The Wild Swans (6 page)

“
You seem to misunderstand, My Queen, Elise’s relationship with our family,” Steffen said, his eyes crinkled in his ever present smile after he shot Nick a warning look. “Officially Elise is a foster daughter, yes. But she is for certain a part of this family. She is my treasured sister, and I am not quite willing to part with her yet, nor would I ever wish to see her marry outside of Arcainia.”

“No matter if she is a foster daughter or not
, it is the duty of female royalty to marry. Soon no one will want her, and she will be too old to marry. And what better way to spread Arcainia’s influence then to send her off to another country to fortify friendly relations? You understand what I’m saying, don’t you, Henrik?” Clotilde simpered.

“Fürstin Elise is the head
of the Treasury Department. There are none who can replace her at this time, My Queen,” Mikk stiffly said, as if the admission pained him.

“
Regardless of her marriage, she must be replaced. It is shameful for the children of monarchs to work like, like peasants,” Queen Clotilde said.

“Do you mean to imp
ly we all should retire from our positions in Arcainia’s government?” Steffen asked.

“Yes
, I do.”

“While your feelings are sweet
, My Queen, they are perhaps too idealistic,” Gerhart said with a charming smile, although his eyes had the look of a viper in them. “If the royal family is not working to direct the country, it will fall into ruin. While people tend to overestimate Elise’s role in the country, I am forced to admit that she does fill a necessary function.”

“
Sweetling
, are you alright?” Falk murmured to Elise, who was leaning back in her chair.

Elise stared wide
-eyed at her plate, hearing the conversation but not able to respond. It was nice to know that Clotilde had managed to bring the royal siblings together—Gerhart and Mikk never would have spoken on Elise’s behalf if they didn’t hate Clotilde just as much as everyone else in Brandis.

Even so
, Elise’s heart heaved in her chest.

Clotilde
was going to do everything she could to get rid of her, and her foster brothers wouldn’t always be around to protect her. One day Clotilde would succeed, and all of Elise’s work, everything she did to prove she was even a little bit worthy of the honor King Henrik and Queen Ingrid had bestowed upon her would be wasted.

Queen Clotilde shook her head and fixed a poisonous smile on her lips. “The bottom line is
that as her foster parents, it is up to Henrik and I to decide what is best for her. Henrik, you must believe that I have the best interests of Arcainia and Elise at mind. We will announce her availability—,”

“No.”

Clotilde twisted her neck to stare at King Henrik. “What?”

“No
, Elise will not yet marry. Nor will I see her cut from this family,” King Henrik said. His voice held a hint of the rough iron and rock that he used to possess…before he met Clotilde.

“
Henrik, dear, you must trust me. As a man you do not understand, but as a woman and her foster mother I—,”

“Elise
’s foster mother is Queen Ingrid. You have unfortunately inherited my rowdy sons, but Elise is Ingrid’s legacy. She is Fürstin, the head of her own household. She may marry if she wishes, but no one in this family will ever force her to,” King Henrik said.

Everyone at the table
was silent.

Elise’s foster brothers stared at their father with someth
ing like hope, and Elise bit the inside of her cheek to keep from crying as she raised her eyes to meet King Henrik’s eyes.

They
were clear and heavy with…expectation.

Elise looked to Clotilde
, who was gawking at King Henrik as if she had never seen him before. When she turned to look at the rest of the royal children, her eyes zeroed in on Elise. Her lip curled back in a sneer, and she clenched her crystal wine glass so tightly, she made it crack.

“Dove
, your glass has cracked—careful now. I wouldn’t want to see your beautiful skin marred. Serving maid, would you procure a new glass for the queen? Thank you,” King Henrik said, his moment of steel and steadiness gone. His voice and mannerisms were back to their doddering ways.

Clotilde did not respond to
Henrik, and she kept her eyes on Elise.

The matter
wasn’t over yet. Clotilde would not take a loss.

A few weeks before summer
, the royal princes and princesses of Arcainia assembled outside the throne room.

“Does anyone know what they wish to speak to us about?” Erick asked
, adjusting his rectangular glasses.

“Not a clue
,” Nick said.

“My
agents haven’t uncovered anything unusual,” Mikk said.

“It’s not go
ing to be pretty, that’s for certain. We’re being summoned for a formal audience with all the bells and whistles,” Rune said, adjusting his circlet. In spite of the “tiaras,” everyone still wore their everyday uniforms in the Arcainian colors of black and gold.

“Erick
, any word on a magic user coming to scent that creature out?” Steffen said, nodding his head in the direction of the throne room.

“Funny you should say
that. Directly before I was summoned here, I received a note from an enchantress of some renown. She said she would be traveling through Arcainia and would be happy to help so long as we did not require the use of magic,” Erick said. “I left her a message directing her to Brandis. With luck, she should arrive within the week.”

“A week may be too late
,” Gerhart groaned, flinging an arm over his eyes. “If I have to listen to her complain another day about our lack of decorum and formality I’m going to
die
.”

“
That’s not something to joke about, Gerhart,” Falk said, his voice soft like velvet but seeped with warning.

