Page 42 of The Shadowed Throne (Midlife Fairy Tale #4)

T he two days had disappeared quickly, and now only a few hours remained before Anyka would step foot aboard the boat that would take her and her people to Tenebrae.

The darkness wrapped around her like a cloak, filling her with great calm as she stood on her balcony, Galwyn on her shoulder, the village of Dearth waking up below.

A cool breeze drifted past. A storm was moving in. She tugged the neck of her robe a little tighter.

These people had no idea what she was about to do for them.

How she was about to change their lives.

She smiled, the sense that she owned the day as strong as anything she’d ever felt.

She was ready to finally put an end to this woman, this upstart queen who was nothing more than a thorn in her side.

If only her beloved Sebastyn could see her now. He would be proud of her, she knew that. He would kiss her forehead the way he’d always done, and he would tell her that there was no better queen in all the realm.

Today, she would prove him right. In the most glorious way possible. With the blood of her avowed enemy on her hands.

The door to the balcony opened. Jenny came out and curtseyed. “My lady, I am here and ready to lay out your things. Any preferences for the day?”

Anyka thought a moment. “I want something that makes me look tired and weak.”

Jenny’s face screwed up. “I don’t understand, my lady.”

“I meet Queen Sparrow on Tenebrae today. I want her to underestimate me. I want to look meek. As though I might actually go along with her ideas.”

“I see.” Jenny glanced behind her. “I will see what I can do.”

Anyka looked at Galwyn as she stroked his breast. “I wish I could take you with me, my pet, but you must be protected. When I return, we will celebrate. You will have fresh fish and berries.”

He cawed at her, his black eyes gleaming in the morning light.

She spent a few more minutes with him on the balcony before going inside to see what Jenny had come up with. Anyka kept the bird on her shoulder as she walked into the dressing room to find Jenny scurrying about. “Well?”

Jenny abruptly stopped. “I have two dresses so far, my lady.”

She went to the racks and pulled the first. It was a soft blue with a single ruffle at the neckline and cuffs. Pearl buttons adorned the bodice, which was scalloped to match the hem.

Anyka almost laughed. “That is hideous. Is that truly mine?”

“Yes, your highness. It was a sample made for you by a dressmaker in town some years ago, in the hopes of earning your business. She might have meant it for Princess Beatryce, but I was never really sure.”

Anyka blew out a breath. “I don’t know if I could stand myself in that. What else?”

The next gown Jenny showed her was a simple pale gray silk with a high neckline, hammered pewter buttons and tiny ivy vines embroidered in darker gray around the hem and cuffs.

Anyka nodded. “Somber. Almost as though the wearer has given up. That might be it.” She looked at Galwyn. “What do you think, my pet?”

He tilted his head.

“It has pockets, my lady,” Jenny offered.

“Those will be useful. Have I worn this before?”

“You wore it once, with your black feather cape, to the funeral of a Vice-Minister many years ago. It was before my time, your highness. I only know because I read the logbook left by your first lady’s maid.”

Anyka blinked. Something slithered down her spine. “That was many, many years ago. I went to that funeral with my parents.” She nodded. “That is the dress. Keep the accessories simple. I am wearing Mourning Hawke today and several other daggers.”

“Yes, my lady. Also, a footman brought breakfast up for you.” Jenny hung the dress near the long mirror and went to get the rest of the accessories.

Anyka went over and touched the sleeve. The silk was good quality. There was something poetic about wearing a gown she’d last worn in the presence of her parents. It was almost like they would be there with her. The darkness approved of that.

She went to the dining room and took a seat, then lifted Galwyn down to stand beside her on the table. Last night, she’d requested breakfast be brought to her rooms so that she wouldn’t be required to go downstairs, although she knew the others were eating together.

She didn’t need to be with them this morning. She needed to be alone, to gather her thoughts and prepare herself for the day ahead.

She lifted the lid from the first small bowl and found nuts, fruit, and dried meat for Galwyn. She set the bowl in front of him. “There you are, my pet.”

He started eating right away.

She took the lid off the large plate and found a simple meal of porridge with dried fruit, spices, and cream. A small pitcher of syrup accompanied it. She poured a cup of coffee and ate. She needed her strength today.

Once breakfast was done, she took Galwyn to his perch, then went to the bathing room, where she shed her robe and sank into the steaming pool.

As much as she would have liked to soak, she couldn’t indulge in such a luxury this morning. She wanted to be dressed and ready to leave before the others. She wanted to get to Tenebrae early, to prepare for any tricks Sparrow might have arranged.

She got out of the water, dried off, and went into the dressing room. Once Jenny dressed her, Anyka sat to have her hair and makeup done. She closed her eyes and mentally went over what she knew about the day.

Royal guards had been on Tenebrae since yesterday. A team of three had been sent ahead with instructions that they were to find appropriate places to hide themselves until and if she needed them.

They were dangerous men, armed with crossbows and throwing daggers, skilled in the art of death and unafraid to die.

She kept her eyes shut to let Jenny work. Those men were her backup plan.

Though she doubted she’d need them, it was good to know they were there.

Perhaps that was part of what was giving her such a sense of calm this morning.

She was as prepared as she could be. She would have Trog, Hawke, and Nazyr there for protection.

Ishmyel and Beatryce, too, but they were more liabilities than assets.

