by Tate James
“Like you didn't already know that,” I muttered, not bothering to open my eyes. Our night of drinking and games had seen me fly my true colors pretty proudly when it came to my less-than-ladylike language. Something the three teachers had found hilarious at the time.
Zan grunted and shook my shoulder again. “Well, now isn't the time, lovely Luna. You need to get up. Now. I left you to sleep as long as I possibly could.”
“Why?” I groaned, still not wanting to open my eyes.
“Because it's already lunchtime and the royals won't allow you to miss this afternoon’s test,” he informed me. “It was hard enough convincing them to let you rest all morning, but they wouldn't budge on the test. All competing ladies must participate, or it goes against the binding oath.”
This little gem of information made me snap my lids open and glare at Zan.
“Are they fucking serious?” I seethed. “I saved their son's life and can't get a pass for one freaking test?”
Zan looked just as mad as me, but realistically, what could he do about it? The king and queen had proved themselves right royal assholes, so it was doubtful that the words of a tutor would make any impact on them.
“I’m so sorry, Luna. If there was anything I could do…” Zan grimaced, looking more apologetic than he needed to be, so I gave him a small smile.
“It’s fine, Zan. I just…” I pushed myself awkwardly up to sitting and blinked a few times to clear the fuzz from my brain. “I just need a moment to wake up.”
A sly grin twitched his lips, and he raised a brow at me. “And find some clothes, perhaps?”
It took me a second to understand what he meant before I scrambled to cover myself with the sheet. Apparently someone had thought it reasonable to strip me out of my starlight evening gown, and I only wore a strapless, sheer lace corset. On the upside, it lifted my boobs up into some seriously awesome cleavage. On the downside, it did little to nothing to disguise my nipples, thanks to the translucent fabric.
Dammit all to Zryn!
“No need to be embarrassed, Luna,” Zan teased. “I know you’re harboring a secret crush on me. I would have seen those sooner or later.” He delivered a wink that did nothing but embarrass me further, and I felt my cheeks flame.
“Pig,” I scowled. “Can you find me some clothes, please?”
He grinned at my half-assed insult and presented a pile of fabric from behind where he’d been sitting. “I stopped by your room on my way here and grabbed these. Figured you might need them.”
Suspicious, I checked through what he had selected from my closet and immediately guessed that Jules hadn’t been there to help him. “Pants, huh?” I looked at him with curiosity, and he shrugged.
“You seem more comfortable in pants than dresses.” He paused, then ruined the nice sentiment by adding, “Besides, I’m dying to see your ass in those.” He flicked the heavy blue fabric of the pants in my hand, then needed to duck my bandage ball as I tried to swat at him. “I might leave you to get changed. Yell if you need help.”
“I’m sure you’ll be more than happy to lend a hand,” I muttered under my breath as Zan left the small, curtained cubical. Truthfully, I probably did need help dressing. I’d only worn this type of fabric once before—as it was a relic from before the Darkness and therefore insanely expensive—but from memory, it wasn’t the easiest thing to dress in with two fully functioning hands, let alone one.
Still, I was too damn stubborn to actually accept Zan’s offer of help, so I spent the next few minutes struggling into all kinds of complex poses as I wriggled, struggled, and forced myself into the tight blue garment.
“You okay in there?” Zan called out, sounding like he was fighting back a bit of laughter, which just made me more determined to do it myself.
“Fine!” I snapped back, then gave the waistband one more, heavy yank that saw it move into place. “Ah-hah! Success!” I thought I'd crowed my victory quietly, but the snickering outside my cubicle said otherwise. Whatever. Now I needed a shirt... and to attack the zipper and button fly. “Come on, Ry,” I breathed to myself so silently I knew Zan wouldn't hear me. “You can do this. Strong, independent women don't need help from a man to dress themselves.”
It took a little while longer, but eventually I threw back the curtains feeling rather damn proud of myself. That feeling was quickly doused by Zan cracking up laughing at me.
“What?” I snarled, glowering at him.
