Page 65 of The False Prince (Ascendance 1)

I wasn’t sure yet how to get onto the top floor of Farthenwood, which was only a third of the area of the other floors. The nursery/schoolroom where Roden and I took lessons was up there, but I wasn’t sure of what else. Likely, there were apartments for a governess and possibly more bedrooms. I might eventually find my way up to that level, but I wasn’t trying too hard. It didn’t seem that anything interesting was up there.

I shinnied down a drainpipe to reach solid ground — always a nice feeling — and set about exploring the grounds. I passed through the stables, the archery courtyard, a wide vegetable garden, and then another carefully tended flower garden. The thought nagged at me again to just run.

But I knew I wouldn’t dare. The assurance of that confirmed my worst suspicions about myself. That deep inside, I really was a coward.

The crescent moon had shifted in the sky before I decided to return to my bedroom, where Conner so smugly believed he held us prisoner. It was dark enough that I had to feel for the edges of the window to find the small gap to open it again.

o;Why was that necessary?” Tobias asked. “What was she before? Some sort of criminal?”

“Bite those words!” Conner ordered. “She was your queen, Tobias, and a respectable woman, always. My only point is that Eckbert wanted to avoid a similar uproar with his son. Now that Darius has been killed, the betrothal will pass to Prince Jaron, if he is found. If you take the crown, you will one day take Amarinda as your wife.”

“But if she was engaged to Darius —” Roden asked.

“She was betrothed to the throne, not the prince. Amarinda will marry the man who becomes king.”

“Marry?” Tobias chuckled loudly, echoed by Roden and me.

“Not until you’re older, of course,” Conner said. “But when the time comes, she will be yours.”

“What does she look like?” I asked. Conner raised an eyebrow, and I added, “Seems to me a girl whose marriage is guaranteed might not need to take care of her looks as much as one who has yet to catch a man’s eye.”

“You shall see for yourself,” Conner said. “I have invited her to dinner at the end of this week.”

“But if she sees us —” Tobias said.

“You three will be in disguise as servants amongst my staff. She is a betrothed princess and will hardly deign to look at any of you. But I want you to see her, to gain an understanding of her mannerisms and style. It will help you after you take the throne.”

“So what is she like?” Roden asked.

“I’ll have you judge that for yourselves. But I suspect she will appeal to you boys, and make our contest that much more interesting.”

Roden and Tobias perked up at the prospect of seeing her, but I only slumped back in my chair. Conner had collected another victim in this hideous game, and the princess would never even know it.

Back in our rooms that night, Roden went straight to bed. Tobias was at his desk, reading another book. I lay on my bed, staring out the window. Tucked beneath my pillow was a spool of thread, a needle, and a small pair of sewing shears. I did have a tear in a shirt from the horse ride, but I wasn’t going to repair it. When I had enough privacy, I planned to cut the shirt up and sew a few pockets into the linings of my clothes. The vest I wore in the daytime had only one useless pocket on the outside. I needed a way to hide items inside my clothes, where nobody would think to look.

After verifying the sewing items were well hidden, I sat up and stared out the window near my bed. I pulled a garlin from my vest pocket, stolen from Conner’s pocket after dinner, and absentmindedly let it roll over my knuckles. When it reached my pinky finger, I carried it with my thumb back to my forefinger.

“Nice trick,” Tobias said.

“It helps me think.”

“What are you thinking about?”

“Ways to get you to stop talking to me.”

Tobias wasn’t fazed. “While I have candlelight in this room, you can’t possibly see outside. What are you staring at?”

“Nothing.”

“This is what you do during lessons as well. Are you lost in your daydreams?”

“Dreaming of what my life might have been like if I’d made other decisions.”

Tobias set his book down flat on the table. “Like what?”

“If I’d stayed with my family.”

“Then you’d have become a drunken musician like your father was.”