“I… I should…”
“Well, get on with it,” Kate said.
Will turned back to her. “I’m sorry?”
“Proposing. Get on with proposing.”
That caught Will a little by surprise. More than a little, in fact. He’d barely been able to believe before that Kate might want him, and after he’d messed things up like this…
“I’m still waiting,” Kate said.
“Um… Kate, will you—”
“I thought you said you were going to do it on your knee,” Kate interrupted. “If you’re going to make me think that you’re leaving me, the least you can do is do this properly.”
“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” Will guessed.
Kate shrugged. “Maybe a bit.”
Will went down on one knee. He would do far more than that for Kate.
“Kate,” he said. “I love you more than anyone else in this world. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you do me the honor of being my wife?”
Kate stood there, and stood there…
“Kate?” Will said.
She grinned, and Will knew that she was doing it deliberately. “I don’t know about being your wife, but you can be my husband, if you want.”
“You’ll marry me?” Will said.
“I’ll marry you.”
Will whooped for joy, the sound coming up almost out of nowhere. It was shockingly loud against the backdrop of the city. Loud enough, in fact, that a window opened above, and a woman leaned out, a chamber pot in her hands.
“Keep the noise down out there!” she yelled. “Unless you want this over you! Who do you think you are, shouting like that?”
Kate piped up. “I’m a princess, and this is Will, who’s a smith’s son. And he is every bit good enough to be my fiancé!”
The two of them dodged as the woman tipped the chamber pot down onto them, then set off together arm in arm toward the palace, still laughing.
CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE
Angelica resented having to wait at one side of the court almost as much as she hated being a prisoner at all. This was not the way the world was meant to work. She was supposed to be the one sitting on the throne, with people coming to her, seeking aid, declaring loyalty. It wasn’t meant to be Sophia.
She was the one who was supposed to have Sebastian standing by her side.
Instead, he stood there next to Sophia, both of them still breathing in spite of Angelica’s best efforts. She saw the way they smiled across at one another whenever there was a space to do it, perfectly happy, perfectly content with one another in the moments before another supplicant came forward.
Angelica had to wonder just how stupid they were to feel like that. People always found a way to disappoint you. They always betrayed you.
“Bring forward Milady d’Angelica,” Sophia said.
Angelica didn’t bother waiting for a soldier to drag her forward, because that would have made it look as though she was afraid. Instead, she stepped out proudly, refusing to let the rags and dirt of her disguise hide the fact that she was better than any of the others there. She had been threatened by the Dowager, had faced down Rupert at his worst. What was Sophia compared to that?
“I am the crowned ruler of this country,” Angelica said, in a clear voice, so it would carry to all the others in the room, “and you have usurped my throne by invasion.”
The words weren’t meant for Sophia, but for all the people around her. She wanted everyone listening to remember that the woman currently sitting on the throne had no right to do so.
“I’ve every right, Angelica,” Sophia said.
“That’s it, witch!” Angelica shot back. “Delve into my thoughts. Invade them the way you’ve invaded our city.”
What would it take, she wondered, to turn people against Sophia? How many words? How many small lies stacked together? What would it take to make people see this as an invasion by some foreign-backed witch?
“It’s time to stop, Angelica,” Sophia said, in a tone of voice so reasonable that it only made Angelica’s anger rise. “It’s over.”
“Over?” Angelica said. “And yet you’re standing beside a man who murdered his mother. Do you know what Sebastian is?”
“Better than you ever could,” Sophia assured her, her arms resting on the gilded sides of the throne she occupied.
“He was caught near the Dowager’s rooms, practically standing over her body!” Angelica tried.
Sophia shook her head. “This isn’t going to work, Angelica. I know that Sebastian didn’t do what you’re accusing him of. Rupert did.”
Angelica tried to stop the thoughts that would admit it from rising, but they were there whether she wanted them or not.
“What role did you play in it?” Sophia asked her. “What has your role been in all of this? In the war, in the deaths?”
Angelica looked around the assembled faces, preparing for what seemed as though it might be her greatest performance. It would also be her final one if she didn’t judge it right.
“I am as much a victim here as anyone,” she said. “All I ever sought was what a woman of my station was supposed to seek: a good marriage to improve my family’s fortunes. Yet through the Dowager’s sons, I have found myself caught up in events I never wanted to be a part of.”
She glared in Sebastian’s direction.
“You were supposed to be mine, but you picked the wrong girl. Then, when you were supposed to marry me, you ran, not once, but twice. Your mother sent me after you the first time, then tried to have me killed the second, tried to have me murdered because of what you did. The only way to survive it all was to ally with your brother, and shall I tell you about all the things he did? No, you probably wouldn’t want to hear them. You know he murdered his mother and locked you away. That wasn’t the worst of it, and you’d have seen it if you hadn’t spent your life blinded to him. I found myself shackled to a monster, then made queen just in time to have to try to defend my lands from a bunch of invaders who would probably rip apart everything in the kingdom.”
She stood there, letting her anger cool for a moment or two. It wasn’t the whole story, of course, but the beautiful thing about it was that it was some of it. Sophia was looking at her levelly. What was almost as disconcerting was that the forest cat by her side was looking at her with an intensity that suggested it would like to devour her.