“Nothing,” he snickered, coming closer and placing his fingers on the top button of my lilac-purple silk shirt. “You just mismatched the buttons a little.” With deft motions, he unbuttoned my entire shirt, then rebuttoned me in the correct holes. He even went so far as to roll my sleeves neatly for me, seeing as I couldn't button the cuff over the thick bandage on my wrist. “There, much more presentable.”
“Um, thanks,” I muttered, feeling a bit like a child who’d put her shoes on the wrong feet. “Oh, shoes? I don't know how much people will appreciate me wandering around the palace barefoot.”
“Here.” He held up the pair of black leather boots I'd worn the day before to Ty's knife class. “Will these work?”
Nodding, I took them from him and dropped them to the floor to push my feet inside. Unwilling to look like a total child who couldn't tie her own shoes, I bent over to lace them up myself. Zan made a sort of strangled noise in his throat, then crouched in front of me and swatted my useless hands away.
“It wouldn't kill you to accept my help, Luna,” he commented as he laced my boots, then offered me a hand up again. “Come on, we need to get to the library before lunch break ends. I did my best to alter the test in the time I had, but...” He sighed. “I just really hope you were paying attention during school.”
Wait. School?
“Uh, in what way?” I asked him, probing for more information. I was an orphan raised by a crime lord in Lakehaven's slums. School hadn't really been an option. Hell, I was lucky I could even read and write; lots of kids my age in the Pond couldn't.
Zan opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted by the elderly, sternfaced medic who had stitched my shoulder earlier in the week.
“Heard you were leaving,” she muttered, scowling at me. “Against my better advice, but who am I to deny the process of the Royal Trials?” She rolled her eyes, and I saw a hint of sympathy there for me. “Here, you need to drink this. The healing creams that Lee used are incredibly effective, but they hurt like hellfire while your flesh mends. Your pain medication is due to wear off in less than half an hour, so drink up unless you want to end up passed out on the library floor.”
Taking the small bottle from her, I offered a small smile. “Thanks, that definitely doesn't sound fun.”
The medic gave me a stern nod, then gave Zan what looked like a silent warning before leaving us to continue out of the room.
“You’d better drink that now,” Zan advised me. “It can make you a bit woozy, but it's a million times better than the pain you'll be in if it wears off. Trust me, I've been there firsthand.”
“That bad?” I uncapped the bottle and gave it a cautionary sniff. It didn't smell too appalling, but just in case, I downed it all in one mouthful. “Blergh. Okay, what were you saying about the test this afternoon? And school?”
“Oh, yes,” Zan replied as we walked through the palace hallways. “Today's lesson was just on the general history of Teich and Lakehaven. All about Queen Ophelia's reign and her tragic death, which led to the Darkness, then the Plague. There were a few more in-depth discussions, but I did a quick edit of the test to take out anything that's not taught in the Lakehaven general curriculum. So, you should be fine, provided you paid attention in class, which I am just now realizing is possible you didn't.”
“Excuse me?” I spluttered. “What makes you think that? I could have been the perfect student for all you know!” And I really could have... if I'd ever had the opportunity to attend a school.
He snorted a laugh, glancing at me fro
m the corner of his eye. “Yeah right, Luna. You practically have 'delinquent' written across your forehead. I find it incredibly hard to picture you in a ladies’ finishing school.”
He had a fair point. Still, that didn't help me now...
“So this test is all just... uh... common knowledge? Maybe you can give me a few examples of questions?” It was worth a try.
Zan grimaced and shook his head. “I wish I could, lovely Luna. Rules are rules, and you know what happens when we try to break them. Editing the test was as good as I could come up with on short notice, seeing as I really thought Prince Louis could talk the king and queen into letting you skip this one.”
“Unsurprising that he didn't,” I murmured, shrugging and feeling the pain meds spread through my body like honey. “Doubt he even gave me a second thought after dumping me with Lee and that... uh... that medic whose name I can't remember.”
Zan sighed, looking like he was holding back secrets. But it was too late to pressure him for more info as we had arrived at the library and some ladies had already returned from their lunch break.
