“The truth is I don’t have a talent,” I told him sheepishly.
“Of course you have a talent. You’re amazing at everything you do.”
“No, I really don’t. I can’t sing and I never learned to play the violin, or a harp, or the flute or whatever other ridiculous instrument your mother thinks Princesses are supposed to play. While other girls were studying the arts or learning domestic hobbies, I was in a field with my brother learning to wield whatever weapon he trained with that day.”
“I’m surprised he allowed you too.”
“Like I told your sister, I suckered him like she suckers you. He could never tell me no.”
Zander turned to his side, giving me his full attention. “What was he training for?”
I could have made something up, but I didn’t want to lie to him. “He always dreamed of being a palace guard.”
“What happened?”
“He didn’t make the cut.” I shrugged as if it was no big deal.
“Where is he now? Whenever you talk about him it is in the past tense.” The Prince was very perceptive.
I remained on my back with my eyes fixed to the ceiling. If I looked at Zander he would recognize the grief that shone within them. “He died,” I said quietly.
Zander gently grabbed my chin and turned my face toward him. “I am sorry.”
“Me too.” I kept the tears at bay.
“I’ve got an idea,” he said, standing up then pulling me to my feet as well. “But we need to get back to the palace to have time to set it up.”
“To set what up?” I eyed him suspiciously. Mischief danced in his eyes.
“Your talent display.”
“But I don’t have one.”
“Sure you do,” he grinned at me. “It’s archery.”
“The Queen will have a fit.
“I know.”
“Let’s go,” I grinned back at him.
Chapter 18
A lot more people than the Queen and her entourage were present in the palace courtyard. Dozens of courtiers, Zander, and the King himself turned up to see the talent trial. I guess the Queen was right. People at Court did enjoy entertainment. It was odd that it was considered a part of a Princess’ duties though. It seemed to me like people should be entertaining her. Some age-old traditions needed to be updated. The King’s resemblance to his son was striking. He looked like a carbon copy of Zander aged 30 years into the future. The only difference was their eye color. Zander had inherited his mother’s amber brown hue. The King’s were gray, almost blue.
Iliana mercifully finished her rendition of a classical opera song. Everyone else seemed to enjoy it, but it made my ears ring. Emily went next and she played her cello beautifully. It tugged at the audiences’ hearts leading to a standing ovation at the end.
Zander set things up so I would go last. After listening to every popular classical instrument played twice over, it was my turn. The announcer spoke my name and all heads turned in my direction. The palms of my hands sweated from nerves. I stood and walked to the center of the courtyard. On cue, a pair of guards, one half of which consisted of Jacob from the hall, brought out a wooden target, an archer’s bow and several arrows. I walked up to the table the bow and arrows had been placed on. The crowd’s expressions ranged from bewildered to curious to jeering. I ignored them all. The only one who mattered was sitting to the right of the Queen. I picked up the arrow, strung the bow, and let it fly. It hit the target dead center. I used the next arrow to split the first one down the middle. I did the same with the third and fourth and fifth ones. Once out of arrows I put the bow down and bowed to the crowd. They were speechless. I turned to take my seat, but then Zander started clapping. My cheeks warmed. That was not a part of the plan. Emily clapped too and before I knew it the entire crowd was frantically falling in line to please the Prince. The King himself even applauded, with genuine delight on his face. The Queen, however, glared daggers in my direction.
After the talent trial there were 30 girls left in the competition. Every single one of them snickered in my direction at dinner that night. On the way back to our room, I accidentally bumped into Iliana. We turned a same corner from opposite directions at the same time.
“Sorry,” I said politely.
She responded by looking down her nose at me. It was quite a feat to accomplish seeing as how I had about 5 inches on her.
“Do you have to be so rude all the time?” I asked. She was seriously starting to annoy me.
“Do you have to be a slut?” she snapped at me.
I blinked in surprise as the trio of girls traveling with her erupted into a fit of hushed giggles.
My hands fisted at my side. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me? Do you have to be Such. A. Slut?”
I was two seconds away from knocking the snooty expression she wore off her face. I took an intimidating step forward, purposefully crowding her personal space. “Call me a slut again, and that smug grin on your face will be meeting the stone floors.”
She must have sensed the truth in my threat because she abruptly turned around and walked off in the opposite direction. Smart girl.
“Ignore her, Skyler,” Emily spoke up from beside me. “It is just a stupid rumor.”
“What rumor?” I had a feeling I would not like the direction things were heading in.
“That you are sleeping with the Prince,” she said quietly as if saying the words too loud would raise a scandal.
“What?!” I choked out. “Why on Earth would anyone think that?”
Emily had the decency to look apologetic. “I may have let it slip that you had breakfast with the Prince to Charlize from the House of Danvue. I told her not to tell anyone, but she told Rosemary from the House of Windemere, who told Iliana. She thought Rosemary was lying, but she was still livid. She asked her cousin who is a palace guard and he told her that you and the Prince have breakfast in the gardens every morning then disappear afterwards beyond the palace grounds.”
