Prisoner of Mirrors: An Adult Fairy Tale Retelling (Queen of the Sun Palace Book 2) Read online

  Copyright © 2018 by Lidiya Foxglove

  Cover Art by chisami

  Typography by Natasha Snow Designs

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

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  Prisoner of Mirrors

  Lidiya Foxglove

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  33. Beauty and the Goblin King Excerpt

  More Romantic Fantasy from Lidiya!

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Rose

  “I have a surprise for you today.” My husband, Prince Augustus, wrapped his hands around my slender shoulders and whispered in my ear.

  “Oh dear. Your surprises frighten me sometimes…”

  “This one will be a pure pleasure,” he said. “We’re going to the capital.”

  I gasped with delight. I was finally getting to step outside the grounds of the Sun Palace?

  “Soon, you will be crowned queen, as I will be crowned king,” he said, and my heart thudded, because I knew what this meant.

  The Queen Who Bowed. I would have to submit to him before the entire court. The witch had offered me an escape, but I had chosen him.

  I loved him.

  But I was still terrified of the rituals that came with loving him.

  “Before the coronation, we must present ourselves in the capital,” he said. “We will be wined and dined…go to the opera…” His gloved fingers entwined with mine, his dark loosely curled hair almost brushing my forehead as he leaned closer to me. “Maybe even a secret ball.”

  “It sounds almost too good to be true.”

  “I want you to enjoy yourself thoroughly,” he said, a wicked gleam in his eyes.

  I had learned to anticipate and to dread that gleam. It usually meant something would be done to me, that would be both delicious and shameful. I had endured many such moments since the day I came here to marry the prince of the faery kingdom. This was the wickedest of all kingdoms, and the most formal as well. The task of the Queen Who Bowed was to demonstrate the discipline of the faery court, which was once known as a wild place that more organized armies took advantage of. But no more. And part of that discipline was to show the king’s strength and virility.

  Over the course of these past eight months, Augustus had possessed me, body and soul. Every day, he claimed me at his pleasure. Every night, I was tied to the bed with silken cords. For him, I wore the grand corps on formal occasions, a corset so constricting that it bruised my ribs, and a tiny clockwork device between my legs that stimulated me at intervals, so he could demand my release at any time. At times, I had rebelled fiercely against this treatment.

  Augustus was formal and distant by nature, but slowly he had been revealing more of his true nature to me as well. He yearned for his own rebellion. We both yearned for an exchange of our powers, for a moment when he was at my mercy instead of the other way around, but we were watched at all times and it would be a matter of scandal for the king to bow to the queen.

  When I realized this, was that the moment I truly fell in love with him?

  The situation had now grown much more serious. His grandfather the king had just been laid to rest beneath the Grove of Memory. His death had been expected eventually, but not so soon. The weight of the faery people was on my husband’s shoulders.

  I was slowly sinking under his spell, my resistance fading away, but even now I didn’t know how I would bear what would be asked of me at the coronation.

  Thank goodness, I had a little more time before I had to face that day.

  “Your ladies will dress you in your new white gown and we will ride straightaway,” he said. He kissed my fingers. “I will see you in the courtyard.”

  As the princess, I was never permitted to leave the grounds of the Sun Palace. At first, they seemed so extensive, even compared to the palace where I had grown up. The palace and surrounding buildings housed tens of thousands, as many people as a city, and visitors came from all over the world to see the daily rituals of our lives. The gardens were vast and full of exotic plants, the surrounding forest where we went hunting stretching for miles more.

  But eight months is a long time to be cooped up in one place, with one’s actions under constant scrutiny. My mind was clawing and screaming to get out of this place. I was nearly trembling with eagerness as my ladies dressed me in the new gown, which was a pure white silk adorned with some of the finest diamonds in my possession. Because of the strain of travel and confines of the carriage, I was not even forced into the grand corps or the widest cage-like panniers to support my dress at the hips, so I would be relatively comfortable and nimble at the ball tonight.

  The Countess Noria still had to sniff disapprovingly. “Remember everything I have taught you of etiquette, Your Highness. Keep your gloves on. Do not laugh at ceremonies. Don’t act like a child.”

  “I’m not a child and I don’t act like one, although if being playful is a crime than I must confess.”

  “It is a crime,” she said, with a complete lack of humor, as usual. “You are nearly a queen. You are not meant to be ‘playful’.” Another sniff. “Follow the prince’s guidance and remember it is your privilege to address honored acquaintances first, and also your privilege to ignore those who are not worthy of you.”

  “Mmhmm…” I regularly ignored Noria’s rules. I might listen to Augustus’ guidance, but not hers. She would have had me ignore one of my dearest friends, Julia, the Duchess of Poligari, just because she had goblin blood.

