The Secret Princess

Book 1: Return to The Four Kingdoms

by Melanie Cellier

Genres: YA Coming of Age; YA Fantasy

Synopsis

Princess Giselle is excited to be leading her first royal delegation—until everything goes wrong before they even reach their destination. With her rank and authority stripped away and her people scattered, she’s left with nothing but a gaggle of geese.

Giselle is determined to prove herself a true princess—in action as well as in name. But to do so she must uncover a conspiracy that threatens far more than her own future. With her life in danger and only a talking horse and an irritable goose boy at her side, she needs assistance. One of the servants is willing to help her, but Philip’s attractive smile hides yet more secrets, and Giselle is running out of time.

In this reimagining of the classic fairy tale, The Goose Girl, the wronged princess must prevail in a deadly game of identities with the fate of kingdoms at stake.

If you enjoy clean romance, adventure, and intrigue, then try the books in the Return to the Four Kingdoms series now! These interconnected fairy tale retellings each feature a different heroine who finds herself friendless in a strange land and who must fight to save her new home and win her happily ever after.

Release date: May 22, 2020

Publisher: Luminant Publications

Print pages: 322

Sample

PROLOGUE

A wave, larger than the ones preceding it, slapped against the hull of the ship. The deck
beneath my feet lurched, sending me staggering against the rail. I managed to get a firm grip
before it swung back the other way, the tilt sharper than it had been before. Several sailors
called to each other, but a breathless voice shouting my name distracted me from their words.
“Giselle! Giselle!” Daisy, a thirteen-year-old wearing an elegant gown which she had
hitched up to give her freer movement, scrambled up the steps from below decks. “There’s
something wrong with Arvin. He’s screaming and neighing, and it sounds like he’s going to
smash his way out of his stall.”
“Arvin?” I let go of the rail and dashed across to meet her at the top of the stairs.
When the ship pitched again, I nearly lost my footing and sent us both tumbling into
the depths of the ship. I managed to stop myself just in time, Daisy steadying me on one side.
“Is he injured?” I asked.
“Not that I could see. But he was kicking up such a fuss, I couldn’t get a good look at
him. I didn’t know what else to do but come and get you.”
Like everyone else on board, Daisy had noticed the connection between me and my
horse—the only mount brought along for the voyage. What she didn’t know was that he was
a recent gift from my godmother.
I half-climbed, half-slid down the steps, racing toward the horse’s stall as quickly as I
could given the increased tilt of the ship. I didn’t have to make it all the way, however, before
I could hear him.
Giselle! Get those useless sailors down here. There’s a leak. Starboard. Aft. Where is
that useless girl? GISELLE!!
I pulled myself to a stop. At first I had been surprised to learn no one else could hear
his equine sounds as words, but I had given up attempting to get any answers out of Arvin.
The godmother had given him to me, and I alone could understand him. His manner and
behavior made me fairly sure it was an enchantment on him rather than me though.
I reversed direction, Daisy slipping and sliding a few steps behind me. The ship tipped
again, and a thin stream of water rushed over our feet.
“There’s a leak,” I said, hoping she couldn’t hear the fear in my voice. “We have to get
the sailors—”

Bodies tumbled down the stairs, their voices filling the space below decks as they
crowded after each other. I grabbed the closest one.
“There’s a hole—or something. Starboard. Aft.” I pointed in the right direction.
He hesitated for only a second, before calling to the others to follow him. Daisy and I
flattened ourselves against the wooden walls, trying to get out of their way as they rushed
past. As soon as they reached Arvin, the horse instantly calmed, and I could no longer hear
his shouts.
The yells of the sailors soon replaced them, however, the location of the leak evidently
discovered. Daisy looked like she wanted to go after them, curiosity all over her face, so I
herded her back toward the deck.
“Giselle! Daisy! There you are. Do you know what’s going on?” My older brother
Oliver, crown prince of Eldon, appeared from the door of the great cabin. “Everyone else is
in here.”
“There’s a leak,” Daisy announced, a little too much relish in her voice.
The ship tilted steeply to the side, and Oliver caught me before I stumbled into the
door. His grip didn’t loosen, but he glanced back over his shoulder into the cabin, concern on
his face.
Someone barreled into him from behind, pushing us both away from the door.
“Sorry!” Celine gasped as she flew past us and up the steps to the deck.
Oliver abandoned us to dash after his wife, both of them disappearing up the steps. I
peered through the still open doorway at two more girls. Daria’s concerned eyes flitted from
me to Daisy.
“What should we do, Giselle?” she asked.
“I think we should all head up on deck,” I said, conscious of the continuing shouts of
the sailors from the depths of the ship and the increasing tilt at each wave.
“I second that,” said Cassandra, hurrying forward to join me. “I don’t fancy being
caught below decks if the ship’s going down.”
Daria’s worried eyes flashed back to Daisy, the youngest of us. “I’m sure it won’t come
to that.”
“Imagine if it did!” Daisy’s eyes were shining. “I’ve never been shipwrecked before.
We could all cling to pieces of wreckage and kick our way to shore.”
“Perhaps we could try the longboats before we’re reduced to scrounging for flotsam,” I
said, ushering the others ahead of me toward the steps.

