Book 2: Warming Up

Estrella

In a break between meetings, when Castor reports Anwen is shut up in his office with orders not to disturb him, I creep through the halls of the castle to visit Father. My dress, a re-dyed version of the purple and blue Tess offered is now purple and deep, dark red that reminds me of blood if I think about it for too long, swishes along the stones. It’s already growing cold in Dun’s Crossing. The sooner we are able to leave this place, the happier I’ll be.

I pass a few nobles whose faces I’ve learned during endless lunches with Nessa, who seems determined to ensure I know every person in the palace with a square foot of land to their name before the week ends. In Dun’s Crossing tradition, I wait for them to bow or curtsy first, since I outrank them now. In Dun’s Crossing tradition, the moment of hesitation before they move makes me sick to my stomach.

Finally, I arrive at the room Father’s body has been moved to. Apparently, that first roo