Tears filled my eyes as he blew me a kiss.
Wow, Ripley, you look—
As his voice cut off, my magic receded to the depths of my soul, and it almost caused me to choke. The smile on my face ripped away, eyes darting down to the ground at my feet. A wave of something thattasted of smoke and obsidian strained down my neck and throughout my extremities until I wasn’t in charge of my own body. I felt like a rock sinking to the depths of the ocean as I was forced to my knees. Sharp vibrations rocked up my thighs and into my hips from the impact. I’d have clenched my teeth or yelled, but my brain wasn’t responding properly. Tears sprung to my eyes and my heart pounded with speed and fright. What was happening to me?
Breathing came in short spurts, but even that felt laborious with the little room my ribs had to expand. Calling for my magic was like calling into an endless tunnel. But I tried and tried and tried to move on my own.
Impossible.
This external pressure had me bowing my head so that my gaze was firmly secured down at the cobblestone. My hands came together, fingers linking in front of me.
The crowd hushed, and the queen’s voice boomed. “Welcome to Princess Ripley’s crowning ceremony.”
My heart stopped, skipping several beats. Crowning? This was supposed to be awelcome homeceremony. The confusion rippled through me with the uncertainty of what that meant.
There was a beat of silence from the crowd before I heard Fletcher roaring in the distance. “Ripley!”
His desperate scream, his gritty tone… my name. Fletcher knew what was happening, and he was scared.
I tried to look at him up in the tree, but some heavy force coated my muscles and held my body in place.
The crowd exploded into an even louder cheer. I could pick out certain voices praising me, calling my name—thanking me. Their noise covered Fletcher’s voice, and I felt more alone than ever.
A pair of white, laceless shoes came into view, facing me.
The crowd quieted, but there was still a hum of chatter. Loud enough to drown out any attempts Fletcher made to call for me.
“You may kneel,” the queen ordered.
“Thank you, my queen,” a male said in a husky voice I did not recognize.
The person in white shoes repositioned himself on his knees in front of me. His white pants wrinkled where his knees met the ground.
“This union has been approved by both your king and by me,” the queen continued.
Union? What union?
Then, it hit me. Was—was this awedding?
And everything in me began to scream.
CHAPTER
SIXTEEN
I thrashed within my skin, urging my muscles to respond. I’d break my bones if I had to. I didn’t care if my marriage would enchant everyone in the kingdom. I would not allow them to marry me to someone other than Fletcher.
“Let’s not waste everyone’s time, shall we? I’m sure these two would like to get their celebration started. Today marks the beginning of a bright future for ourkingdom, and the end,” the queen took a large breath and belted, “of enchantments!”
The civilians applauded as a variety of petals fell over my head and toward my feet. The noise was deafening.
Fuck! How’d I get myself into this? They tricked me! These people were supposed to be my parents, were supposed to protect me. But instead, they were using me for their own benefit. Just like Mother. A crushing feeling decimated my heart and constricted my throat with the realization that I still had not learnedanything. I had beensooverly cautious about falling into a trap again. Yet, here I was on my knees being controlled by others, powerless to move even a muscle. Whoever this male standing before me was, I knew not to trust him. No one in my life was safe except Fletcher.
His warning when I had first met him blasted in my head with clarity.Everyone is your enemy except me, Ripley.
“You may place the crown upon her head to bind you two together and strengthen your ritual bond.”
The vibrations of my internal screaming reverberated throughout my muscles instead of myvocal cords. A trickle of sweat flowed down my back with the exertion.
