The high priest was three sentences from binding her to the Alpha King for life when Silver’s throat closed up entirely. She stood at the top of the dais in a gown so heavy with pearls she could barely breathe. Her father had put her here. And beside her stood the man she was supposed to marry.
King Conrad wore soldier’s black to his own wedding. The message was clear to every noble in that hall. I took this throne with a sword. Your bloodlines mean nothing to me.
Except hers did. That was the entire point. Her ancient name was the last piece he needed. The old blood that would make the new world of the warrior king legitimate.
For a warrior he was. He’d come up out of the poor border tribes, ones the old court had called savages, and pulled them into one army, one war bandat a time. Then he’d marched on the capital, dethroned the old rotten king, and built a new world out of the wreck of the one before it. And now her ancient name was the last thing he needed to make it hold.
He had a scar through one eyebrow. He was enormous. And she had never once seen him smile. .
Below, Siren was looking. And his lips shaped three words. Come with me. Her heart squeezed.
“And should any soul here speak against this union,” the priest intoned, “let them speak now or”
She looked at Siren once more. “I love you,” he mouthed. Silver closed her eyes. Pictured her future with the cold warrior king.
Weighted against a future with Siren. “I speak against it,” she announced. The cathedral went dead silent. Beside her, at last, Conrad turned his head toward her.
She thought bitterly that this was the first time he’d ever properly looked at her. Silver. Her father was on his feet, face mottled red. Be silent.
But she couldn’t stop. If she stopped now, the fear would swallow her whole. I reject this marriage. Her voice shook.
She forced it steady. I reject the crown. There will be no wedding. The hall exploded, and then cut off instantly because the king raised two fingers.
That was all it took. Two fingers and 400 people fell silent. He looked at her with eyes like winter stone. Why?
Not how dare you. Not you disgrace yourself. Just why? Flat and cold, like she was a servant who’d spilled wine on his papers.
And that did it. That one bloodless word. If she’d felt scared before, now she felt vindicated. She thought of the tea party she’d arranged for him.
How he’d sat there for exactly 40 minutes before leaving without explanation. The musicians she’d hired. The books she’d tried to discuss. Every single attempt to know him.
To be known, dying in the space between them. She’d even written to him. A whole letter, poured out one sleepless night. Everything she hoped for.
Everything she was willing to be to him. Laid bareon the page like an offering. And the next day, he’d looked at her with something almost like pity, and replied with, Stop. The teas.
The performances. Whatever game this is. His voice had been so controlled it made her feel childish. I’ve no taste for hypocrisy.
This is a political arrangement. Let’s not pretend otherwise. He’d meant, “I don’t want to know you. Don’t try to know me.
You’re a signature on a document. Nothing more. ”
“I choose love. ” She declared.
The words rang out. Someone gasped. “Love? ” An old lord near the front spat it like a curse.
“She humiliates the king for love? ” “Who even is he, that boy? ” Another added. “A nothing.
A poet with no land. ” “Treason! ” Someone yelled. “This is treason!
” “Silver! ” Her father had reached the bottom step, shaking with rage. “You destroy us! Everything we’ve built.
I can still salvage this if you stop now! ” “I don’t care. ” And she found she meant it. She was done.
Done being her father’s pawn. Traded across a table for a good match. Done being the king’s shortcut to a throne that had never been hers to give. From this morning on, she would live for herself and be chosen for herself by a man who had already done it out loud in front of every soul who mattered.
Siren was already standing, already reaching toward her, his hand extended. He wanted her. He’d said it. He’d chosen her.
“I choose the man I love. ” She said. And her voice finally broke on the last word. She turned to Conrad, made herself meet those brutal gray eyes.
“Is there anything you wish to say to me before I go, Your Majesty? ” His hand closing around his sword hilt, knuckles going bloodless white. His throat working like he was choking on words. There, she thought.
Something vicious singing in her. There’s the rage they all whisper about. He’s so angry he can’t even speak. Good.
Let him save it. She’d be gone. The silence stretched. His jaw clenched again, harder.
The king who could command armies with a gesture said nothing at all. “As I thought,” she whispered. “Keep the dowry. ” She grabbed her ridiculous train, reached down, and took Siren’s hand.
They walked down the aisle together while the hall erupted behind them. She didn’t look back. She was triumphant. She was free.
She had no way of knowing that in five years she’d come crawling back through those same doors in the dead of winter to kneel before the cold king she’d humiliated and beg. Chapter 1
The snow had started again and Bear had stopped shivering. “Nearly there. ” Silver’s voice cracked.
“Nearly there, my love. ” His head lolled against her collarbone, burning. The fever soaked through her shawl, through her dress, into her skin. Wrong.
All wrong. She hitched him higher. Kept walking. He coughed, wet, tearing.
And she stopped dead, held him through it, counting heartbeats until he drew the next breath. He drew it. Shallow. But he drew it.
“Winny. ” She thought. “Just get to Winnie. ”
It was a thin plan.
Years ago, in the lonely months before the wedding, Silver had spent her afternoons inthe healers rooms. Winnie, the old palace healer, teaching her the herbs and tinctures. Winnie wouldn’t care how far she’d fallen. She’d take one look at Bear and open her cabinet.
A fever potion. That was all. One potion and Silver would work the debt off on her knees if she had to. It was the last door left.
She’d already tried all the others. . The palace rose out of the dark ahead, black against the falling snow, and her stomach turned at the sight of it. She went the long way, past the grand steps she’d once run down in a wedding gown, to the servants gate, and hammered on it.
A bolt scraped. “I need Winnie. ” Silver said to the woman. “The healer.
Please. My son’s burning up. I need to see Winnie. ” The woman winced.
“Winnie’s gone, love. ” She said it gently. “Took a fever herself last winter. We buried her come spring.
” Her legs nearly went. The one hand in all the world she’d reached for, cold this long while,and she hadn’t known. “Please. ” She heard herself say.
“I need a potion. He’s four. He’s only four. His fever won’t break.
I’ve tried everything. ” Bear coughed against her neck,that awful drowning sound,and the woman flinched at it. “I’ll pay. I’ve no coin now, but I’ll work.
I’ll scrub floors, please. ” “Those potions. ” The woman’s face creased with pity. “They’re precious.
Kept locked. It’s not mine to give. I’d give it you if it were, I swear. ” Then whose?
Silver’s voice cracked clean in half. Whose is it to give? The woman hesitated, glanced back over her shoulder. Only the king grants the healing stores.
She stopped. He’s holding a late audience, as it happens. Petitions. Any citizen can ask.
