Total pages in book: 140
Estimated words: 132625 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 663(@200wpm)___ 531(@250wpm)___ 442(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 132625 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 663(@200wpm)___ 531(@250wpm)___ 442(@300wpm)
“What do the opposing futures look like? Tell me what two ways this can go.”
Her laugh is brittle and jaded. “Infinite ways,” she says. “But there are three I see most often. One way, you continue to rule; another, Mordeus rules in your sister’s body.”
“And the third?”
“In the third, you all lose. And so does the shadow court. Civil war without strong leadership results in carnage, not change.”
“Anything else you need to tell me?” Brie asks. “If you’re truly here to help put a stop to Mordeus’s plans, you need to give me everything you can.”
The female frowns at her queen. “I see a path where your sister escapes her bargain, but she must still endure the pain to triumph.” She blinks over to me and cocks her head to the side. “He will be shocked by your strength and fortitude.” She lifts a gnarled finger toward me. “You can’t win unless you accept who you are.”
I glance to Brie, then back to Karmyn. “I know. They told me about my gift.”
“Not the phoenix. You’ve always appreciated fire. You have to be all of who you are. Even who you don’t want to be.”
“What does that mean, Karmyn?” Brie asks.
“It means she’s more like you than you realize.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Felicity
The queen’s briefing room is packed, and the moment I step through the door, I already wish I could leave.
I’d barely finished breakfast before I was summoned, and it looks like others chose to eat their meal here. The table in the center of the room is piled with pastries, fruits, and platters of cheese. On one side are Hale’s people. Remme’s sitting back in his chair, legs spread wide and lip twitching as Skylar tells him a story from the seat beside him. On the other side of Remme, Natan sits with one ankle propped on his knee, scribbling notes in a leather-bound journal. I know it makes me a coward, but I can’t bring myself to meet their eyes after what I confessed last night.
Opposite my friends is Abriella’s team. I recognize the queen, Misha’s sister, Pretha, and King Consort Finnian, but they’re flanked by a sharp-eyed, pale-skinned faerie and a terrifying horned male with red hair and unsettling black eyes with red pupils.
“It’s a party,” Misha says behind me.
I startle at the sound of his voice, as if I’ve been caught spying.
Misha scans my face. Any useful dreams last night? he asks in my mind.
How do you know I’m me and not her?
His lips twitch. Jasalyn doesn’t look at me the way you do.
Heat crawls up my neck. I refuse to ask what he means by that, since it’s embarrassingly obvious.
Ready? he asks.
What if I say no?
With this group? I couldn’t blame you.
It’s not them. It’s me.
Don’t be a coward. It doesn’t suit you. He extends a hand into the room. After you.
I move to do just that when I hear a squeak behind me and turn to see Jasalyn and Hale waiting behind us. The princess is staring at me with wide eyes. She’s in a light blue dress that makes her ivory skin glow, and I have to concentrate so I don’t stare rudely at the new scar around her eye.
I cut my gaze to Misha for half a beat. Really? You know who I am because of the way I look at you? Not because of the scar on the real princess’s face?
He shrugs, smirking at my annoyance. Little of column A, little of column B.
Why is she here? Shouldn’t she be recovering somewhere?
She wants to be involved, and the queen is doing her best not to smother her.
“Jasalyn, I presume you remember Felicity,” Misha says.
Jasalyn gives me a polite smile. “Good to see you again,” she says, though judging by the way she keeps looking me over, she’s forgotten how odd it is to see someone else in her form.
“Thank you, everyone, for coming today,” Abriella says from the head of the table. She sits with her head high, in full queen mode. “If you could all take a seat, we’ll get started.”
The rest of us file into the room. Jasalyn and Hale sit in the spots beside Natan, and when Misha slips into the seat next to the horned male, I’m left with no choice but to take the empty chair beside him.
Relax, Misha says into my mind. I don’t bite.
You must forget the vines you used to restrain me at Castle Craige. Those bit a great deal.
Oh, but now that I know you’re not a danger to my kingdom, my vines would be much softer.
I scowl at him. What in the world have I done to make you want to tie me up again?
His lips twitch and somehow the intensity of his gaze scraping over me makes me feel like he’s seeing me and not Jasalyn.