The Stepsister Scheme

putting her unborn child in danger made her want to weep.
    “My mother died when I was too young to know her.” Danielle stepped down from the stool. “She stayed with me, but all my life I’ve been unable to touch her, to hear her voice or wrap my arms around her. Her loss broke something deep inside my father. I began to lose him the same day I lost her. When he died years later... ”
    “You’re risking the prince of Lorindar,” Talia said.
    “I know that.” Danielle shuddered, remembering the way Brahkop had reached for her. If it were her alone, she would have gone without a second thought. She closed her eyes and turned away. “I also know that if my father had been given the chance to save my mother, and he had refused that chance because of me, I would never have forgiven him.”
    “I could order you to stay,” the queen said.
    Danielle pointed to Talia and Snow. “You said you trusted them with your life. Do you trust them with mine? Mine and my son’s?”
    The queen’s lips pursed. “I think I liked you better when you were the obedient servant girl.” A smile softened her words. She turned to Talia. “I’m asking you to be responsible for Danielle’s safety.”
    “I knew you were going to say that,” Talia muttered.
    Danielle wrapped her arms around herself. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”
    Talia ducked back through the doorway and studied the map on the ceiling. “We’ll need a ship. The Phillipa is fastest, but they’re halfway around Lorindar, escorting a silver merchant. Of the ships moored here, Silver Wind is probably the best choice. We should send a runner down to tell Captain James to prepare.”
    “Trittibar will send you on your way first thing in the morning,” the queen said. “You should eat dinner and prepare for tomorrow.”
    Talia shook her head. “They took Armand to Fairytown. That means the fairies are involved. We can’t go to their ambassador and expect him to help us over his own people.”
    “Trittibar has always been a friend to Armand,” the queen interrupted. She stared into the mirror, her eyes unfocused. “The two of them used to sneak out of the palace together, visiting the taverns and gambling with the people. I’m told my son developed quite an arm for darts.” She smiled, momentarily lost in the memory. “He needed time away from the palace. Time to see what the world was like. And every boy needs to believe he’s pulled one over on his mother and father from time to time.”
    “You knew they were sneaking off?” Danielle asked.
    The queen’s smile grew. “My dear child, who do you think gave Trittibar the idea?”

    Talia didn’t say another word until they returned to Danielle’s room. As before, she searched the room herself before gesturing for Danielle and Snow to follow. When she did speak, her words were curt. “I’ll fetch something to eat from the kitchens. The two of you stay here. Remain quiet, and stay away from the window.”
    She opened the door, then stopped in mid-step. “Your Majesty.”
    “Talia, isn’t it?” King Theodore stepped inside. Danielle saw two guards waiting in the hallway. His expression was almost playful. “Strange... I knocked a short time ago, but there was no answer.”
    Danielle started to respond, but he held up his hand. “No need. I came to congratulate you, not interrogate you.”
    The king was taller than his son, his brown hair dusted with gray. The padded shoulders of his jacket made him appear even more imposing, as did the heavy boots that clomped against the floor. His beard was neatly trimmed, framing a face which was longer and narrower than Armand’s. But when he smiled, his cheeks dimpled in a way that left no doubt he was the prince’s father.
    “Beatrice said she would send you to see me, but I grew impatient.” He stepped forward to give Danielle a gentle embrace, as if she were made of porcelain. When he backed away, his brows lowered. “You’ve had a busy day, I see.”
    Danielle looked down at her clothes, still stained from the filthy water of Fisherman’s Canal, and covered in dust from the secret passage. “Very busy, Your Majesty.”
    “Don’t tell me. My wife’s secrets are her own.” He glanced at Snow and Talia, and his voice turned somber. “Have you learned anything of my son?”
    “The queen believes he might be in Fairytown,” Snow said carefully.
    “I see.” He studied each of them in turn. When those hazel eyes met Danielle’s, she felt