She looked at Bear and back at Silver. You’d have to go before him yourself. Ask him directly. The cold that went through Silver had nothing to do with the snow.
Conrad. The man she’d left standing at his own altar. The man whose silence she’d walked out on. Another man’s hand in hers, chin high, in front of the entire kingdom.
He’d never grant it. Why would he? She’d humiliated him before his whole court. All for Siren,who’d sworn the world to her and gambled it away instead, coin by coin,until there was nothing left,and then died and left her the debts.
A year in the ground now,same as Winnie. Five years. And now her son’s life came down to kneeling before the king and begging. .
Bear’s breath rasped against her throat. She stopped thinking about the king’s pride. Her son’s life was worth more than hers. “Take me to him,” she said.
. They led her through the servants’ passages. She knew these corridors. She’d walked them as a girl who was going to be queen.
Now she walked them with a dying child,and no one knew her face. The air changed as they neared the great hall. The servants’ chatter died. The attendant straightened his spine without seeming to notice.
The whole building leaned one point,listening. She felt him before she saw him. She’d forgotten this. How you knew in your blood exactly where the king was before your eyes ever found him.
Then they turned the corner andthe doors stood open. And there he was. His hands rested on the arms of the throne and even motionless he looked like violence waiting for permission. You couldn’t not look at him.
And she’d humiliated this man. This cold, dangerous man. She had shamed him before everyone he ruled. But he was the only one alive who could save her boy.
“He’ll know me. ” She thought. Her heart going wild. “The moment I lower this hood, he’ll know me.
” And surely after everything he hated her. She drew her hood low over her face and held her son tighter. She’d just have to make sure he didn’t recognize her. .
Chapter 2
The attendant stopped her at the edge of the hall. “Wait here. When the king finishes, you’re next. Keep it short.
He’s been at this since dark. ” Silver nodded. She stood in the pillar’s shadow and watched a wool merchant grovel through some tax dispute. Used the time to make herself small,pulled her hood forward until the world narrowed to a slot of torchlit floor.
That was the plan. Keep her face hiddenand get out before he ever realized who’d knelt in his hall. Bear stirred. “Where are we?
” “Somewhere warm, pup. Hush. I need you to be braveand quiet. Can you do that?
” He didn’t answer. That frightened her more than no would have. Next. The word came from the throne and made her tense.
Slowly, reluctantly, she stepped into the light. The hall stretched ahead,endless,marble and torchlight and a dozen idle courtiers who’d stayed late to watch people beg. At the end of it,he sat motionless. “Keep your head down.
” she thought. She watched her wet hem drag across his clean floor. “Don’t look up. Whatever you do,don’t look up.
” She could feel his gaze on her,burning,and every step it got heavier. “Does he know? ” she wondered. “Can he smell me from here,under all the dirt andthe sickness?
” She reached the dais and sank to her knees. Her legs had been about to give anyway. “Your majesty. ” she murmured.
“I’ve come to beg a healing potion. My boy,a fever that won’t break. Three days now. He’s 4 years old.
I’ve no coin. I’ll work for it. Whatever you name. ” Silence.
She kept her head down,hood low,bear held tight. The quiet stretched. “Did he even hear me? ” she wondered.
The hall had gone still,and she didn’t dare look up. Bear’s breath rasped against her throat,and then“Silver? ” the king asked. Her heart stopped.
He’d just said her name,Low,even, in that voice she’d spent 5 years telling herself she’d forgotten. She hadn’t forgotten it. “Silver. ” he said again,slower this time,certain.
A command with no force behind itand all the force in the world. It’s over,she thought. Her one protection,the only thing standing between her and his wrath,and he’d torn through it like it was nothing. What a fool she’d been.
And yet,what choice did she have but to beg? Her boy’s life was at stake. She looked up. His eyes found hers for the first time in 5 years.
Gray steelthat gave away nothing. Down the hall,the whispers started hissing along the walls. Is that It can’t be. The count’s daughter.
The one who
Conrad’s jaw shiftedand her heart sank because he was going to refuse her,wasn’t he? He was going to refuse. He was going to remind the whole court what she’d doneand send her back into the snow. Bear coughedand she broke.
“I know what I did. ” she said. She bent nearly to the floor. “I know what I am to you.
” she said. “I’ve no right to be in this hall. You owe me nothing,less than nothing,and I know it. ” She lifted Bear.
“But he’s only a child and he’s innocent. Punish me however you like. Make me pay it back on my knees. Only don’t let my son die for what I am.
” Her voice broke clean through. “Please. ” Silence. She heard him shift on the throne,heard his breath slow and deliberate.
“Say something. ” she thought. Someone in the gallery coughed. She squeezed her eyes shut.
And then,“Very well. ” came Conrad’s voice. Her head jerked up. She didn’t understand at first.
The words landed too soft,too flat. She’d braced for a sentenceand gotten two words. YourYour majesty? He lifted two fingers toward the attendantand the whole court moved like puppets on a string.
The healing stores. Whatever the boy needs. His eyes slid past her,already moving on. Find them a room.
Thank you. The words tumbled out. Thank you,your majesty. I But He wasn’t looking at her anymore.
A guard stepped forward,hand out to raise her. She couldn’t make her legs work. She’d been sure,certain,and then The attendant steered her toward the doors. There now.
Quicker than most. Let’s get that potion for your boy. She let herself be led,Bear burning against her chest,the hall spinning around her. She’d knelt before a man who had every reason to destroy her,and he’d said very well,like she’d asked him for a cup of water.
Chapter 3
Bear’s fever broke sometime before dawn. She checked his forehead again and again until she trusted it,then rested her face against his shoulder for a moment. A knock came with gray light,a folded uniform onthe corridor floor. She dressed,tucked Bear in,and went to work.
She scrubbed the corridor stones hard,the only thing she had any control over,thinking all the while Why did he help us? Conrad,the man who’d once called her nothing but a name on a treaty,who’d answered the one time she’d opened herself to him in a letter by calling her a hypocrite,was now showing her an ounce of humanity. She was still turning it over when a herald’s voice cut through the corridor. His majesty,the king.
In seconds,the other maids had flattened themselves to the wall. Silver scrambled to match them,pressing her shoulder blades to the cold stone as Conrad rounded the corner. An adviser walked half a step behind him,but Silver paid him no mind. She was watching the king.
His long strides,his shoulders fillingthe corridor. Silver dropped her eyes thenand finally saw her bucket. She’d left it dead center,right in the king’s path. She looked left.
The other maids’ buckets tucked neatly againstthe the wall. Looked right. Same thing. Only hers sat in the middle of the hall.
