Icebound (Legends of the Shifters Book 2) (9 page)

-Chapter Fourteen-

I
stared at the king, speechless. Finally, I managed to say, “Is—is that even possible?
I thought you had to be born into nobility.”

“Of
course it is,” he replied, his jaw clenched stubbornly. “I have absolute rule
over this kingdom. You are the phoenix, the probable savior of my people. If I
want you to be a lady, you’ll be a lady.”

“But—”

“I
will not change my mind,” the king said firmly. “The ceremony is to be held two
days from now. I’ll have the best seamstresses in Erabyn see after your dress.”
With a dismissive gesture, he said, “Matthias, show her to her rooms. We’ll
continue our talk of the prophecy soon.”

The
prince stood and held out his arm. I stared at the king as he began to sort
through the papers on his desk, but he didn’t look back up. In a daze, I took
Prince Matthias’s arm. He led me to the door, unlocked it, and then stepped
outside. As soon as the door was shut, I withdrew my hand from his arm. “You
have to find some way to stop this. I can’t be a lady.”

He
narrowed his eyes as he began to walk back the way we’d come. “Is there
something wrong with having power and a name for yourself?” He paused for a
moment, as if to gather his thoughts. “What about all the money that you could
distribute to the poor? Or all the orphans you could house on such an enormous
estate?”

I
glanced at him out of the corner of my eye, reluctant to show that he’d struck
a chord with his manipulation. “I have a problem with the extra responsibility
of owning the property and the servants. It just…doesn’t sit well with me.”

The
prince frowned. “You’re going to have to get used to it. You don’t want my
father as an enemy.”

I
held in a laugh. “He would consider me an enemy if I refused his gift?”

His
looked away. “In a manner of speaking.”

We
stopped beside a white, arched door that stood out between two tapestries.

“This
is it,” Matthias said as he opened it for me.

I
went past him into the large room. All the furnishings were white, like the
door. A four poster bed was draped with a light blue bedspread, and the tall
windows were framed with elegant curtains of the same color.

The
prince spoke up from behind me. “My father knows what’s best for the kingdom.”

I
turned to face him with pursed lips and no reply.

He
took a step back, eyes stormy.  “You’ll see.”

I
stared at the place where he’d stood, at the stained glass that depicted a ship
sailing on fair seas.
Thrown into nobility unwillingly? This is definitely
not what I expected when I left the conservatory.

I
stepped forward to close the door, but was stopped short when a woman appeared
in the doorway. Her breath came in short bursts as if she’d hurried to get
there.

She
wore a white gossamer gown that had a lace collar and long, flowing sleeves.
Her eyes were pale periwinkle and her white-blonde hair was braided and twisted
into a bun.

After
a while, the surprise passed and unease settled in. “Can I help you?”

She
snorted, causing her beauty to fade in my eyes. “You speak like a servant
girl.” Her voice was thick with a strange accent I’d never heard before. She
stepped in the room and looked me up and down. “You are the one they call the
phoenix, yes?”

I
crossed my arms. “Yes.”

She
circled me. “You need to eat more. A twig isn’t likely to save anyone.”

I
narrowed my eyes. “Did you just come here to insult me? Because if that’s the
case, I invite you to leave.”

She
gave me a condescending smile. “I came to check under the bed. My servants
forgot to bring something of mine.”

I
frowned with the realization that I was speaking to Princess Cecile of Onwin. I
watched silently as she crossed to the other side of the room, and lifted the
dust ruffle. “Ah,” she said, pulling out a wooden bin. “Here it is.”

I
looked at it with one raised eyebrow. “Couldn’t you have sent a servant to
retrieve that?”

She
shrugged. “I could have…but then I wouldn’t be able to convey my message.”

I
braced myself. “And what is that?”

She
ambled forward until our faces were inches apart. “Stay away from Prince
Matthias. The only way Onwin and Leviatha will ever be able to form a lasting
alliance is if the two of us marry.”