“And the conclusion you lot came up with is that we are sleeping together?!” I asked incredulously.
“Well what else would you be doing?”
I slapped my hand against my forehead. “Never mind, forget it. I’m done with this conversation. Not cool Emily, at all. I thought we were friends, but friends don’t gossip about each other.” I stalked off, leaving her alone in the hallway.
I didn’t know where I was going. I just knew I did not want to be around my roommate. She was headed to our room; therefore I headed anywhere but there. I wondered where Zander was. I missed him and wanted to see his face. I was also curious about what the Queen had to say about the trial. I started to go in search of him, but stopped myself. What was I going to do? The thing developing between us was not permanent and could never last. I thought about taking a stroll through the rose garden. It was supposed to be reserved for the Roth’s, but I had been there enough times now that the guards paid my comings and goings little attention. They automatically assumed their Prince invited me. However, the Queen often visited them with her ladies-in-waiting in the evenings and she was the last person I wanted to run into. The Princess decided my destination for me when I ran into her aimlessly wandering the palace halls.
“Skyler,” she squealed when she saw me. “I was looking for you, but I did not know which room was yours.”
There were no guards with her, which meant she ditched them again. She hated being made to travel with an escort even within the palace. She thought it made her seem like a baby. Give me break! You are nine-years-old. Of course you are a baby, is what I thought every time she pouted to me about it. I did not dare tell her that though. She would erupt in a fit. Still, if someone hired me to kill the Prince, then someone obviously had a serious grudge against the House of Roth. Damn it, she needed to stay with her guards at all times. I gave the Princess my best stern-looking face.
“Kiera, you have to stop running away from your guards. It is not safe for a young Prin
cess to travel without them.”
She poked her bottom lip out and stomped her foot. “I am not a baby,” she pouted.
“Of course you’re not,” I placated her. “How about I make you a deal? Every day that you stay with your guards, I will owe you an archery lesson.”
“Really?!” she beamed at me.
“I promise. I will even pay up the first time in advance. We can go right now, but afterwards you must immediately find your guards and stay with them.” I was not above bribing children, especially if it helped ensure their safety.
“Deal, let’s go.” The Princess grabbed my hand and practically dragged me out to the palace grounds.
“Skyler, do you like my brother?” Kiera asked me as I carried her on my back toward the palace. We stayed in the archery fields for so long that the sun was beginning to set in the sky. She finally agreed to leave when I told her I would give her a piggyback ride if we left.
“I think I do.” Thankfully, she could not see my face as it turned red. This was so not a conversation I wanted to have with a nine-year-old.
“Well I think he really likes you.”
“What makes you think that?”
“Because he argues with Mother all the time about making you a Princess. I hope he does. Then you can stay at the palace forever and we would be sisters. Do you want to stay here, Skyler? Please say yes, I don’t want you to leave.”
“Slow down, Kiera,” I laughed. The child talked a mile a minute when excited about something. “I would love to stay at the palace with you, but it probably will not happen sweetie.” Even without seeing it I knew she had a crushed look on her face. I could have lied to her and let her believe that her wish for me as a sister would come true, but I would not give her false hope. It would only hurt her more when I left.
“But I thought you said you liked Zander?” her voice quivered.
“I do. A lot.”
“Is it me? Do you not want to be my sister?”
“Of course not Kiera. If I could choose to have any little sister in the world, I would choose you. You’re the best.”
“I don’t understand what the problem is,” she said confused.
I sighed. The conversation was mentally draining me. “It’s complicated.”
“Then un-complicate it.” Her tone was so matter-of-factly that I momentarily forgot I was talking to a nine-year-old. In that moment the Princess sounded wise beyond her years. Her advice was sound, simple, straightforward and to the point.
However, un-complicating things were easier said than done. I had heaped so many lies on top of lies and knotted my web of deception so intricately that it was far past the point of being unraveling. I was a common girl wearing the mask of an assassin pretending to be a lesser noble who wanted to marry the Prince when I was really at court to kill him though I no longer would. However, the Guild still thought I was fulfilling my contract. The only truth in my deceit was the very real feelings I felt for Zander.
Chapter 19
Unfortunately, my roommate was still in our room when I returned. She sat on a chaise near the door as if she had been waiting on me. I walked past her without sparing a glance in her direction.
“Skyler, I am sorry,” she said after me.
I kept walking and sat on my bed. I could not do this with her right now. I was already emotionally wrung dry. Maybe if I buried myself under my comforter she would get the message.
“Come on, Skyler, please don’t stay mad at me.”
I finally looked at her and damn it I wished I did not. Her eyes were doing that thing they did where they swelled up with tears.
I let out a frustrated sigh. “Fine, Emily, I will not stay mad at you. Are you happy now?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because I suck and am a horrible friend. I need to learn to keep my mouth shut. My mother is right. I talk too much. She says it is why I will never make a suitable Lady. I need to learn to be seen and not heard.”
All of my anger toward Emily drained out of me and redirected itself at her mother. Who said things like that to their child? I really, really hated High Nobles.