Oh,no. Conrad was 12 paces away now. 10 Should she go and get it? No time.
He was too close. The bucket sat there,water sloshing with each footstep. “He’s going to trip. ” She thought,panicked.
The king is going to trip over my bucket. She opened her mouth. His foot came forward. He stopped.
Looked down. Blinked as if genuinely surprised to find an obstacle in his path. Then Conrad looked upand his eyes went straight to her. The air went out of the corridor.
“I apologize,your majesty. ” She began. He didn’t answer. Just held her gaze one beat longer.
Too long. Long enough for heat to crawl up her neck. Then stepped over the bucket. One smooth motionand kept walking.
The sound of his boots faded down the corridorand Silver stayed pressed to the wall,heart slamming. Then she realizedthe advisor hadn’t followed. He’d stopped a few paces back,staring at her. Not with outrage,but the way a man looks when the ground shifts under him.
Because,she realized,this man knew her. Or rather,she knew him. Stefan,she breathed. She’d known him as a stables,then a clerk with ink-stained cuffs,lifted into a court position by her father’s favor.
Back when the king was Silver’s fiance,and Stefan her friend. And here he stood now,the king’s advisor,while she knelt in a maid’s rough uniform. Heat flooded her neck. She dropped her eyes,praying he’d have the mercy to pretend he hadn’t seen.
But an hour later,elbow-deep in gray water,a shadow fell across the stones infront of her. Silver! It is you. Stefan crouched beside her,heedless of his fine coat against the wet floor,face almost pained.
I told myself I’d imagined it,he said quietly. That it couldn’t be. Silver,what happened to you? Silver sighed.
I chose love,she joked grimly. Stefan didn’t laugh. You’re scrubbing floors? He glanced down the corridor,then lowered his voice.
Does he know it’s you? The king? Oh,he knows,Silver sighed. Pity moved across Stefan’s face.
This isn’t right,and you know it,he said. Let me see what I can do. There are better places for a woman of your birth. Stefan!
A woman’s voice interrupted,a young noblewoman waiting downthe corridor. A moment,Stefan called backand kept his eyes on Silver. My betrothed,he explained almost as an afterthought. Now Silver,say you’ll at least let me think about it.
For the boy’s sake. IThank you,Silver said. Truly. He rose,brushed the damp from his knees,and gave her one last look before rejoiningthe woman waiting for him.
Silver watched him goand for the first time since walking back through these gates,something in her chest loosened. A friend,she thought. I have one friend here. Later that evening,someone pressed coins into her hand.
What is this? She asked. Your pay,the attendant said. There’s been a mistake,Silver said.
I was given a potionfor my son. I’m working off the debt. The attendant checked a ledger. No mistake.
You’re listed the same as the other girls. Silver stood there,coins warm in her hand,the ground shifting again. A test. It has to be.
I won’t spend it,she thought. I’ll save it,pay the debt,and owe that man nothing. A small,unwelcome voice said,Or he gave you a potionand a job because you needed both. She shut it down.
Because if he were decent,he wouldn’t have replied to her letter as he had. She could still recite it. I want to know you,not the king,but you. What you loved,what you lost.
I do not expect love,but I hoped we might begin as friends. She’d waited a whole day for his answer,and that answer had been“This is a political arrangement. Let’s not pretend otherwise. ” As though her efforts had been distasteful.
“He is a cruel man. ” She told herself,walking back to the room where Bear slept. So,why the potion? Why the coins?
“He’s biding his time. ” She realized. Conrad had stood at that altar,jaw locked,saying nothing. And she’d been so sure it was rage.
Now she wondered if it had only ever been patience. If he’d known even then that his revenge would come. Silver lay down beside Bear in the darkand pulled him close. For the first time since the snow,she was not cold,not hungry,only afraid.
Chapter 4
Three daysand no word from Stefan. Maybe he’d only been polite that day. Or maybe the king had forbidden him to help her. The thought made her go cold.
“That would mean he wants revenge. ” She thought. “That he’s keeping me here on purpose. ” She turned to her son,jammed on his chin,and felt her heart clench.
“What if Conrad took it all back? What if he hurt Bear? ” She couldn’t sit here waiting like prey. But she was only a maid.
What could she do to protect herself from a king? She spent three days looking for an answer. And then the answer found her. That evening,the kitchens were in chaos over a banquet.
Servants running everywhere,when Silver had the bad luck to walk through with an armful of linenatthe wrong moment. You,girl,the steward said. Wine,Small Council,East Chamber. My lord,I don’t serve tables,Silver said.
You do tonight,he told her,and pushed a heavy tray of jugs into her arms. Don’t speak. Don’t spill. Don’t look anyone in the eye.
So,she went. The East Chamber was at the end of a long corridor,and two guards openedthe doors without a word. She was three steps in when the air changed. It wasn’t the full council,the private one.
A long table,a low fire,two old lords she half recognized,Stephan halfway down with a page of notes,and at the head of it,the king. Silver’s breath caught. She’d thought he’d be at the banquet. Instead,he was here,leaned back,legs sprawled under the table,one hand loose around a cup he wasn’t drinking from,fingers drumming against the silver.
Silver’s hands went numb onthe tray,and she hadn’t even looked at his face yet. She forced her feet to move. One of the old lords was speaking,voice tight with deference. Hurst said no again,the older lord was saying.
Politely,but no. Four times in 3 months now,with a new reason each time. Conrad sighed. What was it this time?
he asked. Stephan checked his notes. Drainage,your majesty. Drainage?
the king snapped. 3 monthsand 2,000 people close to starvation,and he speaks to me of drainage? Silver moved down the tablewith the jug,keeping her eyes onthe wine. The fire took everything they had,Conrad went on,furious.
They’ve been eating on charity since summer,and charity does not survive a winter. Hurst has land sitting empty for years,and loses nothing by renting it. His hand closed slowly onthe arm of the chair. The man is playing with me,and I cannot understand why.
Silver came round behind Conrad’s chair to fill his cup. She had not thought this part through. He didn’t move,didn’t acknowledge her,but she had to lean in past his shoulder,close enough to see the scar disappearing under his collar,close enough to feel the heat coming off him. Her hand shook.
Steady,you fool,she told herself. Let’s pay him more,the older councilman said. Doublethe rent. He’s a duke,not a saint.
Perhaps a council seat,said Stefan,smooth as water. Or better,a marriage. He has an unwed daughter,sire. Silver scoffed before she could stop herself,and four heads turned toward her.
Something to add,girl? The older lord sounded almost amused. No,my lord,Silver said. Forgive me.
