Page 31 of A Cage of Crystal
The duke confessing secrets she still didn’t understand…
His claim as an Elvyn prince.
The reasons behind his war.
A prophecy.
The unicorns. The mother. The child. Who do you think you are in that prophecy?
His offer to give her half his heart.
His threat to bind her fate to his in a blood weaving—
Cora closed her eyes and flung out a hand, pressing it to the cool stone of the stairwell. Her palm thrummed with the steadying energy of the stone. She felt it move through her hand, her arm, warming the inked designs of her tattoos until she managed to catch her breath.
He’s gone, she told herself.It’s over. There’s nothing to fear from him any longer.
Swallowing hard, she forced herself to take the next step. Then the next. Soon the library door came into view. It was left partially open, and the same flickering light she’d glimpsed outside shone from beyond the door. Daring to open a hole in her mental shields, she extended her senses, seeking whoever might be inside. She connected with a familiar energy, someone she knew—
The door flung all the way open, and Lurel’s silhouette shone against the candlelight behind her.
Cora sagged with relief. She wasn’t sure what—or whom—she’d expected to find, but now that she saw her lady’s maid, all her fears seemed embarrassingly irrational.I’m a witch, damn it. I’m supposed to be stronger than fear.Perhaps suppressing her magic, betraying her true nature, had made her soft.
Her internal chiding turned to concern as Lurel came rushing down the stairs, her shoulders trembling with silent sobs. Her moves were so erratic, so panicked, Cora feared the girl would tumble down the stairs.
“Lurel,” Cora said softly, so as not to frighten her.
The girl let out a startled squeak, but as soon as she saw Cora—or whatever she could see of her in the dark stairwell—she heaved an audible whimper and rushed the rest of the way to her.
Lurel threw her arms around Cora in a relieved embrace.
Cora was stunned at the sudden hug, and for a few moments, she didn’t know what to do. Then her softer instincts took over, ones she admittedly wasn’t too well-practiced at, and she returned the embrace with a few consoling pats on the other girl’s back. She kept her tone gentle as she asked, “Lurel, what are you doing here?”
“You were gone when I awoke,” she said, heaving a sob. “You didn’t come back and I…I couldn’t sleep. I was worried about you so I went looking to see where you might have gone. Then…then I kept thinking about the tower. I was scared.”
Cora placed her hands on Lurel’s shoulders and gently put space between them. Lurel reluctantly released Cora. The faint candlelight still streaming from inside the room at the top of the stairs cast half of her maid’s face in shadow, but it was enough to show the streams of tears running down her cheeks. “So you came to the very place you thought was haunted?”
“You said it wasn’t, so I wanted to prove to myself it was nothing! Besides, what if itwashaunted? What if you’d been taken in your sleep by the ghost? But then…I saw…I saw all those things…” She gestured toward the open door, eyes wide, and shuddered.
Cora nearly did the same at the haunted look in Lurel’s eyes, but she forced herself to keep her composure.
Lurel wrenched her gaze from the room and returned her attention to Cora. Her face twisted as her sobs renewed. “I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have gone in there. Please forgive me.”
A pinch of sorrow struck Cora’s chest. She wasn’t sure if it was her own emotion or Lurel’s, but it softened her feelings for the girl. Lurel may be irritating at times, but she was sweet. Kind. Determined to be liked. And the poor thing was trembling with fear. Cora forced her lips into a reassuring smile. “It’s all right, Lurel, you’re not in trouble.”
Lurel shook her head. “Something happened. I pricked my finger on a book when I tried to open it…and…” The girl wobbled on her feet, and one slipped off the edge of the stair. Cora caught her, but Lurel grew heavy in her arms, sinking down until she planted her bottom on the step.
Even sitting seemed too hard for Lurel. Her head hung low and she slumped against Cora. “I don’t feel well, Highness,” she said, voice weaker now.
Dread filled every inch of Cora’s body. She shifted to the side and propped Lurel’s shoulder against the wall of the stairwell. “Stay here. I’ll get help—”
Lurel’s eyes shot to Cora’s. “Don’t leave me.”
Terror froze Cora in place. The candlelight from above still cast most of Lurel’s face in shadow, but the portion it illuminated revealed her tears had grown tenfold.
No. Not tears.
Blood.