I patted the bed beside me, inviting her to sit down. “Your mother sounds like a bitch Em.”
She looked at me incredulously then doubled over in laughter. “You have no idea.”
A knock at the door cut off her laughter.
“Hi, Emilia. The Queen gave us permission to go out and tour the royal city. She’s even offered to send a guard to escort us. A few of the other girls and I, who have never been to Pleith before, figured we would take her up on the offer. Do you want to come?” The newcomer was Charlize Grace from the House of Danvue.
Emily’s expression lit up then just as quickly deflated. “No, you all go ahead.” I heard the longing in her voice. She declined the offer for my benefit.
“It’s okay Emily. I don’t mind if you go.”
“Are you sure?” she asked.
I was sure and I told her as much. It would be selfish of me to let her stay behind just because I was not invited.
She hopped off the bed, but she also pulled me up along with her. “Come with us. It will be fun?”
I shook my head. “No, I’m good. I don’t think I am invited.”
“Of course you are. Right Charlize?”
Charlize blanched a bit, but she gracefully and quickly recovered. “Sure, Skyler can come.” She looked like the words pained her to say.
I wanted to insist that I not go. I would rather walk barefooted on nails than spend the evening with a group of superficial teenage nobles. I said yes because I knew Emily wanted to go and she would spend the evening feeling guilty if I stayed behind.
The trip into the city did not turn out to be as bad as I thought it would. Our group consisted of Charlize, Emily, Rosemary and myself. The other who remained in the competition stayed behind. Having visited the city of Pleith before, they had no desire to explore it again. They preferred to stay in the palace and play at being royalty. Pleith was every bit as lovely as a royal city should be. A thousand lights glittered against the night sky and decorated street after street of homes and businesses that boasted medieval-inspired architecture. I did not pay much attention to beauty of the city when I first arrived. I was too nervous and focused on the mission at hand. The city outside the walls of the palace bustled with life. It consisted of soldiers in the royal army, off duty palace guards, visiting nobles and Common People employed by the royal family. The Common People here were nothing like the Common People of Arythmia. There seemed to be less of a division between the wealthy and the poor. The wealthy had just as much money but the poor had a little bit more than the people of Arythmia. Maybe that was why things were so bad for the Common People everywhere else. The royal family had a limited perspective of our plight.
Our quartet sat in a plush booth inside one of Pleith’s more reputable taverns. The guard assigned to escort us disappeared somewhere inside the large establishment with a lovely blonde. The tension was thick when we first departed the castle, but now several hours into our excursion the girls seemed to have relaxed around me. We were still not friends, but they were cordial. The tavern was full of soldiers. I could tell they were not off duty guards because of the way they carried themselves. They were less refined and more rowdy. One of the more brazen ones approached our table.
“Good evening ladies. What brings y’all to this fine establishment?” He slurred his words as he spoke.
No one at the table immediately acknowledged him and it must have pissed him off. “You girls think you’re too fancy to talk to a lowly soldier.” He sounded offended now. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded wad of money. “I know what interests y’all. I have money and I can pay.” He grabbed Charlize’s arm roughly. “What about you? How much will it take to make you come home with me for the night?”
“I suggest you let her go and leave us alone. Now.” My voice was low and polite. Only he a
nd the girls at the table could have heard me. I did not want to make the situation worse by making him feel as if he needed to save face in front of his fellow soldiers.
“What’s that girlie? I didn’t quite hear you. Did you say you wanted to come with me instead?” He smiled a crooked grin at me. It only served to make him that much more unattractive. He was a large, brawny man with a crooked nose that rested at an odd angle as if it had been broken one too many times. If he was not careful, it was going to be broken one more time.
I kept my voice low, but my tone was no longer polite. “Last chance. Walk away.”
“What about you?” He began another round of crude comments as he reached for Emily. Whatever foul words he would have said were cut short as I stood over Emily and forcefully knocked his hand away from her. She wasted no time scooting between the seat and me, sliding as far away from the offending soldier as possible.
His friends chuckled in the background. He turned livid. He raised a hand to backslap me, but I caught it mid-strike. I pushed off the table and used the momentum to knee him in the stomach. He doubled over in pain. I could have left it at that, but I was pissed and far from finished with him. While he was doubled over, I took advantage of the opportunity and smashed my booted foot into his face. Bone and cartilage crunched beneath it. He dropped to his knees. I bent down and grabbed the same hand he grabbed Charlize’s shoulder with. I squeezed and squeezed until the bones splintered. I brought my lips inches away from his ear and whispered, “Next time when a Lady says leave her alone, listen. Now one of two things can happen. You can pick yourself up and limp away or you can continue annoying me and I can use the knife I have strapped to my leg to slit your vocal chords. Nod once if you choose option A.”
He nodded once. Smart man. When I turned back to the table, three sets of eyes looked at me with expressions that were equal parts horror-stricken, shocked and amazed. Our guard chose that moment to make an appearance. All of the commotion must have compelled him to check on us.
Two-Faced (Assassin at Court Series Book 1) Page 5