It’s just that you’re an idiot,she thought privately. None of your solutions will convince Duke Hurst. Conrad’s jaw was tight. He hadn’t spoken in a while.
Stealinga glance,Silver understood. I cannot fight this man,but I can make myself useful. And if I’m useful,Bear is safe. Forgive me,Your Majesty,she said.
The room went silent like a door slamming. The older lord’s mouth fell openat the maid who’d just dared speak tothe king. Conrad turned his headand looked at her. The Duke of Hurst will never rent you that land,she said.
Not for money. Not for a council seat. Not for his daughter’s hand. Not for anything.
The lords gaped. How dare you? One of them began. Conrad raised an eyebrowandthe protest died.
And why is that? He asked. His wife is buried in those woods. Silver explained.
She loved that stretch of forestand when she was dying,she asked him to carry her back to it. You aren’t asking him for land,your majesty. You’re asking him to sell his wife’s grave. The fire popped.
Conrad’s eyes hadn’t left her. And how? A council member asked. Would a maid know that?
Because I was there. Silver said. Before anyone could ask her to elaborate. My father was a friend of the Duke’s.
We summered at Hurst most years of my childhood. I was there when the Duchess died that summer. The man was destroyed by her death. Conrad sat forward.
That would explain it. He said half to himself. Why Hurst keeps stalling. All is not lost,sire.
Said Stefan. If we raised our price substantially. Conrad looked at him. Is there a price?
He asked dubious. For a man’s dead wife. Silence befell the room once more. Silver cleared her throat.
Andthe older lord rounded on her. What now,girl? Lord Gryphon’s land in the west. Silver said.
It’s rougher than Hurst’s. But no one’s worked it in yearsbecause he can’t affordthe hands to farm it. Grayfin has never mentionedthe second lord protested. Of course not.
He’s the proudest man in the north. She turned back tothe king. Your majesty should have the offer come from Hurst. The king blinked.
They are close friends,Silver explained. Tell Hurstthat 2,000 people will starve without Grayfin’s landand that you need his help persuading him. He won’t refuse. Nobody said anything at all.
Conrad looked at herand went on looking until finally he stood. Look into Grayfin,he said. I wantthe state of that land by week’s end. Then he gave her a small nod.
It might have meant thank you. It might have meant get out. Silver curtsied so fast she nearly dropped the jugand fled. She was halfway down the corridor when Silver!
came a voice. Stefan caught her at the tall windows. He was pale. What were you thinking?
he demanded. You corrected four noblemenand the king of this country in his own council chamber as a maid. But I was right,she began. And that will not save you,Stefan pressed,panicked.
Those men in there aren’t thankful. They’re humiliated. Silver froze. Listen to me,he said.
I will find you something better. But in the meantime,keep your head down. Can you do that? Yes,she said.
Good. He sighed,relieved. Now go to bed. And Silver,he was already backing towardthe council doors.
Don’t do that again,please. She lay awake with Bear warm against her sideand by morning had decided Stephen was right. It was stupid. Worse,proud.
She’d stood there with a wine jug in her handsand let herself believe her opinion was worth something. “All I did was humiliate him. ” she thought. Again.
A shadow fell across the stone. The king’s page,out of breath,as though he’d run. “You’re to come with me. ” he said.
Silver sat back on her heels. “Come where? ” she asked. “His Majesty the King.
” the boy said. “He’s asking for you. ”
Chapter 5
The stairs to the king’s study went up and up and Silver climbed them certain she was going to be punished. “He’ll dismiss me.
” she thought. “He’ll throw me out. ” At the top stood a heavy black doorand two guards who would not look at her. One of them knocked.
“Send her in. ” said a voice onthe other side. Silver’s stomach droppedas the door swung open. The room was coldand there was no one in it but him.
He stood at the windowwith his back to her,hands clasped behind him,looking out at the black hills. THe door shut behind her. The sound made Silver startle. She sank into a curtsyand stayed down.
He didn’t turn around. Her knees began to burn against the floorboards. “Stand up. ” Conrad ordered.
He turnedand his eyes came down on her,grayand steady. “Silver. ” he greeted her. That was all.
Her name,low and rough,with a small nod. “Your Majesty. ” she managed. The silence stretched on until heat crawled up Silver’s throat.
“Last night,” he said finally. “What you said about Hurst. ” Silver opened her mouth to apologize when“You were right,” Conrad said. She froze,her mouth still open.
“I spoke with him at the banquet,” Conrad said. “He’d said he’d speak to Lord Gryffen. ” Silver stared up at him. Conrad stared back.
“Your Majesty,I” she began. “I’m well aware,” he interrupted,“that I lack certain knowledge aboutthe nobility of my court. ” Silver frowned. “Your Majesty,I didn’t mean to imply” she attempted.
“You didn’t? ” he interrupted. “Don’t put words in my mouth. ” Silver opened her mouth,then shut it.
“Your old nobility,” Conrad observed. “I’m a maid,your Majesty,” she corrected him. “You weren’t born one,” he pointed out. Silver looked at the floor.
“My family disowned me,” she admitted,her throat tight. “Yes,” Conrad acknowledged. “I’m aware. ” Silver twisted her apron in her fists.
“I would like to request your services,” Conrad announced. Her head came up. “What? ” “You’ve proven you have knowledge of the nobility,” he explained.
“How to navigate them. ” “I’m sure I’m notthe only one,your Majesty,” Silver objected. “Did it look like it last night? ” Conrad challenged.
Silver hesitated. “Perhaps I was only lucky,your Majesty,” she offered. “Then perhaps you’ll be lucky again,” he countered. Something moved at the corner of his mouth,gone before she could be certain of it.
Silver’s breath caught anyway. During their entire engagement,she had never once seen this man come that close to smiling. “I’ll pay you,” Conrad continued,“on top of your wages for every hour you spend advising me. But it stays between us.
No one is to know of it. ” Silver’s head spun. “There are men in this palace who would take it very badlythat a maid advises their king,” he explained. “They wouldn’t take it out on me,Silver.
” He leaned forward,both hands flat onthe desk between them. “I don’t mean to cause trouble,” she murmured at last. “Then don’t,” Conrad replied. She tensed,and something almost like amusement crossed his hard face.
“I’d rather ask you than a nobleman,” he went on,straightening. “You’ve nothing to gain by lying to me. Every lord at that table has. They’d use what I don’t know for their own advantage.
” He shrugged one heavy shoulder. “But you? You’ve no politics to play. ” Silver nodded slowly.
That made sense. “I would be happy to serve your majesty,” she accepted. Conrad nodded,and then he smiled. Very small.
