Page 14 of The Starlit Ring (The Chronicles of Liridin #1)

“Well, she is… It is unconventional arrangement. She also serves as one of my personal guards. Hence the sword.” Ria ge stured to me. “Which I’m sure you’ll find in the wagon, if you haven’t already.”

“This reeks of betrayal,” said the green-eyed soldier. Again, his sword angled toward me, uncomfortably close to the soft spot between my collarbones. “She’s a spy.”

“I swear she is not a spy,” said Ria calmly, though the tension never left her face. “She is a longtime servant of mine. If you will not allow me to keep her in my employ, then I must insist we send her back to the castle. Unharmed,” she added firmly.

“This is a betrayal!” the green-eyed soldier insisted. “Kill her now and charge the princess with treason.”

Prince Marius gave a long-suffering sigh. “Although I value your opinion, Klar, I can appreciate that this situation needs to be handled delicately.” He stood before me. “What is your name, Miss?”

“Arina,” I said, before Ria could chime in with something I couldn’t possibly remember. “Arina of Malloy, Your Highness.”

“This is a most unconventional method of travel, Miss Arina. I would not advise attempting this in the future.” His cool gaze raked up and down my body; his lips twisted as if he saw something he didn’t like. And try as I might, I couldn’t fight down a wave of disappointment.

“I can assure you I’ve more than learned my lesson,” I said, looking everywhere but his face.

A froth of lace spilled from his collar, and I stared at that instead.

Surely it was only the lamplight and shadows that made his sharp features so lovely.

In the daylight, I would realize that he was a mere mortal, handsome but nothing special.

I wouldn’t blush every time I crossed his path. “I won’t do it again, Your Highness.”

“I am prepared to forgive this transgression once and once only,” he said. “Do not give me reason to believe you are anyone other than who you say you are. I will not be so merciful if I find you are…” He raised his eyebrows. “…lying. ”

“Thank you,” Ria said. The breath she was holding rushed out of her in a whoosh.

“Thank you, Your Highness,” I managed.

“Untie her,” Prince Marius addressed the mustached guard. “See that she is reunited with her things and given something to eat. In the meantime,” he nodded to Ria, “you are in charge of her. If she does anything untoward, you will answer for it. Am I understood?”

“Yes, Your Highness,” she said, dipping into a curtsy.

The elegance of the gesture was ruined by the unbridled loathing in her eyes.

Gone was last night’s dull acceptance. Ria was aflame with rage.

Prince Marius need not fear me, but Ria would end him in a heartbeat, and I’d help her drag his corpse out into the middle of the mountains—rocks, bears, and snow be damned.

Then that fiery gaze met mine, and I knew I was in trouble, too. Perhaps more than Prince Marius.

Considering that it had been set up only an hour ago, Ria’s tent was surprisingly luxurious. A small wooden table and two chairs sat atop a patterned rug. Beside it was a cot piled high with quilts and furs. A single flickering lantern lit the space.

“Are you hurt?” Ria demanded as soon as I’d seated myself.

“No,” I mumbled, though my wrists and shoulders ached. Red welts wound around my wrist where the rope had scraped against my skin.

“What were you thinking?” she exclaimed, fuming. I looked away.

A servant entered the tent carrying two steaming bowls of something that smelled like fish and beans. A second arrived with two goblets and a bottle of wine. My stomach clenched.

“I didn’t have time to think!” I told her. “You were going to leave!”

“You said you wouldn’t do this,” she hissed as the servants departed. “I told you to stay home and stay safe, and you betrayed my trust. ”

“Then send me home!” I snapped. Fury whipped through me. Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes. “If you’re so angry, then get rid of me.”

“Calm down,” said Ria, settling into her chair the same way she did at her vanity back home.

I glowered at her, unwilling to shed the tears threatening to spill.

“Look, we haven’t even left Olmstead yet,” said Ria, pulling her bowl closer. “If you want to go home, you can.”

“Do you want me to do that?” Returning home at this point would be akin to a prison sentence, and we both knew it.

King Amonrew would never let me out of his sight again.

