Blinding Beauty (38 page)

“
What part of everything do you
not understand? My power came from my heart, little as it was.” She
sniffed. “He took what was left, and with it everything else in my
heart as well. So when I say I feel nothing, I truly feel nothing.
Not for you, not for my brother, not for my family, not even for
Bronkendol himself. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll go before I say
something that will assuredly injure you more.” And with that, she
kicked her horse into a gallop.

What had he done?

CHAPTER
THIRTY-EIGHT

An Enchanter's
Blood

Remembering
Garin’s words of caution about leaving Isa alone, Ever pushed his
horse to follow hers. To his relief, she simply returned to the
stables and dismounted. Once he knew she was back inside in the
Fortress, Ever called one of his messengers.

“
Go to Soudain and find Ansel and
Deline Marchand. He’s a prominent merchant with a shop in the main
square. Bring them to me immediately.”

Ever decided to go find Garin
while he waited for the Marchands’ arrival. As he climbed the
curving stone staircase of the tower, he prayed that Garin might
have found the answer. Never had Ever heard of anyone being able to
steal a monarch’s power. He wondered if Isa had truly understood
what the enchanter had done. But then, he conceded, he had never
heard of a strength like Isa’s before he had witnessed it
himself.

The Fortress monarchs had always
possessed one form of strength or another. Most had exceeded the
physical abilities of the average man. Others had the ability to
discern lies from the truth. Still others could heal, and there had
been one or two on record who could converse with the animals.
Ever’s own powers were unusual for even a Fortress king, according
to Garin, in that he had most of the powers combined, animal
communication excluded. But none were like Isa’s power of the
heart, and that made her current struggle all the more
puzzling.

“
Anything of interest?” he asked
as he finally reached the tower. As Ever had expected, Garin was
deep in thought, his head bent over a number of old books spread
out upon the table.

“
Nothing that will help us now,”
Garin sighed. “If this truly is Bronkendol, then his power is much
older than I am, much older than our most ancient texts. The first
kings gathered a few scrolls and such here and there, but even
those were written after the kingdoms formed.” He looked up at
Ever. “Did she tell you anything new?”

“
Only that it is Bronkendol.” He
paused. “And she says that when he stole her power, he stole
everything.”

“
What do you mean
everything?”

Ever shrugged. “Her feelings, her
emotions. She says her heart is empty.”

“
Your Highness, the Marchands are
waiting in your study, just as you requested,” a servant called
out. The look Garin gave him was not a hopeful one, but Ever only
shook his head.

“
It was all I could think to do.
It can’t hurt anything.” At this, Garin inclined his head once and
went back to searching his books. Ever began the long descent down
the steps with a hope he feared was in vain. But if anyone could
reach Isa, it would be them. If they could not find her, Ever
worried that no one would. He put such dark thoughts from his mind
and smoothed his face, however, as he entered his study. He would
not give them false hope, but they still deserved their best
chance, too. Despite his intentions, however, Deline didn’t give
him a chance to even begin explaining. She ran straight up to him,
her dark eyes hopeful.

“
Where is she?”

“
Resting in her room.” Ever took a
deep breath. “Before I bring you to see her though, there is
something you must know.” Deline exchanged a worried look with her
husband, but let Ever speak. “Since she has returned,” Ever began,
“Isa has seemed... different.” He stopped and bit his lip, trying
to think of how to explain in a way that would not be too painful,
but would prepare them for the daughter they would soon
meet.

“
Just tell us what the matter is,”
Ansel said softly. “She is our daughter. You know we will do
anything and more that she needs. Now, what does she
need?”

“
That’s just it. I wish I knew.
Since she’s returned, Isa has said she feels empty. She does not
wish to be doted on, nor does she wish to speak of those she loves.
She has not even asked of Launce’s welfare since she’s arrived.”
Ever felt his careful façade fall as he spoke. “She will not even
allow me to touch her.” The weight of what he was saying suddenly
drained him, and Ever rubbed his eyes and allowed himself to sink
into one of the chairs.

Ansel was a merchant, nothing like
the father Ever had known, but there were times like this when he
wanted so much to think that his father-in-law might see him as a
son in some way or another. Part of the family, at the very least.
“I need you to help her remember,” he said, looking up at them
wearily. “That is all I know and that is all I can ask.”

“
Then that is what we shall try to
do.” Ansel looked at his wife and with a comforting smile, gently
took her by the waist and led her from the room. Before they left,
Ansel placed a hand on Ever’s arm. The gesture was kind, and for a
moment, Ever felt a little less alone. There were others who shared
his grief, others who loved her nearly as much as he
did.

When they were gone long enough to
ensure that they wouldn’t see him, Ever followed their footsteps
down the hall to his own chambers. He stood outside the door where
he could just hear the conversation inside.

“
I thought he might send you.” The
slight tremor of uncertainty in Isa’s voice was the closest thing
to feeling that Ever had heard since she’d arrived home. His heart
leapt with a dangerous, uneven sense of hope.

“
Ever says you’re having a
difficult time since you arrived home.” Deline’s words were as
sweet and welcoming as an embrace.

“
I am perfectly fine, and I cannot
understand what all the fuss is about.”

“
Have you heard from your
brother?” Ansel’s voice was also kind, but more reserved than his
wife’s had been. He’s testing her, Ever realized. He wants to see
what she does when I am not around. A part of him both dreaded and
hoped to find that Isa’s strange behavior was simply born from
resentment for him, but the longer Ever listened to the family
speak, the less he dared to dream.

“
Launce is a man now,” Isa
retorted. “I wish everyone would simply leave him be.”

“
Ever says your brother is alone
in another country under the thumb of a king who despises him.”
Ansel’s voice grew agitated. “And you don’t wish to know of his
well-being?”

