Her question was answered as the scarred huntsman stepped urgently into the room. Had he followed Lynet here? What would he want with her? She shrank back behind the altar, afraid that he would reach down and grab her by the scruff of her neck like an animal. His sleeves were still caked with dried blood.
But he just stood there, waiting, until Lynet guessed he must be meeting someone here—a secret romance, perhaps. She felt a flush of anger on her stepmother’s behalf, that anyone should use her haven for their own purposes. She was even more irritated because she knew she couldn’t leave the room until he was gone, and her legs were cramping from her crouched position.
She was curious, though—was this indeed a romantic tryst? And if so, who would love such a man? He was obviously strong, and he was attractive enough, square-jawed and broad-shouldered, and she supposed those scars gave him a dangerous kind of appeal. But who could look into those strange, vacant eyes and ever find love or warmth shining back?
The huntsman’s head shot up as a silhouette filled the doorway. “I’m sorry I’m late, my love, but I was detained on the way.”
Lynet recognized her voice at once, of course, and so she was already clutching the stone altar in shock when the silhouette stepped forward and became Mina.
17
MINA
The engagement was quiet, and the wedding ceremony was small, just as Nicholas wanted. He seemed to think that celebrating his remarriage at all would offend his dead wife.
Still, Mina considered it a triumph. She had paid close attention to Xenia when Nicholas made the announcement that Mina would be Whitespring’s new queen, relishing the look of shock that passed over the woman’s face before she managed to hide it. Marrying the king had become more than a means of securing a husband and a crown—it was now an act of defiance.
She felt it even more when she took her place at the high table beside the king at the wedding feast, two months after his proposal. The Hall was filled with people who had once turned away from her, but not even their disapproval had been enough to keep her from this seat. She, the magician’s daughter, was now their queen, and the magician himself was seated to her left.
At her right was the king—her husband—and to his right was Lynet. Mina wished the girl were seated elsewhere; at her father’s side, she commanded his complete attention, leaving Mina with only the back of his head and Gregory for company. She wasn’t sure which she preferred.
“You could be a little happier on your wedding day,” her father whispered. He barely looked at her as he spoke, his eyes shining with the light from the Hall.
“I’m bored,” Mina muttered. “I didn’t think my husband would rather talk to a child than to me.”
“Bored? Then I’ll have to provide you with entertainment.”
Before she had the chance to ask him what he meant, Gregory stood. He waited for the noise in the Hall to die down as everyone, including Mina and Nicholas, turned their attention to him. A vague unease fell over the room.
“Thank you, everyone, for celebrating this day with us,” he called out, and Mina wanted to cringe at his presumptuousness. “As the father of our beautiful new queen, I would like to bestow a gift on the royal couple, if I may.”
Nicholas turned to Mina with a puzzled and slightly fearful look, but Mina only shrugged. After a brief hesitation, the king nodded to Gregory and then moved closer to his daughter.
Gregory descended the dais. He gestured to two men at the end of the Hall who quickly exited and then returned carrying an enormous object covered by a sheet. They set it down before the dais.
“My lord, my lady, I present to you both a gift made by the finest northern artisans.” In one flourishing movement, he removed the sheet, and Mina saw—herself.
The mirror was taller than her father, its dark wooden frame simple and unadorned. It was the first time Mina had seen herself since becoming the king’s wife. The wedding had been surreal, like walking in a dream. But this—this woman in the glass wearing a golden circlet—this was something to believe in.
I am queen.
Nicholas stood, and she walked beside him, stepping down from the dais to approach their gift. Her husband was thanking Gregory, but Mina didn’t hear him, too captivated by the woman in the mirror. She wanted to reach out and touch the glass, to call it to her, but she knew she mustn’t, not yet.
The crowd in the Hall applauded loudly, freeing Mina from the mirror’s strange spell. She almost shrank from their collective stare at first. Did they see a southern girl, an outsider, raised above her station? But no, there was no scorn on the faces of her new subjects. Even those who had once mocked her knew better than to insult a queen. In their eyes, she saw herself as they did—beautiful, yes, but more than that—regal, powerful.
They loved her.
Mina heard the sound of someone running from the dais, and then Lynet was at her father’s side, eager to be a part of this new game. Laughing, he swung her up into his arms and brought her closer to the mirror as Mina shrank to the side. Lynet was exploring the mirror with her hands, running her small, chubby fingers over the wood, and Mina flushed with unexpected annoyance.
She would ask herself later if she could have prevented what happened next; she saw the parts, but hadn’t been able to figure out the whole quickly enough to stop it. Gregory, sensing the crowd’s growing restlessness, ordered his men to lift the mirror and take it away. At the same time, Nicholas knelt to set down his daughter. As the mirror was lifted from the ground and Lynet rejoined it, the two collided, Lynet’s head hitting the bottom of the mirror.
A gasp filled the room, and there was a tense silence before Lynet started to cry despite her best efforts not to, her face screwed up in pain. Nicholas snatched her up at once, pushing back her hair to reveal the cut—nothing as large as Mina had feared, but enough to send a trickle of blood down the girl’s forehead onto her cheek.
Nicholas barked at one of the servants to call for his surgeon and then glared at Gregory’s men, who had set the mirror back down. “Get rid of it,” he commanded, cradling Lynet in his arms.
He started to turn away, but Gregory appeared in front of him, blocking his way. “My lord,” he said, bowing his head. “I have some skill with medicine, and I wouldn’t want you to miss your wedding feast. Give the child to me, and I will see to her. After all, we’re family now, aren’t we?”