I
restrained a laugh of surprise. “Rest assured that I have no intention of
pursuing a romance with your prince.”

From
the other side of the room, a loud voice rang out, dissolving the tension. “I
do hope we aren’t interrupting something.”

Princess
Cecile and I took a step back from each other and turned to face the person who
had spoken. It was a rather large woman, tall and wide with broad shoulders and
thick fingers. She was outfitted in a gaudy indigo dress with gold embroidery
on the hem and a golden bodice. Although it is unkind to laugh at one’s clothing
choices, she made it extremely hard not to.

“Dame
Guthrie,” Princess Cecile said as she smoothed back a stray hair. “I was just
welcoming Ivy to the palace.”

Dame
Guthrie gurgled out a laugh. At least, I thought it was a laugh. “If I truly
believed that, I would remind you that you only arrived three days ago.”

Princess
Cecile pursed her lips. “And then I would reply that you should watch your
tongue. I’m still above your rank.”

Dame
Guthrie stepped forward, a challenge in her eye. “Maybe if we were in Onwin,
Princess.”

The
princess’s grip tightened on her wooden bin. “Good day, Guthrie,” she said as
she walked past the large woman and out the door.

The
woman didn’t bother to curtsy as she passed. She turned and studied me. “Hmm.
You are a slight thing, aren’t you?”

I
made no effort to reply, and she didn’t ask for one.

“My
assistants should be here shortly,” she said. “But while they’re gone, tell me…
Did you really save the prince and his personal guard from a raging fire?”

“Uh…yes,”
I answered, surprised by her question.

She
smiled widely. “Then your dress shall be the most beautiful piece of work I
have ever made.”

Hopefully,
her definition of beauty ranged far from what she herself was wearing.

She
turned on her heal as her assistants came into the room, carrying armloads of
supplies. “There you are,” she said as they dropped everything on the ground.

Dame
Guthrie walked toward one of the doorways. “Not in there, you two. In here,”
she chided.

The
two assistants took in a deep breath simultaneously, bent down, and began to
pick everything back up. I started to help them, but Dame Guthrie peeked her
head around the corner and said, “Lady Ivy, leave them to it, please.”

I
obeyed her, but didn’t feel right about it.

The
next room, I realized, was a closet as big as the bedroom adjacent to it, with
a large floor-length mirror covering the entire back wall. The shelves and
rungs were completely bare.

“Ah,
the beauty of an empty closet,” said Dame Guthrie. “So many possibilities for
the clothes that will come to fill it.” She hefted a sigh. “Of course, you
won’t be here long enough for me to make you more than one or two dresses.”

“How
will you manage to make one in only two days?” I questioned.

“Nimble
fingers,” she said as she raised one of her pudgy hands. “And assistants, of
course. Your gown is my first priority.”

“How
long have you known?”

Her
forehead wrinkled as she thought. “Oh, about two weeks now? Something like
that… Anyway, it was enough time to draw up a few designs while the prince went
to get you.”

So
this was the plan all along…

Dame
Guthrie’s assistants pushed past me to set her things at her feet. “You know
what to do,” she said.

Without
complaint, they both got straight to work. I imagine that if they
did
complain, their fate would be a whole lot worse with a woman like Dame Guthrie
in charge of it.

When
a platform was set up in front of the mirror, the heavy seamstress took me by
the arm and pulled me toward it. “Up where I can see you.”

The
girl handed her a tape measure. Guthrie took it and began making her
measurements.

I
did whatever she told me, feeling like a puppet as the puppeteer pulled the
strings.

She
set out some fabrics for me to choose from, and soon found out that my favorite
color was light green. “Interesting. It does bring out your eyes.”

An
hour later, when the session was finally over, Dame Guthrie gave me a kiss on
both cheeks and said her goodbyes.

I
slumped into a chair and stared out at the ocean, glad that I’d been given a
room facing it. The sun was just starting to set and the orange light danced
off the rippling waves hypnotically. My eyes drifted closed for a few moments
until another knock sounded at the door. I jerked out of my stupor, confused at
the sudden darkness outside. I’d fallen asleep.

