The Broken Kingdoms of Osvolta (Kingdoms of Osvolta #1)

50. The Princess and The Blessed

Chapter fifty

The Princess and The Blessed

S olveig woke as the sun set beyond her window. She was stiff and aching and in desperate need of a bath. As the thought crossed her mind, the door to the bathing chamber swung open and Teris walked out in a cloud of jasmine and lotus flower scented steam.

“Good, you’re awake.” Teris smiled. “I was worried that you would miss the ball. I’ve been keeping a bath warm, and I’ll send down for some food. You must be starving.”

As she lay in the copper tub, staring out at the blue, purple, and orange tones cascading across the sky, her mind wandered. She hadn’t attended a ball in four years. Tonight, the air would sparkle with false merriment as music filtered through the castle walls. Lords and ladies would dance the night away with copious amounts of sparkling wine, ale, and a table full of food that could feed a family for a month.

Solveig was about to play the part of the princess when the blood of the man she killed hours earlier was barely cold. To the nobles in attendance, she would be a hero. Someone to be wary of, yes, but still a hero. To the citizens lying in the castle’s shadow, she was a monster. A witch, a killer. Certainly, no hero.

She climbed from the tub, wrapping herself in a plush robe as she exited back into her bedchamber, where Teris waited. This time with a tray of food on the desk and a collection of fine dresses in various designs and colours draped across her freshly made bed.

“Food first, I think,” she muttered, eyeing the glass of water beside the tray, gulping it down immediately. “I don’t suppose you have access to something stronger before we try on all those gowns?” she asked, a pleading look in her eyes.

Teris smirked. “I think I saw a few bottles of unattended sparkles in the entrance hall on my way up?”

“Perfect. Bring two and we can drink together.” Solveig replied as she wolfed down a goat’s cheese salad, followed by a bowl of fresh berries with sweet cream.

Solveig brought the fluted crystal glass to her lips, sipping lightly at her second helping of sparkling wine. A faint buzz clouded her mind as she surveyed the dresses laid out before her. With Teris’s help, she had narrowed it down to two options. The first was a black, high-necked sheath style dress with a matching lace cape. The second was a cap sleeved ivory silk empire line that faded into black at the tulip shaped hem. Each dress came with its own matching headpiece. The ivory silk, an intricately woven leaf and vine design encrusted with brilliant diamonds. The black dress, with a twisted iron headpiece adorned with shining obsidian gems. It was dramatic, but a safe choice for a woman who had spent four years courting the night. The ivory gown would send a message that nothing was pure, that in the end, they all had a tendency for darkness.

“That’s the one,” she said, pointing at the ivory gown. “But I want the lace cape too.”

“Let no one say that you don’t have a flair for dramatics, Your Highness.”

Teris helped her into the gown, slowly fastening each pearl button along her back. The silk was akin to cool liquid as it whispered across her skin. She took Teris’s offered hand as she slipped into a pair of shining silver heels, the points so sharp they were weapons on their own. A slight tremor of a hand saw Teris topping up the princess’s glass and Solveig received it with a grateful smile. She sipped away, standing at her window. Listening to the sounds of merriment drifting from below, where the ball had already begun, when a knock sounded signalling her date’s arrival.

She placed the glass down on the tray, standing in the centre of the room as Teris opened the door, revealing Gabriel Orson on the other side. His blonde hair slicked back, dressed in a white suit and blue shirt, the colours of the temple. She saw his eyes travel the length of her body before meeting her gaze.

“There’s my Dark Princess.” He smiled, a hungry gleam in his eyes. “Shall we?” Gabriel held out a hand toward her. Solveig hesitated momentarily; she didn’t miss the clench of his jaw as he noticed it. With a deep breath, she walked over to wrap her arm around his. The Dark Princess and the child of The Oracle blessed.