“Of course.”
She opened the door and listened. No noises, so they were all probably still sleeping. She felt wide awake, and she did not go back to bed, but to sit in one of the cushioned seats near the windows.
Where was Casimir? She’d seen him briefly at the funeral, but other than that, she had not seen him since he went off with Sebastian and all Sebastian’s courtiers. It made her nervous. She didn’t like that she had no contact with him.
It was as though Archibald’s death had ripped open a gash in their court, and what lay inside did not look pretty.
She turned as she heard someone else enter the room.
“I blame you for Casimir’s leaving.” Isobel’s voice was low, and there was a hardness Thea had never heard from her sister before.
“I tried to talk with Father. He had already settled on this as the way to proceed.” Thea felt badly for not being completely honest, but she also knew that no matter what, Isobel would not take kindly to anything she said.
“Why could you not let him be?” Isobel asked.
“There was nothing to let be,” Thea said. “I have loved Casimir since I was young. I am sorry to tell you this, but you deserve the truth from me.”
“When he fostered here?” Isobel responded.
Thea nodded. “Yes.” She wanted to say more, but didn’t know how to start.
“Then why do you not fight harder to keep him here?”
“I cannot, Isobel. I cannot. I don’t want him to leave, either. I don’t think…” She didn’t finish her sentence.
“What?” Isobel came closer, pressing her.
“I do not think that Father is being entirely honest regarding Casimir as his choice to act as emissary to the court of the Empress. I believe...I think, that is...that Sebastian knows of Casimir’s feelings, and perhaps mine. I think Father was...persuaded in his choice.”
“That is not honorable,” Isobel said heatedly.
“According to Casimir, all’s fair in the making of a good match. I don’t agree,” she said with a wry laugh, “But that is his thought.
“You’ve talked with him since the announcement?” Now Thea could hear the hurt and despair.
“Yes. We did,” she said gently.
Isobel sat heavily next to her, crying. “I could love him, Thea.”
“I understand. I cannot tell you how to feel, Isobel. I can only tell you my truth and let you choose from there. I don’t want you to feel any more hurt than you have in this matter.”
Isobel stood abruptly. She dashed at her face, wiping the tears. “I can’t tell you that I forgive you. I don’t. I don’t know if I can. I do accept that you care for him. I expect that you will attempt to keep him from harm. I don’t know why, but I feel like bad things are coming.”
Thea reached for Isobel’s hand to stay her leaving. “Do you feel it too? I feel as though a shadow is upon us.”
“Of course there is.” Isobel removed her hand, staring down at Thea. “You brought it.” She walked away, leaving Thea’s hand hanging in mid-air, grasping for what would not come.
***
Thea lay in bed. She had lost her appetite after speaking with Isobel earlier. They had gone to dinner, and she’d returned to their rooms as soon as she’d eaten. She couldn’t face anyone, not with the truth of Isobel’s words beating against her.
Now everyone else had retired, but Thea could not sleep. Isobel’s words rang in her head, refusing to go away, or even take a rest. Over and over, like the sea against the shore. She threw back the bedclothes and walked back out into the solarium. At least everyone else slept, and she could be alone.
How long she sat near the long windows, she didn’t know. The moon sat high over the castle. She gasped as she saw the reflection of a candle in the window.
“It’s time, Thea. You are not ready, and you need to be ready.” Angharad stood in fully dressed in a beautiful ball gown, holding the candle.
“What do you mean?”
“We must hurry.” Emaline joined Angharad. “We don’t wish to miss them. Come, Thea.” She stepped around Angharad and took Thea’s hand, drawing her back towards the dressing room. Thea allowed her to lead, her mouth falling open as they walked back into the sleeping chamber.
All her sisters were in various states of dress, as though they were attending another ball. Ignoring them, Emaline led Thea to the dressing room.
“You will want your blue,” she said. “You have not worn that yet. Your prince will enjoy seeing you in it.”