“It’s an interesting story, Angelica,” Sophia said. “Shall I tell you my version of it?”
Angelica doubted someone like her could ever have anything interesting to say.
“Oh, you’ll find this very interesting,” Sophia said, reminding Angelica once more that her thoughts were not her own. “You see, I was there when you were just trying to get a suitable marriage, as you put it. How did you do that? By trying to drug Sebastian.”
“You pretended to be someone you weren’t,” Angelica shot back.
“Whereas you were determined to remind people of just who you were,” Sophia said. “You treated people consistently badly, so is it any wonder that Sebastian wouldn’t want to marry you? Then there’s the murder of the Dowager.”
“Rupert did that,” Angelica said, not ashamed to throw Rupert into harm’s way if it would help her cause even a little.
“I’m sure he did,” Sophia said. “I know what he was as well as you do, but exactly how much did you do to push him into his mother’s murder? Be honest. If you want to live, tell the truth for once in your life.”
Angelica looked at her and suspected that she actually meant it. There was a sense of hardness in Sophia’s expression that she hadn’t expected from her. Angelica only thought for a moment longer before she answered.
“She humiliated me,” Angelica snapped. “She tried to kill me. She deserved it.”
“And when an assassin came for me in Ishjemme?” Sophia demanded.
“The Dowager made it clear that you needed to die, or I would,” Angelica said. “Why would I choos
e the woman Sebastian chose over myself? Besides, I wanted to make sure you weren’t coming back.”
“It doesn’t seem to have worked,” Sophia said with a faint smile. “What about Rupert? Do you deny that you killed him for the throne?”
“I killed him because he would have killed me soon enough if I hadn’t,” Angelica said. “Do you think I regret poisoning him?”
“Do you regret any of it?” Sophia asked. “Was it you who had my uncle killed?”
“That was war,” Angelica said. “I could kill him or I could watch my city fall. I have no doubt that you’ll take your revenge soon enough.”
She stood there, staring around at them, silently daring them to meet her gaze.
“You’re talking about the people I’ve killed, the things I’ve done,” she said, “but how many people have died in your war? This invasion, how many people have been slaughtered in it just so you could sit on that throne? I killed a few. You’ve killed hundreds, thousands!”
She stood defiant in front of them. It wasn’t that she had any particular plan to survive this, because what kind of ruler ever let her rivals live? If the positions had been reversed, Sophia would already have been dead, or at least begging for death. No, Angelica knew that there was no real way out of this through begging or trying to run. The best she could hope for was to show the new queen for what she was: a tyrant who’d taken the throne by force.
“Is that what you think of me?” Sophia asked. “That I’m some bloody-handed tyrant?”
“You aren’t sitting on that throne because anyone wanted you there,” Angelica said. “You have it because you came in with an army to take it.”
Sophia shook her head. She was quiet for several seconds. “I have it because of you, Angelica. You and Rupert. If you hadn’t locked Sebastian away, I would have stayed in Ishjemme. If you’d left us alone, if you’d let us be happy, none of this would have happened. You could have played at being queen, instead of losing your city to an army.”
Angelica didn’t believe that. Sooner or later, they would have come. Sophia would have seen the opportunity to take power.
“Believe what you want,” Sophia said. “It’s still the truth. Not everyone is you, Angelica.”
Angelica smiled tightly at that. “Aren’t you?” she asked, gesturing to the others there. “Is there anyone in this room who wouldn’t take power, given the chance?” She shook her head. “Execute me if you must, but don’t lie to me. I’m sure the Assembly of Nobles will look on your actions and note what kind of queen they’ve gained.”
“Who said anything about executing you?” Sophia asked, and the words were as much of a shock as if she’d walked down from her throne and slapped Angelica.
“What?” Angelica said. “But you… you’re the queen now, and I’m your rival.”
“You sound as though you want to be executed,” Sophia said. “Maybe you do. Maybe you think that the best you can be now is a martyr to the cause of… well, that’s the problem with that idea, isn’t it, Angelica? You’ve never really thought about anyone but yourself, but I forgive you for that.”
“You forgive me?” Angelica said. Here, now, like this, it was practically an insult. It was a way of saying that Angelica could do no more harm in the world. It was a way of saying that she didn’t matter.
“I forgive you,” Sophia repeated. “You’re right in one way: I have killed a lot of people today with this invasion. Too many to want to see more deaths; even yours. So you won’t be executed.”
For a brief moment around her, Angelica heard uproar as voices protested. Sebastian’s was one of the loudest.
“You’re going to let her live, after all she’s done?” he demanded. “Sophia, she had your uncle killed. She poisoned my brother, and she’s responsible for my mother’s death. She—”
“I know, Sebastian,” Sophia said. “But it isn’t our friends who need forgiveness; it’s our enemies. There has been enough war for one day. For a lifetime. Let Angelica go back to her family. Who knows, maybe they’ll be grateful for it.”