The
knock rang out louder and the door opened without my consent. “Ivy?” I looked
back to see Sir Lochlan. “Why didn’t you answer the door?”

“You
have a habit of knocking while I’m asleep,” I replied drowsily as I stood.

He walked
over and held an envelope out. “This is for you.”

I
took it from his hands. The only name on it was my own. “Who is it from?” I
asked as I broke the dark green seal.

“I
have my suspicions, but I know for certain it’s from Ginsey.”

“Ginsey?”
I looked closer at the seal, noticing for the first time the elaborate G
stamped into the wax.

He
nodded. “And I’d prefer to be here when you read it.”

I
bit my lip as I pulled out the folded paper and opened it.

Dear
Ivy,

By
the time you read this letter, King Giddon will have already made the
proposition of making you a lady. How do I know that, you may ask?

I
have eyes everywhere.

I’m
watching you, Ivy, and I don’t need a silly necklace for that.

When
you choose to join my ranks, my gates are always open to you, and your friend,
the griffin, will be released immediately.

But
if you don’t…let’s just say there’s only so much agony the human body can take.

It’s
your choice.

Cordially,

Ciaran
A. Gregson,

King
of Ginsey,

Head
of the Saints of Sorcery

-Chapter Fifteen-

I
dropped the letter as if it had burned me. I didn’t want to lay a finger on the
same piece of paper that that man had touched.

“How
did it get here?” I asked.

Sir
Lochlan didn’t open his mouth to reply until he’d picked up the letter and read
through it. “There was a messenger wearing the Ginsian crest. King Ciaran
wanted us to know that he sent you a letter.” He paused to look down at the
piece of paper in his hand. “I’m going to have to give this to the king.”

I
nodded. “I understand. Does he know that King Ciaran has spies here?”

Worry
lines etched into his forehead. “Yes, but I don’t know if we’ll ever find out
just how many of our men have joined his ranks.”

I looked
out into the dark night, remembering the circle of robed figures that had
surrounded Kurt and me in King Ciaran’s dungeon. “Have you ever heard of the
Saints of Sorcery?”

He
held up the letter. “This is the first time I’ve heard them called that, but I
have heard of them. They’re the ones that Roland talked about—who took over his
mind.”

I
nodded. “The same ones that tried to take over me, too.”

Darkness
passed over his features as he creased the letter and slipped it back into the
envelope. “You can never go back there.”

My
lips formed into a grim line. “I never want to.”
But I have to.

Sir
Lochlan started back toward the open door, but paused before he shut it. “Try
not to make many friends… We never know who among us could be one of them.”

*   *   *  
*   *

Later
that night, a servant brought me dinner. Everything was prepared perfectly and
set out on trays under metal lids. The bread was crunchy on the outside and
soft and warm on the inside. The roast was tender and juicy. The vegetables
were not too firm or too overcooked. It was delicious, but it was wasted on me.

I
could only think of the letter.
He found out about the pendant.

My
only consolation was that the matching one was buried miles upon miles away and
that King Ciaran still wanted Kurt alive. But how much longer would that last?

While
I was sitting here, eating a perfect dinner, in a perfect room, with no threats
to my life, Kurt could be screaming in pain as the whip was brought down again
and again, our own father gathering his blood on the bristles of a paint brush.

My
sleep was not sound.

Early
the next morning, a maid came in to wake me up.

She
shook my shoulder. “We have to get you ready, milady. The king has requested
that you come to breakfast.”

I
was reluctant to get out of bed and face the day, but I forced myself to swing
my feet to the ground.

The
woman walked to the other side of the room and opened the door for two more
servants to come in, one carrying a satchel and the other holding something
wrapped in brown parchment paper.

“What
are those?” I asked.

The
girl carrying the satchel opened it up for me to see the contents. There were
soaps and brushes and perfumes and makeup. I’d never worn makeup in my life,
and I certainly didn’t want to start now.

