Page 47 of Cruelest Kiss and Fairest Blood (Tales So Wicked #2)

Lenore

T he vast emptiness of the Great Hall mirrors the hollowness that’s taken up residence in my chest. The castle is like a skeleton of its former self—so few staff, even fewer nobles. The only faces I see roaming the halls are Catreena’s new guards.

I half expected my door to be locked when I tried to leave this morning. It wasn’t, but the way the guards have been eyeing me since I emerged reaffirms the suspicion: I’m a prisoner in this castle. Something tells me I’d be swiftly stopped if I tried to leave the grounds.

My porridge sits cold and gelatinous. My stomach is so tightly knotted, I couldn’t find it in me to force food down too.

Grief bubbles up, challenging the unfeeling mask I’ve put in place. I wish my mother were here. She would know what to do. Her wisdom and guidance were always spot-on. Without her, the castle itself seems lost in shadow.

“Such a beautiful face.”

Catreena’s voice startles me out of my thoughts. The new queen stands in the doorway. She sweeps into the room, her fitted black-and-gold dress swishing with every step. Her beauty is unnerving—there’s something doll-like about her perfectly symmetrical face.

“Dry those tears, lovely princess. I have a gift for you.”

“I am not in need of gifts.”

I want to turn my back on her, but her eyes have me captivated. My neck is locked, unable to look away. Eyes I believed to be blue now appear to be gold—mesmerizing. There’s a shimmer to them, like looking into the sun.

“Please reconsider. It’s a peace offering. We got off on the wrong foot yesterday. You seemed displeased with the new arrangement.”

Her words snap me out of the trance. New arrangement? Displeased?

The day my mother passed away, I went missing and died in the woods.

No one came to find me. And when I stumbled back to the castle, it was only to discover that my father had decided to remarry a complete stranger.

He allowed this woman to sit on my mother’s throne and wear her crown—a woman at least half my mother’s age. She may even be my age.

“You are a stranger who appeared out of nowhere and took my mother’s throne less than a week after she unexpectedly died.

Was she even in the ground before you crawled into my father’s bed?

I’d guess not. The entire situation disgusts me.

Your guards have also been downright cunts, treating me like a prisoner in my own home.

With all that said, I’m sure you can understand how the new arrangement has been difficult to swallow. ”

I match her false smile with one of my own.

Catreena’s reaction is slight—a twitch in her left eye. The smile on her face remains, but something about it changes. A tenseness forms around her mouth, as if her muscles are fighting to keep it in place.

I was hoping for a more open display of emotion. It always feels better to see how your words have hit their mark.

I underestimated her.

Now I see she’s a woman impressively skilled in the art of concealing emotion—a trick I never mastered.

It doesn’t matter. She can keep that pretty mask on all she wants. I know when I’ve gotten under someone’s skin.

“I understand completely.”

There’s something about the way she speaks that catches me off guard. The words almost float, moving through the air like ribbons of honey. Each syllable nuzzles against my skin.

“Which is why I’ve brought you a gift.”

Her voice lulls me, leeching the animosity from my bones and replacing it with a warmth that relaxes me in my seat.

“What is it?”

My own voice has softened.

Catreena lays something on the table. “I’m told these were special to you.”

My mouth gapes. “Where did you find this?”

“There’s a tree I’d written off as dead—but lo and behold, I passed by this morning and there was a single fruit hanging from the top branch. I asked the staff, and they told me these were your favorite. Something special you shared with your mother.”

Tears brim in my eyes as I stare down at the golden apple.

How is this possible?

If what Harrow said is true, that tree was tied to my mother and her magic. Does this mean a piece of her soul has remained here?

Reaching out, I run my fingers along its smooth, glossy surface.

“Yes. They were something we both loved. The tree first bloomed the day I was born.”

This one is so shiny I can see my reflection in it. That never happened with the others.

“Are you sure this is from the apple tree here?”

Catreena lays a graceful hand over mine atop the apple. “I’ve heard Queen Elowynne was a gentle and just woman whose beauty was spoken about across the land.”

More tears pool in my eyes. “She was. There was no one like her. I have her face, but I worry I’m not good enough to fill her shoes.” Why am I spilling my private thoughts and deepest fears with Catreena? The words puff out of me as easily as the next breath. “I miss her.”

Her fingers close over mine. “I’ll never be able to take her place and I’m not looking to be your new mother, but I would like to call you my friend.”

