Dragon's Heart (25 page)

S
erena stood
in front of the full-length mirror, staring at a woman she wasn’t sure she recognized. The reflection resembled the mother she’d seen in paintings and resurfaced memories. A large cluster of butterflies began taking up residence in her stomach, making her nauseous. She reached up and wrapped her hand around the single long braid draped over one shoulder and wondered what Killian would think. Her heart twisted in on itself, grating over the sharp edges his loss had left in its wake. She closed her eyes.

“You pushed him away. You did what was best. For him. For you. For your people. For his people,” Serena whispered the mantra again. It had become a sort of touchstone for her, a way to keep the wall around her heart from crumbling.

Bronwynn’s timid voice came from the door. “Your Highness?”

Serena picked up one side of her skirt and lifted it before turning to face her advisor and friend. “Yes, Bronwynn?”

“Lord Altus would like a moment before the audience begins.”

“Of course, send him in.”

“Very good, my lady.” The other Dragon Fey offered a curtsy and stepped out of the room.

Once alone, Serena turned back to the mirror and tried to see a leader. All that stared back was a frightened young woman whose life had been turned upside down by greed and lust for power.
I am not a diplomat. I know nothing of politics and court intrigues. This is not who I am. I am a soldier, a protector. Not anymore. I resigned my commission. I am not a fighter. I am not a noble. I am not a scholar. Who am I?

“Your Highness, you look so very much like your mother.”

“Thank you, Altus. We have the seamstresses and lady’s maids to thank for that.”

“There is one item missing.”

“What is that?”

“Had your family lived, upon your sixteenth birthday there would have been a formal ceremony presenting you to the assembled clans as her heir.” He stepped up behind her, meeting Serena’s eyes in the mirror. “At that ceremony, you would have been presented with the princess’s crown.” He lifted a delicate circle of gold with red rubies set among the metalwork above her. “I believe it will help your position with the clan lords and commoners tonight,” he said positioning it on her head.

Serena’s breath caught in her throat. She wanted to believe the mirror somehow lied, and this was a bad dream. Soon, one of her instructors would appear from nowhere to berate her for being a lazy fool. “How is a piece of jewelry going to help keep me from falling on my face?”

Altus chuckled. “Perhaps it won’t. What it will do is give some of the more stubborn lords pause. It is a visual reminder that you are Ellesandra’s daughter.”

“Which means they are more likely to listen to me speak before they try and hang me?”

“I doubt they will try to hang you,” he said with a smile, catching sight of her somber expression. He called himself a fool before explaining. “Until you reach your majority, no one can challenge your right to sit on your ancestor’s throne.”

“How do they know I am who I say?”

“You are the image of Ellesandra, and you have Rafe’s fighting prowess.”

“That’s why the sword belt has been added?” Her hand drifted to the hilt of the finely wrought weapon that had been her father’s. Touching it, she felt closer to the man she was getting to know through stories and memories.

“Yes.” Altus stepped back. “There is one other way they will know.”

Serena sighed. Sometime soon, she was going to have to sit with Altus or someone and get a long lesson in Dragon Fey culture. “Do tell.”

“The chief of the Soothsayers will be in attendance. Minerva was present at your birth, and I have just gotten word she has brought your chart from their archives.” He didn’t mention that she also had the chart for the human prince Serena had been betrothed to marry.

“Chart?”

“Yes.”

“What’s a chart?”

“When a Dragon Fey child is born, before they are presented to their clan, a bit of blood is taken by a Soothsayer. You have a scar over your heart, do you not?” He pressed his fingertips to his own chest. “Somewhere in this general area?”

“Yes.”

“When you were born, your father used his claw to cut your chest. The blood from that cut was gathered and used by the Soothsayers to peer into your future.”

“Did they not see all of this coming?”

“They cannot see everything.”

Serena ran a hand through her hair, tucking it behind her ear. “So, how does this strengthen my claim? How does it prove who I am?”

“The Soothsayer will know,” Altus said,” they have their ways.”

“And lowly diplomats don’t know what those are?”

“Not lowly, princess. However, you are correct. Their ways are not known to anyone outside of their clan.”

“And if they do not support my claim?”

“Then we may very well need you to use that sword.”

“Lovely. What the Dark Fey began,” she said and let out her breath on a frustrated sigh, “my own people may complete.”

“What did you say, princess?”

“That my own people may finish what the Dark Fey began.”

“Who told you the Dark Fey were involved?”

“No one.” She closed her eyes and dropped her chin to her chest. “I remember.”

“The night they died?” He frowned, there were so many questions he wanted to ask about that night. So many things their people wanted and needed to know. If Serena was able to answer them, to remember, it would bring peace to several families.

Serena glanced at the ground, fighting to keep her emotions in check. “Yes.”

“And it was the Dark Fey?”

“Yes.”

“We suspected, but had no confirmation.” He took a deep breath. “I am sorry, princess.”

“Is there anything else I need to know before we go?”

“Just be yourself. You are your father and mother’s daughter. When you were a child, you watched Ellesandra preside over more than one audience like this, so you know what to do.” He paused. “Don’t try to emulate the human rulers you’ve known. We have different ways.”

“How many clan chiefs will be there?”

“Do you truly want to know, princess?”

“Yes. I do.”