  “This is an important day for you,” Noria pressed. “The entire city will be watching.”

  “I know that. And I certainly don’t intend on disappointing my husband or my people.” One of the ladies handed me my fan as another placed my shoes upon my feet. “Soon, I will be the queen, after all.”

  Noria looked vaguely pained. She had been making no secret of her concern that Augustus and I were taking the throne so young.

  Outside, Augustus was already waiting to help me up into the carriage. He settled onto the velvet seat beside me, my skirts still forcing some distance between us. The guard shut the door behind us. I squeezed his hand as the horses started to lead us away from the overly familiar sight of the Sun Palace.

  “This is the first time we’ve ridden together outside of the gates!” I said, as I watched the golden roof flashing under the bright sunlight, disappearing out the back window.

  “Exciting, isn’t it?” he said. “It will be quit
e a relief to stretch our legs beyond this place. I think it might help us to appreciate the entire situation of our impending titles. To see our people. Common people.”

  “But you’re quite ready to be king, aren’t you?” I smiled. “You’ve been studying for this all your life.”

  “Studying… It’s only good for so much.”

  “Well, you certainly took to marrying me quickly enough despite a lack of practice.”

  “You’re a little more irresistible than the rabble.” He kissed my neck. “And you don’t give me much trouble.”

  “Hmm, maybe I should try a little harder.”

  “You’ll never give me too much trouble, because when you’re defiant, I am all the more attracted to you. The kingdom is another matter. I’ve been meeting with the advisors and looking at the books…” He shook his head.

  “Oh?”

  “Grandfather spent a lot of money and I don’t see what we have to show for it. He gave Madame Bariel anything she wanted, for starters.”

  “At least she’s gone now.” Madame Bariel had been my nemesis from the day I arrived.

  “Well, now we have other problems,” he muttered. “We have to get the kingdom out of debt, which has been no easy task with all the mourning clothes and decor. Then we’ll have to cross our fingers that the land stays relatively peaceful.”

  I put a hand on his leg. “You’re too serious. I suspect it’s not as bad as you’re making it out to be. Your grandfather was rather old and I can see him neglecting the finer details, but you’ll straighten that out soon enough. Everything here is peaceful and even the Cobblestone Witch is gone.”

  The whole reason I was here, married to a faery and not a respectable human prince, was because of the curse the Cobblestone Witch had placed upon me as a child. She claimed I would prick my finger on a spindle and sleep until everyone I loved was dead and gone. But I had resisted her attempt to seduce me into a trap and fled the city afterward. We had no word of her since the king’s death.

  “You’re right, my dearest. You will have to remind me to have fun now that all of this is mine to worry over.”

  “I can certainly do that, although…some faery you are.”

  The carriage traveled through the forests surrounding the Palace of the Sun for quite a while. Finally, the path broke open into farms and fields, villages that grew increasingly dense as we neared the capital. The trip took four hours and they flew by as we talked about the sights and what we would see when we arrived. I grew more and more excited as Augustus told me about the masquerade balls that the lords and ladies of Luminé indulged in every week-end.

  But I was still nervous. I was always vaguely agitated, never knowing what Augustus would subject me to, especially now that I was to be the Queen Who Bowed.

  When the towers of Lumire were in view, he cupped my chin in his hand. “My dear Marie Rose,” he said. “I will make a promise to you now.” He tugged my dress down a little, bearing my shoulders. “I will not demand anything of you in Lumire.”

  “Why not?”

  “I want you to enjoy yourself and not tremble in anticipation,” he said. “I think you know how to play your part by now, don’t you?”

  “Do you mean it?”

  “Faeries don’t lie. Although you don’t need to look quite so happy about it.”

  “You know I am happy to serve you,” I said, flushing. “I just prefer privacy.”

  He lifted up my skirts in back, and I immediately leaned forward off the seat to assist in the gesture. “We’ll both enjoy ourselves tonight,” he said. “But for now…” He slipped a hand under me. Beneath the silken rustle of my white gown, his hand found my sex from behind and he put a hand on my knee closest to him and lifted it between his own knees, spreading me wider. He stroked my slick folds until I was writhing beneath his touch.

  The carriage was now driving down the streets of Luminé, and out my window flashed the sights of ethereal faery children dancing in chains of entwined hands, flowers in their hair, cheering at the sight of the royal entourage; ladies curtseying to us; the hard-working men of the crowded streets spruced up into their shabby finest. The city was absolutely bursting with flowers, on every lamp post and gate. I tried very hard to sit proudly and smile back, my hand attempting a wave even as I twitched, Augustus’ hand slowly stroking me again and again, legs spread wide beneath my skirts, my skin tingling head to toe.

  He brought me to the brink of a climax and often, he expected me to release for him, but not this time. He snapped his hand back as the carriage slowly eased to a stop.