Barelya smile at all. But it made her heart skip a beat anyway. “Good,” he approved. Silence.
Silver waited,unsure for what. A sharp word,perhaps. Or her punishment finally revealed for leaving him. Something like“You should not have left.
See where it’s gotten you? ” Conrad opened his mouthand“You may leave,” he said,dismissing her. She curtsiedand fled. Then began the strangest weeks of Silver’s life.
She scrubbed floorsby day,and at night,two or three times a week,sometimes more,a page would find her. “His Majesty wants you. ” he’d say. And Silver would wash her hands,climb the tower,and sit across a desk fromthe most dangerous man in the kingdom,and tell him what his own nobility meant.
That first week,she was so frightened she could barely speak above a whisper. He would tell her who had come to see him,and what they’d said,and Silver would explain what she believed it meant. By the second week,she had stopped flinching when he moved. By the third week,she had stopped being frightened of him.
He was cold,brief,and precise,and he listened. Nobody had listened to Silver like that in her entire life. It was sometime inthe fourth weekthat she first understood there was something wrong. “Lord Marek hopes to discussthe Eastern tariffswith me at the winter play.
” Conrad announced one evening. “Then he means to discuss them. ” Silver replied. “No.
” said Conrad. “He doesn’t. ” Silver looked up,puzzled. “Why not,Your Majesty?
” “Because everyone knows I don’t attend those things. ” Conrad said. She blinked at him. “You don’t?
” she asked. “No. ” “Well. ” she hesitated.
“Why not? ” Conrad shrugged one shoulder. “So,I can sit there 3 hours understanding half of it. ” he said.
“And then be asked afterwards what I made of it? ” “In front of 40 people who’ve known what to say about a play since they were 6 years old? ” He shook his head. “No.
” “Thank you. ” He cleared his throatand looked back downat the map. Silver said nothing. But all the way down the stairs she thought,“He doesn’t understand the plays.
” And then a cold,creeping thought came in behind it. “But I threw him plays. I hired musicians for him. I sat him down at concertsand asked him what he thought of them.
” Silver paused,heart beating. Did that somehow offend him? Chapter 6
Two months into her strange new life at the palace,Silver learned the king’s secret. She had come up to the study early.
Conrad wasn’t there whenthe door banged openand a clerk strode in with a thick letter,meaning to leave it forthe king. “The moment he comes in,”the clerk told her, dropping it onthe desk. “It’s urgent. He’s to read itand answer it tonight.
” He paused at the doorand gave her a hard look. “Don’t you go opening it,” he warned. “He’d know. It’s sealed.
” “I’m not an idiot,” Silver said. Conrad came in 10 minutes later,shrugging out of his coat. “There’s a letter for you,Your Majesty,” she told him. “On the desk.
” “Right,” he said,unhurried. He crossed tothe desk and she saw his shoulders go tight. “The clerk says it’s urgent,” she added carefully. “He says you’re to read itand answer it tonight.
” Conrad picked up his cup instead. “It can wait,” he said. “He was very insistent,Your Majesty. ” “It can wait,” Conrad insisted.
Silver made herself smile. “It’s no trouble at all,” she assured him. “Go ahead. ” Conrad did not move.
He stood at the deskwith his back to herandthe silence stretched. Then he reached downand broke the seal. Silver watched him unfold it,watched his jaw set hard. Ah,she thought,almost fondly.
It’s long,and he’s annoyed. Take your time,Your Majesty,she offered kindly. It’s clearly important. He didn’t answer.
He didn’t move at all,just stood there overthe desk,both hands flat onthe wood,and did not turn a single page. Silver’s smile faded. He isn’t reading,she thought. Why isn’t he reading?
His eyes weren’t moving,andthe look on his face was almost despair. Neither of them spoke,and that is when Silver realized,I’ve never actually seen him read a letter,not once in 2 months. Stefan is always here when the correspondence comes up,and I’ve never seen this man hold a pen either. Silver’s stomach dropped straight throughthe floor.
Oh,no. Conrad’s head came up,their eyes meeting acrossthe room. Whatever he saw in her face,she watched him tense. “Get out,” he ordered.
It wasthe voice he used on lords who displeased him,flatand quiet,the one that made grown men go gray. “Your Majesty,” she began. “Out. ” He stood with fists closedand jaw locked,ashamed.
He’s been caught,Silver thought. She heard herself speak before she’d decided to. “Shall I read it to you? ” Conrad went absolutely still.
“What? ” “The letter. ” Silver sw- Shall I read it to you? For a long moment he did not move at all.
Then his great shoulders came down. I can read,he said roughly. I’ve learned in the years since I’ve been crowned. But thathe gestured at the pages.
That would take me an hour. Perhaps two. And a king does not get an hour. He sighed.
Andthe thing is that every letter that comes into this room is urgent. Every single one of them. Silver thought of a boy in a mountain tentwho’d spent his childhood huntingand burying his own people inthe snow. Too busy staying alive to learn to read.
Something in her chest hurt. Then we shouldn’t waste an hour,she declared. She stood upand held out her hand. Give it to me.
Conrad looked down at her hand,then at her face. Silver stood therewith her heart in her throatand her palm open between them. Then he gave her the letter,their fingers brushing,and Silver felt the touch go all the way up her armand into her chest. She read the letter aloud,her voice shaking at firstand steadying.
He listened with his eyes onthe fireand dictated his reply. And she wrote it outand passed it back forthe seal. Neither of them said one word about any of it. When she left he was standing atthe windowwith his back to herexactly as he had been the very first night.
He didn’t send for her the next dayor the one after. But onthe seventh daythe page came. His Majesty wants you. Silver almost ran upthe stairs.
He was at his desk when she came inandthe first words out of his mouthwere,“Lord Redmain has sent to congratulate me on my health. ”“He wants to know ifthe rumor’s true. ” Silver replied,sitting down. “That you were ill recently.
” “He’s testing to see whether you’ve grown weak. ” “Hm. ” Conrad said. “Then I’ll invite him to go hunting.
” “That would do it,your majesty. ” And Silver sat inthe hard chairand watched him try to write. Watched how carefully he shaped each letterand thought about how hard he was working to pretend nothing had happened. “Don’t say anything.
” she warned herself. “He’ll throw you out. ” “A king doesn’t have an hour. ” Silver said despite herself.
“But a king could practice. ” Conrad’s pen stopped. He looked up,his face exposed for half a second. “And who?
” he asked quietly. “Would teach me? ” “Your majesty. ” “Stefan knows.
” he said flatly. “He has helped me cover it up since the beginning. ” “But I can’t have anyone else know. It would spread.