Her words elicit such conflict in me. “It’s all so sudden. She’s just barely passed.”

“I know it will take time. I’m not asking for anything right away. I’m just hoping you’ll give me a chance to prove my love for your father and for this kingdom.”

“I… It’s… Time. I’ll need time.”

She nods and removes her hand. Scooping the apple up, she holds it beneath my chin. “How about a bite?”

I haven’t had much of an appetite since that soup killed me but memories of the tart, sweet flesh of my mother’s golden apples has my mouth watering.

Taking the apple from her, I cup it in both hands. “One bite, in memory of Elowynne Roseheart.”

My teeth bury into the crisp flesh, biting clean through. Every muscle in my face tenses, mouth puckering as the first taste washes over my tongue.

The familiar sweetness isn’t there. Something is not right.

I look down at the apple again. Horror spreads through me as the luscious gilded apple transforms. Reflective golden skin melts into beaming crimson. The white inner flesh that was revealed when I took a bite turns black before my eyes.

Spitting out as hard as I can, the apple chunk flies from my mouth.

It lands on the table in a mashed pool. The piece I bit off is turning black too.

My mouth is burning. The small amount of juice I swallowed feels like its flaying its way down my throat.

The room spins and my head drops, slamming onto the table.

Catreena leans down, her voice icy. “Poor, fair creature. Do you feel death approaching?”

Pain splinters through the spot where my forehead hit the wood. I can barely turn my head to look at her. “What did you do to me?”

“Never fear, I shall not kill you. Though I dare say where you’re going will have you praying for death.”

The room vanishes from my sight as everything goes black.

It reappears a moment later, blurrier than before.

Catreena’s sneering gaze pierces my soul.

A shot of adrenaline lends movement to my weakened limbs.

Struggling to my feet, I battle the sluggishness trying to take over my body.

I need to get to a healer. Every nerve is sizzling with a hot, merciless pain. Was that even an apple I bit into?

Catreena’s guards block my path, swords drawn. “Why are you doing this?” I scream. My shouting is followed by a ferocious coughing fit. Blood sprays onto the wall nearest to me. I’m bleeding. Why am I bleeding?

Catreena’s laughter fills the oversized room. “What’s wrong, lovely princess? Bite off more than you can chew?”

Turning on my heel, I dash away from the guards and toward the back hallway that leads to the ballroom I met Harrow in. There’s a door to a balcony there. If I can make it outside, I know I can find help.

My hopes are crushed when more guards pour in, blocking my escape path. I spin in circles, frantically seeking another way out. Another cough shreds through my lungs. So much blood. Has the new queen poisoned me?

“Princess!” someone hollers. “Over here!”

One of the maids, Winnie, waves her arms at me from a small open panel in the servants’ quarters. I take off toward the new exit, ignoring the screeching sounds of Catreena’s irate voice as she belts out orders. The opening is small but large enough to squeeze through if I duck.

Winnie slams the panel shut behind me, pushing a large pipe in place to block it from opening again.

“This way. Hurry!” She veers into the darkness. “I heard the guards. The queen means to lock you up. They’re going to do things to you.” Her voice quivers. “Things I can’t even speak.”

“Can you take me to the healer?”

“You have no allies left in this castle, Princess. You cannot stay here. The few servants still on your side are powerless against the new guards. They’re cruel, ruthless.

I saw the stable boy’s body strung up in the entryway on my way here.

The castle is beyond saving. Leave now. Please.

” We arrive at another of the many hidden panels.

My ancestors were clearly paranoid. Or maybe all castles have this many secrets. Regardless, I’m grateful for it today.

The panel groans. The outer wall has been taken over by ivy, all of which has died since my mother’s passing. “What of my father and Prince Cassius?”

“There are others helping them.”

“Melly! I need to find her.” Another coughing fit overtakes my lungs, leaving a small pool of blood at my feet.

Winnie gasps. Her arms work frantically as she rips the overgrown ivy from the gap, opening the wall up to the world outside. “Run to the village. There is a doctor there. Get help! Go now!”

She pushes me outside.

Pulling her into a brief hug, I whisper, “Thank you.”

Walking out into the light of day, I feel vulnerable and exposed. I stick to the walls, charting the best path. If I can pass through the main gates, I’ll have a straight shot to the road that leads to the village.