Magic's Mark

Chapter 25

I flinched, "Why can't you go?"

He sighed, "Cara, we are on lock down. Until the matches have been announced there is no going anywhere for any of us."

"So we're just supposed to wait here?"

He sighed again, clearly finding staying idle painful, "Yes basically. We have one formal engagement before the matches are announced."

I raised my eyebrows, encouraging him to continue.

"We have to go to the funeral of the king."

"You must be kidding? All everyone has done is waiting and praying for him to die?"

Taylor shrugged his shoulder, "Given that you're stuck here and the royal court thinks you're my girlfriend, you are going to get a guided tour to what happens when a king dies."

"You don't mean that...?"

He smiled at my surprise, "Yes, you're going to have to go to the funeral with me."

~*~

My fingertips wandered across the lace on the black dress that Anastasia had brought me. There hadn't been time yet for the Grimstaw warriors to get to my flat yet. But let's be honest, it wasn't like I had anything appropriate to wear for a warlock king's funeral. I lifted the dress up and slipped it on, the inner layer of silk smoothly caressing my skin as it fell into place. I felt a nervous flutter go through my stomach, I didn't want to go but I knew I had to. If Taylor was seen without his 'girlfriend' people would start wondering. The Grimstaws had already done so much for me, I had to help them keep up appearances.

I looked at myself in the mirror, the black dress had a slip dress underneath but exposed the bare skin of my chest and arms through a thin layer of black lace. I turned my gaze away from the mirror as I heard the door open.

"Hello," Anastasia's soft voice carried into the room.

"Hi," I replied. "Thank you for lending me a dress."

"Don't worry about it."

She was wearing a long sleeved black dress with intricate purple embroidery, the colour of the purple threads were so dark I could only make out the patterns when the dress caught the sun from the window. She walked over to me, grabbing the heavily gilded handle of a hairbrush.

"Do you mind?" she asked softly.

"Of course not," I agreed, slightly unsure if it was a sign of her caring nature of if it was a subtle insult.

Her fingers moved through my thick red hair, creating a section and starting to brush through it.

"Your hair looks wonderful. I just thought I would help you with the hair style which is customary for funerals."

My eyes met hers in the mirror before fixating on the elaborate up-do of curls piled at the top of her head. Just one glance at it confirmed I would never be able to do something like that. Her hands moved quickly through my hair and she pulled a small bag of pins out of the pocket of her dress. I found myself standing, holding the bag up towards my shoulder so she could reach it. In the silence that filled the room, all I could think about was how nervous I was.

As if Anastasia could sense it she started, "We've told everyone that you and Taylor are a couple. It gives you a high status which means most warlocks will stay out of your way."

I nodded gently, meeting her gaze in the mirror.

"But there will be those in the royal familes who will be curious of you. We have told them that you met in New York and moved over here before Taylor to make arrangements for your apartment. That a friend of yours told you that the Mathlow boy might have an apartment up for sale."

I nodded, "So the reason I was with Lucas was to buy an apartment?"

Her fingers twisted a small section of my hair before circling it around the up-do and pinning the end of it.

"Yes, we had to come up with a plausible reason for why the stupid Brownlow girl spotted you with him."

I nodded again.

As her hands continued to work on my hair in quick flowing motions, so did her words, "The royal court can't see that you know Mathlow too well. That would be suspicious and it could also cause for speculation especially as you are so strongly linked to our family. So my advice would be for you to keep your distance."

I nodded again, taking in what she had said. It made sense but I couldn't shake the feeling that there was something more to it.

"You don't like him very much do you?" My eyes were locked on her facial expressions, ready to judge the slightest movement.

"That is true. I don't."

I couldn't help but ask, "Why?"

She sighed, "I know that boy. He is always trying to make his parents proud. They want him to be king and if he is anything like his father is, he won't be a very good one."

I fell into silence, trying to take in what she had said. Her hands had made speedy work with my hair and she stepped back giving me a moment to admire her work.

"It's beautiful," I smiled.

Her hands returned to her pocket, this time pulling out a silver locket. Before I had a chance to react, she had placed it around my neck. My fingers touched the cool silver and I admired the lion head on it. Its wild mane transforming to purple ropes twisting into a circle that framed the majestic animals head.

"It's beautiful," I repeated again.

"It's our family crest. It would be strange for you to not wear something connecting you to us."

I smiled again, looking down at the beautiful necklace when a memory flashed through me as cold shiver. I could see the Charlet family crest in front of me, the flower that had snakes crawling out from it. The coldness moved through my body. If Aaron becomes king I'll die. But something within me was tugging at me, asking the most obvious question of all... Who would make a good king? Lucas? Taylor?

Author's Note: I bet Cara did not think she'd ever have to go to a warlock king's funeral! What was your favourite part/sentence of this chapter? Please let me know in the comments below.

If you press the star to vote - you'll forever be a star in my eyes <3