” “I can’t afford to hire a teacherand Stefan runs half this kingdom formeand hasn’t the hours to spare. ” “Neither have I. ” “I have hours. ” Silver said.
Conrad went very still. “And besides what if Stefan fell ill? ” Silver leaned forwardin her chair. “What if he were thrown from a horse tomorrow?
” “What would you do then? ” Conrad staredand then“Thank you. ” he said finally. Her breath caught in her throat.
He had never said it. Not once in two months. Chapter 7
The lessons began the next eveningand the trouble started withthe chair. For 2 months,Silver had sat acrossthe desk from him.
All that dark wood between them. Safe. Far. But you cannot teach a man to read from across a desk.
Conrad didn’t ask. He stood,took her chairby the back,and set it beside his own. “Here,” he said. Silver looked at it.
There was perhaps a hand’s width between the two chairs. Less. “Yes,your majesty,” she said. She sat beside the kingand understood her mistake at once.
He was so warm. Half an inchand they’d be touching. She shouldn’t want to. “So,” Silver said,her voice coming out higher than she meant it to.
“The letters. ” “We’ll start with the letters. ”
Two nights later,he took her hand. She’d only meant to point.
He was shapingthe same letter wrong again,and she said,“No. Like this. ” Conrad caught her wrist. Not roughly,but firmly enough that pulling away would mean admitting she wanted to.
His thumb rested against the inside of her wrist,right where her pulse was hammering. “Show me again,” he said quietly. His voice had dropped lower,a rumble she felt more than heard. Silver tried to speak.
Couldn’t. She didn’t want to pull away. “Show me,” Conrad said again,and this time his thumb moved. Just a whisper of pressure against her racing pulse.
She looked up. He was already looking at her,closer than she’d realized,his eyes falling to her mouth. “Your majesty,” she breathed. His hand tightened around hers.
Then he let go,and his face was unreadable again. After that,his hand always seemed to linger,reaching for a book,fingers tanglingwith hers before he drew back. “Is he doing it on purpose? ” she wondered.
Winter came on,and Conrad got better,reading whole pages without stumbling. One night,she brought up a book of poems fromthe old library without thinking twice. He read slowly,like every word mattered. It was a love story.
She hadn’t checked,and now the king was sitting 6in from her inthe firelight,reading aloud in that low,rough voice. “I don’t have enough words. ” He paused,lettingthe words settle. “Ask my silence,” he said,looking at her.
“It is full of you. ” Conrad held her eyes a heartbeat longer,something unguarded in his face,before looking back down. “If you were mine,” he read,his voice barely above a murmur,“I would learn your silence the way other men learn languages. ” So it went all winter.
Silver scrubbed floorsby day,climbed the towerby night,sat close enough to feel him breathe,and told herself every evening she was a fool. “He is the king,” she’d tell herself. “The man you left atthe altar. ”
A fortnight later,on her knees inthe west passage,scrubbing flags where hardly anyone went,thinking of him again,when a shadow fell acrossthe wet stone.
“Well,” said a voice,“I knew it was you. ” Silver looked up. She recognized himat and her stomach turned over. Lord Abbott had been her father’s friend since she was a girl.
One who always made her go cold when he entered a room. “Little Silver. ” He said. “On her knees.
” Silver looked back down. “My lord. ” She greeted. “I’ll wager that when you walked out onthat king of yours,you did not picture this.
” He gestured at her bucket. “Did you? ” “No,my lord. ” Silver said.
“And yet here I am. ” “There’s no use dwelling on it. ” “No use dwelling on it. ” Abbott repeated.
He crouchedand took her chinin his hand. “Do you havethe first idea? ” Abbott asked pleasantly. “What your father stood to gain from that marriage?
” “What it cost him when you ran? ” “I do. ” Silver held his eyes. “I’ve paid for it every day since.
” “Have you? ” “Your family cast you out,so you’ve paid them. ” His grip tightened. “But you never paid me.
” Silver frowned. “Your fatherand I were partners. ” Abbott said. “That marriage would have brought your familythe Eastern Road Rightsand I had put a great deal of money into that road because in 3 months time it was going to be worth six times what I paid for it.
And then a spoiled girl decided she was in love. ” Silver’s heart began to pound. “The wedding died. ” Abbott continued.
“The road rights died. ” “My money died with them. ” “Do you understand what you cost me,girl? ” “Sir.
” She protested. “That is hardly my” “You’ll pay it back. ” Abbott told her. Silver stared at him.
“My lord,I’m a maid. I couldn’t” No,he agreed. He let go of her chin,letting his hand drop to brushthe side of her throat. So,you’ll compensate me another way.
Silver scrambled backward. I will not. Oh,said Abbott. I think you will.
We wouldn’t want anything to happen to that boy of yours,would we? Silver shook with anger. Then Conrad stood where Abbott had been,one hand aroundthe man’s throat,holding him a foot off the floor. Lord Abbott ,he said calmly.
Abbott made a small strangled noise. I do not tolerate members of my court threateningthe staff of this palace. Conrad’s voice was very quiet. He let go.
Sire,Abbott choked. Sire,you don’t understand. This woman ruined me. If anyone cost you anything,Abbott,it was me.
Conrad’s tone was flat. I could have upheldthe trade agreements with her father afterthe marriage ended. I chose not to. Abbott’s face went a dark,ugly red.
But your majesty,he spat. That little wretch humiliated you. And does that give you the right to lay hands on herand threaten her child? Conrad barked.
But he’s that woman’s bastard,Abbott argued. Conrad didn’t touch him,just took one step,and Lord Abbott’s mouth snapped shut. That boy is not a bastard,Conrad said. And even if he were,you would still be a grown man threatening him to force his mother into your bed.
His mother,who did nothing wrong,Conrad added. There is no law in this kingdom against a woman following her own heart. But,your majesty,Abbot began. Shut your mouth.
Conrad’s voice dropped. You threaten people under my protection,and then you stand in my houseand presume to instruct me on how I ought to feel? Abbot had gone whiteto the lips. You are banished,Conrad said,from this courtand from this city,indefinitely.
Sire,please. Abbot’s voice cracked onthe word. Conrad growled,not a human sound,and Abbot’s legs gave out. Guards!
Conrad called. Two came at a runand hauled Abbot upby the arms,his legs useless. Silver stood shaking. Your majesty,she managed.
I don’t I don’t know what to say. Conrad turned. There’s no need to say anything,he replied. It’s only rightthat I look after those under my protection.
Silver watched him move towardthe door. Is that all this is? She asked before she could stop herself. Conrad turned around.
