“And you might find some missing silver,” said Cassandra, although she didn’t look apologetic. “Some of those who were sheltering here looked less than honest to me, and I wouldn’t put it past them to have filched something on their way out. Once they all woke up, of course.”
King Leopold didn’t look too pleased, but Queen Camille merely shrugged.
“A small price indeed for all our lives.”
“Unfortunately, by then,” said Lord Treestone, continuing the original thread of the story, “it was clear that the evil was coming from the northern mountains. But the weather had grown so bad, no one could follow you. There was nothing for us to do but wait and hope we could keep everyone alive.”
I examined his face, glancing between him, Cassandra, and the Elamese colonel in charge of their troops. As they had approached the palace, they too would have been infected, as my own servants had been. How much had their slow descent into an enchanted state affected their decision to do nothing but stay alive? Somehow I suspected none of them would admit it had been anything but true helplessness and altruism that drove them. And we could all only be grateful they had maintained initiative long enough to gather together the locals and keep them alive as well. I, for one, had no desire to challenge their motives.
“And then one day everyone just woke up,” said Lord Treestone. “We had no explanation for it, although we understand now, of course.” He inclined his head toward where I sat on a small sofa with Oliver. “When the weather began to ease almost immediately, we realized that something had happened to break the enchantment. Naturally we ceded control back to Their Majesties, but we have lingered under their gracious hospitality in the hope of your return and an explanation such as we have just received.”
King Leopold inclined his head regally toward Lord Treestone, and I suppressed a smile. Clearly everyone had decided that the best approach was to ignore everything that had happened while under the enchantment. An approach of which I heartily approved.
The colonel thanked us for our efforts and said he would make plans to start the march back to Eliam the next day.
“My own monarchs will want to hear the news as soon as possible, I’m sure.” He glanced over at Alexander. “But we will leave a couple of representatives as a delegation of sorts, to lend all support possible for the upcoming royal wedding.”
He bowed toward my sofa, and I realized with a jolt that he meant my wedding. A giddy rush of excitement filled me, although I noticed that a fleeting look of annoyance crossed Alexander’s face at the clear implication that he was to stay. Still, his lack of desire to attend my wedding couldn’t damp my joy, and the mention of the event successfully derailed conversation on any other topic as Queen Camille immediately began to discuss the necessary preparations with great enthusiasm.
It was a long time before I left to find my way back to my old room, my stomach full and my mind still whirling with plans and possibilities.
“Do you know the way back on your own?” asked a familiar voice at my elbow, echoing the words from my first night so long ago.
I turned to regard my betrothed, looking up at him through my lashes just as I remembered doing on that distant-seeming occasion and echoing my own words. “I don’t suppose you would be willing to show me?”
When he bowed and offered me his arm, I laughed and threw myself against his chest for a stolen kiss. When the sound of an opening door made us spring apart, I took his arm and laughed up at him again.
“Could you have imagined back then that it would all end like this?”
“The details? No. But even in the half-haze of that night, I had already formed the strong impression that you were someone I didn’t want to let go.”
I bumped him with my shoulder. “You had not!”
“Of course I had.” He smiled down at me, glancing behind us before pressing his lips briefly down over mine. “Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten what kind of an entrance you make, Princess Celine? How could I not be captivated?”
I flushed, remembering now his expression when I appeared that night.
“And somehow,” I said, “despite everything, I knew you were the one I wanted to make an impression on. I think that’s why I managed to free you that night. Something in me was drawn to you from the moment the curse began to lose its grip.”
“One day I want to visit Lanover and see the kingdom that created a woman like you, Celine,” he murmured against my hair.
I gazed up at him. “One day I’ll take you. And I want to see more of your kingdom. I want to see all of it. There are so many things I want to do with you.”
“Then it’s a good thing we have the rest of our lives,” he said as he pulled me against his heart and kissed me again.
Epilogue
“Well, what do you think?” I asked, emerging from my dressing room and throwing my arms wide. The first of the guests coming in for the wedding were due to arrive at any moment, and I had put some effort into my dress. We would be welcoming them at a betrothal feast in my honor, after all.
I had worked with the palace seamstress on a new gown for the occasion and was more than satisfied with the result. The rich blue silk hugged my torso, held in shape with subtle boning, before sweeping out at my hips into the fullest skirt I had ever worn.
Emmeline regarded me with wrinkled brow, as if my question required serious thought. “It looks very suitable,” she pronounced at last.
“Suitable? Suitable?” I stared at her aghast. “You can’t be serious.” I turned beseeching eyes on Giselle who appeared to be smothering a laugh.
“Come on, Celine,” said a new voice from the doorway. “You know you look incredible.”
“As always,” agreed a second, nearly identical, voice.
“I do, don’t I?” I laughed, almost tripping in my haste as I rushed over to throw my arms around both of the new arrivals. “You came! You made it!”
“Of course we did.” Sophie laughed as well. “Were you worried we would be lost at sea?”
“I’m just so glad you’re here.” I lifted onto my toes and spun in a circle, blue material billowing around me. “I’m getting married!”
