luce walked towar

e as though the thought of him had not

st life.

he thought should have comforted me. Instead, my stomach twisted hard enough that I wonde

n me even after he came close

Majesty Ramiro of House Ardelune, Ki

leared h

rd us. "My daughters. Ophelia, whom you seem rather familiar with already,

made Ramiro

ajesty. The ple

mine anymore -- had never enjoyed theatrics. Nor would he have stared at an unmarried woman in

ars had turned him

uld be

ro said, "may I gree

was the right

a convincing illness,

our Majesty n

onfidence I did not remember, but

ess Op

d for my

slowly across the back of my hand, and the familiarity of the gesture was almost worse than seeing his fac

o

er warmth remained in my heart h

brushed his lips

in another life, had wo

ask him why. I wanted to demand whether he

, I sto

er the Second

mother gifted you to

art s

ct words to me at my

moment, I wonde

ason re

se he d

sband into the sort of man who reused old courtship lines on y

you, Your

before my resolve me

rcifully,

ome inside. I shall escort you and your entourage." He turne

urse,

s though he wished to object, but Fat

o

hi

foolish, like forgive a man I believed had arranged my de

I was not his wife. I was not his

I did not

ste

gged at

staring

eting our

taring at

re dreadful

our most important

that moment to dart across the courtyard be

heri

an aft

rly l

Something ordinary. Something

at ladies I had known since childhood, and accepted more compli

n kept drifting to

After all, I knew almost nothing of what

s Rami

was Tr

who once followed Rami

riosity defea

d as Valdoren's envoy to Monteluce, and she possessed the use

in," she said as we stood beside the lo

is stari

e the way

ored

something?" Her smile sharpene

Ramiro ruled Mont

twelve

el

pt my expression pleasant, though today ha

befor

of course. K

cou

th wen

appened

la's expres

ing, she seemed uncertain w

e more than any a

ly do no

s far from

t it

ered he

s reign ended

red a

elli

en close, or so the old stories say. Then Prin

ed Tristan's throne. Maybe others had wanted i

answer stood somewhere inside m

lla studie

iro

Tri

hesi

se enough that no o

o killed his brother

known him: standing beside Tristan at council, arguing with him,

the

her memor

ol

urned toward the great hall. Through the open doors, I could see

the carriage he arranged, and then he had killed his brother and take