But privately I admitted to some relief that we had been sailing north along the
Arcadian shoreline since sunrise. We had been traveling through open ocean for some time
now, and I wouldn’t have liked to go down days from any land. I had grown up with the
closely clustered continents and island of my home lands, where no sea voyage took you far
from shore. So this voyage to the distant Four Kingdoms was my first true experience of that
vast, open ocean.
For most of my life, any ships that sailed east from our lands encountered a solid wall
of impassable storms. Legends held they had been placed there by the High King to protect
our people when they fled from their original kingdoms to the uninhabited lands that we
would build into kingdoms of our own. But that was countless generations in the past, and
few believed or even remembered the legends—until five years ago when the storms stilled.
Daisy, Daria, Cassandra, and I came from the lands of my childhood, but my sister-in-
law Celine had grown up in Lanover, one of the original Four Kingdoms. She had come with
the first delegation sent by the Old Kingdoms and had stayed to rescue my kingdom of Eldon
from a vast enchantment, gaining fire powers and falling in love with my brother in the
process.
They had been married for nearly four years now, and she had been promising to take
Oliver and me to see her kingdom for at least three of those years. A leak in the boat before
we even reached the Arcadian capital didn’t seem an auspicious start to the long-awaited
journey.
I climbed the steps last, gripping tightly with both hands to keep from losing my
footing. When I emerged back into the sunshine, I staggered my way over to the railing to
join the others.
Celine, looking pale, managed a smile in greeting. Apparently she had finished being
sick over the edge. I gave her a sympathetic wince in return.
“Does it feel like the ship is steadying a little?” Cassie asked, gazing across the deck.
Oliver frowned. “Perhaps a little.”
“My men have plugged the hole with their hammocks.” The captain appeared beside
us, looking grim. “And now they’re hard at work at the pumps. But a lot of water got in, and
it’s only a temporary solution.”
Oliver and Celine, the official heads of our delegation, exchanged looks.
“Will we make it to the port at Arcadie?” Oliver asked, naming the Arcadian capital.
The captain’s frown deepened, and he rubbed his chin, eyeing the six of us. Daisy was
the youngest princess from Trione which meant we consisted of four royals, as well as