He looked uncertain. All this is? He repeated. You showed meand my son mercy,Silver said,stepping towards him,when you owed us nothing.
Not after how I treated you. Silver,Conrad said,and sighed. And since then,she pressed on. You’ve paid me wages so I could repay you forthe potion I owe you.
I do not expect you to repay me for saving a child’s life. He looked almost scandalized. It’s the least I could do as a ruler. That’s exactly what I mean,she argued.
You’ve shown me nothing but kindness since I came back,and no one would have blamed you for doing far less. Why be kind to me now when you never were before? Conrad flinched,cleared his throat,and for one heartbeat Silver felt her hopes flare. “I knew about Siren.
” Conrad said. Silver blinked. “That he was a gambler. ” Conrad went on.
“That he was a bad match. I could have warned you. I didn’t. I was petty.
” Silver shook her head. That’s not yours to carry,she thought. “I’m not certain I’d have believed you if you had told me. ” she said.
“Nevertheless. ” Conrad said. “It was my responsibility. ” He feels guilty,Silver thought.
For something that was never his to carry. “So,that’s it. ” she said slowly. “You did all of this.
The potion,the wages,letting me sit beside you because you felt sorry for me. ” Conrad shifted. “I see. ” she said.
She did see. He had never loved her,never even liked her when she was his fianceand had done nothing wrong. What had she thought would change now? Penniless,a maid,the woman who’d left him.
“Well. ” she said,turning around. “Thank you for your courtesy,your majesty. ” She was furious with herself all the way down the tower stairs.
This was the best she could have hoped for. He wasn’t angry with her. He bore her nothing but goodwilland decency,and she felt rejected anyway,with no one to blame for it but herself. Chapter 8
Silver did not go upthe tower that night.
There were no summons,and she told herself she was glad of it. She put Bear to bed earlyand lay beside him inthe darkand stared atthe ceilingand made herself say it plainly. He feels sorry for you. That is all this has ever been.
She was scrubbingthe long gallery 2 days later,dull-eyedand slow,when footsteps came downthe passage toward her. Silver. She looked up. Stefan stood therewith his hat in his hands.
I’ve found something,Stefan said. A way out for youandthe boy both. Stefan turned his hat over once in his hands. He was,she realized,extremely nervous.
Marry me,he said. Silver sat back on her heels. What? I’ve thought about nothing else for weeks,Stefan said.
And then I thought,I could make you a woman of standing again. Nobody would dare speak your namethe way they do now if you were my wife. Silver stared at him. Her mind had gone completely blank.
But what of your betrothed? She asked. Stefan’s face changed. I never loved her,he said quietly.
There was only ever one girl I wanted,and she wasthe daughter of the housethat pulled me out of a stable yard,and I was a clerk with ink on my cuffsand nothing to my name. The gallery was very quiet. I have something to offer now,Stefan said. I’ve a nameand a positionand a house.
And if you’ll have me,I’d like to spendthe rest of my life looking after youand that boy. Silver shook her head. This was a lot. I need to think,she said.
Stefan blinked like he hadn’t expected that. Oh. Yes,of course. He said,“Take whatever time you need.
” He put his hat on. He took it off again. “Only think of the boy. ” He added,“That’s all I ask.
You both deserve more,Silver. ” Silver was quiet all through supper,and Bear noticed. She got him into bedand sat onthe edge of it inthe darkwith her hand on his back until his breathing went slowand even. “Look at him.
” She thought. You are not going to sit in this palace pining afterthe king. Not when Bear could have everything. And Stefan Stefan had known her since she was a girl.
He was a good man. He would be good to her son. That would have to be enough. She found him the next morning inthe east courtyard.
“Yes. ” Silver said. Stefan turned around so fast he nearly dropped his papers. “Yes?
” “Yes. ” She lifted her chin. “If you meant it then yes. ” And Stefan laughed out loudand took both her hands in hisand for one moment his whole face was so youngand so happy that she felt something in her ease a little.
“You won’t regret it. ” He promised. “I’ll havethe papers drawn up this week. I’ll send for my sister.
We’ll” He stopped. His grip on her hands changed. “Ah what? ” “You’re in the king’s household.
” Stefan said. “You’re in his serviceand so am I. We’ll need his leave to get married. ” Silver’s stomach dropped straight throughthe floor.
“His leave? ” She repeated. “It’s a formality. ” Stefan said,tucking her hand intohis arm.
He’ll sign it in a momentand think nothing of it. And Silver walked with him acrossthe courtyard towardthe great hall,towardthe man she was about to ask for permission to marry somebody else. Chapter 9
This was a public audience,and there were 40 people liningthe walls. Every single one of them turned to look atthe king’s advisor walking in with a maid on his arm.
Conrad’s eyes went to Stephan’s armand tothe hand Silver had tucked intoitand stayed there. “Lord Stephan,” he said. “You asked for an audience. ” “I did,Your Majesty.
” Stephan straightened. “As is custom,I’ve come to ask for your blessing on my marriage. ” “You have it already,” said Conrad,frowning. “Ah,yes.
” Stephan cleared his throat. “That engagement has fallen through,sire. ” Conrad frowned. “Oh,” he said.
“It has,sire. ” “Because I could no longer hide what I feel. ” Stephan’s voice steadied. “I wish to marry Silver.
” Conrad stared atthe pair of them,completely thrown. “You,” he said. “You what? ” Silver felt her face go hot.
“Yes,” she thought bitterly. “Some men do think me worth having,Your Majesty. Is it really so extraordinary? ” “I’ve loved her since we were children,sire,” Stephan said.
“I had nothing then,but I have something now. I can give her a household. ” Silver did not hear the rest because Conrad looked as though someone had put a knife into him. “He’s hurt,” Silver thought.
Her mouth was dry. “So say it then,she begged him silently. Say you do not wish for me to marry him. That you care about me.
” Conrad turned to her. Is that what you want? He asked. Silver’s mind went blank.
“He asks me what I want. ” She thought. When he never wanted to marry meand he said everything he’s done for me was pity? “I told you what I wanted once.
” She said. The whispering stopped. What? Conrad asked,looking genuinely startled.
Silver. What are you“In my letter. ” Silver snapped. “I told you I wanted to know you.
I asked you to let me. And you called it hypocrisy to my face. And now you stand thereand ask me what I want? Who’s the hypocrite now?
” Conrad shook his head. “I don’t remember you writing that. ” He said. “Oh.
” Silver seethed. “Because it meant so little to you that you can’t recall it? I remember it perfectly. ” Conrad said,affronted.
“I have remembered it for 5 years. Silver. ” Stephan’s hand clamped down on her arm. “Enough.