“Just... stay calm and try your best,” he said quietly as I made my way over to a vacant desk and chair. “You'll be fine, Luna. I have faith in you.”
Despite his encouraging words, the tightness to his lips and eyes spoke a different story. He was worried, and rightfully so. If only he knew just how worried he should be.
Stay calm, he’d said. Sounded easy enough... if this test wasn't about to totally expose me for the imposter I was.
Groaning, I dropped my head onto the desk and tried to wish myself out of this mess I'd wound up in. What were my options? I could pretend to pass out and end up back in medical wing, but it was doubtful the binding oath would let me get away with that one.
Come to think of it, the binding oath was likely to zap me no matter how I tried to get out of the test. So, my best bet was to take it and pray to Aana that the “history” we learned in the Pond was cohesive with what they taught the good little ladies of Lakehaven.
Maybe Zan could be creative in his marking, if he felt inclined to save me from death by poison tonight at dinner. Maybe I should have let him “help me dress” after all, considering I might be dead by morning. Hell, I was practically dying a virgin, considering how awful my few experiences with actual sex had been.
Booklets of paper were handed out among the sixteen of us who remained in the Royal Trials, and Zan slipped an ink pen onto my desk to use. It was a sweet gesture, considering I didn't have one myself, but unless it was magically loaded with the correct answers, then I was royally screwed.
My heart sunk even further when I flipped the first page open and found it wasn't multiple-choice. In the back of my mind, I'd been banking on my intuition to guide me to the correct answers, but that could have only worked if there were both correct and incorrect options on the page, not just the infuriating space for me to write my own answer, which I stared down at like it had personally offended me.
Shit.
Sucking in a deep breath, I tucked my hair behind my ear and picked up my pen awkwardly in my left, undamaged hand.
My eyes scanned over the first question, and a little bit of anxiety lifted. Maybe it wouldn't be all that bad, after all. I knew the answer to that first one, and I couldn't imagine it being any different based on where the information was learned—Pond or finishing school.
Carefully, I scribbled my answer in almost illegible handwriting, and cursed Prince Louis again inside my head. Of course I had to save his life with my dominant hand. It would have been far too convenient to have sliced up my left hand.
Biting back yet another self-pitying sigh, I focused on the test booklet. The new pain meds were starting to kick in, and Zan hadn't been lying about feeling woozy.
“Focus, Calla,” I hissed to myself, then almost burst out laughing. Even I was getting confused with who the hell I was these days. Maybe I needed to give myself a whole new name...
Realizing I was daydreaming, I shook my head sharply to try and clear it before peering down at the paper again.
I can do this. I can. These questions aren't too hard, if I just... focus.
21
The knock on my door as I dressed for dinner was not a total shock. I'd suspected I might hear something more before walking into that gilded death trap.
“Well, hello gorgeous,” Jules purred as she answered the door. “How can I help you?”
“I'm here to see Lady Callaluna,” Zan replied in a gruff voice. “It's urgent.”
There was a short pause within which I knew my former best friend was swallowing her own jealousy. She was so used to having men fall all over her and barely glance twice at me that this had to be an uncomfortable shift for her.
Not that Zan was falling all over me. Not by a long shot. But she didn't know that.
“She's busy,” Juliana replied in a snippy tone.
“I'll be brief,” Zan insisted, his voice full of steel that said he wasn't taking no for an answer. Jules must have noticed the same thing because moments later there were footsteps in the sitting area, and then Zan appeared in the doorway to my bedroom.
“Hey,” he greeted me with a frown touching his forehead.
I groaned, sagging to sit on the edge of my bed and not caring this time that I was in nothing but my underwear. “That bad?” I asked him, and he grimaced. “Okay, so... That's that, then?”
He shook his head. “Not necessarily. Someone else was equally as low, and they won't eliminate both of you. But...” He trailed off, leaning his shoulder against the doorframe and reminding me just how tall he was.
“But what?” I prompted, just wanting him to deliver the bad news like ripping off hot wax.
