Page 6 of Pawns of Fate

ROSE

“ I t’s always like that with Nicholas,” Ava pouted to Rose as her brother-in-law walked away with his bodyguard. “He swoops in, scolds everyone, then flies away when Jo?o or Syzman tell him that he has to go handle one crisis or another. The man is even working at a party.” She snorted.

“He did seem busy,” Rose murmured as she watched Nicholas’s masculine figure stride toward the castle.

She knew that a kiss on the back of the hand was a standard greeting between noblemen and women, but her skin still tingled pleasantly where Nicholas’s lips had touched.

She didn’t want to read into it; she shouldn’t entertain romantic thoughts about a man like Nicholas.

His family was sure to arrange a match for him that would bring political gain and connections.

Rose couldn’t offer either of those things.

Ava snorted, “He’s going to work himself to death.” She offered Rose her arm. “Now, let’s go enjoy what’s left of the celebration. I want some cake.”

Rose decided to go with her. She was genuinely fond of Ava’s company, and it wouldn’t be bad for Rose if Ghislaine and Luanna saw her with Ava, smoothing over the earlier fiasco.

“I’ve never seen this many flowers before.” Ava swooped her arm as though motioning to the whole garden. “I like these best!” She pointed to a bed of sunny, yellow daffodils.

“What’s your favorite flower, Rose?” Ava asked as they continued to walk toward the billowing tents.

“I like roses best,” she replied with a grin. “I know it’s a little childish.”

“What’s so childish about it?” Ava crinkled her brows together as she pondered, then answered her own question. “Oh, is it because of your name? There’s nothing wrong with liking your own name.”

“My aunt would disagree with you,” Rose whispered as if Ghislaine were waiting around the hedgerow.

Ava replied with a mischievous glint, “Then your aunt is even more of a stick-in-the-mud than Nicholas.”

The girls exited the garden and found an empty tent near the edge of the party.

Aunt Ghislaine shot a look at Rose, but didn’t call her upon noticing who she was with, which lifted a massive weight from Rose’s shoulders.

A servant brought her and Ava each a large slice of cake.

She popped the first bite into her mouth, truly relaxing for the first time that day.

The two girls were enjoying the delicious cake when the Robsons’ butler interrupted, asking to speak with Rose because her uncle needed to see her immediately.

Rose excused herself. Ava only let her go after a hug and a promise to visit Castle Sharp sometime soon. She’d never met someone who offered their friendship as wholeheartedly as Ava did. It made Rose smile as she followed the butler to her uncle’s office.

You wanted to see me, Uncle Hector?” Rose said as she entered the stuffy, dimly lit room. She gave a slight curtsey.

“Ah, yes, Rose! Sit down. I have some exciting news for you.”

Nervousness squeezed Rose’s heart. This situation was odd. Her uncle usually regarded her with barely disguised disdain or apathy. He’d never regarded her with excitement and certainly never bothered to notice her while hosting a party.

Rose sat down and tilted her head expectantly.

“Yes, Uncle?”

“I’ve found you a husband!”

Rose jolted upright and shook her head in disbelief. Looking for a way to calm down, she glanced out the window of her Uncle’s office, which had the best view of the rose garden and waning celebration. Rose let the scene distract her for a moment, then inhaled sharply.

“A husband?” she asked.

“Yes. A husband. And a highly-ranked one at that.” Her uncle sniffed, seemingly pleased with himself. “I see you are surprised. You expected another assignment, didn’t you?”

Assignment. That was what Uncle called it whenever he needed her to serve as collateral to compensate for his lack of political prowess and negotiation skills. He’d always preached that it was her way of ‘earning’ her spot in the family.

These stays were usually relatively painless. Her captors were often kinder than her uncle’s family. Rose tried not to let that fact frustrate her, to simply accept that this was her place in life, but it wasn’t an easy position.

“Well, that has been my role in the family,” she replied carefully.