“What are you talking about?”
Emaline didn’t answer, but pulled the blue dress Thea had worn the night of the fateful ball out, and began to unlace it.
Thea could tell that none of her sisters were fully there. It was as though they moved in a dream. A dream! This was the dream! The dream they had all been dreaming over the past week! Angharad joined them, setting down the candle and taking up a brush, intending to do Thea’s hair. She opened her mouth to yell at Emaline and Angharad to wake, and then closed it. As frightening as this was, perhaps she would find out what was going on.
She allowed herself to be dressed. Her hair pinned up, and jewelry chosen for her. None of her sisters spoke, or even made much noise. It was eerie.
When she was dressed, she stood. She didn’t know what to do next, so she walked out into the sleeping chamber. The rest of her sisters were dressed, and clustered around her bed. She joined them, and they all looked at her.
“Why do you wait, Thea? We cannot be late.” Adelaide said. It didn’t sound like her, and that gave Thea a chill.
“What do I do?”
“The finial,” Adelaide said, nodding to the one to the right of the head of the bed. Thea moved towards it, reaching out to touch it.
Once she laid her hand on it, she had to jump back. The bed slid away from her, revealing a staircase underneath. Thea peered in. No light showed at the bottom.
“Thea, we must go,” Adelaide sounded worried.
Thea looked around. They all waited for her—she could feel their impatience as though it were another person in the room. Apparently, she had to lead this.
She stepped onto the staircase, and her sisters immediately lined up behind her according to age. When she reached the bottom step, light flared up in front of her. But she couldn’t tell initially where the light came from, until she looked around more.
The light was from a forest. Thea walked on, awed by the sight around her. The trees were silver, and then gold, and finally, diamonds. They glittered like a thousand miniature suns. It was beautiful.
She stopped abruptly as she reached the edge of the forest. Before them stretched a lake.
“We are not late. The princes are not here yet.” Sybbl stood next to her, looking out over the water.
“They come,” Esmay said. She pointed, and Thea could see small, bobbing lights upon the lake. Silently, they all stood and watched as the lights grew larger.
Thea saw that each light was a lantern hung over a small rowboat, large enough for just two. As the rowers came closer, she could they were all splendidly dressed, just as she and her sisters were. When they were nearly ashore, all of her sisters took several steps back, almost as one.
Thea stepped back also, rather belatedly. Her sisters were beginning to spook her. She looked closely at them. None showed any real animation, just calm. No sign that this was in any way unusual.
The boats crunched along the shore, and the men leapt from them, each moving to one of her sisters. She started as one landed in front of her, executing a perfect bow.
“My lady Thea, I am honored that you chose to join me this evening.” He stood and she stifled a gasp. It was Roderick, a prince she knew from summer visits. His kingdom was nearly a week’s travel from Gallivas. He was a handsome man, and he held out his hand to her, invitingly. Tentatively, she took it. He grasped it and led her to the boat, helping her to step in and be seated.
“How do you fare, my lady? We have
all been most anxious for your arrival.” Quicker than she thought possible, Roderick had the boat back out on the water, rowing easily. She peered around him. In the distance, she could see a castle. She just knew it would be the castle from her dreams. She felt sure the hall would be the same as well.
“My lady?” Roderick interrupted her musings. “You do not seem yourself tonight. Is there something I can do for you?”
“I do apologize, my lord. The heat seems more than usual,” she pulled out her fan, and fanned her face. She was sweating, but it was not from the heat. She didn’t think he’d notice.
Roderick looked around. “I do not notice any excess heat, but I will be glad to bring you a cool drink once we reach the castle.” He smiled as though that solved everything.
“That would be pleasant,” she replied. “My lord, where do you stay when you wait for us?”
“The castle, of course. It’s our home,” he said as though she ought to know this.
Thea couldn’t respond. She knew where his home was, and it was not this castle in a forest under her bed.
