“No.” Tears spill down my cheeks and the couples dancing around us have all turned to stare. “You can’t do this, Kel. You’re selfish. You know that? What about your friends? What about the people who… the people who love you?”
“Rosalina.” He reaches for me, but I pull away.
“You’re a selfish bastard!” I cry. “And you always have been. That’s why you’re cursed.”
Before he can stop me, I turn and flee through the ballroom, my tears turning to ice.
46
Rosalina
Isprintoutofthe ballroom and down the hallway. I need to get out of here. It’s like the walls are closing in on me.
It’s all too much. The life I’ve created over the last few months… It’s so fragile. Keldarion was right. I never was a prisoner. I was an escape artist, running away from my real life.
I want the princes to find their mates more than anything. And I’m terrified to lose them at the same time.
But more than that, I can’t watch Kel wither away. Now I truly know he’ll never believe in me. Never trust me.
I throw open the doors until I’m bathed in afternoon light. A snow-crested garden lies before me, hedges and topiaries caked in snow. In the middle lies a huge stone fountain with a frozen water arrangement, shimmering like frozen fireworks.
I fling myself down upon the fountain and cry. At least out here, my tears freeze instantly, and my sobs are stolen by the wind.
“Now, now, my child. For whatever could cause such distress in a daughter of the earthly realm?”
I blink up and see a blue shape hovering above me. It takes me a second to place him. The Winter Realm’s royal vizier, Perth Quellos.
“Oh, I’m sorry, is this place off-limits? I’ll leave.” I sit up and dust snow off my dress.
The vizier sits beside me and offers a kindly smile. He’s bald, and his skin is pale, almost blue-tinged. His lips are stained like he’s just eaten a bucket full of blueberries. “Do not trouble yourself. The Winter Realm is open to all children of the earth.”
I wipe under my eyes, sure I’ve destroyed the beautiful makeup Marigold spent an hour on. “Thanks.”
Perth licks his violet lips. “His Royal Highness has often been known for his… temper. May I ask what he said to distress you so, Lady Rosalina?”
“It’s my own fault,” I mumble. “My own expectations. I wanted to be helpful.”
“I hear you were quite instrumental in the organization of this event.” Perth strokes his chin. “I was surprised that His Majesty agreed to it.”
“He only allowed it to happen because he never intended to make an effort anyway,” I grumble. “If he’dtryto find his mate…” I take a deep breath and quiet myself. I know even the vizier isn’t privy to the princes’ curse.
Perth stands and puts his hands behind his back. He’s unsettling to watch… Like all fae, he has an ageless elegance about him, yet his face looks both youthful and withered. Like a young man forced to watch the world on repeat. “A very interesting idea. Mate bonds have been known to increase magic within the fae. If Keldarion was to find himself mated, he may have the power to finally free Castletree from the Prince of Thorns.” A darkness casts over his ice-white eyes. “You truly have been busy, haven’t you, little human?”
Something shifts in the air between us; my instincts go on high alert, and I stand. “Thank you for checking on me. I’m going back to the party now.”
“But we’ve only just gotten a chance to speak. And there’s so much we have to talk about, don’t we?” He smiles and I notice even his teeth are stained.
“Perhaps another time. I should go—” I turn my back to him.
“How long have you been in love with Keldarion?”
The blood in my veins freezes. I feel like one of the statues adorning the tables: stiff, see-through. “I-I’m not in love—”
Then Perth Quellos circles me, voice biting. “Was it when he took you in like a stray cat? When he had his little servants dress you up so you could play make-believe as a fae? Or was it when he danced with you and made a mockery of our realm? What about the other princes, hmm? I see how you stare at them. Think you’ll spread your legs for the Prince of Summer and he’ll crown you his princess? Oh, yes, human, I hear everything. And it’s almost painful to watch how pathetic you are.”
I can’t speak, paralyzed by fear and shame. “W-why are you saying these things to me?”
Perth stops circling and stands right in front of me leering down. “Because you have one thing right. Keldarion is a weak and useless ruler, and unless he rids himself of the Prince of Thorns’ clutches for good, the Winter Realm will suffer. If that means he must find his mate to increase his magic, then so be it. And to that cause, you are a sorry distraction.”