“Yes, and you’ve played it fabulously, my dear.

But no one can play that role forever, or, unfortunately, the other families will grow suspicious.

With every assignment you’ve had, your value as a bargaining piece, in that sense, has decreased.

” He frowned as if he truly felt bad about his words, but Rose knew it was just because the situation inconvenienced him.

Rose blinked as she considered her situation.

Her uncle’s words weren’t surprising or new to her.

After all, she was an intelligent girl. What Rose hadn’t learned at the orphanage or from her etiquette tutors, she’d often managed to learn from books.

More than that, she was skilled at reading people’s emotions and intentions, even without her aura, though that certainly helped.

She’d been piecing together the true picture of her situation for years and learned not to trust her uncle long ago.

He would only reveal information to her if it were helpful for him .

Even before Hector brought it up, she’d wondered when her value as a captive would run out.

She just hadn’t realized that her uncle intended to marry her off when it did.

Perhaps keep her in the shadows as staff, or ship her off to work elsewhere, but Rose had never guessed that he’d marry her into another noble family.

“It’s a very good match for you,” Uncle Hector continued. “Marquess Sharp is looking for a bride for his oldest son, Nicholas. You might have heard that his younger son recently married a commoner?”

Rose quickly hid her surprise. Her uncle didn’t know she’d spent the past hour with Ava Sharp.

Did he? Did it matter? Had the whole thing been a setup or some kind of test?

She wouldn’t put something like that past her uncle, but it didn’t make sense.

From how he was grinning like the cat that caught the fattest rat, Rose had to assume that her uncle knew something she didn’t. She needed to find out what.

“I met Ava at the party today. She’s a kind girl,” Rose said with as little emotion in her voice as possible. It was always best to be neutral.

“Yes, I’m sure she is.” Her uncle picked up a pen and scratched a few notes onto a parchment.

“Since she’s a commoner and has York infatuated, Marquess Sharp wants a more practical and beneficial marriage to a noble girl for his older son.

That’s where you come in.” He pointed the feathery end of the pen at Rose.

The skin on the back of her hand tingled as she thought about Marquess Sharp’s older son. Nicholas was only two years her senior, very handsome, and a well-respected noble. He was the sort of man Rose dreamed about marrying—not the sort that an orphan like her would end up with.

“Isn’t it… too good?” Rose asked cautiously. She wanted to hide her skepticism, but it was hard. The Sharps socially outranked the Robsons, and Rose wasn’t technically even a member of the main Robson family. Maybe if this offer were for Luanna, it would be more believable. There had to be a catch.

“Well, you know the crystal mines we discovered in the swamps around this time last year?”

“Yes?”

“Frankly, we don’t have the tools or investment funds to harvest everything in those mines properly.

Considering how dangerous the monsters in that swamp can be, it will require a lot.

” Hector dipped the pen into an inkwell.

“Knights and mages are expensive, so I thought about our powerful neighbors, the Sharps. We’ve needed to strengthen our bonds with them for a few generations, anyway.

What if we strengthened the bonds through investment? ”

“Ahh. Clever you, Uncle.”

“Yes. You see where I’m going with this. I approached Marquess Sharp to use his army and mining equipment in exchange for a healthy percentage of the profits—a very healthy percentage,” he added, with remorse.

Of course, her uncle would be remiss to lose any profit. Rose bit her tongue as she mulled over this new information.

Her uncle had found an attractive suitor for her because it benefited him. That much sounded believable.

“Marquess Sharp liked the deal, but I wanted something to prove that both parties would uphold their ends of the bargain. This mining business could last a long time and be profitable for everyone. Before I could even suggest that we trade collateral, he suggested the marriage. When I thought about it, I realized that a marriage would make more sense. You can’t be a capti—er, I mean, you can’t be on assignment for the rest of your life. ”

Rose pursed her lips. Even with gold lining the pockets of both families, it didn’t make sense that she was selected, not Luanna.

