whole palace.” He laughed. “Apparently, some unknown party guest in a white knight costume was getting a little up close and personal with Princess Marina. I heard from a friend of a friend that she’s absolutely spellbound.”
A bubbling excitement churned in the pit of my stomach. I couldn’t help but smile. “You don’t say,” I said sheepishly.
“I would have made you a spiffier costume if I’d have known you planned on making out with the Princess.”
“No, I think that’d been going overboard?”
Oliver raised his eyebrows at me. “Overboard? You mean like leaving her a single rose and kissing her under the mistletoe?”
“I thought it was romantic,” I argued, shrugging my shoulders. “You didn’t tell anyone it was me, did you?”
Oliver snorted. “What kind of a friend would I be if I did? I’m kind of interested to see how this all blows up in your face.”
“Have a little faith in me, would you?”
“Why didn’t you tell her who you were? What’s with all the dramatics?”
“Things are…” I ran a hand through my hair, which was a little damp from the sweat I’d worked up. “Things are complicated at home.”
“Ah,” he said, clicking his tongue. “The parents won’t approve.”
“Right as always.”
“Yours or hers?”
“Probably both.”
Oliver sighed. “I guess that makes sense. The rumor mill surrounding the King and your father are that things can get pretty nasty.”
“I don’t know what happened,” I admitted. “Mother won’t tell me what’s going on. She says it’s none of my business. I thought Father was one of the King’s closest advisors.”
“Emphasis on was.” Oliver clapped me on the back. “It’s been ten years since you’ve been back. Things change.”
“I don’t know where that leaves me and Marina.”
“Do you want my honest opinion?”
“Shoot.”
“Tell her who you are sooner rather than later. I wouldn’t keep the poor girl waiting.”
I shook my head. “I don’t plan to. I could use your help, actually.”
He eyed me suspiciously. “Oh?”
“Calm down. It’s nothing illegal.”
“Why would you say that? Now I know it’s definitely illegal.”
I laughed, patting him on the arm as we headed back toward the range’s front gates. “Trust me, would you? I just need you to deliver something for me. Marina knows you, so you’ll be able to gain access to the palace.”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “What’s in it for me?”
“For one, you’d probably run into Brandon again.”
“I do like the sound of that.”
I grinned. “I thought you might. Plus, you’d be doing me a huge favor.”
Oliver pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. “I have a feeling you’re not going to let me go until I agree.”
“You know me so well.”
“Fine, fine. Just promise to bail me out if I get in trouble. My reputation’s on the line here.”
I placed a hand over my heart and nodded. “I promise.”
4
Marina
No matter what I did, I couldn’t stop daydreaming about my mystery man.
He said we’d meet again, but I had no idea when and where. He spoke to me in such a familiar tone that it was almost surprising, like we were old friends who went way back. Very few people in the palace—in the whole kingdom, for that matter—would dare to speak to me so casually. But there was an ease to him, a lightness about his personality that drew me in. There was something undeniably attractive about him, and his air of secrecy only added to his charms.
My mind would wander without my permission, bringing me back to the moment our lips brushed together for the first time. It had all been so magical I had to pinch myself several times after he left to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. It was very possible that I’d fallen asleep in my library, fabricating the whole encounter. But the sting of cold wind against my cheeks and the thumping of my heart clamoring in my ear told me that this was indeed reality.
I wandered down the hall of the west wing toward Father’s private chambers. It was such a lovely day outside that I thought it might be nice to ask him and Mother for a quick stroll out in the gardens. Father had been stuck behind his desk a lot, trying to keep up with the demands of his people—especially now that war with Allendes was looking more and more inevitable. Even though I was the next in line to the throne, I wasn’t privy to Father’s private meetings with his close circle of advisors. I liked to keep well-versed about the kingdom’s concerns, but there were some secrets I wasn’t allowed to be in on.
Truthfully, I didn’t want to see Brooklandia go to war. I could understand all of my father’s stances. There had always been a bit of tension on the northern border between Allendes and us, but only recently had things become more violent. Locals in the area claimed that they were of Allendesian decent, and therefore their land belonged to them. But on the official maps and encyclopedias I’d breezed through, the area had historically belonged to my family. There were other incredibly complicated factors like how most trade routes in the region were Brooklandian, and the people themselves spoke Allendesian, but they followed my kingdom’s laws. It was just too complicated, and it would have been a disservice to trivialize the matter by labeling the situation a simple squabble.
As I approached my father’s private study at the end of the hall, muffled voices of a group of men began to become clearer. One voice was Father, distinguishable by his low tone and slow way of speaking. Father never said a word without purpose, and always spoke in a manner that forced people to listen. He commanded the flow of conversation as easily as the winds commanded the weather. The other voices—I could make out a total of three others—were all yelling over one another, words overlapping to make for an incoherent mess.
“Enough!” snapped Father, voice clear even on the other side of the door.
I knew I shouldn’t stick around to listen. This was government business, and I played no part in it yet. Any political decisions that were made were my father’s alone.
“If this monarchy survives, it will be a miracle,” snapped the fi
rst man. His voice, although a bit muffled, was recognizable. He had a distinct lilt to his words, the trace of an accent riding on the ends of his syllables. It was none other than Senator Richard Sabatino, one of Father’s fiercest foes.
I’d met Richard Sabatino a handful of times, though his appearance at the palace was an increasing rarity ever since his open denunciation of Father’s call to station troops by the border to protect Brooklandian interests. I thought it was sad, really, to see how quickly an old and trusted advisor could become the Crown’s most devilish and treacherous foe. The Sabatinos used to come around the palace a lot when I was a little girl, bringing along with them their son to keep me company. It had been years since I last saw Rodrigo. The memory I had of him was still of that cute little boy with wobbly knees, bucked teeth, an adorable splash of freckles, and ears that looked a bit too big on him. When he moved away, we promised to stay in touch. But as time went on, we drifted apart. It was a very uncommon occasion if I ever thought about him nowadays.
“Shut up, Sabatino!” snapped one of the other men in the room. “How can you talk to the King with so much disrespect?”
“Your Majesty,” hissed the other man, “Sabatino is hellbent on removing your power of absolute monarchy. He must be punished before it’s too late.”
“I’m not going down without a fight, Paulson,” growled Senator Sabatino. “I have hundreds of people backing me. If something were to happen, there’d be a revolt.”
“You’re planning a revolt?” shrieked one of the other advisors. “Your Majesty, this cannot stand.”
“Be quiet, all of you,” Father said. Exhaustion dripped off of his every word. “My decision is final. All young men and women above the age of eighteen will be required to enlist for mandatory military service.”
“You can’t do this!” Senator Sabatino yelled. “This isn’t what the people want. This isn’t going to be good for the kingdom.”
“I am the kingdom!” Father boomed.
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