Cassie, the niece of a minor noble from my kingdom of Eldon, and Daria, a close friend of
the queen of Eliam. I could understand why our presence on his damaged ship was making
him uneasy.
“It’s not ideal conditions,” he said at last. “You’ve seen how slow our progress has
been this morning. That storm three days ago drove us slightly off course, and we’ve hit the
coast too far south. Now we’ve got the wind and the current working against us. An hour ago,
I wasn’t concerned, steady going would get us there eventually. But now…”
“We have to put to shore,” said a panicked voice behind us. “At once.”
I turned to my personal maid, Sierra, with a flash of guilt. I hadn’t even thought of her
since the crisis began. She had always been a diligent and attentive maid but had been
strangely absent and distracted since we started the voyage. It hadn’t occurred to me her
strange behavior might be motivated by a fear of the ocean, but I couldn’t mistake her terror
now.
She leaned forward. “I can’t swim,” she whispered to me.
I frowned across the water at a gleaming stretch of sand, picturing the map of the Four
Kingdoms. We were working our way northward, toward Arcadie, our planned first stop in
our tour. But southward lay Lanover, Celine’s home kingdom, and its capital of Lanare.
Putting a comforting hand on my maid’s arm, I turned to the captain.
“So you’re saying even though Lanare is further away than Arcadie, you could reach it
faster and with less strain on the damaged ship?” I asked.
The captain rubbed his chin again, looking at Oliver uneasily before turning back to
me. “That would be correct, Your Highness.”
I faced my brother. “You’ve already decided Celine can’t stay in Arcadie. You were
planning to beg a carriage to take her to Lanare as soon as we arrived. But that just means
more travel for her. It makes far more sense for you to take the ship south now.”
Celine made a noise of protest, but since she had to break it off to be sick over the side
of the rail, it didn’t carry much weight. Oliver rubbed her back, murmuring about staying
cool. Celine had strong feelings about being sick, but she couldn’t afford to lose control of
her emotions and overheat the baby. At least that was the theory. No one—including the ship
doctor—had any experience with the combination of fire powers and pregnancy, but
everyone agreed it was better not to take any risks.
She had only just discovered the pregnancy before we set sail and had been determined
to proceed as planned. Our trip had already been delayed for years, delegations traveling back
and forth to finalize various trade treaties with only officials to represent Eldon. When Celine

said she wanted to tell her family the happy news in person, my parents had agreed. At that
point, Daisy, Daria, and Cassie had already joined us at our palace to prepare for the voyage,
and the Arcadian royal family were expecting our arrival. After so many delays, my parents
were uneasy about how it would appear if we canceled at such a late point.
But no sooner did we hit the open seas than Celine began to feel ill. And the further
into the voyage we got, the sicker she became. We had intended to finish our tour in Lanover,
rather than starting there, but Oliver now wanted Celine settled with her family as soon as
possible.
They didn’t know if the illness would last the whole pregnancy, and my sister-in-law
was in no fit state to conduct official visits. Oliver hadn’t said whether he was more
concerned about the risk of her causing a diplomatic incident by losing control and blasting
part of the Arcadian palace, or whether he just wanted her calm and comfortable in familiar
environments. And it didn’t matter. Both were valid.
I pointed at the shoreline. “There seems to be some sort of beach there. Put me ashore
with the longboat, along with Sierra, and Arvin, and a few guards. We can continue on to
Arcadie while the ship takes the rest of you south to Lanover. I’m sure once I explain the
situation, King Henry and Queen Eleanor will understand.”

CHAPTER 1

I stood on the beach, watching the longboat row away from me, back to the ship. Our
haphazard and somewhat damp disembarkation on a deserted beach wasn’t the arrival in
Arcadia I had been expecting when we set out from Eldon.
“Your Highness!” Sierra waved for me to join her further back from the water.
The slim girl, slightly older than me, beckoned again, and I slipped through the milling
guards toward her. I had no trouble keeping sight of my maid since the sunlight bounced,
almost painfully bright, off the blond braid that hung down her back.
There had been debate, of course, but eventually everyone had agreed to my
plan—with some modifications. Daisy, Daria, and Cassie had all insisted on accompanying
me, driven by varying mixtures of responsibility to our original diplomatic mission and desire
for adventure. Oliver capitulated only when Celine reminded him we had pigeons on board
and could send a message to the Arcadian capital. Given how long it had taken us to make the
necessary arrangements and get all the relevant people to the beach, I hoped the carriages
Arcadia had been requested to send wouldn’t be far away.
I waved at the distant figures on the ship as the sails were slowly raised again. Soon
they would be in Lanare, and Celine could have some relief from her illness. Once the repairs
had been completed, the captain would return to Eldon as fast as he could sail to bring our
family’s personal doctor back to attend her. The two of them had been conducting
experiments on Celine’s power for years now, and there was no one better to attend her given
this turn of events.
From the captain’s dire mutterings as we prepared for departure, he was looking
forward to being home again so he could have some hard words with the shipbuilders
responsible for checking the vessel before the expedition and declaring it seaworthy.
I tugged at my left sleeve, feeling the lump of material I had wedged in there. Now we
had stepped foot in Arcadia, I didn’t mean to let the family heirloom out of my possession for
a moment. The handkerchief—the only working godmother object my family had left from
past generations—was not only a useful tool, but a sign of my mother’s trust. She had passed
it down to me, not Oliver. And now circumstances had proven her right. I would be taking
responsibility for the delegation—primarily an Eldonian one, despite the presence of Daisy

