Blinding Beauty (19 page)

“
Jal’s mother had given her a
family heirloom, a jewel that had been passed down through the
families that lived in the long, white-walled mansion in the
desert.” At this, Isa realized Kartek was fingering the jewel at
her own neck. A deep pink, the jewel was round, nearly the size of
a grape, embedded in a disk of gold that had the thickness of Isa’s
thumb. Kartek nodded.

“
She had managed to get all of the
families to leave with the exception of one, but the last family
could not go. A young widow had just given birth to a daughter, and
without her late husband, she was not healed enough to make the
journey. Jal was torn. She did not want to leave her family home,
but she could not watch the young woman and her child die. So with
great sorrow, she told the first merchant who came their way that
she would give him her jewel if he would take the three of them as
far as the next city. The man agreed, and at the end of the
four-day trek, true to her word, Jal handed over the
jewel.

“
When she did, however, the man
smiled and said, ‘You have given everything to care for those who
had nothing. The Maker has seen fit to test you, to see whether you
are ready to lead many, many more than you have yet. And you have
passed His test. By this time tomorrow, you will have back all you
lost and more.’

“
True to the caravan driver’s
word, she went to sleep in a poor house that night with the young
woman and her child, and awoke the next morning back in her palace
home by the oasis. But instead of the small, empty village she had
once overseen, an entire city was stretched out before her door,
and the oasis was once again filled with life. The young widow’s
husband had been returned to life, and all of Jal’s beloved
servants were home once more. Even the jewel was returned. It has
been passed down through every daughter in the line
since.”

“
How did she find out she could
heal?” Isa asked.

“
The young widow had experienced
great pain during her birth, and it did not go away after they left
the oasis. In fact, she grew worse, nearly delirious. Before they
went to sleep in the poor house that night, Jal helped the young
woman lay down on her pallet. As soon as she touched her, the young
woman was healed. And so it has been ever since for the women in my
family.”

“
Is every firstborn child a girl
in your line?” Isa couldn’t help asking. Kartek nodded.

“
Just as the Fortress kings always
sire boys first, my line gives birth to girls. It is only the women
in our family who have the healing powers, never the
men.”

“
I wish...” Isa began, but did not
finish the thought, just let the words hang in the air like the
last leaves of autumn. What she wished would never be accomplished
by wishing.

“
Isabelle,” Kartek’s voice grew
stern. “There is something you need to know about your
husband.”

Isa felt her throat tighten. For
some reason, it felt shameful to have another woman telling her
things about her own husband that she should have already
known.

“
I am sure you know what Ever’s
relationship with his parents was?” Kartek raised a dark eyebrow.
Isa nodded, so the queen continued. “Good. Then you should also
know that his father’s determination to raise him as superior to
his royal peers meant he was alone much of the time, even on the
few occasions that he was surrounded by other children. His unusual
strength only made their differences that much greater. I tell you
this so you will know just how desperate he is to protect
everything he has been given.

“
Your husband, for all his faults,
is one of the Maker’s most loyal creatures, and he loves you with a
potency that even he cannot understand. He is terrified to lose
you, and if he does not gain control of his fear, I am afraid he
might do something dangerous and irreversible in the wake of his
determination. Everard is a good man, but a dangerous one as well.
You cannot allow him to think he will solve this quandary alone,
because he will do so by any means necessary. He needs you to
balance him, to temper him.”

But Isa was already shaking her
head. “He won’t let me in. I’ve tried! He refuses to even tell me
what has him on edge here in Cobren.”

“
Then that, my queen, is the
puzzle you must solve. There is a reason the Fortress did not leave
him alone. Unbridled, he will destroy himself in his attempts to
right the wrongs of the world. Your duty as queen is to be the
partner he needs. You must find a way to save him from
himself.”

“
But my power is failing,” Isa
protested. “How do I stop him?”

“
That is your duty to find out.
The Fortress queens have not always been weak as Ever’s mother was.
They had their own difficult choices to make. You are no
different.” With that, Kartek stood, her colorful wrapped skirts
swishing lightly around her legs in the process. Just as she raised
her hand to rap on the door to let the guard know she was finished,
Isa had to ask her the question that had burning inside of her for
months.

“
I know you spoke with Ever this
morning. Does he think that I can do this? Master my power and
fulfill my role as queen?”

“
That is something you will have
to ask him,” Kartek said slowly. As she left the room, her
footsteps echoing down the stone hall, a chill moved through
Isa.

That was exactly what she was
afraid of.

CHAPTER
NINETEEN

A Midday Meal

Isa was
still mulling over what Kartek had told her when another knock
sounded at the door.

“
Midday meal for the queen!” a
lilting voice sang out. Despite the many, varied accents Isa had
heard at the palace during the last few days, Isa knew this one
immediately. Sure enough, Norbert opened the door to let in Brokk,
who was carrying a covered silver platter.

“
Your husband notified the kitchen
that the queen was in need of some food.”

“
Thank you, Brokk. That is very
kind of you.” Isa wasn’t particularly hungry, nor was she really in
the mood to entertain more company, but the servant’s presence lit
up the place like a chandelier. As he placed the platter on the
table, he glanced about the room.

“
Are you not getting a bit bored
in here?”

Isa let out a burst of a laughter.
“Yes, but...” she paused, not knowing how much to say about Ever’s
orders. As much as she resented them, it felt risky to make the
world privy to their personal disagreements. Brokk seemed to
understand, and to her surprise, looked remorseful.

“
I fear I am not a very good
servant. I tend to put myself up on a pedestal where I do not
belong, with the palace guests as equals. But may I let you in on a
little secret?”