“
We are done here.” Isa’s
footsteps quickly approached the door. Before Ever could move, Isa
had opened the door and fixed him with a cold stare. “You may see
them out.” And with that, she whirled and began marching towards
the hallway that led to the Tower of Annals.

“
Everard.” Deline was looking up
at him, beseeching him with her eyes. Commanding him. “You must
help her.” She stepped forward and clutched his sleeve. “She would
not be in this mess if you had protected her. Now help
her!”

“
If you don’t help her,” Ansel’s
voice was not so accusatory, but the sadness in his eyes was
somehow worse than the anger in his wife’s, “I don’t know that
anything or anyone can. Please.” He held Ever’s gaze for a long
moment before turning and guiding his weeping wife out. Ever could
only watch in misery.

***

“
It’s been
three days,” Ever growled. “I don’t know how much longer I can
stand this.” He gestured at the lone form sitting in a chair on the
south side of the Tower of Annals. Though Garin and Ever were on
horseback at the edge of the field that bordered the mountain road,
it was easy to see her small figure through the glass walls of the
round tower room.

“
Have patience,” Garin cautioned
him. It annoyed Ever to no end that his mentor seemed to know
Ever’s actions before he did. “Isa needs to find peace with the
Fortress before she can find peace with anyone else. There is
nothing you can do to make that happen faster than it
will.”

Ever shook his head. “We don’t
have time. I need to know what he did to her and what he plans to
do with her power. This foolish mess all is intertwined somehow. I
need to reach the heart of the matter. But I cannot do that without
her help.”

“
Don’t do anything rash. I know
you want to help, but she is the Fortress’s daughter. It is
watching her just as it has been all of her life. It’s best not to
interfere.” He eyed Ever suspiciously. “You might learn a thing or
two as well by watching.” They sat for a few moments longer,
watching her in silence. But Ever knew, and he knew Garin knew, as
well, that there would not be much more waiting for him.

Once more, Ever promised himself
and his mentor silently. Once more, I will try, and even if it
kills me, I won’t hold back. Urging his horse forward, he let his
mount carry him with the wind, back to the cold, beautiful eyes he
could feel watching him from above.

By the time he reached the Annals,
Isa was nowhere to be seen. So intent had he been on his mission
that the thought of speaking with her anywhere else made his heart
sink within him. He let out a gusty breath before walking over and
letting himself fall into the chair Isa had been sitting in when
he’d seen her from the fields below.

The Tower of Annals was one of the
few places the monarchs could escape to for true solitude. Since
the Maker had so uniquely blessed the Fortress with a life of its
own a thousand years before, the Tower had been created as a place
of sacred rest.

Constructed of only windows for
walls, the entire room was one large circle, allowing a view of
nearly the entire kingdom. Each of the floor-to-ceiling windows
could open to the balcony that ran around the entire tower. A
single large fireplace stood in the center of the room, surrounded
by tall bookshelves and various pieces of sitting furniture. The
air smelled of musty pages and sweet cedar from the logs they
burned in the fire. As soon as one stepped from the stairs into the
tower, a veil of solemnity and age hung in the air, making it just
heavy enough to notice when one breathed.

It was in this room that Ever and
Isa had nearly died, and in which they had been brought back from
certain death to life. It was here he had hoped to speak not to the
silent, mysterious stranger, but to the heart of the companion he
missed so much.

“
What happened?” he muttered,
closing his eyes and leaning back, allowing the warmth of the sun
to cover him like a blanket. “How did we end up here?”

“
You failed.”

Ever nearly fell out of his chair
when Isa spoke. She must have known he would come. She stood behind
him now, several paces back. The silk lavender gown she wore was
simple, but it fit her frame well. The purple made the copper
streaks in her hair more vibrant than usual. Everything in him
yearned to close the distance between them and will her back to
him. But he stayed still, and so did she. The expression on her
face was neither hateful nor angry, but there wasn’t a trace of
warmth in it either.

“
You asked what happened,” she
said when he didn’t speak, “and the answer is that you failed.
While you were traipsing off with Kartek, trying to find the
answers all on your own, you failed. When you ignored my warning,
he took me, and you failed.” She shrugged. “It’s as simple as
that.”

Ever knew everything she told him
was true, but hearing her say it was so much worse. “No amount of
victories in the battlefield can redeem me from the way I’ve
neglected you.” His throat sounded gravelly, too tight. “Everything
you say is true.”

Ever didn’t realize he’d fallen to
his knees until he looked up at her once more. The pain inside him
felt as though he might split in two, but somehow, her face was
unmoved. Even in the few months they’d been married, he had come to
rely unquestionably on Isa’s forgiving nature, the grace she
extended with a tired smile when he was back late from a journey,
or when he had time and time again cancelled plans for picnics and
special suppers up on the tower balcony. The softness of her sweet
smile and the adoration of her eyes had always brought him through,
even in the short time they had been together.

But this woman made of stone, this
cold, unfeeling heart in the body of his beloved was more than he
could stand. Anger, screaming, tears, anything would be better than
this silence. “Can you forgive me?” he pleaded, his voice almost
too quiet to hear. “I just wanted to protect you.”

“
Whether I forgive you or not
makes no difference. You let him steal everything from me, and no
words of mine or yours will bring it back.” With that, she
uncrossed her arms and began walking towards the door.

A feeling of wild angst overtook
Ever, and in that moment, something told him that if he allowed her
to walk out that door, the Isa he loved would never return. I beg
you, he cried out to the Fortress, let this work! He was on his
feet in an instant. In three long strides, he’d overtaken her. A
feverish hope consumed him as he grabbed her by her waist and
pulled her back into him.