“Fifteen.” Altus took a few steps, hoping Serena would follow him without more questions. After several, he paused and turned back to face her. “However, many of our people are eager to see their princess.”

She folded her arms across her chest and asked, “How many?”

“I am told there are over two hundred Dragon Fey men women and children in attendance.”

“Two hundred?” Serena squeaked. Her throat slammed shut as her heart galloped in her chest.

“They are all eager to see their princess.”

“What if I don’t meet their expectations?”

“What would your young man say?”

Her voice dropped to an almost nonexistent whisper, and she closed her eyes and rubbed her temple. “He is not mine.”

“What would he say?” Her advisor’s voice was soft, soothing. He was careful not to bring Killian up too often, but there were times when invoking her love was for the best.

Serena closed her eyes and swallowed hard. She knew what Killian would say… wanted him at her side, needed his support. For all she knew, he hated her. In spite of that, she realized how the old Killian, the one who lived in her memories, would handle the situation. “He would say I should be myself. Trust who I am and what I know.”

“That is wise.”

“I don’t know how. I’ve never been trained.”

“Listen to your instincts, princess. It is what you were born to do. It is in your blood. Your mother’s line has ruled our people for the past seven generations.”

“Very well then, please take me before our people.” She turned and held out her hand to him.

“As you command, your Highness.” He placed his hand on hers, and together they made their way through the keep to the large meeting hall. Altus paused at the double doors and turned to Serena. “Would you like me to accompany you?”

“No. I believe I will enter on my own.”

“Very well, I will come through the side door. Be patient for a few moments before knocking three times.”

“And after I do?”

“Wait. The doors will open and then, well, it should be obvious what you need to do.”

“Thank you.”

Altus bowed low. The smile curling his lips sent butterflies in Serena’s stomach off on another frenzied attempt to escape. With a final, “Your Highness,” he whispered, turned and walked down a corridor leaving her alone in the silence.

Serena waited, listening to the echo of Altus’s footsteps and the indistinct jumble of voices from the other side of the entrance. She stepped up to the door and raised her hand.

Not yet, little one.
Her mother’s voice echoed through her mind. Serena took a deep breath and let it out. Listening, not only to the sounds around her but also to the voice deep within her memory, she heard Ellesandra whispering words of encouragement and comfort.

When she felt enough time had passed, Serena raised her hand and knocked three times, the sound echoing through the empty corridor. She stepped back and waited, listening to the voices in the back of her mind as they whispered in the lyrical Dragon Fey language. Serena rolled her shoulders, closed her eyes, and breathed deep.

The double doors swung open, and she paused, taking in the long hall filled with men, women, and children. A collective gasp went up from the crowd as Serena’s wings settled into their resting position on her back. Her eyes scanned the crowd, locking gazes with the occasional person until they glanced away. She walked, a slow, regal glide, through the center of the crowd, feeling the weight of every eye on her.
Sometimes being a member of the nobility is about statesmanship, the rest of the time, it’s about… theater.
Killian’s voice filled the silence in her head, and she closed her eyes for a moment before shutting him out, focusing instead on what was happening in the chamber. Murmurs rippled through the assembly. Every so often, she heard her father’s or mother’s name mentioned. 

Most of the crowd shifted, those toward the middle jostling for better position. A few steps ahead of her, a small child stumbled into her path, and Serena moved without thinking, closing the gap and bending to one knee helping the child to his feet. Whispers moved through the assemblage, but Serena paid them no mind.

She tipped the child’s chin so she could see his face. “Are you hurt?”

“N-n-no, Highness,” the little boy stammered.

Serena giggled and stood, bringing him with her. “Very well, back to your family.” She pressed a quick kiss on the boy’s forehead before handing him to his mother.

She raised her gaze to the throne at the end of the hall and started walking again when the whispers rolled off her like water as she mounted the three steps to the elevated dais. Stopping in front of the throne, she gathered up one side of her skirt and turned to face her people.

Altus stepped forward. “My lords and ladies. Good people of the clans. Presenting, her royal Highness, Serena NicArryan.” His voice rang out through the hall, each word a hollow echo in her ears.

The princess looked out across the sea of men and women, and her mouth went dry as she tried to remember what she was supposed to do next. She drew a blank. No one moved to resume their seats. In fact, all but the youngest children were still bent in various types of bows.

Theater indeed.
Serena swallowed hard, trying to detach her tongue from the roof of her mouth. She sat and said, “Please, rise.” Her voice was soft but somehow filled the hall.

Altus waited until the assembly had settled into their seats and the room had quieted before he spoke again. “Her Royal Highness Princess Serena will be hearing and ruling on your petitions. Please rise and approach when your name is called. The princess will hear your plea and make a decision based on the information you present.” He took a deep breath. “All decisions made by the princess will be binding and final.”

Serena stood before the mirror in her chambers. Staring into the polished surface, she picked up her skirt, feeling the smooth material between her fingers, and then she let it fall. Her wings settled behind her as the maids finished their work and disappeared with bows and whispered compliments. She looked at the young woman in the mirror and in an instant felt as if someone else was looking back at her. The heavy white and crimson embroidered dress was one of the concessions to human customs because of Killian’s blood and station. She raised the skirt and turned when someone knocked on the door.