Leticia’s eyes flashed. “Well, what are you waiting for?” She crossed her arms, tapping her bejeweled-slippered foot. “Hurry up. I need my beauty sleep. I don’t want that slut Calisto to get all the attention tomorrow.” She dismissed me with a wave of her imperious hand.
My blood boiled, but I held my tongue and turned to go back down to the kitchens. At this rate I would never be able to scope out all the castle routes.
I got Leticia her glass of snowberry milk and continued my rounds, barely making it back to my warm bed before the sun rose.
The bright morning sun streamed in through the small window of the room above the kitchens. I got up and washed my face with the little jug of water that had been given to us. It was almost empty, but the other girls had not gone down to the kitchens yet. They were sitting on one bed, huddled together and whispering fervently.
“Aren’t we supposed to go downstairs?” I asked, eager to get on with it. But my curiosity was piqued.
“Haven’t you heard?” Amanda said, her eyes wide like bright blue saucers.
“Heard what?”
“Prince Rafael surrendered this morning,” said Prudence, adjusting her dress. “He’s being held here in the dungeons.”
My heartbeat sped up, but my relief was wholehearted. At least Delacourt hadn’t killed him.
“Maybe Cook will let me take his food down to him in the dungeons,” said Amanda in a dreamy voice.
“Don’t be silly, Amanda,” said Prudence. “None of us are allowed down there. Only the guards are. And in any case, he’s as good as dead. He shouldn’t have surrendered; the archmage will never let him live now.”
Amanda covered her mouth with her hand to stifle her gasp. “Why? He’s already surrendered, so why kill him?”
Prudence shook her head. “How naïve you are, Amanda. This is the way of the nobility. They kill and cheat and lie to get to power, and when they get there they kill and cheat some more to stay there.”
I didn’t want to hear any more of her rants about the nobility in Eldoren. It was quite clear the people were dissatisfied with the way the kingdom was run. But with Delacourt in power it would not get any better. The only way to improve the situation was to put Rafe on the throne where he belonged. He genuinely cared about the people and would be a good king. I just hoped when he was king, he would put aside our differences and help us defeat Morgana and her growing army. I was worried about him. We had to get down to the dungeons, and there wasn’t much time left. The coronation parade would begin soon, and we only had about an hour before the procession got back to the castle.
Down in the kitchens, preparations for the coronation feast were in full swing. Whispers about the Prince of Eldoren surrendering to the archmage had reached every corner of the castle. Most of them spoke of him as a hero who had sacrificed himself and his crown for the sake of the imprisoned children. I smiled. So this was Rafe’s plan. He knew how the people would react if he gave himself up. They now loved him more than ever. Delacourt would never gain the support of the people now, whatever he might do.
The kitchens were even more bustling this morning with fresh produce brought in from farms all around the valley and fragrant herbs freshly picked from the castle gardens. Fluffy golden-brown bread and flaky pastries baked in big wood-fire ovens while the cook frosted beautiful small cakes with a delicious buttercream. I couldn’t resist tasting it before the cook slapped my hand away and continued his work. I quickly got back to my chores; I didn’t need to give them a reason to throw me out, especially today. But I couldn’t stop thinking about Rafe in the dungeons. I hoped he was okay.
The morning went by in a flash, and I heard trumpets blare in the outer bailey, signaling the coronation festivities were beginning. Traditionally, the coronation parade was to begin in the town and make its way up to the castle so the citizens of Eldoren could cheer their new king. But this time the procession began at the entrance to the castle in the outer bailey—an environment that Delacourt could control. Only a select number of people were allowed inside the castle walls to see the splendor of the coronation parade. Delacourt knew the people of this kingdom disliked him, and he didn’t want to take a chance on being in a hostile crowd.
Now we had very little time to complete our mission. The procession would take about an hour to reach the throne room in the main palace, and we had to be gone before then.
“Back to work, everyone, the feast is nearly upon us.” The cook clapped his hands hurriedly. “Faster, faster.”
I looked over at Tristan and he signaled me. It was time. I snuck into a corner and glamoured myself to become invisible. Tristan came over and I did the same for him. We slipped out of the kitchens and ran through the castle corridors to a set of stone stairs that led down to the palace dungeons.
The main palace was basically deserted except for the kitchen staff and a few guards, since everyone was outside watching the procession.
We descended the dark stone stairwell to the dungeons in the easternmost tower and came to a landing