and Daria from Trione and Eliam—and representing our family without my brother by my
side.
And I was more than ready for the chance to stand alone.
“Your Highness!” Sierra appeared beside me, apparently determined we remain glued
to each other’s sides. A surprising development given her absence on board ship.
I nodded to her, but my attention was focused on locating the other girls. They had
been sent with the delegation so they could experience the Four Kingdoms—a small
adventure away from their familiar homes. I couldn’t help but be conscious it had already
become something more of an adventure than their families had likely been expecting.
I eventually spotted them together, Daria their calm center as always. Her brown skin
shone warmly in the sunlight, her demeanor reserved. You wouldn’t guess she was several
years younger than me—not given the way she expertly managed the terrifyingly
adventurous Princess Daisy. The thirteen-year-old Trionian princess currently hung off
Daria’s arm, saying something to her at a fast pace, her whole body quivering with the
excitement that was only hinted at in Daria’s eyes. I suspected Daisy’s family, at least,
wouldn’t be surprised to hear she had catapulted herself into unexpected adventure.
Cassandra, standing beside them, looked up and caught my gaze. Smiling, she pointed
toward Arvin, who stood calmly several steps away. He regarded her pointed finger with an
expression of contempt that should have been impossible on the face of a horse before
following her gaze to me and tossing his head.
I grinned and started toward them. I had insisted Arvin accompany us, despite the
difficulties of getting him to shore. Leaving him behind hadn’t been an option. I had no doubt
he would have kicked open his stall, trotted up the stairs, jumped overboard and swum to
shore on his own if we had dared to forget him.
The young one seems to be greatly excited, he whickered at me, as if it was somehow a
personal insult directed at him.
I slung an arm around his neck. “Well, it is all rather exciting.”
Is it? I can’t say I’ve seen anything I would label exciting.
“Yes, I am sorry about the awkward trip to shore.”
I don’t know what you’re talking about, he said, with great dignity. I am always happy
to be of service. I am not in the habit of putting others out with my own needs and wishes.
I snorted. “Of course not. How foolish of me.”

“It’s strange the way you talk to your horse,” Daisy said at my elbow. “Almost as if he
talks back.” Behind her I could see Sierra watching us, the same confused expression on her
face.
I swallowed a grin. “I can’t help it.”
If the small one wishes to ride me, tell her no, Arvin neighed.
“I thought you were happy to be of service?” I asked innocently.
He whipped his head around, turning the full force of his baleful left eye on me instead
of Daisy.
You misunderstand. I think only of her safety. I am not saddled.
I raised an eyebrow, smothering a laugh. “Oh, of course. See, there I go, being foolish
again.”
It is certainly something you should work on, he said gravely.
I rolled my eyes and turned back to the other girls. “I hope you don’t regret coming
with me instead of staying with the ship.”
Cassie grinned at me. “Of course we wanted to come.”
In all honesty, I liked the idea of having the other Eldonian girl at my side. Cassie had
proven herself many times over—she had the ability to blend in anywhere she found herself,
and the smarts to make the best of every situation.
“Plus, Cassie had to come,” Daisy piped up, a disconcerting gleam in her eye. “Eldon
might still need her. What if Percy’s taste doesn’t run to blond hair? He might find he likes
Cassie here better than you, Giselle.”
Cassie and I groaned in unison. Prince Percival of Talinos was the one remaining
eligible prince from our set of kingdoms, but he had led his own delegation across the seas
weeks before we left. The Arcadian court had claimed to be delighted to host us all at once,
and my parents had been no less delighted at the prospect of throwing me and Percy together.
Now from Daisy’s comments, it appeared Eldon’s interest in an alliance with Percy’s
kingdom of Talinos was a more open secret than I realized.
Not that anything formal had been arranged or even discussed. But I knew his presence
in Arcadia was the reason my parents had made the kingdom the first stop on our itinerary. A
marriage alliance with any of the Four Kingdoms was unlikely for either Percy or me since
none of the distant kingdoms had any available royalty of marriageable age. Eldon would
have to rely on trade treaties and the alliance Oliver had already secured with Lanover—the
richest of the Four Kingdoms. Hence the reason my parents had turned their eyes to our close
neighbor of Talinos.

