He shook his head. “I wish, for both our sakes, for that to be the case. But you can understand my…confidence…that such a scenario is unlikely.”
I shrugged, trying to act nonchalant. “Well, we’ll see what happens, I guess.”
“We will.”
“We need to go,” Louie said, lumbering down the stairs.
When I glanced over at Edon, my future consort, a gunshot of panic ripped through me. “Um…” I peered upstairs, struggling to think—to calm down. “Can I—can I have a moment? Maybe a bathroom break or…something?”
I must have looked as freaked out as I felt, because Louie didn’t even glare. “Up the stairs, first door on the left. Five minutes.”
I nodded and dashed up the stairs, careful not to step on the dress. The closer I got to the second floor, the louder Deena’s snores echoed through the corridor.
Her snoring helped me collect my thoughts better than anything else could have. It was comforting knowing she was here.
I opened the door to the bathroom and stepped inside. From the increased level of snore, Deena’s room connected to this bathroom as well. I turned on the cold water, cooling my wrists as I stared in the mirror, my deep blue eyes jumping out from my pale, made-up face. I didn’t register the twisted locks of hair that weaved around the delicate tiara. Instead, I stood there thinking how Deena wouldn’t remember me. That if everything went sideways, the only people left alive with memories of me would be the fae who’d manipulated me into this position. It wasn’t fair.
My hand paused as I was about to turn the faucet off. Almost of its own accord, my feet took a couple steps to the left and opened the second door to the connecting bedroom. Deena laid sprawled out on a rustic oak queen bed, oblivious to the world.
Taking a breath, I crept closer to her, hoping I wasn’t being selfish. I just wanted someone to remember me. She didn’t even need to remember the fae—just me. Just Kella from before the fae. That couldn’t be too much to ask for.
I crouched down, my lips almost brushing her ear.
“Deena,” I said. “It’s me, Kella James. Remember the girl with blue eyes and frizzy brown curls who tried to steal your van? She reminded you of yourself, and all she did was make things hard for you. But you liked her anyway, and she liked you back.” I swallowed, unsure of what else to say. It’s not like I wanted my memory to haunt her or anything. “You, uh, you helped her. You gave her hope, and, um…” This was getting awkward even though Deena still slept. “She was glad to have you in her life. She just wants you to remember her, okay? Remember that she loved her brother and fought for him the best way she knew how.”
I licked my lips, backing away. I didn’t know what else to say. And anyway, I needed to get downstairs before anyone came looking for me. I doubted they’d be thrilled to find me in Deena’s room.
Edon stood by the bottom of the stairs as I descended, fabric bunched in my hands.
“Shall we?” Edon asked, taking a step back and offering his arm.
I swallowed, my throat dry. My mom would make this all work out. She’d done this much. She only had to hang on for a few more hours and I’d be free.
I nodded at Edon, who ushered me out of the door into the waiting car. For better or worse, it was show time. I shut my eyes, taking in a deep breath. Soon. After the investiture, it would be just Caleb, me, and my mother. Soon.
It wasn’t a shock when we drove up to an elegant, pillared building that looked similar to a governor’s mansion or a state building of some sort—after all, it was a coronation.
Edon forced a smile as a fae dressed in black opened the limo door, gesturing for us to come out onto a purple carpet.
Glamoured fae lined up on either side of twin velvet ropes, but despite the large size of the crowd, I only heard the soft hush of murmured voices.
Cheers erupted as soon as Edon stepped out, his face plastered with the fakest smile I’d ever seen. He waved to the crowd, ignoring a small chorus of boos from some place hidden in the crowd.
He held his hand out and I took it, careful not to look up into his face. In less than an hour, this fae would be my consort. I knew brides had wedding jitters, but I didn’t feel anything jittery. Instead, a dreadful emptiness pressed in on me.
As soon as I appeared, the crowed quieted down to a murmur. A few fae raised half-hearted cheers as I took Edon’s offered arm. “Such a warm welcome,” I muttered.
“Jealous?” he said, escorting me down the carpet.
“No. Just—I don’t know.”
“The queen would consider half of these fae to be rebels. If I wasn’t sacrificing myself for them, they’d be as good as dead in a little over an hour.”
“Sacrificing yourself? Doesn’t anyone here get that I’m the sacrifice?”
“Sure. But your sacrifice ushers in the reign of a power-hungry queen. Mine gives them hope for their lives. My sacrifice wins.”
“Great. So I’m the harbinger of death.”
At that, Edon grinned. “Don’t worry. I wouldn’t be shackling myself to you if I thought you didn’t have a chance. I’d have killed you instead.”
“Nothing says consort like ‘person who almost decided to kill you.’”
He shrugged. “At least I’m honest about it.”
“I guess.”
When we entered the marbled atrium, council members dressed in deep purple robes with silver embroidery greeted us from the other side, gesturing for us to follow them. Edon kept us several paces behind them as they led us through a door framed by velvet red curtains.
The elegant room was modest in size but spacious enough