You are speaking tothe king. ” Silver tore her arm free. “You remember it perfectly. ” She told Conrad.
“Then tell me which part confused you,your majesty? Was it when I wrote I want to know you. Not the king. Though I admire him.
But you. Was that the confusing part? Conrad had gone rigid. Or was it I would rather have a kingdom built by a man who fought for it than one left to rot under a man who was only born to it?
She continued. Or perhaps when I wrote“What are you talking about? ” Conrad interrupted. He looked frightened.
“That is not what you wrote at all,” he said. She gaped at him. “I think,” she said,very low,“that I rememberthe letter that earned me being called a hypocrite bythe man I was engaged to. ” “You wrote,” Conrad said,“You must understand you are not a husband a woman of my house would ever have chosenand that a man cannot helpthe dirt he is born in.
” Silver gaped at him in shock. “You made it perfectly clear what you thought of me,” Conrad concluded. Silver opened her mouth,closed it. Her first thought was rage.
“How dare he? How dare he twist my words intothat? ” Her second was bewilderment. “He’s got it wrong.
He misread it. ” And her third thought closed round her throat. He didn’t misread it because he couldn’t read at all. He said he’d learn after he was crownedwhich meant that when she had sent him that letter he could not have read a single word of it,she thought.
Someone read it to him. Very slowly,Silver turned her headand looked at Stefan. He was white as a sheet. “Explain yourself,” Conrad told Stefan.
“You never read him my letter. ” Silver’s voice was rising. “Did you? ” “Not one word of it.
” “I loved you,” Stefan pleaded. “When we were childrenand then they engaged you to himand I could see it would never work. All those things you did for him,the teas,the plays,and he never once appreciated a single one of them. ” “He can hardly appreciate them,” Silver shouted,“if he’s been told I arranged themto mock him.
”
Conrad’s head came up. It was wrong of me to assumethat,he said quietly. Exactly,Stefan said. He was a paranoid bastard,Silver,suspicious of everythingand everyone.
And then you wrote him this beautiful letter. And I only meant to show you it could never work between you because I love you. Because you loved me? Silver snapped.
Or because you loved what my family could do for you? Stefan went white. That’s why you broke your engagement,she said slowly,because you were afraid one of us would find out what you’d done. Stefan dropped to his knees.
Your Majesty,he said weeping. Sire,I have served you five years. Guards,Conrad said. They came running.
What will you do to me? Stefan cried as they took hold of him. Conrad looked at him for a long moment,and Silver had never seen his face like that. Not cold at all,but lost and furious and sick with it.
I don’t know yet,he said. And then Stefan was gone,andthe great room was empty,andthere were only the two of them left in it. Silver stood in the middle of that enormous silencewith her arms wrapped tight around herself. I never wrote those things,she said again.
I know. Conrad had come downthe last step of the daisand stopped there. Is that why? Silver managed.
Is that why you called it hypocrisy? Because you thought I’d written those things? Conrad was quiet for a long moment. It made sense,he said almost angrily tothe floor.
That was the worst of it. When he read it out to me,it made perfect sense. Of course,a woman like you despised being handed to a man like me. He rubbed a hand hard over his jaw.
“I remember my letter,” Silver said softly. “Every word. Would you like to hear it? ” Conrad’s eyes widened.
“Yes,” he said. “Yes. I would. ” So,she told him.
“Your Majesty,forgivethe boldness of a letter,” she recited. “We have sat across from one another a dozen times now,and hardly traded a dozen words. But there are always people,always eyes,and I find it is notthe way to get to know a person. I thought we might write to each other as courting couples sometimes do.
A page is a quieter place than a crowded hall. ” Conrad stared. “So,let me be the first to be bold,” she went on. “I want to know you,not the king,though I admire him,but you.
They say you came fromthe mountain tribes,that you had nothingand made an army out of it. I think it took more courage than anyone at this court will ever understand. And I should like to understand it,if you would let me. And I want you to know that I am glad.
” She paused. “The old king was cruel. Everyone knew it. I would rather have a kingdom built by a man who fought for it than one left to rot under a man who was only born to it.
” She cleared her throatand continued. “I know I am a name to this alliance,but I hoped I might be more than that to you. A partner,if nothing else. I do not expect love,she added,meeting his eyes.
Perhaps it is naive to even write the word,but I hoped we might begin as friendsand see what grew from there. I am proud to marry you. I only wish you would let me prove I mean it. ” Conrad was looking at her as though he had never seen her before in his life.
That was very kind,he said,his voice rough. I wish I could have read it. She gave him a small,unsteady smile. What would you have written back?
Conrad let out a short,helpless laugh. Nothing good,surely. I’d have got it all wrong. He looked at her.
Then he rubbedthe back of his neckwith one big handand shifted his weight. I might have said something like,“I’m pleased to marry you,too. ” he said. “And that I don’t understand the plays.
” She laughed. Then quieter,he added,“And that I prefer looking at you to looking at the play. ” Silver stopped laughing. “Because I find you very beautiful.
” Conrad added. You“You found me beautiful? ” Silver asked. “I still do.
” He closedthe space between themin three long stridesand took her face in both his hands. And Silver had one half secondto see his eyes drop to her mouth. Then he kissed her. Epilogue
They were married inthe spring,not inthe cathedral,but onthe palace steps,wherethe sun was warmandthe people could gather close.
Bear carriedthe ring. He dropped it twice,and both times Conrad just laughedand ruffled his hair. Silver had never seen him laugh like that before. Almost a year later,Silver went looking for her familyand found them inthe study,Bear tucked against Conrad’s side.
“And the huntsman climbedthe hill,” Conrad read. “And there he foundthe wolf waiting. ” “What happens next? ” Bear mumbled.
“Tomorrow,” Conrad said,scooping him up. That’s when he saw her inthe doorway. One hand onthe swell of her bellywhere their baby had been kicking since noon. Something tender crossed his face.
He carried Bear out,and when he came back,he cupped Silver’s face. “Read to me,” she asked. He settled her in his chairbythe fire,tucked a blanket around her,then sat at her feetwith her hand inhis hair. “And the huntsman climbedthe hill,” he read,his voice steadyand sure.
Silver closed her eyesand listened to her husband’s voice,and thoughtthat of all the things she’d once been afraid to hope for,this quiet room was the one she’d never dared to want most. Thanks for listening. Did you enjoy that one? How about you?
Would you have knelt in the snowand begged the king you humiliated to save the person you love most? Or would pride have kept you walking away? Let me know your answers inthe comments. I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Catch you soon for another story. Much love,Louie