Personally I still wasn’t sure what I thought about the scheme. Given both our
kingdoms had spent years under separate curses, Percy and I hadn’t seen each other since the
days when all the royal children of our six kingdoms played together at royal functions. All I
remembered from those days was a young boy, olive skin darkened by the sun, running
headlong into trouble in his efforts to keep up with the older princes—including his older
brother, Prince Gabe. But I had promised my parents I would keep an open mind on the
matter, at least.
I turned my mind back to the present as the squad of guards accompanying us began to
form up. Oliver had insisted the message sent with the pigeons include a request for two
Arcadian squads to meet us along with the carriages, although Celine had assured him the
roads in the Four Kingdoms were safe these days.
I think my brother expected us to wait in place for the Arcadians to arrive, but I had
already given the order that we were to start toward Arcadie on foot. I had no intention of
sitting around on a remote beach when everyone in our party was perfectly capable of
walking. Meeting our escort part way might be the difference between reaching Arcadie
before nightfall or being caught still on the road at dark.
The spring weather and the solid ground under our feet made the coming journey a
pleasant prospect, and I almost wished we had further to travel. Turning, I nearly tripped over
Sierra who continued to stick to my side. I bit back an unkind rebuke and scanned the group.
Daisy’s maid, a sensible, older woman, stood several paces behind her mistress. Two
ceremonial Trionian guards stood with her. After some discussion, it had been decided that
there was no need for Trione to send more than two as we did not wish to be discourteous to
our hosts by overwhelming their hospitality or suggesting distrust. The Eldonian squads had
therefore been instructed to consider all the delegation members to be equally under their
protection.
I was the only one with a mount, of course, if Arvin could truly be called that. He only
let me on his back when he was in the best of moods, and even then, only bareback.
I knew that many in the party considered it a foolish indulgence to allow me to bring
such a useless horse, but they didn’t know Arvin’s origin. If the godmothers gifted you a
talking horse from the Palace of Light—the mysterious and powerful domain of the High
King—you didn’t leave him behind, however useless he might appear to be.
My right hand drifted to my left wrist, touching the handkerchief tucked safely inside
my sleeve. I had two gifts from the godmothers—even if the handkerchief had been given to

one of my distant ancestors rather than me. Its power to reveal the truth would serve me all
the same.
One of the other guards strode toward us, the familiar look that passed between him
and Sierra helping me place his face. More than two years ago, an Eldonian ship had
discovered and rescued a small ship-wrecked community from a remote island. Most had
chosen to stay in our kingdom when they were offered positions in the palace, my maid and
this guard among them.
Sierra had been an exemplary maid since then, her recent distraction on the ship my
first complaint. Perhaps it had been the presence of this guard rather than fear of the ocean
that had caused her abstraction?
I would let her know she could have extra time off to go walking with him during our
time in Arcadia—as long as she stopped disappearing at crucial moments when I needed her
services. I didn’t want to disgrace Eldon by failing to present myself appropriately as both
princess and diplomatic envoy.
The guard addressed himself to me rather than my maid, however.
“We’re ready to move out, if Your Highness is agreeable.”
“Certainly,” I replied. “Lead the way.” I attempted a small smile. “You will find royal
feet as capable of walking as any others.”
He gave a half-bow. “Of course, Your Highness. We have all heard the stories.”
He glanced sideways at Sierra before hurrying back to the front of the group, directing
the second group of guards to form up behind us. I bit my lip. I hadn’t meant to reference the
famous trek up the mountains by Oliver, Celine, and me to defeat the Snow Queen four years
ago. But apparently my attempt at being approachable had failed dismally.
I groaned silently. This trip was supposed to be my chance to move past that history.
Everyone acted as if I had been some sort of heroic savior—and Celine and Oliver were
always generous enough to share the credit. But it had been Celine who saved us. She had
saved me from freezing twice—first from a frozen heart and then from the actual snow—and
then she had saved the entire kingdom. I might not admit it to anyone, but I desperately
wanted an opportunity to prove myself without Celine and her powers looking over my
shoulder.
One of Daisy’s guards glanced at Arvin, a crease between his eyebrows. My
horse—although Arvin could be considered mine in only the loosest sense of the word—was
bare of so much as a lead rope. I patted his neck and smiled at the guard.

