Mynera kept her back straight, kept herself poised as she followed King Gavin to her bedchambers. She paid extra attention to every turn they took, every painting she walked by she studied and every door she counted. She knew not what the future held, but knowing how to find her way around this massive castle would definitely come in handy.
She was sandwiched between King Gavin to the front, and Barron and the man she assumed was King Gavin's head councilman, Garkun Layot, behind her. It took everything inside her not to act out on the emotions coursing through her.
There was fear, as much as it wasn't wanted nor needed. She hated that she was a little scared, hated that it was that fear that had her palms sweating and her mouth going dry too often for comfort. That traitorous emotion wasn't welcomed here; she needed to have her head in the game and succumbing to trembles definitely wasn't the way to go.
So instead, she focused on her anger. Red hot rage burned her veins, scorching her thoughts until she could no longer feel her heart beating madly, but felt pain in her hands as they curled into too tight fists.
Disgusting man, she thought. Disgusting, evil man. This was the man who killed her father. The one who was behind all of the pain she's been through. The one who had them on the run for almost two years. This man, practically skipping in front of her, was the man who she hated the most in this world. Oh, she couldn't wait to sink a sword into his heart.
Mynera's hands itched to punch him in the back of his head. She almost did too, before Barron stepped forward and whispered, "No," in her ear.
"What was that?" King Gavin asked, turning to her in question.
"Oh nothing, Your Majesty." She tucked her fist beneath her hand. "I just coughed, that's all."
"What a pretty cough."
She could kill him right now. Stab him and make a run for it.
"Are we almost there, Your Majesty?" Mynera choked out. Saying 'Your Majesty' to him so many times made her want to rip her own tongue out.
"Just about, my dear. I know you've been sleeping like slums lately but there's no need to rush. Let's enjoy the journey." King Gavin saddle up beside her. With a quick glance, he forced Barron to walk back with the councilman. Mynera resisted the urge to stiffen when his breath hit her. It wasn't bad, but it belonged to him and that spoke for itself.
"What would you like to talk about, Your Majesty?" Mynera asked politely.
"I want to know everything about you," he answered excitedly. He turned to her, grinning like a child. Mynera took that moment to really study him.
He was small. Beady eyes, thin hair that fell sloppily over his forehead. Even dressed in kingly garb, he looked nothing like a king, nothing like a lord. He looked like a stable boy playing dress up.
But there was something lurking behind those eyes. Evil intent, shining just beyond the excitement clouding them now. This man may not look like much, she realized, but he was an ambitious sort. Someone who knew how to get what he wanted no matter the cost.
Judging by the fact that the population of Tosh City was down to half and her father's and the late king's bodies were in unmarked graves, lives were just as easily dispensable to him if it meant achieving his goals. She wanted to spit into his face.
Instead, she smiled. "There's not much to know about me, Your Majesty. I've lived a pretty dull life."
"I don't believe that for a second. I know you have many interesting things about you, my lady. Please, do tell. How was your childhood?"
Mynera faked a laugh. It was light, musical, and succeeded in making King Gavin's smile wider. "Going straight for the punch, are you, Your Majesty?"
"Would you like me to start with something simpler instead?" he asked on a chuckle. "Very well then. What is your middle name?"
Mynera hesitated. Not even Saenar knew her middle name. It was something she never thought to tell him, never thought to tell anyone. Revealing that to this horrible man, not matter how trivial it was, didn't sit well with her. But she swallowed the feeling and responded, "Aiydien, Your Majesty."
"Aiydien?" King Gavin grimaced. "Quite an odd name for a lady, don't you think? Sounds very manly."
"Not at all, Your Majesty. It was given to me by my mother and I cherish it. I find it very fitting."
"I do not like it." Mynera stilled her fist once more as he pressed on. "But never matter, my lady. And here we are."
King Gavin halted before a massive shining wooden door. He splayed his hands out for effect as he presented her bedchambers with a grin. "This will be your bedchambers, my lady."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
"I hope it's to your taste. Go ahead, go inside. Look around." He gestured excitedly to the door. Mynera smiled politely at him; it was the only she could manage as Barron stepped forward to push the doors open.
Inside was magnificent. Mynera was brought back to a time when she sat in another bedchamber, in this very same castle, marveling at the extent to which the room resembled hers in Typena. She even briefly reminisced on the wedding dress she wore the day everything went wrong, the way the embroidery embodied everything about her household and her lineage. Now, as she stood in her new bedchambers, she couldn't help but compared. This one outweighed the other by far.
The chandeliers about dangled lightly at the breeze wafting in from the dominating wall window at the very opposite of the room. Massive curtains hung from the ceiling, pulled aside to reveal just a bit of the window. One could very easy fall out, but the view was beautiful.