“I
don’t actually have to put that on, do I?” I asked, pointing to the various
powders and inks.

“It’s
our job to make you look your best,” said the head maid. “You’re about to meet
the rest of the royal family, after all.”

I
sighed and pointed to the thing wrapped in parchment. “And what’s that?”

The
servant girl handed it to me. “A gift from Dame Guthrie,” she said.

I
unwrapped the parchment and pulled out a sky blue dress and a pair of white
heels.

“She
said she was certain that they would fit you.”

I held
the dress up and let the rest of the fabric fall to the ground so that I could
study the whole thing. I was relieved to see that it looked nothing like Dame
Guthrie’s dress last night. It was a simple design, but pretty.

The
maids drew up a bath and then ushered me into the bathroom. After bathing, I
wrapped myself in a plush white robe and opened the door only to be pushed into
a chair in front of the mirror. The head maid approached me with scissors.

I
studied them apprehensively. “What are those for?”

“Your
hair, of course,” she said as she brushed through the tangles. “I’m only taking
a little off.”

Before
I could protest, the snipping started, and I watched out of the corner of my
eye as hair fell to the ground. In only minutes, she was done and my hair was
three inches shorter. Then, she began to style it as one of the younger maids
began to apply powders to my face.

“Is
that really necessary?” I asked, leaning my head away from the makeup brush she
was using.

“Yes.
Now hold still.”

The
last maid finished taking care of the mess in the bathroom and started trimming
and filing my nails.

About
thirty minutes and lots of poking and prodding later, they declared me ready.

They
pushed me toward the closet.
Do I dare look in the mirror?

Reluctantly,
I did and stared in awe. My face was free of blemishes, my mouth looked fuller,
my cheekbones sharper, and my eyes bigger.

“You
look striking, milady,” said the head maid, smiling at her handiwork.

I
frowned. The person in the mirror was beautiful, but it wasn’t me. It didn’t
fit.

“There’s
only three minutes before breakfast begins,” she said as she hurried me to the
door. “Do you know where the dining room is?”

“Um…I
don’t think so,” I answered.

“I’ll
take you there, then.”

She
led me down a hallway, back toward the entrance of the castle until we got to a
pair of closed double doors.

I
opened one, giving way to sounds of forks against plates and chatter. My eyes
had to adjust to the brightness of the room before I could focus on finding a
seat.

The
king sat at the head of the table, with a son on either side of him. Studying
them, it was hard to tell which one was Prince Matthias and which one was his
brother. They both had the same close-cropped sandy hair.

A
woman sat at the side of one of the brothers, and Alyss and Grix sat across
from each other at the end of the table. The only seat left was the one beside
the last prince, and I assumed it was Matthias, judging by the way he watched
me as I walked toward him. I wished that my hair were down so I could hide behind
it.

King
Giddon didn’t even look up. “A little late, Ivy,” he rumbled through a mouth of
food. “I’m glad you could join us.”

I
knew it wasn’t the best of manners to talk with food in your mouth, but I
supposed for the king, it didn’t matter.

“I
trust that you slept well?” Prince Matthias asked.

“Yes,
thank you,” I said as I sat down and picked up a fork.

The
king finished chewing and swallowed. “Now that we’re all here, maybe we can
discuss the rest of our plans. To briefly cover what you missed, Ivy, I’ve
decided to let Grix and Alyss train with my soldiers for the time being. I see
that my cousin, Drake, might have been a little…overzealous in his ways of
punishment.”

I
looked up in surprise, nearly dropping the fork. “Headmaster Drake is your
cousin?”

The
king took a sip of his drink and sat back in his chair. “Yes, unfortunately. On
my mother’s side. Her sister married a trial wizard, and Drake was the result.
I was never really close to her side of the family, but Drake became a soldier
and climbed rank so quickly that I was forced to recognize him. He was the one
that came up with the idea of a school for rare second forms. Before that, all
of you just floundered out there in the world, without an appointed job.”