“Don’t be concerned, he won’t have any trouble keeping up. And he’s not prone to
wandering away.”
The guard gave a quick head bob and turned his attention back to the front.
“Don’t make me into a liar,” I muttered to Arvin.
I never get lost, he said, and I couldn’t help but note it wasn’t much of a reassurance.
We began to move, Daisy chattering about something to Cassandra in a voice too low
for me to comprehend. The warm sun and the soft call of birds made the walk pleasant
despite the ground rolling strangely beneath my feet. I had completed enough sea voyages to
know it was a temporary sensation.
The road passed through vast stretches of fields, many populated by farmers busy
planting seeds. A line of trees along its length kept the sun from becoming unpleasant, and
before long we approached a thicker copse.
Entering the small wood, I turned to make sure no stragglers were falling behind. For a
moment I couldn’t find Daisy. A frantic glance around revealed her brunette head off the
path, examining something on a tree to the side of the road.
I hurried over to shoo her back to the group, but she was already turning toward us
again. For a moment our eyes locked, hers full of energy and enthusiasm, and then something
jerked her roughly back into the trees.
She didn’t have time to scream, her shocked expression still fixed on me as she
disappeared from view completely.
I screamed for her, shrieking her name. But my voice was cut off as something large
collided with me, knocking me to the ground and stealing the rest of my breath.

CHAPTER 2

I twisted, looking for my attacker, but all I could see were long legs and flashing
hooves. Shouts and screams had broken out behind me, but I couldn’t see any of the others.
I scrambled to my feet as Arvin attempted to herd me into the trees. Pushing past him, I
surveyed the road.
The small group had erupted into chaos. Struggling figures fought each other, but I
couldn’t work out who the attackers were, or where they had come from in what looked like a
mass of moving bodies. Daisy’s maid streaked past me, pursuing the vanished girl, the two
Trionian guards on her heels. From the corner of my eye, I saw someone lunge toward Daria.
I opened my mouth to scream a warning, but Cassandra was already there, kicking the
man in the stomach. He doubled over, gasping, as the Eldonian girl fled for the trees on the
opposite side of the road, dragging Daria behind her. She paused, just off the path, her eyes
finding me before flitting to Arvin behind me. I gestured wildly for them to keep running,
and the two of them disappeared into the wood.
My eyes caught on another female figure, standing just inside the opposite tree line.
Sierra. Her eyes latched onto me, and she gestured frantically for me to join her. I shifted to
my toes, preparing to dash through the battle on the road, but something wrenched me
backward.
I almost tripped, fighting to keep my feet as Arvin’s firm grip on the back of my dress
pulled me away from the road.
“Let me go!” I snapped at the horse, my eyes still on Sierra.
Don’t make me knock you down again, he neighed, finally releasing his bite.
My maid, her eyes grown even wider, gave one desperate glance at the raging battle
and dashed across the road toward me.
Get on my back, Arvin said. Now.
I gripped his mane, my hands trembling and slipping in my haste, and swung myself
onto his back.
“Wait,” I yelled, as I settled myself in place. “Sierra. We can’t leave her.”
Arvin said nothing, but neither did he race into the trees, so I leaned down, holding out
my hand to my maid. She reached us, panting heavily, and grabbed at my wrist, swinging up
behind me with more agility than I’d expected.