He scratched the back of his head and sighed. “But her answers were just wrong. Like... she's just not a smart girl. Yours were, well, insulting.”
I blinked at him a few times, trying to work out what the fuck he'd just said. “Excuse me?”
“For the question, ‘Who was most likely to be behind Queen Ophelia’s murder and the subsequent loss of baby Princess Zarina?’ You answered, ‘King Titus, or at least his belly-crawling scumbag of an advisor. If I ever saw someone willing to kill a queen, it’s that asshole.’ And then you drew a snake with a moustache like Lord Taipanus.” Zan glared his accusation at me, and I squirmed.
“Okay, so... maybe that wasn't the most socially acceptable answer, but it’s speculation, so how can it be wrong?” I defended my answer with a weak argument, and Zan shook his head, looking disappointed.
“I couldn't even suppress the tests. Lord Taipanus sent someone to collect them the second I finished scoring everyone.” He pursed his lips. “I think you need to... run or something. I don't know. I just... I'm really worried what's going to happen tonight, Luna.”
“She can't!” Juliana interrupted us, barging past Zan and into the bedroom to glare at me. “Not only would the binding oath kill her, she has made a commitment to see this through.”
Seething at her reminder of the rock and hard place I was jammed between, I glared back at her.
“So what?” Zan snapped. “She runs a risk of dying with the binding magic versus dying of red-tide poison at dinner? There is no guarantee the magic would kill her, but the poison will.”
“Running away is not an option,” Jules declared, scowling at both Zan and myself. “You don't know for sure that it will be you tonight, Ry—ah, Lady Callaluna. The servants have all been talking about how enamored Prince Louis is after you saved his life last night, so I hardly think that he'll let his psychotic parents kill you tonight. It'd be bad form, don't you think?”
I glanced between Jules and Zan, chewing my lip. She had a point that there was no certainty it would be me with poisoned wine tonight, but even if it was...
“Zan, has Lee ever worked on an antidote for red-tide?” I asked in a small voice, and the brunette tutor cursed under his breath.
“Luna, you can't run th
is risk,” he implored me, but I just gave him a small shrug.
“Look,” I said, trying to keep my own panic at bay. “I know that there is no known cure for it, but we also both know how great Lee is with botany and alchemy. You can't really expect me to believe that these girls have been dying of the same poison all week and he hasn't tried to create an antidote.”
Zan's jaw was clenched tight, but I knew I was right by the way he dodged my eye contact. “He's been trying, yes,” he finally admitted. “But I don't know if anything has worked so far or if he is just too hesitant to try it out on anyone.”
I nodded a couple of times. “Okay, so here's what we do. If it's me tonight, then as soon as you can, you get me to Lee. If his antidote works, great. If not... Well, I'm really no worse off than trying to run, am I?”
Zan ground his teeth together so hard I could hear them from where I sat. “You don't get it, Luna. That poison, it's—”
“I know,” I promised him. “Trust me, I know full well what that poison can do.” I shuddered at the memory of my last brush with red-tide. Interestingly enough, it had been after my first time having sex. It had been inside one of the many crumbling, abandoned mansions that made up the Pond, and seconds after he’d finished, his girlfriend had shown up with a pipe wrench. I'd found myself climbing down the outside of the building totally naked, and the red-tide had just barely brushed my thigh.
Even so, it had kept me bedridden for over a week feeling like my skin was melting off and begging for someone to kill me.
“Look, it is what it is. I have no doubt I'll make it through tonight, regardless of how it pans out.” I gave both Jules and Zan a confident smile. “I'm harder to kill than you might think.”
Jules coughed a laugh. “That, I believe. I'll get your dress.”
She bustled out of the room to fetch that evening’s dress from where she'd been steaming it in the sitting room, and Zan arched a brow at me.
“She seems like an odd choice for a maid. Very outspoken.”
I shrugged. “Unfortunately, I'm stuck with her. My... family... they insisted she stay with me, and I just found out she has been reporting back to them on my 'progress' here.”