Prince Fernando
Dinner continued with only the clatter of utensils breaking the awkward silence. I pretended not to notice the king’s glares, nor the young girl’s stares. Tingles ran up and down my skin. Nothing was wrong, but my instincts screamed that danger lurked in every castle corner.
“Tell me, Prince Fernando, how soon will you wed?” King Pitcairn asked.
My mind raced, and a potential solution appeared.
“Perhaps in two to three years,” I replied, smiling at the princess beside me.
Diedre’s shoulders slumped. Was she relieved or disappointed?
Her father cleared his throat. “You said you’d make her a queen, not begin a long betrothal.”
I sipped the wine to soothe my scattered nerves. “That was before I met her. At only eighteen, I worry childbearing might be difficult. I’d prefer to give her more time.”
The young princes glanced at their sister, communicating without words. The unspoken thoughts lingered in the air like a sinister mist. Diedre sank into her seat.
“I’m prepared to give you heirs, Your Highness,” she murmured.
The king gestured to his daughter. “There is no need to delay. She’ll give you many sons.”
I ran my tongue over my teeth. Perhaps I could marry her and not consummate the marriage until her body matured enough to handle it. If I hoped to keep my crown, I needed this alliance. I side eyed her. She deserved freedom to be young and free for a while longer.
I didn’t want her. Not as a wife, anyway. Bedding a girl barely out of childhood made nausea slosh through my stomach.
“Are there other suitors?” I asked.
“Of course,” King Pitacair answered with a weary laugh. “Two of the upper clans with eligible lads have requested her hand, but they are below her station.”
“They don’t deserve me,” she piped up, though her mousy voice sounded weak. “I want a prince.”
She reminded me of my sister, Valeria. It was smart for her to search for a better match.
“That’s why we invited you and the princes of Damai and Erinsundu to visit,” she continued.
Her boldness surprised me. Had I misjudged the situation?
“Let us draw up the documents tonight,” I said with fake confidence.
“Excellent.” He nodded curtly before returning to his dinner.
I leaned toward Diedre and whispered near her ear, “Do you truly want this? I’m happy to wait for you if you wish to be with your family a little longer.”
She turned her head to meet my gaze. “Please. Take me with you.”
The desperation in her wispy voice tore my heart to shreds.
I rested my large hand over her tiny wrist. The danger I sensed was real, except I wasn’t the target.
The ache Stella left in my chest only widened when I gently squeezed her bony limb.
“Then you’ll come with me.”
Stella
Meet me by the kitchen tonight. I’ll explain everything.
I crept along the hallway, hoping no one noticed I was still awake. Candles flickered, wax dripping down the tall sides and pooling at the base. A few servants passed me as they completed their nightly tasks for Princess Valeria and Prince Luca. My deep brown robe helped my figure slip into the dark when I left the villa and hurried to the kitchen.
The click and clatter of pots and pans told me the cooks were cleaning.
I approached the dark figure leaning against the exterior wall.
“Stella,” Eric whispered.
The moment I was within arm’s reach, he grabbed me and wrapped me in a warm embrace.
“I missed you.”
I melted into him and wished I remembered more about our past before I pulled away.
“Explain how you’re here, please.”
“I threw those riders off, then waited a couple of weeks before requesting a position in the royal guard. I passed all the physical and skill tests. They let me in.”
“That’s it?” I asked. “They hired you that easily?”
He smirked. “I might have restarted time until I figured out what they expected.”
“Will you teach me how to do that?”
He reached out and grasped my chin. “I’ll show you whatever you want, Natalie.”
I pulled his hand away, then held it. “You know me more than anyone else here. None of my family came for me. Are we related? Or can you tell me anything about me before my accident?”
He lowered his head. “You’re from the distant past. While you never mentioned exactly where you originated, I gathered it was earlier than mine. I was born over two hundred years ago, before our ancestors mixed with other lineages and became the Astralini kingdom.”
My jaw fell. “What?”
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