Lily threw Sophie a concerned look. “I don’t think we’ve ever seen her like this. Should we be worried?”
Sophie elbowed her in the side. “Don’t be mean. It’s beautiful.”
“Well, I want to meet the new Prince Oliver,” said Lily. “Because he must have changed a lot. I nearly fell off my chair when I read your letter saying you were betrothed to marry him and madly in love.”
“You will soon enough,” I said, pulling them both around. “But first let me re-introduce you to two of our fellow Princess Tourney contestants. You might not recognize Princesses Emmeline and Giselle now.”
Giselle grinned and came forward to greet the twins. “We weren’t exactly good company back then, I’m afraid.”
Emmeline joined her, shaking her head. “Although perhaps we should be glad of it. I can’t imagine going through such an ordeal with my emotions intact.”
“It wasn’t the most fun we’ve ever had,” I said, remembering the unpleasant months after we first arrived from the Four Kingdoms. “But that’s all in the distant past now.” I glanced at Sophie who glowed with happiness. Marriage seemed to suit her. “And it all worked out for the best in the end.”
I left them all to chat while I wandered away to pick jewelry to match my gown. What would the twins make of my soon-to-be sisters-in-law? I had been making an effort to get to know Emmeline, although it still caught me by surprise when she said things Giselle would never say.
“They’re so different from each other!” whispered Lily, sidling up to me while Sophie engaged Emmeline in polite conversation. “I mean, I figured they’d be different from how they used to be now the curse is lifted, but I really didn’t see that coming.”
I shook my head. “Eldon has been full of surprises.”
“Oh yes,” said Sophie, breaking off h
er conversation to join us. “I want to hear all about it.”
“About what?” I asked, all innocence.
“About everything, of course.” Lily rolled her eyes. “You said there was a Snow Queen in your letters which seems to me like a horrible thing to include if you didn’t intend to spill the whole story. We’ve been dying of impatience ever since.”
“Very well, then,” I said, relenting. “But you’d better let me ring for some refreshments because you’ve only just arrived, and this isn’t going to be quick.”
“And so we became officially betrothed,” I finished, beaming at them both. “I want you both to be my attendants, of course. Alongside Emmeline and Giselle. I hope you’ll agree, even though you’re already married yourselves.”
“Of course we’d love to,” said Sophie. “But what about all your sisters? Aren’t they coming?”
“Well, Cassian and Tillie were just here for your wedding, so they won’t be trekking back. They’ll keep things running at home so Frederic and Evie can come with my parents.” I grinned at the thought. I’d always liked Tillie, but Evie was a closer friend. Maybe because of everything we’d been through together. A little like it was with Giselle and Emmeline, I supposed.
“William and Celeste can’t come either.” I winked at the twins. “No doubt they’re far too important to be gone when so many other royals are already traveling. But Cordelia and Ferdy are coming, and hopefully Rafe and Marie as well. I can’t wait to see them all again.”
I smiled. I was always smiling these days. “Celeste is absolutely green at being left behind. At least from the sound of her letters. She’s dying to come sniffing around all these new kingdoms. I figure once everyone else gets back, she’ll come up with an excuse to visit.”
My eyes fell on the material draped over one corner of the room, still waiting for my final approval before work began on the attendants’ gowns, and I remembered the original question. “So I’ll have Evie and Cordelia as well, and that will make a nice even six.” I beamed at the twins.
“You’re clearly enjoying planning this wedding far too much,” said Lily, mock fear in her voice. “I’m not sure what we’re getting ourselves into.”
“Can you enjoy your own wedding too much?” I asked. “I don’t think so. And I plan to wrest every ounce of enjoyment out of it that I can.”
“Celine,” said Sophie, her voice clearly conveying that her mind was on neither weddings nor enjoyment. “I don’t think you said what happened to that Sterling fellow.”
“Oh, nothing in particular,” I said, surprised at the turn of her thoughts. “I was actually going to suggest you all go down to the holding cells at some point and check if he’s the man Jon and Dominic were after. The one from Palinar.”
“But you searched him thoroughly, right? And you have him under extra security?” Lily had instantly picked up on her sister’s concern.
“Umm…” I regarded them uneasily. “I think it’s just the usual security?”
“Because if he is the man from Palinar,” Sophie said, “then the godmother object he took with him when he fled is the one that allowed Cole to escape from two different prisons.”
My eyes widened, and I swallowed. “He would have been collecting it for the Snow Queen, I’m sure. In fact, he was probably only ever helping Cole so he could get his hands on it. But all the objects were destroyed with the Ice Palace.”
“Are you sure?” Lily asked. “Because we never got a good look at the item, but it must be something small since Cole managed to sneak it into two cells with him.”
I thought of his bulging pack, and my heart sank. He hadn’t run out of that palace with empty hands. Would he have dared steal any godmother objects from his queen?
“I’ll take you there now,” I said, jumping up.