Is
that such a bad thing?
I thought to myself.

“Enough
about him, though. Let’s talk about the plans I have for you.”

I
nodded for him to continue as I pushed scrambled eggs around on my plate.

“Today,
your skills will be evaluated.”

I accidentally
let my fork clatter to the table, sending egg flying in all directions. My face
burned. “Evaluated?” I asked.

“We
already have obstacles set up for you in the Erabyn arena,” explained the king.
“We’re going to see just how talented you are.”

“When
was this decided?” I asked woodenly, reaching for my fork again.

“Long
before you came. But I decided last night that it would happen today.”

I
nodded and took a bite of egg that refused to go down. I had to swallow it with
a few sips of water.

The
king gestured to the son on the other side of the table. “Have you met my son,
Prince Edwin yet? Or his wife, Princess Clara?”

“No,
I haven’t,” I said as I put the cup down and smiled at them politely. “It’s
nice to meet you both.”

“Likewise,”
said Prince Edwin.

Princess
Clara, whose brown hair was braided over her shoulder, only gave a nod before
her blue eyes flicked away.

Now
that I took the time to study them, I saw that Prince Edwin had a little more
weight on him than Prince Matthias. He gave me a half smile, but like his wife,
he wouldn’t look me directly in the eye.

“Princess
Cecile was going to join us, but this morning she said she’d taken ill and
preferred to stay in her room,” King Giddon continued.

“A
shame,” said Princess Clara. “She’s a great conversationalist.”

I
picked over my plate until everyone else had set their forks down.

An
uncomfortable silence settled over the room until the king stood and set his
napkin on his plate. “We’ll all continue to the arena at around two. Ivy, I’ll
have someone escort you there early so that you can get your bearings before it
starts.”

Then,
he left. I could feel everyone’s eyes on me, as I backed the chair from the
table and said, “Excuse me.”

I
pushed through the door into the hallway. To the right, I saw the back of the
king as he turned the corner. I found it hard not to be annoyed by this man
that suddenly wanted to control my every action, but I kept my face blank as a
servant passed me by.

I
hurried to the left, in the direction of my room. It wasn’t long before I heard
quiet footsteps behind me. It could have been a servant, but something told me
that wasn’t the case. I turned around quickly to surprise the follower,
relieved to see that it was only Alyss.

I
waited for her to catch up.

“Is
your room this way too?” I asked when she was only a few feet away.

She
shook her head and looked up and down the hall before saying softly, “I have
something I want to talk to you about. In your room.”

“What
is it?” I asked, lowering my voice to match her volume.

“Something
about the king,” she said, so quietly that I could barely hear.

With
my curiosity piqued, we continued until we reached my door. It was open with
the three maids still cleaning up.

“I’ll
finish that for you,” I said as I entered. “You can leave now.”

The
three maids looked at each other as if they had been affronted.

“As
you wish,” said the head maid.

Each
of them walked past with their head down, and the last shut the door behind
them.

I
turned to Alyss. “What was it that you wanted to tell me?”

She
took a deep breath and walked a little further into the room before turning
back, wringing her hands. “Well…I think the king is planning something.”

“Something
more than the obstacle course?” I asked, eyebrows raised. “How do you know?”

She
shrugged. “I just get this…feeling with people. And Prince Edwin and Princess
Clara were friendly and talkative before you got there, but then they went
strangely silent when you came in the room.”

I
thought about it for a moment. “Wouldn’t that just be because of the evaluation?”

Her
eyes darkened. “It could be, but…I have a strong feeling that it isn’t.”

I
sat on the edge of my bed. “What do you think he’s planning?”

She
looked away. “I don’t exactly know. I just wanted to tell you in case something
happens.”

I
picked at a loose thread on my dress, deep in thought. “I’ll make sure to keep
an eye out for anything suspicious.”

She
nodded and headed for the door.

“Alyss?”
I said before she shut it. She peeked her head back in. “Thank you for telling
me.”

She
smiled and closed the door.