Arvin didn’t wait for her to balance herself, launching into movement so quickly she
nearly fell straight back off. She didn’t scream, however, and when I cast an anxious glance
back, no one appeared to be following us.
“Who are they?” I gasped.
Neither Arvin nor Sierra answered.
“We have to find the others,” I said. “Someone took Daisy. And Cassie and Daria could
be anywhere by now.”
They are not my charges. Arvin continued to move with almost impossible speed
through the trees. You are.
“You stopped for Sierra,” I said.
I was momentarily infected by your foolishness. I will no doubt come to regret it.
I sighed. I wasn’t going to get any help from Arvin, and I didn’t dare throw myself
from his back.
“Whatever the beast is saying, listen to him, Your Highness,” Sierra said sharply. “We
must consider your safety now.”
Arvin gave an indignant snort, although whether it was a protest against being called
the beast or disgust at finding himself in agreement with Sierra, I wasn’t sure.
Somewhere in the back of my mind it registered that my maid apparently knew my
horse could talk, but more urgent matters consumed my immediate thoughts.
“We can’t just abandon them, though. They came to this land under our care.”
Not under your care, Arvin neighed, not seeming in the least fatigued or discomfited by
our unnaturally fast flight. Celine was supposed to be in charge. It is not your fault that you
have lost them. I would even be willing to back you up, he added, as if conferring a great
favor.
“Fat lot of good that will do when no one else can understand you,” I muttered and then
groaned aloud. His words only reminded me that the attack on the road would have played
out differently if Celine had been there to come to our aid with fire balls. I was hours into my
chance to prove myself, and I was already wishing for Celine to come and save us all.
The trees in front of us thinned, revealing distant fields. Apparently we were nearing
the far edge of the copse. Arvin slowed and came to a stop, apparently unwilling to venture
out into the open.
I immediately slid from his back, only to hesitate, one hand still on his flank. We had
traveled too far for it to make any sense for me to go dashing off into the trees alone. For all I

knew, the others were just as likely to find me if I stayed put as I was to find them by
stumbling around alone.
“What is the use in being a princess if you can’t even get your horse to obey your
orders?” I muttered in frustration.
I am neither yours nor a horse, Arvin snorted.
I pointedly looked him up and down. “What are you then? A unicorn with a misplaced
horn?”
He huffed and spoke with great dignity. Unicorns? Really? Naturally I am not an
imaginary creature. I merely meant I am not just a horse. A horse from the Palace of Light
should not be compared to an ordinary steed.
“No, you’re right,” I said. “There’s no comparison at all. I liked my last mount far
better than you.”
Arvin huffed out what sounded surprisingly like a laugh. Apparently he cared too little
for the good opinion of a mere human to take offense at my words.
Reluctantly a smile spread over my own face, turning into a chuckle that I abruptly cut
off before it could edge toward hysteria. I had been in dangerous situations before, and I
wasn’t going to lose my wits now.
Sierra had followed my lead and also slid down, proving surprisingly adept at
dismounting without a saddle. She ignored my conversation with Arvin while she carefully
examined our surroundings, but she now fixed her attention back on me.
“The roads of Arcadia are supposed to be safe,” she said. “Which means those may not
have been ordinary bandits. If they were targeting you specifically, then we have to make
sure you stay safe.”
I regarded her with a creased brow. “And how exactly are we going to manage that?
We’re two girls and a talking horse. We aren’t even armed.” I omitted mentioning the small
dagger in my boot since I didn’t think it would do us much good in the case of a bandit
attack.
“We swap clothes,” she said. “Swap places completely. I will be Princess Giselle, and
you can pose as my maid.”
“What?” I stared at her. “So that they kill you instead of me? No indeed! I couldn’t
possibly allow you to take such a risk.”
“You believe their aim is to kill you?” Sierra frowned at me. “Surely ransom is more
likely or some political intrigue. They could have opened their ambush with an arrow to your
heart if that had been their aim. I should be safe enough—for a while at least. This way, if

they do find us, you may be able to slip away to get help.” She sounded grim. “They will
soon discover that having me in their custody does them little good.”
“At which point they may well decide to kill you,” I pointed out.
She smiled. “I’ll assure them you hold me dear and that I would make excellent bait.”
A reluctant chuckle escaped me. The Sierra of the boat had changed again, the girl in
front of me showing a spirit and determination I hadn’t seen before.
“I almost believe you would be able to convince them of the scheme,” I said.
“I always succeed at what I set my mind to.” Her eyes gleamed with strength and
certainty.
“Very well,” I said, still reluctant. “I’ll admit I can’t come up with any other plan.” ...