This was the curse. She sat back in the boat, weighted by the surety of her knowledge. All her dithering prior—none of it had the certainty that this did. She and her sisters were cursed to travel underground. Attended by, if Roderick were any example, the perfect courtier. Polite, charming, and shallow. No substance.
But how had Catrin gotten twelve men to journey here? She’d been preoccupied with her own woes the past week but she knew that none had brought news of Roderick being missing. Given Sybbl’s comment about princes, plural, earlier, she guessed the other eleven men were princes also.
Twelve princes going missing would cause comment, no matter how far apart the kingdoms were. That would be on her agenda tomorrow—to discover if any gossip had reached their court, or if her father had any information.
“We have decorated the ballroom for your arrival,” Roderick said. “I do hope it will meet with your approval.”
She looked at him. This was not the Roderick she remembered. He tended towards being a studious, serious young man. He was the heir. She could remember from their visits that he was considered a wise and thoughtful prince. Her father was fond of him, for all their differences in regards to how to rule a kingdom. This eager to please courtier bore no resemblance to the real Roderick.
Based on what she’d seen from her sisters, she felt that the princes were no doubt enchanted as well. The thought of how powerful a sorceress would have to be in order to manage this nearly overwhelmed her.
If this was indeed the curse, how long would this go on? How could she make it stop? Maybe Isobel was right. Casimir becoming engaged to another would show him to no longer be hers in any way.
Panic rose. The enormity of this nearly overwhelmed her... She forced herself to breathe deeply, and focus on the present. She couldn’t do anything while stuck in this boat, and making a fuss probably wouldn’t get her anywhere.
The castle loomed over them. Like everything else since she’d stepped under her bed, it glittered with lights and beauty. Nothing here looked evil or even uninviting. Everything was lovely.
All too soon, the boat landed below the castle. Roderick jumped out as before, and pulled the boat further ashore. He secured it to a post, and then held out his hand to Thea.
“My lady, I am eager to begin the dancing!” He helped her out, and then tucked her arm through his, moving her along.
Thea felt as though her head spun. The interior was beautiful, and once they had entered the ballroom it was as she remembered from her dream. As her sisters and their escorts entered behind her and Roderick, she tried to get a glimpse of them.
All were princes she knew. All were chatting with her sisters and, unlike earlier, her sisters were most animated and talkative.
Her attention was pulled from observation to Roderick.
“What do you think, my lady? I am most anxious for your opinion.”
She looked around, and seeing his face, forced a wide smile. “You have outdone yourselves, my lord. We are grateful for your efforts.”
He laughed, and spun her around. “Let us dance, my lady!” Immediately, the music began. Thea knew before she looked that there were musicians at the head of the ballroom. Just as in her dream.
That meant that there had been no dreams, but only this half-awake state. That would be why she had on a dancing slipper when she woke, why her feet and legs hurt. Why she had a bloody foot. As Roderick whirled her around, she could feel the ache of her injured toe. The court physician had treated it with a salve and wrapped it. She could tell that it would not hold up the entire evening.
All around her, she could see that her sisters laughed and chatted with their partners. After what seemed an eternity, she was forced to beg off dancing.
“My lord, my feet are nearly worn,” she said, trying for a laughing tone. “You are most vigorous.”
He beamed. “Allow me to get you some refreshment while you rest, my lady.” He led her to a seat along the wall of the ballroom. She, her sisters, and their partners were the only people in the vast ballroom, but the noise sounded as though the room was full. She gratefully sank into a seat, watching Roderick. He moved as though he were avoiding other couples and people. What did he see that she did not?
She felt someone sit down next to her. When she looked over, she saw Catrin. Her mouth fell open. Catrin, too, dressed for a ball. She looked beautiful, and completely composed.
“So you’ve woken,” Catrin said mildly.
“I have. What is this?” Thea struggled to maintain her composure.
