The creatures looked like they were about to leap out of the wood, take flight, and tear into one another, just like the gladiators on the tabletop did. Gargoyles with sapphire eyes and curved, silver horns that were pointed at the strixes, hawklike birds with feathers that glinted with a metallic, amethyst sheen. More figures were carved into the wide band of wood that encased the mirror. A minute later, the fingers retreated, and I raised my gaze to the domed mirror that rose up from the table like gladiator arenas did from the Svalin city landscape. Fingers fluttered around me, adjusting my sleeves, smoothing down my hair, and even slicking berry balm onto my lips. Someone cleared her throat, and I resumed my previous stiff perch. The women who’d come before hadn’t stumbled into this position by accident like I had. I also wondered if they’d all been as uncomfortable as I was.Īfter all, this table and the other fine furnishings had been their birthright, passed down from mother to daughter through the generations. I wondered how many other women had sat here and done this same thing. I leaned forward and traced my fingers over the carvings, wincing as the metal tips of the weapons and the sharp facets of the jeweled eyes dug into my skin. They too seemed to stare up at and mock me, as if they knew that I shouldn’t be here. I looked down at the figures, which were embossed with bits of metal, along with tiny jewels. The morning sun slipped past the white lace curtains and highlighted the tabletop, which featured carvings of gladiators clutching swords, daggers, and shields. The long, rectangular table was made of the blackest ebony and adorned with all sorts of drawers and cubbyholes, along with crystal knobs that glinted at me like mocking eyes. I perched stiffly in a chair in front of a vanity table that took up the corner of my bedroom.
The day of the first assassination attempt started out like any other.
Part Three: The Third Assassination Attempt Chapter NineteenĪn Excerpt from Crush the King Chapter One Part Two: The Second Assassination Attempt Chapter Eight Part One: The First Assassination Attempt Chapter One To my mom, my grandma, and Andre-for your love, patience, and everything else that you’ve given to me over the years.Īnd to my teenage self, who devoured every single epic fantasy book that she could get her hands on-for finally writing your very own epic fantasy books.
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