While Sterling waited for Cylan to set up the meeting with the Winter Queen, she spent her time in her new rooms, practicing her magic. She made sure to only use it in small bursts when Iris or any of the other servants were not around. It had taken her many failed tries, but she’d finally mastered pulling water from the basin in her bathing chamber and then returning it without spilling a drop.
She was pleased with the progress, but the voices were throughly unimpressed. They kept pushing her to do more, but Sterling had other plans. For now, it was more important to learn control because, as Kai had warned her, if she didn’t control her magic, it would control her. She didn’t think he’d been referring to the shadow creature in her head, but she reasoned it might work the same. The better control over her magic she had, the better she could control the shadows.
Sterling was lounging on a chaise she’d pulled in front of the window and watching clouds roll in over the ocean as she contemplated which element she wanted to work on next when Iris appeared.
“Your Majesty.” Iris curtsied.
Sterling waved for her to stand. “What is it?”
“K—Gavaran has requested your presence.”
Sterling swore Iris had been about to say King Gavaran.
“Oh, is he back from wherever he disappeared to?”
“It would seem so. I can show you the way if you’d like.”
What Sterling would like was to ignore the summons, as she had the last time. She had a feeling if she did, things might end differently, and Gavaran wouldn’t just disappear again.
“Now?” she asked.
“Yes, Your Highness,” Iris said, hands clasped in front of her and eyes downcast in perfect deference. If only everyone else treated her the same.
We could make them.
“All right. You may show me where to go.”
“Yes, Your Highness. I will wait for you by the door when you are ready. If you require assistance, please let me know.” Iris curtsied again and backed away from her.
In Sterling’s head, the voices were throwing a fit.
How dare he summon you. You are Queen. Make him grovel at your feet.
No. Not yet, Sterling pushed back.
She still needed time to figure out what was going on here, and she wanted to take control of her kingdom on her own without the voices’ help—but she didn’t tell them that.
There had to be a way to escape the thing growing in her head while also fixing her kingdom. With enough time, she would find it.
Sterling climbed to her feet and smoothed down her dress. She could have changed into something less wrinkled, but that might imply she cared what Gavaran thought of her, or that he was important enough for her to care about this meeting.
“Let’s go,” she said to Iris when she reached the door.
If Iris thought anything of her choices, she didn’t let it show. Iris led her through the halls and down several sets of stairs to where Sterling remembered overhearing Gavaran speaking with the Winter Queen.
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“Here you are, Your Majesty,” Iris said, outside one of the doors. She knocked, and someone called for them to enter.
Iris held the door open but didn’t step over the threshold.
Inside the room, Gavaran sat at the head of a table, while at the opposite end, an older man was rising from his chair.
“We’ll speak again soon,” Gavaran told him.
The older man offered a shallow bow, likely as much as his body would allow him to bend and retreated, leaving Sterling alone with Gavaran.
“Have a seat,” Gavaran said, gesturing to the recently vacated chair. A golden circlet sparkled at his brow.
She should have asked Iris for a crown.
Next to Gavaran, she looked like a serving girl. Perhaps she’d miscalculated.
No, she couldn’t let him get under her skin. The meeting hadn’t even started yet.
“Have a seat,” Gavaran repeated, slower this time, as though he thought she didn’t understand the words.
Sterling wanted to remain standing because he made it sound like a demand rather than a request, but again, she questioned if that was the right choice.
The voices chattered in her head about bringing Gavaran to his knees and how dare he give her orders. Sterling ignored them. As long as she maintained a firm hold, they hopefully wouldn’t be able to take over her body and carry out their threats.
In the end, she sat. Let him think she would follow instructions. She had other battles to win.
“Where have you been?” she asked before he could speak.
“That is none of your concern.”
“If I am Queen, then I believe it is my concern, and I expect my questions to be answered.”
Make him answer. Make him pay.
Gavaran’s brow wrinkled and the corners of his mouth pulled down as if he’d tasted something terrible.
“Where were you? Who were you speaking with that day? When is my coronation?” She pelted him with the questions one after another.
Gavaran’s frown deepened. “Your coronation?” He spoke slowly, as if unfamiliar with the word.
“Yes, you know. Where I am officially crowned as Queen in front of the kingdom.”
“You have already been declared in front of the kingdom,” Gavaran said. “That is all you will get. May I remind you, you are a queen in name only. I will be the one ruling this kingdom. We can’t have you destroying the place since you know so little about it.”
The voices shrieked in outrage, and Sterling had to fight to maintain control. She covered her struggle by leaning forward and resting her chin on her folded hands.
“It seems to me you are doing that already,” she said sweetly.
Gavaran’s expression did not change, but she caught the way his knuckles whitened.
“If I am not to be a true queen, then why did you want me here? Why did you declare me in front of the kingdom when you could go on as you have?”
She thought he would ignore the question like he had most of her other ones.
“I’m sure your brother has informed you that you are the well of the elves’ magic. Without you here, our magic grows weaker and could possibly fade away entirely. I could not allow such a thing to happen, even if it means tolerating your presence.”
Sterling thought he was telling the truth, but she still had the feeling he was hiding something. Maybe it was only the Winter Queen’s part in this. She could understand Gavaran’s reasoning for wanting the elves to retain their magic while he kept control of the kingdom, but what did the Winter Queen get out of this?
She needed Cylan to hurry and arrange that meeting. Perhaps she’d summon him again and offer him some encouragement in case he’d forgotten.
“Now, if you are done with your inquisition. I summoned you here to warn you and make sure you understand your place here. You will act as a figurehead only and maintain proper decorum. You will be treated to whatever you desire and are free to move about the kingdom without restriction. However, if you step out of line, just remember, as easily as I put you on the throne, I can remove you. Are we clear? We may need you as our well of magic, but you do not need your freedom or comforts to act as such.”
So it was as she’d expected then. Gavaran didn’t know about what she’d done to Cylan, but if she displayed any power like that again, there would be consequences. He would turn her into a prisoner, much like the human king had tried to do. With magic at his disposal, she didn’t doubt he could make the experience much worse. He only needed her to be here and alive to act as the well.
As much as Sterling wanted to wipe that smug smile he was now giving her off his face, she needed to remember she was fighting more than one war here. Every time she used her magic, her strength—and control—seemed to grow, but so did that of the thing in her head. She may have felt like she was better able to hold it back now, but she wasn’t sure that was true. Another big display of power, and she might risk losing herself permanently, and who knows what the shadow creature might do to her kingdom? Gavaran thought she’d fear losing her freedom, but it was the voices she was truly afraid of.
“We are clear,” Sterling said. She didn’t like it, but it was only temporary. Once she found a solution to her little shadow problem, it was over for Gavaran.