“I warned you. If you did not give him up, you would curse yourself, and those around you share in the results of your actions.”
“You did not warn me of any such thing. Nor did you tell me you planned to kill anyone.”
“I killed no one.” Catrin did not take the bait. “I did warn you not to speak to anyone. You chose to ignore me, as you did with my request that you release the Prince Casimir.”
“But—”
Catrin cut her off. “I am not responsible for your choices, Princess Thea. I have been kind and have given you fair warning of what could come. You have made your decision as to how to act.” She shrugged. “You may be a queen one day. One would think your father would have taught you to take responsibility for your actions.”
She smiled at Thea, and Thea resisted the urge to shudder. Once, when she was younger, a trader had brought a fish to court to offer to her father. He called it a shark, and it had rows and rows of teeth that showed when the trader opened the mouth. Thea remembered that the open mouth was a hideous facsimile of a smile. The same smile adorned Catrin now.
“I do take responsibility for my actions. I did speak of it before Archibald. It was you that had him killed. I did not make the decision that he would die. You did.” Thea turned from Catrin, her face stony. She had thought to be more conciliatory, but Catrin blaming this solely on her infuriated her. “This is your doing, Catrin. You decided the punishment, as it were. I did not. You decided that teaching me something meant innocent people had to die. I accept that believing you to be nothing more than a talented madwoman killed someone ten times your worth. I will never forgive myself for his death.”
She looked at Catrin. “Can you say the same? You slough the responsibility of this onto another, even though you were the designer of this. So do not speak to me about accepting your actions. You do not understand the meaning of the phrase.”
Catrin was unruffled. “Being angry at me will not change that your words killed a man.”
Thea started. Catrin was quoting her own thoughts to her. Could she read minds? She resisted the urge to shudder.
“Why are you here?”
“I wanted to see what you thought of my creation. Lovely, is it not?”
“Why are you doing this? To what end will dragging my sisters and I down here, not to mention these poor princes, serve?”
“It’s s
erved me well thus far,” said Catrin, laughing. “Your life is decidedly more difficult, is it not? I will be honest, Thea. I don’t know how this will end. I chose this because it amused me. What happens next will be on you, and the actions of others. I like to see what happens when something is set in motion.”
Thea was aghast. “This is a mere game to you?”
Catrin looked directly at her. Her eyes were dark pools. “No, it is not a game. It is the culmination of years of building towards this point. You made it easier, being just like your father.”
“Given what you are, I can see why my father would not care for you either.” Thea crossed her arms, wondering where Roderick was. She didn’t want to talk to Catrin anymore. As she looked hopefully around the ballroom, she noticed that no one else seemed aware of her and Catrin sitting off to the side. Her sisters were thoroughly engrossed in their partners.
Catrin didn’t seem bothered by her statement. “If you are proud of that, so be it. I will not argue the point. You’ll do as you wish.” She shrugged.
“Is this the curse?” Thea decided she was done wasting time wondering. She’d nearly driven herself mad wondering what part of life was being affected. Since Catrin sat next to her, she might as well take advantage of it.
“It is. You and your sisters, due to your arrogance and selfishness, are cursed to dance here nightly. Until the curse may be ended. How are you feeling this week, may I ask?” Catrin gave the shark smile again.
“We are fine. How we are is none of your concern, given your desire to negate it.” Thea snapped. “How may the curse be ended? You said I need to give up Casimir. He is….” she took a breath. She didn’t want to say what she was about to say. That would make it real. “He may be interested in one of my sisters. If they should end up betrothed, I have given him up. Correct?”
“Oh, no, Princess, it’s not that anymore. Your refusal to give him up put this into motion. Now things are different.”
“You evil old woman! You don’t even keep the rules you set yourself!”
“I make the rules. That’s the way it is.” Catrin smiled, obviously enjoying Thea’s anger.
Thea's Tale (Sisters Of The Curse Book 1) Page 12