Oh, was that her plan? Angelica understood now. Send her back to her family unharmed, and hope that they wouldn’t stand against the new ruler. Show the nobles that the changed regime could be reasonable.
“Or maybe I’m just a better person than you,” Sophia suggested, answering Angelica’s unspoken thoughts once again. “Believe me, you don’t want to pick at this. After all you’ve done, this is not an easy thing for me to do. But I am. I’ve seen what happens with reigns that start in blood. I’m going to try for a different kind.”
Angelica could barely believe it was happening. They were letting her go? All of this, and they were letting her walk out of there? It was a foolish move, and one Angelica would never have made. She knew better than anyone that the only way an enemy stopped being able to hurt you was to kill them.
She looked over at Sophia and Sebastian. They would die. Not today, but they would, and when they did, she would have her throne back. She would see to it.
CHAPTER TWENTY SIX
Sebastian stood there in the wake of Sophia’s announcement, barely able to believe what he’d heard.
“After everything she’s done, you’re going to let her go?” he asked, looking down at Angelica.
Sophia nodded. “It has to end somewhere. Guards, take Milady d’Angelica to collect her things, escort her to the stables, and send her on her way.”
“No,” Sebastian said. He swallowed. “I mean… I’ll do it. If Angelica is leaving, then there are things I want to say.”
Sophia hesitated only a moment before she nodded her assent. Sebastian guessed she was thinking of everything that had been between him and Angelica. He put a hand on her shoulder.
“You don’t need to worry,” he said. “I just want to see for myself that she’s gone.”
He leaned down to kiss Sophia.
“Hurry back,” she said.
Sebastian went down to Angelica, taking her arm then, not gently.
“Come on,” he said, leading her from the hall. “Get moving.”
“What’s wrong, Sebastian?” Angelica said as she started to walk beside him. “Not happy to see me going?”
Sebastian didn’t answer as they set off along the corridors of the castle, heading in the direction of the royal rooms Angelica had claimed as her own. The silence between them felt like a wall he didn’t want to climb over.
Angelica, it seemed, had other ideas. “So good of Sophia to let me go, don’t you think? So kind. So naïve.”
“Careful, Angelica,” Sebastian said. The truth was that he couldn’t understand why Sophia would let a snake like Angelica go after all she’d done. After what she’d made him do…
No, he wouldn’t think about Rupert; wouldn’t think about the feel of the sword sliding into his chest in that last instant. Wouldn’t think about the way Angelica had turned him into a murderer.
“Oh, I think the time for being careful is long past, don’t you?” Angelica said. They were near the royal rooms now. “If we’re not to see one another again, we should say the things we want to say, do the things we want to do. That’s why you decided to escort me, isn’t it, Sebastian?”
“And what if what I want to do is to strangle the life from you for everything you’ve done?” Sebastian demanded.
Angelica smiled back at him. “That’s more your brother’s amusement than yours. Besides, Sophia has said that I shall be allowed to go, and I don’t think you’ll disappoint her by going against that.”
Angelica had a point. Sophia had said that she would be safe, and Sebastian didn’t want to go against one of her first orders as queen. Or rather, he wanted to, but he couldn’t… he mustn’t…
They reached the doors to the royal chambers and went inside. There, servants and guards were lifting out a body wrapped in a sheet.
“The serving girl you murdered to try to escape,” Sebastian said. “Did you even know her name?”
Angelica s
hrugged. She actually shrugged. “She existed to serve, and she did, even in death. Why would I need to know her name?”
She sounded as if she was enjoying taunting him. Probably she was. Sebastian had always known that Angelica had cruelty within her. It was just that, for a brief time, he’d thought that there was kindness too.
He cut her hands free and pushed her in the direction of a chest of clothes.
“Go and change, if you’re going to,” he said.
“In front of everyone?” Angelica asked with a faint smile. “I think you’re more of a gentleman than that, Sebastian.”
Sebastian swallowed back his annoyance and gestured for the others to leave. Angelica stared at him, her head cocked to one side.
“Don’t expect me to leave,” Sebastian said. “You’ll run as soon as I’m gone.”
“When I’m to be let go anyway?” Angelica said. She shrugged, then stepped behind a screen. “I think perhaps you’re just looking for an excuse to stay, Sebastian.”
Now he knew she was taunting him.
“I find myself wondering why you insisted on escorting me,” Angelica said from behind the screen. “Is it because you have things to say to me, or is it because you’ve realized that this is your last chance to be alone with me?”
“You think I’ve done this as an excuse to take you to bed?” Sebastian said with a laugh. “I turned you down when it would save my life!”
“I find that men’s desires are often different when they realize what they are about to lose,” Angelica said. “Are you going to tell me that you aren’t… curious?”
“The only thing I’m wondering about is what I ever saw in you,” Sebastian said.
“Then let me show you,” Angelica replied.
She stepped out from behind the screen, dressed in the kind of finery that even she would normally have reserved for a formal ball. Her dress shone, and she’d even found a moment to wash the soot out of her hair. It was a costume as much as a set of clothes, but Sebastian also saw it for the armor it was, there to keep out the world, there to disguise Angelica and hide the harshness inside.