The bed sat at the head of the room. It was impossibly large, purple bed linens adorning the surface. Mynera tried and failed to count all the pillows, giving up when she hit twenty. Her eyes wandered from the bed to the lush carpeting that she was just now beginning to realize her feet had sunken into. It was a deeper shade of purple, perfectly complementing the drapes and linens.
To her left was a tall bookshelf, scraping the ceiling, books and tomes filling every shelf. There was a comfortable looking chair before it, where she could sit and read.
To her right were partitions, but from where she stood, Mynera could see a long claw foot bathtub, and a vanity table and mirror, covered in scents. Her wardrobe laid halfway past the partitions, wide, tall and she didn't doubt it was fulled to the brim.
"I've designed it this way since I took the capital," King Gavin said, coming up behind her. "Each day I added something new. When I found out that you liked the colour purple, I filled the room with it. I heard you liked reading too and so I made sure to put the bookshelf in. I made my servants take care of the rest but, rest assured, my lady, I oversaw everything first."
"This is ..." All she wanted to ask was who told him those things. "This is spectacular, Your Majesty. I thank you. I couldn't ask for a better room."
"You mean you like it?" King Gavin clapped his hands in glee. "Oh, wonderful, wonderful!"
She couldn't take any more. Smiling lightly, she turned to him. "I love it, Your Majesty, but forgive me. I'm a little tired. I have been riding since morn and I would love only to bathe and to rest right now."
"Oh, of course. Of course. But you must come for supper. I'll have your handmaids wake you when it is time. Please, rest."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
King Gavin was grinning again, even as he waved goodbye to her and slipped out the room. Mynera was finally left to her own devices.
The first thing she did was slip out of her shoes and crawl onto the bed. She felt like an ant on top, but she had to admit, it was very comfortable. She wasn't lying when she said she was tired. She had been riding since morn and, now that the afternoon sun blazed, her backache was worse and her eyelids drooped a bit.
Mynera massaged her shoulders. She stared at the door. She couldn't help it; her mind reverted back to when she left Arcadia. In her mind's eye, all she could see was the door closing as Saenar left the room, then she saw herself, sinking to the ground in despair. After her fight with Saenar, they spoke no other words. She said her goodbyes to the lot of them, reinforced the plan to make sure everything went off without a hitch, and throughout it all, they barely looked at each other. Mynera hated herself for it.
She was wrong. She was the wrong one, not him, and so the sad look on his face when she left haunted her throughout the entire journey. She was the one who decided to ignore his reassuring words, she was the one who was so hung up on his past lover, she was the one who couldn't put aside her jealous and possessive nature to consider the fact that Saenar was over Charmaline and he was in love with her. Mynera didn't know this until she was leaving but her pride had her keeping her mouth shut. And now that she sat on this bed, she regretted not saying anything.
Besides, why should she feel possessive? No one was around to steal Saenar from her. He was hers and hers alone, even though it took him ages to come around. She decided. When next she saw him, she would apologize for her immature behaviour and for putting them both through all that. She knew now there was nothing around to come between them. Nothing but her own selfish nature.
There was a knock at the door. "Come in," Mynera answered as she slid off the bed. She turned her back to the door, staring out the window and out at the beautiful mountains in the distance.
"Good afternoon, m'lady. King Gavin sent me to help you get ready for rest."
"Did he?" Mynera wanted to send her back, but refusing the king's help wouldn't do well right now. She didn't turn, just waved her hand. "Very well. You may draw my bath."
As the handmaid went across to the bathing area, Mynera made her way to the wardrobe. Her instincts were right. It was jam packed with dresses. They were long, big, and the fanciest dresses she ever saw. They're dresses made for a queen, she realized, pulling one out.
"M'lady, the bath has been drawn."
"Thank you. I'll be wearing this one –" Her next words never found its way out. They died in her throat as she stared at the handmaid before her. Ginger hair, small ears. Realization hit her like a block to the head.
Charmaline wasn't dead.
--
Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed this chapter! The book is finally drawing to a close so hold on to your breeches, I've got some good things in store for you guys. Thank you all for reading this chapter, for even reaching this far I love you. I hope you guys continue to read!
So guys, what are your thoughts on Charmaline being alive? How do you think she survived? And what do you think is going to happen now that this gingered haired girl is back in everyone's life? Will Mynera get all possessive again and freak out? Will Saenar go back to his old lover since she's not dead as he thought she was? And if so, do you think Hale will go back to normal now that Saenar is preoccupied with someone else and he can swoop in and save Mynera's heart?
I already know what's going to happen ;) Let's see who can figure it out
Thanks for reading!
-Marissa