The blood roared in her ears as she stared at him, her heart a raging beat. Around her, the flora and fauna shuddered, as though they sensed the terror shifting through her.
“The princess disappeared ten years ago,” he said. “Judging by your age, my guess is you have come of age and are the rightful ruler of the Mystic Vale. Not Seraphina.” As he said this, he eyed the pendant around her neck.
It was then she realized it was no longer under her gown. It rested against the material and glinted in the moonlight. He moved closer, closing the distance between them and halted mere inches from her. Her gut clenched with his nearness.
“The royal sigil of the Mystic Vale is the rose and crown.”
He reached for the necklace, picking it up between his thumb and forefinger. “The rose and crown that looks just like this.” He ran his thumb over the sigil. “Tell me. Are you Snow White?”
Her eyes met his. And in those depths, she saw a man who was determined to find out the truth about her. There seemed to be no malicious intent behind those eyes. Nothing that would indicate to her he wanted to kill her. Even so, she wasn’t sure she fully trusted him.
“Yes,” she said at last, the word a hiss of ice between her teeth. “I am Snow White.”
Chapter 20
Asenseoftriumphwent through Roderick when she confirmed she was, in fact, Snow White. They stared at each other. Then she slapped his hand away. She spun away from him, her hair flying around her head and her body rigid with her anger.
He saw the sigil when he was in Queen Seraphina’s castle.
Even though the innkeeper never spoke of Snow White by name, when the man told him about the princess who disappeared years ago, he put the pieces together. He had a feeling that if Snow White reappeared after years of being in isolation, the people would rally behind her and help her get her throne back. They’d had enough of Seraphina’s high taxes.
Snow White put distance between the two of them, then spun back to face him. Her cheeks were flushed. There were deep lines between her brows.
“Well? Are you going to kill me?”
How could he kill a woman as lovely and magical as her? He thought of the wooden box in which he was supposed to place her heart and pushed away a shudder.
The enchanted blade he forged for the queen was hidden in his saddle bag. The one he had forged for himself was belted to his side. But she hadn’t noticed that.
“I’m going to show you something.”
She huffed, clearly annoyed he had refused to answer her question once again. He walked over to the saddle bag and pulled out the enchanted blade. He’d carved the handle himself from rosewood and inlaid it with intricate gold spirals. The grip was solid against his palm when he tested it. Now, the blade was encased within a leather sheath.
Holding it in his hands, he walked back to Snow White and paused in front of her within arm’s reach. Her gaze was leery as she eyed the dagger in his hands.
“Sometimes I accept commissions. This was one of them.” He extended the dagger to her. When she hesitated, he said, “Take it.”
She reached for it. He noticed her hands shook slightly as she removed the weapon from his hands and held it.
“Wield it,” he said.
Curiosity replaced her leeriness as she pulled the dagger from the sheath. She stifled a little gasp as the moonlight caught along the iridescent edge of the blade, making the rainbow light dance up and down the perfect steel. Eyes lit with wonder, she turned the blade back and forth watching the flickering light. She shoved it back into the sheath and handed it back to him.
Reluctantly, he took it.
“Don’t you want to know who commissioned it?” he asked.
“No but I suppose you’re going to tell me.”
“Queen Seraphina came to my forge and asked me to make her an enchanted blade.” He held it up. “I did. Then she asked me to hand deliver it to her in her castle in the Mystic Vale.”
Snow White looked utterly unimpressed. “And?”
“I took her the blade, but she decided she no longer wanted it for herself. She wanted someone to use it on her behalf.”
“This is a fascinating story,” Snow said. “Perhaps you’d like to get to the point?”
“She told me she wanted the heart of her enemy cut out and brought to her in a wooden box.”
