Page 55

“This did not satisfy her. She took me by force to her father, the ice goblin king, and demanded that he force me to marry her.” He looked up to meet her eyes for a moment and then back down at the blanket. “The king was furious with me for refusing her, and with her for choosing a weak and foolish human. He said he would change me into something stronger, something fiercer, and so he changed me into a bear. But only during the day. At night, I shivered as a man. For two and a half centuries, I have refused to marry her. As a human, I despise her and everything she has done, and I will not sully my name by uniting it with hers, nor will I reward such selfishness by conceding a single inch to her.”

He shuddered. “But as a bear, I began to forget what it was to be human, and every night, when I lost my thick fur and regained my human form, I found it more disorienting and more terrifying. As a beast, I was able to endure the merciless cold. As a human...” He looked up at her again, his dark eyes anguished. “As a human, I grew more hopeless. The king died, perhaps by Javethai’s hand, although I do not know for sure, and his magic is tied up in me, so that whatever selfish version of love she once had for me is now lost in her desire for power.

“I am nothing to her but an obstacle. She still wants to marry me, but only as a show of power, a show of her victory over man, and as a final demonstration that she has taken the full power of the ice goblin monarch for herself.”

At this, he subsided into silence, until at last he said, “Frigtirk told me about the blankets keeping me sleeping when you came in before. Thank you for trying again.” He met her eyes, and there was such a sweet gratitude that Gytha had the sudden urge to throw her arms around him.

But it was different now that he was shaped like a man, and she felt too shy to actually do it. Instead, she said, “The icegoblin prince is here, and he is going to help free you from the queen.”

Alexander stared at her. “The prince? There is no prince.”

“Eshkeshken. He was the servant I called Magni when we were in that strange, underground prison.”

Alexander frowned thoughtfully. “Eshkeshken,” he said to himself. “I’ve heard the name before. You are sure he’s telling the truth?”

Gytha nodded. “I think so. The winds acknowledged him as the prince, as if they knew him, and others here did too.”

“The winds?” He looked at her with those soft, dark eyes, so different than the blue eyes of her own people, and she blushed.

“This palace, or city, is at the north end of the world, east of the sun and west of the moon, where only the winds can go,” she said. “That’s what Eshkeshken said, and the winds each took us some distance closer, and we walked a long way. But they also did something to him, and he’s suffering a great deal. More than he will admit.”

Alexander studied her face. “You feel for him.”

Gytha bit her lip. “Yes. He was kind to me. Not as you were, but maybe with even less reason. He saved my life after the queen took you. He told me to wear my coat and gloves and boots to bed, and when the caves collapsed, he and Dakjudr dug me out and fed me.” She looked pointedly at the plate of meat. “You should eat.”

He looked down at the plate in surprise. “Oh. Yes. I haven’t…” He dragged his fingers through his tangled hair. “I forgot.”

“To be hungry?”

“To care that I was hungry.” He gave a soft huff of laughter that was almost bitter, but not quite. The huff soundedlike a smaller, more human version of the sound he had made as a bear.

“How much do your injuries hurt?” she asked gently.

He put a piece of meat in his mouth and shrugged a little. “I forgot to care about that, too,” he muttered.

“Well, I care,” Gytha said.

His gaze flicked up to her face again, startled. “Why?”

Her heart twisted with sympathy. “You were kind to my family when we had almost lost hope. Maybe you don’t have much hope left, so it is up to me to hold onto hope.”

“Hope of what?” His voice broke.

“In the morning, the queen will come. She said that if you remembered me and asked for me, she would let you choose your bride between her and me. She expected you to be enchanted into sleep tonight too, so of course you would not remember me. But I imagine there will be some trick, even if she allows you to choose. Be careful of her.”

“You want to marry me?” He stared at her, his eyes wide and shocked. “Why?”

“It was the only thing I could think of!” She felt sick with embarrassment. “Eshkeshken said to offer her a bargain, and I couldn’t think of anything else. I was so angry for you! The guards were stabbing you with those spears and lances. It was all I could think of. I argued that you hadn’t had a real choice, and you would choose me over her if you had a choice.

“One of the goblins spoke up then. He appealed to her pride and said it would be better for her prestige if you chose her rather than being coerced, and he offered me as a much inferior alternative.”

He drew back a little, his dark eyes flicking over her face again and then down the floor, as if he were embarrassed. Why wouldhebe embarrassed?

“You don’t have to marry me!” she whispered hurriedly. “It just seemed like the only way to get to you at all. Anyway, if you marry me, we can pretend it never happened later. A vow made under duress and threat of death isn’t really binding, is it? It’s just a ruse to get you free. We just wanted a way to get you away from her. I got her to agree that you should be in your human form, so you could voice your preference clearly.”

Alexander pulled the blanket tighter around his shoulders. “Even though no one remembers me, I am still a prince,” he said. “My word is my bond. I will not vow falsely.” He looked down at the blanket and shuddered. “I’m sorry.”

Gytha flinched. “You’d rather let her carve your heart out and eat it in front of everyone than marry me? Knowing that I won’t even hold you to it?” Tears welled in her eyes. “What have I done to offend you so? It’s not fair!” Her voice cracked, and she tried to bring her unruly emotions under control. “I’m just trying to help you.”