“Stop that,” I scold. “What’s gotten into you two? How did you even get here? The way between Castletree and Autumn was shut a long time ago.”
“We went on foot,” Billy says. “We’ve been traveling for weeks.”
Breath catches in my throat. Who are these boys before me? They’re dressed in tight-fitting garments of maroon, with knee-high boots made of sturdy leather. A belt around each waist holds various knives, whips, and what could be a vial of poison. They look like warriors, not my little brothers. “You went through the Briar? Stars above. You could have been killed. What would Mother say?”
“We did this for Mother,” Dom snaps. “For our people.”
“Why would they want you to hurt Keldarion?” I breathe.
Billy shakes his head, his eyes shocked. “You don’t know?”
Everyone’s staring at me. Even the staff are poking out from the hallways. “Know what?”
Dominic stands in a defensive position and pulls out a shining dagger from the holster on his belt. He stares up at Keldarion, fearless despite being incapacitated by him only moments ago. “A frost has come to the Autumn Realm. It’s killing everything: our trees, our crops. Our people. And it’s his fault.”
A collective gasp utters through the entrance hall.
“No,” I whisper. “Kel would never do that.”
Rosalina drifts over to Kel and places a hand on his arm. “Tell them you didn’t do this.”
Kel sets his jaw. “I don’t know what’s happening in Autumn, but I assure you, I have nothing to do with it. My death will garner you no freedom from this terror.”
Though Castletree is covered in Kel’s frost, I know in my heart he’s speaking the truth. He would never do this.
Dom stabs his knife through the air. “If that’s true, you better figure out who is causing it.”
“And quickly.” Billy stands beside his twin. “Because Autumn is preparing to go to war with Winter.”
Metal clinks as Keldarion finishes chaining Billagin to the staircase banister.
“Is this really necessary?” I mutter. Both my brothers have their wrists bound in steel, not that they seem to mind. They’re staring wide-eyed around the entrance hall, taking in the thorns.
“They traveled all the way from Autumn, navigated the Briar, and snuck undetected into my personal chambers intending to assassinate me,” Keldarion says gruffly. “They stay chained.”
We stand in a semicircle around them. My stomach twists. Rosalina appears almost nervous, glancing over my shoulder, keeping a watchful eye on them.
“What are you thinking?” I whisper.
She tucks a curl behind her ear. “I’m meeting your family for the first time. It’s a big deal.”
I give her a smile I can’t feel. Nothing seems real right now. My little brothers are assassins. My realm is preparing for a war on Winter. And all the while, the briars twist deeper into Castletree.
Dayton smacks the boys on the shoulders and grins. “All that way only to get your asses handed to you! Come on, lads. When this pesky misunderstanding is cleared up, I’ll teach you how real warriors fight. Give you moves that will even take down the great Protector of the Realms.” His cocky smile gives no hint that Kel had completely defeated all three of us only yesterday.
Dom and Billy gaze up at Dayton with adoration, eyes wide and shining. My stomach twists, remembering all the times our families got together in the past, how Dayton used to wrestle with them, how all three would prank me and then laugh like it was the funniest thing in the world.
It was a simpler time, even if our relationship had been no less complicated.
Ezryn steps forward, hands on his hips. “You realize that an assassination attempt on a High Prince is punishable by execution.”
The twins’ faces, so warm and light looking at Dayton, both swivel to Ez. “Then kill us,” Dominic growls. “War is coming between Autumn and Winter, anyway. The murder of Autumn’s princes will only quicken the act.”
“No one’s murdering anyone. Right?” Rosalina looks between all of us. “Right?!”
Kel gives an exasperated growl. “Tell me of this frost.”
“It started two full moons ago,” Billy says. “Initially, we only saw signs of it in the borderlands, between Autumn and Winter. A crawling blue rime. First, it took out the maple groves east of the Rucklewood. Then it took the potato and pumpkin crops in Appleclove Valley.”
Dom sets his jaw. “Originally, we thought it was just taking our vegetation. But then the frost kept growing. It reached the villages.”
“Hundreds of people,” Billy says quietly, “turned still as statues. Frozen in these terrible poses, mouths still gaping in fear.”
It’s like the frost has caught me too. I feel it creeping up my legs, weaving through my lungs, making it harder to breathe. “How come no one sent word to me?”
Dom and Billy look down.
I grab their shirts and pull, my voice frantic. “How come no one sent word?”
“Mother did not think you could be of assistance,” Dom says finally. “She said it should be handled by people who spend more time in the Autumn Realm than with the Winter Prince.”
I stagger back. My mother was High Princess before she passed the rule to me. I’d left her as steward for the last twenty-five years. She doesn’t trust me. She has no faith.
An awkward silence passes over the entrance hall. The other princes don’t look at me, and it’s almost worse than their stares.
“Well, it’s simple, isn’t it?” Rosalina says, hands on her hips. “Obviously, Keldarion isn’t causing the frost, so there’s no need for a war.”
Keldarion has turned away, knuckles white as he grips the banister. “So, the steward of Autumn didn’t think to send word to Winter before she sent her youngest sons to assassinate the High Prince?”
“She sent word to Winter,” Billy sneers. “Every letter unanswered.”
“Perth would have received those letters,” Kel breathes. “He should have brought it to my attention.”
The name sends shivers up my spine. Perth Quellos, Keldarion’s vizier and steward of the Winter Realm. Rosie stiffens at his mention, and Ezryn quirks his head toward her.
“That guy’s got the deepest icicle up his ass,” Dayton drawls.
Kel ignores the remark. “I will send for him at once. Surely, he has some idea of what’s going on.”
Dom and Billy exchange a glance.
“What?” I whisper.
“It’s too late,” they say in unison. Then Dom stares me straight in the eye. “Mother’s amassing the army. Unless you can stop this frost now, there will be a full-out realm war. And she won’t stop until Keldarion answers for the lives his magic has taken.”
Keldarion looks over his shoulder at them, then stalks up the stairs and into the Winter Wing.
Dayton sighs and rips the handcuffs off the boys. “Come on. We’ll get you set up in a room in the Autumn Wing. But I’m taking your knives.”
“That’s fine,” Billy says. “I can make a shiv out of a splinter and a shard of glass.”
“Fascinating.” He pushes on their backs, leading them up the stairs.
“Let us reconvene this evening to discuss our next course of action.” Ezryn turns to me, and I can feel the severity through his helm. “You are High Prince of Autumn, Farron. Decisions will need to be made, and soon. Only you can make them.”
I stumble away, pushing myself out of the castle and into the open air. Rosalina calls my name, but I don’t stop. “I just want to be alone,” I mumble.
Out on the bridge, the cool air and earthy scent of the Briar wafts over me. I can’t catch my breath, my whole body trembling. My hands reach out to grasp the railing, but there are thorns everywhere. One slices into my palm, and I retract, holding my wrist as blood oozes down my hand.
For a second, I’m grateful for the pain. It reminds me I’m real. The last few months without Rosalina have felt like a haze. I haven’t even checked in with my family.
I squeeze my hand into a fist, and the blood seeps out between my fingers. My people are suffering. My family has forsaken me.
Autumn deserves a true High Prince, not the shadow of one.
19
Rosalina