“But Celine, your dress,” said Giselle, but I brushed her comments aside. Now that the twins had raised the possibility, I didn’t want to lose a moment checking on the security of the prisoner.
The twins hurried after me as I raced through the corridors. I stopped the first footman we passed, sending him to fetch Oliver, but I didn’t wait, telling him to send the prince straight to the holding cells.
When I burst through the doors, my dress filling half the small room, two startled guards leaped to their feet and hastily bowed.
“Your Highness,” one stammered out. “Can we help you?”
“The prisoner,” I said, breathless. “Is he secure?” Sterling was the only one currently being held there.
They exchanged confused looks. “Of course, Your Highness. Would you like to see—”
Before I could agree that I would like to see for myself, the door crashed open again, Oliver only just pulling up before he collided with the twins.
“What—” His question cut off as his eyes fell on me and slowly widened.
I stared at him in confusion until Lily elbowed me.
“The dress,” she whispered, a laugh in her eyes, and I looked down at the blue silk. I had forgotten I was already dressed for the banquet. I suppressed a flush of pleasure at his reaction, forcing my mind back to the issue at hand.
“The twins have just reminded me that if Sterling is the man from Palinar, he may have had access to an object that allowed two previous prison escapes.”
Oliver looked back over his head, and I realized he had his own entourage. When Princes Jon and Dominic pushed forward into the room, they nearly squeezed me out the far door. I could only glance gratefully at Alexander for remaining in the corridor. Someone had some sense, at least.
The poor guards finally managed to decipher the conflicting orders being called over each other, and one of them led us all through a locked door and down a plain corridor lined with barred doors. He stopped in front of one, gesturing toward it, his eyes on Oliver.
When Oliver stepped forward, choking, his eyes widening, the guard looked quickly into the cell and then fell back with a startled exclamation.
“But…he was here…I swear it!” He looked desperately toward the other guard, bringing up the rear. But the second man looked just as shocked and horrified.
Dominic shouldered his way forward to peer through into the empty cell.
“I think he was our man, right enough,” he said, his voice grim.
“Don’t worry,” said Jon, clapping a hand on the shoulder of one of the guards. “No one’s going to blame you. We’ve seen this before.”
Dominic looked up and nodded once. “And my guards were the same. They thought the prisoner still in position until someone else called their attention to the escape. It must be part of the enchantment, somehow, although I don’t understand how it works.”
“So we don’t even know how long he’s been gone,” I cried, aghast. My eyes flew to Oliver. “And that might not be the only object he smuggled out of that palace. As long as they were small enough…”
“You’ll send out a search for him, I’m sure,” said Dominic, also looking at Oliver. “But he won’t have lingered in Eldon.” He rubbed his chin. “I’d put my money on his having headed straight for the southern border.”
Alexander, still trailing us, sucked in a breath. “Eliam. And who knows what trouble he’ll wreak there?”
“I’m so sorry, Alexander,” I said. “This is my fault. I should have thought to put on an extra guard. To have him searched…” I bit my lip.
Oliver’s strong arm came around my shoulders. “If he used an enchanted object, then it’s unlikely more guards would have stopped him. I won’t have you blaming yourself. You aren’t responsible for security in the Eldonian palace.” He sighed. “And we’ve had a few other things on our mind.”
We all traipsed back up to the higher levels of the palace in silence, each of the couples walking together, with Alexander trailing behind, clearly unhappy and wishing himself gone from Eldon. When we reached the entry hall, we encountered a group of new arrivals milling around. I tried to remember who else was due to arrive today.
“Snow,” I exclaimed at last. “This must be Snow.”
An older man turned around at my words and hurried forward to bow to me. “I’m afraid I bring sad tidings, Your Highness. Princess Blanche does not accompany me. Her father, our esteemed king, has succumbed to his illness. He passed away mere hours before we left.”
“Oh no.” I pressed a hand to my heart. It had been coming for months, if not years, but I still felt for my friend. She loved her father. “How awful. Of course we understand that she could not tear herself away in such a circumstance. We shall have to settle for welcoming her when the actual wedding arrives.”
The man shifted uncomfortably. “I’m afraid Her Highness will not be able to attend the wedding at all. Grieving customs, you understand…” His voice trailed away, and he looked so awkward that I rushed to assure him that no offense had been taken.
But when the whole delegation had been led off to their rooms by a stream of palace servants, I turned thoughtfully to Alexander.
“Grieving customs? Do you do things so differently in Eliam, then?”
He shook his head, still frowning at the place where the delegation head had stood, his face looking gray. “I do not know what customs he refers to, Your Highness.”
“Hmmm…” I tapped my lips thoughtfully. “You have been so kind as to grace us with your presence all these weeks, Alexander. But I understand that you knew King George personally. No doubt you will wish to return and pay your respects. Perhaps you would be willing to carry a message from us with you? We will send our condolences, of course, but also a warning about Sterling.”
Alexander looked at me, relief in his eyes. “I would be honored to carry a message, Princess Celine.”
I smiled a sad smile. “I suspected as much. I shall have it drawn up immediately.”
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