  “You’ve soiled my gloves,” he said, slipping two fingers in my mouth. I sucked on the smooth, fine black leather, tasting my own heated juices, and he gave me a nod. His eyes were pleased. My cheeks burned with a mixture of shame and pride, a sensation that was now breathtakingly familiar and yet I would never learn to master myself against it.

  No, he would never let me in the first place. It was his job to keep me on my toes.

  He opened the carriage door and I heard his boots hit rocks; he reached a hand inside to help me down. The crowds cheered for us. We stood in a courtyard garden with low walls that allowed the people of the city to see us, before a building formed into a soaring structure made of bare, pale wood. Flowers and small trees grew on the sloped roofs of the building, and stained glass windows surrounded the tall arched doors. A thick chimney poked out of the top past the plants on the roof, with smoke trailing upward. The architecture was very different from the Sun Palace and seemed much older to me, almost primitive.

  “We’re here to make offerings to the faery deities of nature, music, and food,” Augustus said.

  Councilmen, lords, and ladies of the area greeted us warmly, and I felt the heat in my cheeks slowly fade away. I stuck close to Augustus, curtseying and smiling, and everyone complimented my gown. I heard some of the ladies whispering, “How does she look so fresh and bright after such a long ride?”

  Of course, the answer was the three blessings placed on me at birth. Grace, beauty, and a quick mind.

  A row of girls around age nine or ten were waiting by the doors. I wondered if they were spruced up commoners or daughters of the nobility. They had rosy cheeks and I suspected their beauty had been carefully selected. As we walked up to them, they offered us each a cake, a sprig of flowers, and a bell. These were the offerings for the gods.

  The faeries didn’t perform religious rituals as often as I was used to back home, and I found it comforting to walk up to the fire, toss in the trio of objects, and then bow before the altar to pray for the kingdom we were about to inherit. The fire roared in a massive hearth, with wooden figures carved around it to represent all the many deities in the faery pantheon.

  “Oh spirits of the wilds, spirits of harvest and hunt, and spirits of the music that brings pleasure to every ear, please grace us with your bounty and allow us to rule over the happiest of kingdoms…” Augustus led a prayer.

  At first I shut my eyes, but then I couldn’t help but sneak a look at his face. He sounded so serious. Whatever I said, his duties rested heavily on his shoulders. As he finished, his eyes snapped open, straight ahead at the tongues of flame. I looked away. I didn’t want him to catch me staring at him.

  Then we rose and left the temple. Although I had never done this before myself, I could feel the familiar trappings of ritual. Everything we did was planned and expected. Everything we laid eyes on was beautiful.

  For some reason, I let out a small sigh. I suppose I expected Luminé to be different. Unkempt and wild, an untamed beast of a city.

  We proceeded straight from this ceremony to the old palace, where the royals lived before the Palace of the Sun was built. Made of rough grey stone, with defensive towers, it was no gilded jewel box like my home. Inside, however, it still put on the same airs, the old stone walls covered up by painted wooden paneling; golden candelabras; statues of voluptuous dancing faery maidens wearing scant outfits.

  “Your Hi
ghnesses…the people are waiting to greet you in the Court of Hours.”

  We climbed stairs to a balcony overlooking the court. I heard a roar of voices even from a distance, and my mouth fell open when I saw the crowd. A sea of people spilled out far beyond the stone court, into streets beyond. I hoped no flowers had been growing in the courtyard, as they would have surely been trampled. There was not a single place to stand that wasn’t occupied by someone. Children were hoisted onto their parents shoulders. The people lifted hands to us, their faces joyful and even frenzied.

  “I’ve—never seen it like this,” Augustus murmured. “Are they this happy my grandfather is dead?”

  “The king did not always act with the best interests of the city in mind, some believe,” one of the advisors said, trying to be diplomatic.

  “I see.” Augustus waved, and the roar of joy was almost deafening.

  “Besides that,” said Count Mercinel, my own tutor, “they must be very excited to have a queen.”

  I stepped forward and curtseyed from the balcony, lowering my head, and was greeted with another roar that brought a nervous smile to my lips. As the only princess of Osteria, I had always been admired. But I had never been adored like this.

  I worried that the people would not accept a human queen, but it seemed that the word bleeding out of the palace was in my favor.

  “They are all so impressed that you resisted the Cobblestone Witch and your own curse,” Mercinel told me during dinner. Just as at home, the crowds were permitted to enter the room as we ate and pass by behind a balustrade, watching us. The room was noisy with the din of voices. A very young girl sat practically at my feet with a wine skin, waiting for a word from Augustus to pour. I felt very bad for her. What kind of childhood was it to sit quietly for hours holding a wine skin? But it was clearly an honor and I’m sure any comment from me would be taken with offense.