Amused, Isa nodded. While Brokk
certainly didn’t act the part of a typical servant, she rather
preferred his little quirks. It was nice to have a friend somewhere
in this new, unfriendly world.

“
I have only been serving here for
a little while,” Brokk said with an unreadable expression. “And I
don’t plan on continuing for very long, either.”

“
You sound as though you’re on a
quest.” Isa smiled. A sad half grin crept up on one side of the
older man’s mouth, and suddenly, his typical joviality was all
gone.

“
I guess I am.”

“
What for?” Isa leaned forward,
all thoughts of the meal nearly gone.

Brokk hesitated, throwing a
slightly nervous glance at the door.

“
Please,” Isa pressed, suddenly in
great need of a distraction from the tumult of her thoughts. “If
they say anything, I will explain that you were assisting
me.”

His eyes crinkled kindly at the
corners and he nodded. “Very well. But please sit and eat at
least.”

Sighing, Isa did as he asked. As
soon as she was comfortable, and her steaming platter of chicken,
seasoned corn, and rice was served, Brokk settled himself across
from her as she ate.

“
I was even a bit younger than you
when my path to this end was set, and I met the girl of my dreams.
Her name was Agatha.” His voice was low, and the expression on his
face affectionate, as though he saw her even now before him. “I was
much younger back then, but I sometimes still awaken in the night,
and it feels as though she could still be beside me.” He stood
mostly straight, but bent just enough to lightly twist the hem of
his green uniform, and the troubled creases that filled his face
made him look suddenly much older.

“
Agatha was from another province.
But she was so lovely, with skin nearly the color of milk, and eyes
almost as dark as the night.” He paused before adding, “It wasn’t
long before I’d begged her to marry me.”

“
What happened?”

“
It’s rather uncomplicated. A
sickness swept the land. Thousands died.” He sighed. “She succumbed
after weeks of fighting, much longer than most other victims had to
suffer. But she was determined...” He suddenly had to clear his
throat.

“
I’m sorry,” Isa breathed. She
looked down at her picked-at plate, wishing she could help. It felt
so wrong to see Brokk’s sunny face so full of sorrow. Before she
had time to say anything else, however, the door swung open, and
Ever strode in, carrying a full plate of food.

“
I brought you lunch—” Ever
stopped, unhappy surprise registering on his face when he saw
Brokk.

In that moment, Isa realized that
someone had lied. Ever hadn’t sent Brokk with her meal. Someone
else must have sent him. But who would lie about her
lunch?

“
Thank you, Brokk.” Isa hurried to
put the cover back on the platter, and shoved it all back into
Brokk’s hands. The servant took the hint, and after bowing to both
of them, quickly excused himself from the room. As much as Isa
wanted to know about Brokk’s quest, she knew the look in Ever’s eye
only too well. Ever didn’t say a word, just watched every move the
servant made.

As Brokk left, Isa closed her eyes
and inhaled deeply in order to calm herself. This was not a good
way to start the conversation they needed to have.

After he was gone, Ever thrust the
plate he held onto the little round table.

“
You could have been a little
nicer to him,” Isa huffed. “He was only trying to help.”

“
The second competition will start
soon,” he muttered, ignoring her objection. “Where’s Cerise? You
need to be ready.”

“
I let her have a day in the
town,” Isa said. She went over to the wardrobe and began to go
through her clothes for lack of something better to do as she tried
to find the words she needed to say.

She had been so angry that morning
when he’d locked her in her room. She’d contemplated every possible
way to communicate her fury, everything from shouting to ignoring
him completely. But when Kartek had come and shared his story, a
bit of compassion had seeped into her. Forgive him, a voice in her
head whispered. He’s just trying to protect you. Unfortunately for
that voice, however, every brusque word he uttered, and every
abrupt move he made, made forgiveness just that much more
difficult. Nevertheless, Isa took a breath and searched for
words.

“
Thank you for bringing me
something to eat.”

“
What? Oh, you’re welcome.” He was
still glaring at the door as she pulled on a more practical dress
for the outdoors. When he ran his hand down his jaw as he spoke,
Isa knew immediately that it had been the wrong thing to say. He
turned to glare at her. “Isa, what were you thinking?”

“
What do you mean?”

“
Inviting someone in when I
specifically wanted you to stay here alone? What good is it being
hidden if you invite the world in?”

“
He was told that I needed a
midday meal!” Isa felt the anger stir within her once more. “How
was I supposed to know you were going to bring me something? I
assumed you were the one to send him!”

“
I certainly did not send him! Why
would I send strange men into our room after you were attacked?”
Ever stopped, his eyebrows going up. “Who sent him?” he asked in a
deadly tone.

“
He didn’t say! And I’m not a
child, Everard! You can’t dictate my every word and move!” Isa’s
resolution to forgive him dissolved as she held his furious glare,
which grew only more intense when she used his full
name.

“
I will do whatever I have to—” he
stopped, and cocked his head. It only annoyed Isa more when she
realized he was hearing something she couldn’t, something she would
have heard had her powers been working properly. “We need to go,”
he said finally. “It’s almost time.”

Isa fumed as she struggled to pull
on her dress. Despite it being less complicated than most of the
gowns Gigi had sent her, she still needed Cerise to close the back.
But Cerise wasn’t there.

“
Then I need you to help me with
this,” she spat out. With a huff, Ever stomped over to help her,
but she could feel the tension rolling off of him as he did. “We
will finished this conversation later,” she added icily, spinning
around to glower up at him when he was done. Ever said nothing,
just turned and walked to the door. Isa followed, swearing to
herself that he wouldn’t get off that easily. They would talk about
this.