Page 92 of A Vow of Embers

“Come here,” I said. I knew it was safe. The lizard quickly crawled into my hand. It was warm, which surprised me. I looked in the trunk and realized where it had come from.

The rock that the old woman had given me during the wedding had been split in half, still lying in the pot of soil where I’d placed it. This lizard had hatched from the rock. What kind of creature did that?

The prince seemed to come to the same conclusion that I did. “Someone tried to kill you that night. This could be part of it.”

I ignored him. The lizard blinked at me slowly and then curled up into a ball in my hand. “Yes, very deadly,” I said sarcastically. I found a bowl that Parthenia had put hairpins in and emptied it out. I got a scarf and put it in the bottom and then placed the lizard on top of it. She kept sleeping.

“Tell me you’re not going to keep that thing.”

“I am. And she’s under my protection,” I told him. “So don’t touch her.”

He made a sound of disgust, handed me the torch, and went back to bed. I carried the bowl and the light over to my side. I set the bowl down and watched her sleep.

“I’m going to keep you safe,” I whispered. “I don’t know what you eat, though. Maybe Io can tell me. And you need a name.” I remembered the dream I’d had of my parents, when my mother had talked about how she’d been told what to call me. “Selena, after my grandmother. And I’ll call you Luna for short.”

The lizard’s eyes opened briefly and she looked directly at me. There was a connection there. Something I couldn’t have explained. Like she knew me. Then she fell back asleep.

I didn’t know why, but it felt like something significant had just happened.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

The next morning when I awoke, the prince was gone. Luna was awake and watching me. I wondered if she was hungry.

I heard a caw and turned to see Kunguru fly into the room. For a moment I worried that he would try to eat Luna, but he dropped something into her bowl. An insect of some kind. Luna pounced on it and ate it quickly.

“Thank you,” I told the raven, giving him a quick pat. I wondered how he had known. I wouldn’t be able to rely on him to feed Luna, so I would have to find a way to get food for my new pet.

He cawed and flew out the open door.

A couple of minutes later, Parthenia came into the room. “Themis has requested that you join her for breakfast. I’m here to help you get ready.”

“Do you know where I can get insects?” I asked.

My maid went still. “Insects?”

“I have a new pet lizard and I need to feed her.”

“Perhaps the fishermen might have something like that? I’ll send some messengers out today while you have breakfast with Themis. I’ll be able to give you their report when I help you get ready for the picnic this afternoon with the court.”

“What’s that?”

“A picnic? Eating outdoors on the grass.”

That wasn’t something we had done in Locris. No one would want to eat outdoors on the sand. “Why?”

That seemed to confuse her. “I’m not certain. A change of scenery, perhaps? People seem to enjoy it.”

“Who planned it?” I asked, wondering if I might fake an illness and get out of attending.

“Your husband,” she said, as if I’d asked a silly question.

“Oh, yes. I remember now.” He hadn’t bothered mentioning that to me. I supposed I wasn’t entitled to that kind of privileged information. It also meant that I would have to show up.

“Go and use the washroom and then I’ll help you get ready,” she said.

I nodded and got out of bed. As I passed by her, she doubled over slightly and let out a sound. “Are you all right?” I asked.

She had a hand over her stomach. “I’m fine. The baby is kicking hard this morning. Would you like to feel it?”