Eventually, after screaming hard enough, she broke free from the invisible restraint and ran into a field of high grass. Olivia followed a beautiful butterfly that seemed to be leading her away from danger when it suddenly fell into a pond. Across the water’s rippling surface, she reached out to try to help it, but saw a man looking back at her instead of her own reflection. He reached for her through the glassy surface. Olivia took him by the hand as he pulled her into the water. At the depth of the pond, it had been as if they were no longer walking the planet, but floating across the heavens, making love in a sea of stars. Her fear and distress disappeared. The man knew Olivia intimately, and even though she didn’t recognize him, he gazed at her as if they’d known each other for lifetimes. She had been charmed by a familiar stranger. But what seemed completely real had only been a dream. And by the light of a rising sun, the glowing man had disappeared.
For a moment, she felt guilty reminiscing. Alexandal was lying in bed, just inches away from her.
A cool morning breeze rushed in through the windows. The fireplace had devoured its usual stack of wood during the night. Olivia slid out of bed slowly, so as not to disturb Alexandal, who was snuggled under satin sheets and still asleep. The drafty air raised goose bumps on her naked skin. She skipped across the tile floor to the washroom, where Gretchen and the other handmaids prepared towels, arranged flowers, and poured her bath.
“My queen, you’re up rather early,” Gretchen said, stacking quilts.
Olivia stretched and tried to hide the ecstasy that she was still feeling since she woke. “Make the water hot. I want to see it steam.”
“A smile? Well, I’m guessing you finally got a good night’s sleep?” Gretchen asked. She placed her hand across Olivia’s forehead. “There is a rather intense glow about you. I haven’t seen you so delighted so early in the morning.”
Olivia sat on the edge of the tub, blushing. The sleek stone under her bum felt cold.
“I see those ruby red cheeks,” Gretchen said. “It’s like you’ve been swept off of your feet. Did you—”
The euphoria Olivia had basked in all morning suddenly turned to sickness. Without letting Gretchen finish, she dashed to the chamber pot next to a basket of folded towels and threw up what little was in her stomach.
Gretchen held Olivia’s shadow-black hair behind her head. “My queen! Are you sick?” she asked, almost frantic. She picked Olivia up from under her arms and examined her from head to toe like a mother would her child. “I’ll make a bowl of lemongrass broth for you.”
“No. No, I’m not sick,” Olivia said.
“Oh. No?” Gretchen’s eyes opened wide. Her voice got quiet. “From what I heard the other night, you and Alexandal were quite busy. That was a long scout he’d been on. It’s only natural that you missed each other,” she said, winking.
Olivia blushed again. This time her face turned an embarrassing red.
“If you’re not sick, then you must be p—!” Gretchen almost shouted before Olivia caught her lips.
“Shush! No. I feel fine.”
Just thinking about being pregnant made Olivia uncomfortable. She and Alexandal had been trying to conceive a child since they met. But so far they had been denied that blessing.
Whispers began to travel through the villages, concerning the queen’s refusal to comment on the absence of offspring at the age of twenty-four. Volpi children would determine the future in the world of Men. Being that she was the only Volpi left, the people of Ikarus were anxious to hear Olivia’s announcement of a future king or queen. Olivia had feared that the majority rule of the council would force her to leave Alexandal in order to continue her bloodline. People would expect her to try with another man. A queen should not be told who she could love. The Volpi name shouldn’t direct the way she was allowed to live. But the queen had one limit to her power. She was not able to deny the continuance of her bloodline. The council could step in at any time and demand a separation.
Gretchen gripped Olivia at the shoulders and directed her to a chair in front of a mirror framed in diamonds. She stood behind, brushing the queen’s long locks and applying oils that smelled of sweet cinnamon. “The people are beginning to worry that they may not have a future king or queen to carry the sacred Volpi name,” Gretchen said. “They are getting nervous; asking questions.”
The weight of expectation overcame Olivia. If only she weren’t a ‘Volpi,’ she thought. If only she could be free to love and spend the rest of her days with the man she wanted, without having the relationship questioned. That man was Alexandal. “Greta, we’ve already accepted the fact that it may never happen between us. We’ve talked about the consequences. I just wanted to try for a little longer. I understand the responsibility I have to continue the bloodline,” Olivia said. Her heart hurt every time she thought about leaving Alexandal. He was good to her and true, always smiling when they were together.
“I hope so,” Gretchen
