Page 127 of Burn Her They Said
“Yes, Your Majesty.” He smiles at me, reveling in my rigid compliance.
“You will show the Annovians what they are missing.” I nod. “How well you take orders from your Emperor. How they do not want to offend me, ever again.” I swallow, then nod. “Good.” His hand lands across the top of my thigh, and I flinch, despite barely feeling it under the rapid thrum of Varic’s heavy pulse. “You are dismissed.” Emperor Aldritch peers out the window toward the ports, not sparing me another glance as I carefully rise from his lap.
I bow, preparing to leave with each of my Guards around me, their bodies practically vibrating with what my magic recognizes as every angry-adjacent emotion—Varic most of all.
Drusilla waits for us in the hall just outside the Emperor’s chambers, stepping ahead to lead us to my own bedchamber, where it feels impossible that it has only been two nights since we were last there.
Drusilla stalks toward the closet once we enter my bedchamber.
I pause by my bed with the strange sense of something calling me from the forest, drawing me near the tall arched windows to gaze over the tree line, all while a shudder rolls down my spine.
“You must stay out of the forest, little one, as none but those who lurk inside it know what could happen should you fail to heed the warning.”
Despite my mentor’s warnings, and the dangers said to be held within, a strong urge to do more than observe grows—to venture out and explore the mysteries hidden within that thick blanket of green. Countless hours lost in dreams, imagining what it would be like to traipse among the rocks and roots overgrown with moss and fallen leaves.
Varic and Cirrin have moved in to stare out on either side of me.
“I’m so glad you’re back,” I say, turning to Cirrin as shame for needing him—for relying on him too much, for wanting him to remain by my side—takes over, knowing how he must suffer as my healer and protector.
“I never would have left if I had any say.” His smile is genuine as we turn to the window.
A crow flies low, hunting its prey in the thicket of the clearing, and envy for the bird’s freedom to go wherever it pleases prickles in my skin. Having only ever been permitted to enter specific areas within the tree line a handful of times, and had I been given the choice, I never would have left. Being in the forest felt as if I’d returned home after a long and arduous journey. The deep greens, the birdsong, and the scents all converged and encouraged those locked away parts of me to open, sensing safety. My heart, my mind, my body, and my soul all come alive entirely differently when I stand within the pines.
“You love it out there,” Varic states, and I merely nod since my spy with light gray eyes is not far behind.
As if summoned to ruin my moment of enjoyment, Drusilla’s footsteps draw near, stomping across the marble floor. In the blink of an eye, she snaps me back to reality, carrying a black-velvet floor-length gown with a high-back collar, plunging neckline, and cascading bell sleeves that swivels on its golden hanger now that it’s been set on the gold Dragon’s head hook by my vanity.
I cannot deny the talent displayed in its craftsmanship, with the golden embroidered Dragon scales adorning the edges of the sleeves and shoulders. The uniform of an opulent and obedient witch, intimidating our opponents while falsely empowering our citizens.
Self-consciousness falls over me as I drop the thin robe and nightgown to circle my feet, the chill of the air sprouting gooseflesh over my arms and legs with the urge to reach up and cover my chest. While the act of being stripped naked by an attendant in the presence of my Guards has generally subdued any sense of modesty, now a full-body flush shifts my pale white skin to a light pink, incapable of blocking the innate awareness of Varic’s proximity. I cross my arms over my breasts and wince at their heightened sensitivity. Drusilla lifts and drops my limbs, moving me around to stuff me inside the garment without bathing me first.
Drusilla pulls the corset strings taut, and Lars offers his arm, which I gladly take while wincing. My hands squeeze Lars’ bicep every time she tugs. I hold my breath to keep my ribs expanded, preventing the corset from constricting my breathing even more than necessary, though she’s putting all of her strength into giving me the smallest waist possible.
“That’s enough,” Varic commands, startling me as Drusilla pauses.
The corner of Lars’ mouth tips up as he shakes his head. Drusilla huffs and finishes tying off the corset strings, then drops to her knees to roughly shove a pair of polished black boots on my feet.
“You will treat her with the respect she deserves,” Varic says, glaring down at my attendant, who scoffs as she rises, holding out a delicate gold chain with a pendant of our sigil hanging from the center.
She steps behind me to secure it around my neck and proceeds to pull on the hairs at the nape with her movement.
“Interesting,” she says, stepping around to assess me. “You’re right, Varic. She does keep ‘reacting’ in that same, distinct pattern.” Her eyes flick from my chest, where my breasts are pressed into the most ridiculous orbs, then over to Varic, where her gaze lingers as if trying to send some sort of message before she returns her gray irises to lock on mine.
Confusion unfurls from the pit of my stomach as I try to read her seemingly amused expression, uncertain as to her purpose in pretending not to know the cause, which she claimed to understand while giving me a bath in the Emperor’s chambers.
Without any clarification, she simply shrugs her shoulders before turning to leave us.
“Any idea what that was?” I ask, and Varic steps closer.
“I think she just read my emotions,” he admits, as I look at him in horror.
“What do you mean?”
“I could feel unfamiliar magic trying to infiltrate. I think she may have gotten past my wards before I fully held them in place.”
“And what exactly would she have found?”
A deep rosy hue blooms within his golden-brown skin, creeping across his cheeks until it meets in the center of his nose.