Once marriage to a future marquess was on the table, her uncle would have wanted the match for his daughter, not Rose.

Her uncle was lying about something, but she couldn’t accuse him of that directly.

She decided to gamble on her uncle’s apparent good mood and ask for more information.

“Why me? Why not Luanna? Is there something wrong with Nicholas?”

A bark of laughter escaped Hector. “Your humor never ceases to amaze me, Rose. No, there’s nothing wrong with your fiancé.

I met him this afternoon, and he’s a handsome enough lad.

He seems intelligent, too.” He practically gritted out the last sentence, as if Hector were loath to see his niece wed to a smart man.

“Frankly, Rose, we’re sending you because they asked for you, not Luanna. ”

Rose didn’t miss the disappointment in her uncle’s voice, even as she tried to process the jolt of surprise that went straight to her heart.

The Sharps had asked for her? Perhaps meeting Ava at the party had been a setup.

She couldn’t stop the nagging voice that said she was still missing an essential piece of the puzzle.

“But why?” She played nervously with the hem of her sleeve. “And why wouldn’t you try to get Luanna married off to the heir of a marquess?”

“Well, what’s so wrong with your uncle trying to secure a good match for you!?”

Rose knew she was pushing too far, but continued to stare at her uncle skeptically. There wasn’t much for her to lose now.

Hector threw his hands up in defeat.

“Truly, Rose, I tried to offer Luanna. Nicholas asked for you specifically. I think he prefers women closer to his age.”

Nicholas had asked for her specifically ? Rose’s mind reeled. The man who’d accused her of using illicit magic on his sister-in-law had requested to marry her? Even with her uncle’s explanations, she remained wary.

Rose searched her uncle’s face for signs of deceit and found none. She wanted to use her aura to read his emotions more precisely, but Hector would be able to see it.

He scoffed. “It irked me at first, but then I realized that if this deal goes through, I’ll be able to secure Luanna an even better match.

” Hector shifted his weight, leaning forward, elbows propped on his desk.

“The Sharps are coming to finalize everything next week. You and Nicholas will meet for an afternoon tea at that time. Both families will celebrate your engagement dinner as long as all goes well when you meet him. The next morning, they’ll take you back to their territory, Onanish.

We’ll join you there after a month to celebrate the wedding. ”

Uncle certainly wasn’t wasting any time with this business. Were the Robson finances in trouble? Rose doubted that. He and Marquess Sharp were simply eager to reap all the rewards a star mine could offer.

Star crystals were useful for powering all things magical. They stored mana and could be used with elemental magic and spells, though they didn’t work well for aura users like Rose. Mages and merchants were always willing to pay top dollar for even low-quality ones.

“This is all very sudden, Uncle,” Rose whispered.

“Yes, well, that is how these things tend to go. I know you haven’t been around many noble weddings, but this is how they are usually arranged.”

“I don’t have a choice, do I?”

Her uncle’s silence was answer enough.

“What if Nicholas changes his mind?” she asked.

“He won’t. This match benefits both families. Much like you, he’s always been one to put his family’s needs before his own. I think you two will have quite a bit in common. Perhaps that is why he asked for you.”

Rose cast one last glance out the window. She wondered how much of this her uncle was making up to ease her fears. A nervous bride wouldn’t work for the part he needed her to play.

“I’ll send an extra maid to help you with your hair and makeup. I’m going to call your old tutor. You’ll need to review bridal etiquette. Also, join us for family dinners this week instead of having them in your room like normal.”

He must seriously need this deal to go through if he was willing to spare maids for Rose and invite her to the family dinners.

“Of course, Uncle.”

With that, Hector waved her out of the room. Rose’s mind spun wildly with questions—curiosities even—about the entire ploy. But she knew by the way her uncle went back to shuffling through the papers on his desk that the subject of her marriage was closed for further discussion.