Additionally, she’d have a pair of royal guards with her. She’d thought about leaving them behind just to look more serious about wanting peace, but she knew Sparrow wouldn’t leave hers, so there was no point in it.

She’d be a fool to think Sparrow wouldn’t be a little apprehensive about meeting her, so Anyka needed to appear as honest and open as possible. Then, when the time was right…

Anyka smiled and opened her eyes.

Jenny stepped back. “Almost done. Just a dusting of powder.”

After the powder, Anyka turned side to side to inspect the makeup in the mirror. It was lighter than what she usually wore. Softer. Anyka looked younger, almost innocent. Jenny had understood what was needed.

“Is it all right?”

Anyka nodded. “Very good.” She got up. “Bring me Mourning Hawke and three of my best daggers.”

“Mourning Hawke is on the dressing table there. I’ll fetch the daggers right away, my lady.”

Anyka went to the table and picked up the sword.

It was a fine weapon, but today it was only for show.

She fitted the black leather belt around her waist so that the sword hung at her hip.

On the interior of the sheath was another, smaller sheath that hid a slim weighted blade meant for throwing. That might not be for show.

Jenny returned with the three daggers. Anyka strapped one to each thigh, both reachable via the slits in the pockets in her dress, and slipped another up her sleeve, securing it under the gown’s cuff.

Jenny helped her with a thin black cape of marula wool, attaching it at the gown’s shoulders with plain jet clips.

Anyka surveyed herself in the mirror. She didn’t look quite herself, but that was good.

She was as prepared as she could be. She bid Galwyn goodbye and went downstairs, Trog following, to see who else was ready.

Surprisingly, they were all there, even Beatryce, who’d worn a dark red dress Anyka didn’t recognize. It had to be new.

Anyka looked at them all. “Waiting on me?”

“We just arrived, my lady,” Wyett said. “Shall we go to the boat?”

“Yes.”

They took two carriages to the dock, the pair of guards riding outside the carriage. Anyka hadn’t made a point of keeping the meeting with Sparrow a secret, but she’d done nothing to broadcast it, either.

The mood in her carriage, which contained herself, Beatryce, Wyett, and Trog, was pensive. Anyka was fine with not talking. She had much on her mind. The voices were louder than they’d ever been, the darkness eager for what lay ahead.

They stayed quiet as they boarded the boat, the few words spoken only out of necessity. The boat’s captain had been given instructions, but Wyett went to speak to him all the same.

They took their seats beneath the canopy, facing each other on benches that hugged the boat’s hull.

As the captain took them out into the Whistling Sea, the sun gradually disappeared behind the clouds and the temperature dropped.

Thankfully, the boat’s steam engine produced some heat.

Far in the distance, Tenebrae was shrouded in gray mist, a hulking rock that was about to change her future.

The waves picked up, rocking the boat. Anyka had not been on the water in a long time. Her brief excursion with Hawke on the Celestial Lake at Willow Hall didn’t count. Saliva pooled in her mouth. She swallowed. She had not counted on getting seasick.

She glanced around. Nazyr and Ishmyel looked fine. Wyett, Hawke, and Trog looked a bit green. Bea was pale and had a hand pressed to her stomach. Anyka couldn’t see much of the guards, who were at opposite ends of the boat keeping watch.

She rose and made her way carefully to Nazyr. “Do something. Use your magic. The pitch of the boat is making us sick.”

He glanced up, brows lifting as if this was news to him. He looked at his companions. “I see that.” He said a few words and danced a hand through the air.

Anyka belched, then felt better. She gasped at such unseemliness, covering her mouth with her hand, then acted as if it hadn’t happened. Beatryce and the men belched, too, their color righting itself almost immediately. Bea looked mortified.

Anyka took a seat, marveling at how fast and efficiently Nazyr’s magic had done the trick.

He’d also come up with a spell of protection for Beatryce and helped Grylan with the spell that would allow Anyka to take possession of Merediem. Anyka suspected Grylan had created very little of that spell and it was mostly Nazyr’s doing.

Interesting how Nazyr seemed quicker to act these days. Possibly even more skilled. She wasn’t sure how that was possible, but he seemed to have even greater confidence in his magic. That trip to the woods had truly done wonders.

She closed her eyes and drifted, the rocking of the boat far more soothing than it had been. The darkness stayed quiet, perhaps anticipating what was to come. When she opened her eyes again, she realized she’d slept. Odd. She hadn’t felt tired, although her night had not been the most restful.

Tenebrae loomed over them, a craggy fortress of stone and earth. Against the gray clouds, black and gray speckled rockterns careened and swooped, hunting for their next meal. Their coloring meant they disappeared when they roosted in their nests, only their orange beaks giving them away.

Anyka stood, searching the dock ahead for any sign of Sparrow’s boat. There was none. Anyka and her party had arrived first. Good. That was exactly what Anyka wanted.

A rocktern flew near, coming to land on the railing. It tipped its head, looking at them all. Probably hoping they were fishermen with bait to spare.

“Go on,” Anyka said. “We have nothing for you.”

The rocktern eyed her, took long looks at everyone on board, then took flight again.

The boat slowed, the steam engine churning water. The scents of salt and decaying matter filled Anyka’s nose as they neared the dock.

She stared up at the prison atop the island and nodded approvingly at the imposing construction and bleak, inescapable walls. She smiled.

A fitting place for Sparrow to take her last breath.