He’d marry me off to the first man who showed interest, and make me his problem, and that could lead to all sorts of terrible things.

She took a bite of soup. “What do you want to do, Arina?”

It hurt to hear a false name on her lips. She spat it like a bitter herb.

“I don’t know,” I answered. “I—I didn’t want to let you leave alone. I didn’t like the idea of you stuck in that castle all by yourself. And I—I don’t want to marry Alger.”

“There’s always the Duke of Alberbrook,” said Ria gently.

I shook my head. “He saw me covered in blood, with my ankles exposed. He’ll never recover from the shock, I fear.”

Her laugh was genuine, but she muffled it with her hand. “Gods forbid he’s assaulted by the sight of a rogue ankle.”

“I’d be the death of him,” I sighed wistfully, chin on my fist, and Ria laughed properly at that.

“You might very well be. But you’d be a duchess. That’s no small thing.”

I thought of picturesque palaces, bustles and skirts and clicking heels, gilded paintings and marble statues, afternoon tea in rose gardens. Galas and banquets and long evenings by the bonfire, a crescent moon overhead, leering and grinning? —

And Callum, polite and proper and handsome . The blush returned to my cheeks.

I had greater aspirations for myself: a life spent in the forge, designing weapons for men like Callum. But there was no greater achievement than marrying into nobility, was there?

Then what was the point of cultivating my skills, only to throw them out the window the moment a man showed interest in me? Surely Father meant to do more than keep me occupied when he allowed me to pursue artificing.

But he’d pitied me. Remembered my mother, remembered the way everyone around me acted as though I didn’t belong, like a rat in the pantry. Was he merely indulging me? Trying to allow me a few years of peace and independence before he ferried me off to a mediocre man?

The sting of betrayal shot deep into my bones. Perhaps my skills were a selling point. A way to interest suitors. But Father would sell me to the highest bidder, no doubt about it.

He’d severed the agreement with Tocchia the moment they broke the treaty.

It didn’t matter if they meant to help, he’d claimed.

Their army on our land was nothing more than an act of war, even if a border city was threatened by enemy forces.

Nemonia denied everything, and by the time our men arrived, there was no trace of them.

Tocchia lied, and Father broke the treaty to protect Ria.

Or so he claimed.

“I don’t know what I want,” I said. “I thought I wanted something new, but now I’m afraid I might not be able to handle it.”

“I’ll take you back,” said Ria. “Prince Marius won’t dare harm you.”

I shrugged. “Do you think Father is looking for me?”

“I’ve no idea,” admitted Ria. “Probably.”

“Do you think he suspects?”

“I think he knows you ran away. I doubt he knows you followed me. ”

Right, because this was a terrible idea. So terrible that even my own father wouldn’t expect it of me.

“What happens if they find out?”

“I guess they can’t,” said Ria. “We can send you away if you decide to go home. We don’t have to tell anyone.

” She crossed her legs. “Prince Marius owes me. He knows this. I alone prevented a war. If I tell him he must pardon you, he will. Everything you saw just now—theatrics. All theatrics. He knows how close he came to starting a war he couldn’t win. He’s got no power over me.”

“That might change,” I reminded her.

“It won’t,” she said. “It will haunt him the rest of his life. I’ll make sure of it. It will be the third party in our marriage. A specter no exorcist can best.”

I shivered. “Prince Marius is brave to marry you.”

“I’ll be the heart of his regrets,” said Ria, taking another bite of soup.

“A noble aspiration.” But such talk was treasonous, and the walls of our tent were thin. Since it was apparent Ria would lose herself in her quest for revenge, I decided to be the one to save her, and changed the subject. “I think I’d like to stay.”

“Alright,” said Ria slowly. “You can stay. But you must obey me. You must be careful. And you must agree to return home if I order you to.”

“Fine,” I said, though I felt as if I’d just made a deal with a fae creature, tricked by pretty words and desperation. “But you have to give me a chance.”

“A chance , Arina,” said Ria firmly. “If it isn’t working, I won’t stand by and let you suffer. Now eat something, please.”

I lifted a spoonful of soup.