“All we need to do is concentrate on gett
ing through today,” Gabrielle said, holding her black and white, male cat in her arms. (Elise didn’t know why she brought the cat, but in the past month it was increasingly rare to see Gabrielle without it.)

“How are you hold
ing up?” Rune asked, slinging an arm across Elise’s shoulders.

“I’m manag
ing,” Elise smiled. Ever since King Henrik beheaded Clotilde’s plan to marry her off, the young queen took great pains to snub, mock, and rebuke Elise. “I don’t see how this will end well, even with the help of an enchantress,” Elise said.

“If we can prove she is us
ing magic, the Veneno Conclave will be forced to step in,
Darling
,” Falk said, intruding on the conversation without hesitation.

“Next time I leave to fight a monster
, you should come with me. You could use the break,” Rune said.

“I can’t. I cannot afford to leave the treasury alone for long. Nick increased security around the vault
, but Clotilde still tries to bully her way in,” Elise said.

“It’s a wonder she hasn’t convinced Father to force you to give her permission to enter it
,” Rune said.

“Maybe it isn’t
,” Falk said. “As manipulative as she may be, Clotilde does not strike me as being especially bright.”

“She’s smart enough to try and squeeze us out of the government system
,” Rune said.

“
But she goes about it in the most brutish ways. Subtlety is not her gift,” Falk said.

“Sometimes one doesn’t need to be subtle if they can get their way through force
,” Elise grimly said.

“Is everyone ready to enter?”
Steffen asked. He held Gabrielle’s elbow as she needed both hands to support her unusually large cat.

After hear
ing a chorus of yeses, Steffen turned to the doorman. “Arthur, we are ready to face the dragon.”

“Good luck to you
, Your Majesties,” the doorman said, hastily crossing himself before he swung open a door and announced, “Their majesties Kronprinz Steffen and Prinzessin Gabrielle, Prinz Mikkael, Prinz Nickolas, Prinz Falk, Fürstin Elise, and Prinz Gerhart.”

Elise and her siblings approached the dais
that King Henrik and Queen Clotilde’s thrones were placed on.

They
were silent, exchanging nervous glances when they saw their father. He was slumped in his chair like an old man. His eyes were vacant, his breathing labored, and he did nothing to acknowledge their entrance.

Queen Clotilde wore her most expensive dress. Her jewelry
was a set of sparkling diamonds, and her facial features were drawn and snake like as she smiled magnificently.

“Children
,” she said, standing when the door closed. “How good of you to come.”

“
For what did you request our presence, My Queen?” Steffen asked.

Clotild
e clasped her hands. “You all have been such a pain,” she started. “Again and again, I have tried to push you out. But you all resist. Worse yet, you make him resist,” she said, jerking her head back at King Henrik.

Mikk
, Nick, and Rune slide their swords out of their scabbards, holding them warily in front of them.

Gabrielle’s cat hissed
, his fur standing on end as he growled at the queen.

“There simp
ly is no other option,” Clotilde said. “I have to kill you.”

Rune sprinted up the stairs
, Mikk and Nick on his heels. He raised his sword and leaped at Clotilde as if to chop her when he hit a iridescent surface—much like a translucent egg shell—and was thrown backwards.

Mikk and Nick tried to stab their swords through the protective barrier
, but they, too, were thrown like rag dolls.

“So you final
ly show your true colors?” Erick said, sliding a dagger out of his uniform as Elise and Falk scrambled to check on the fallen trio.

“Hold your tongue
, you fool,” Clotilde said. “You will die without honor.”

Gerhart ran for the door. He tried to wrench it open
but it wouldn’t budge. “Arthur! Arthur, open the door!” he shouted, pounding on it.

“It’s no use. I
have sealed this room. You will not escape,” Clotilde said.

“You won’t get away with this. The people will revolt. It will be obvious you killed us
,” Steffen said.

“If I kill you when you are human
, yes. But not if I curse you first,” Clotilde said with an evil smile as she slipped a hand into a black silk bag. “A swan will do nicely. I’ve always
hated
those birds. They are too beautiful and pure. It will be wonderfully ironic, of course, as your family crest is a swan. Maybe I’ll make you all into a cloak.”

Erick tried throw
ing his dagger. It made the shield of magic Clotilde used to protect herself crack and fizzle, and it lodged in the surface, but it was not able to pass through.

Clotilde pulled something out of the bag and clasped it in her hands before starting the spell.
As Clotilde spoke in a deep, eerie voice unlike her own, Rune, Mikk, and Nick recovered and tried to attack again. They hit the magical shield and again bounced off it.

Clotilde ignored them and
spoke in a dark, guttural language Elise didn’t recognize.

“Puss
, do something,” Gabrielle said.

Steffen
unearthed several daggers and threw them at Clotilde. They bounced off the surface of her shield, unlike Erick’s, and fell to the ground with a clatter.

“Arthur!” Gerhart shouted
, pounding on the door as dark fog filled the room.

Falk ran up the stairs
, making a beeline for King Henrik. “Father,” he shouted when he could get no closer. “Father! Wake up!”

Clotilde’s voice increased in volume until it made the air and floor shake. She held her hands up with a flourish
, still clutching something in one fist, and shouted. “Now, I curse you, princes and princesses of Arcainia. I curse you!”