“Sir, may I speak with you for a moment? There’s been another incident.”
16
Donatella
Hairline cracks formed along the edges of Legend’s illusionary windows. “Which Fate?”
“The Poisoner again. He turned an entire wedding party to stone near Idyllwild Castle. They’re fine now,” Jovan added quickly. “But the person who saved them isn’t. The Poisoner left a note saying that the party would only become human again once someone willingly took their place. The bride’s sister sacrificed herself.”
Scarlett clasped her hands together, as if she wanted to send up a prayer to the saints. “Is the sister stone now?”
Jovan nodded grimly. “I’m sorry, sir. We took all the precautions you asked.”
Legend rubbed a hand over his jaw. “Move the girl to the stone garden and see if any of the potions Delilah peddles during Caraval can reverse it. Did the wedding party at least get a good description of the Poisoner this time?”
“Not of him,” Jovan said. “But one member of the wedding party had the impression that the Poisoner might have had someone with him.”
Legend cursed under his breath.
“Do you think we should cancel tomorrow night’s Midnight Maze and tell everyone to stay indoors?” Jovan asked.
“No,” Legend said. “We can enact a citywide curfew for the people who aren’t invited, and tell them it’s because of preparation for the coronation. But if we cancel the maze, everyone will know something is wrong.”
“But there is something wrong.” Julian gave his brother a hard stare, but it still looked friendly compared to the cold gaze that Legend was capable of.
“The Fates feed off of fear,” Legend said. “I don’t want to turn an entire city into a feast for them. And as far as we know now, only the Fallen Star, the Poisoner, and the Prince of Hearts are awake.”
“Jacks isn’t a threat,” Tella protested. “The Fate we need to worry about is the Fallen Star—we can’t even hurt the other ones until he’s dead. But Legend won’t tell us how to defeat him, because he’s too afraid of sharing his own weakness.” Tella shot Legend her sharpest scowl.
Legend’s nostrils flared, and Tella doubted it was a coincidence that the stained-glass windows filled with bleak storm clouds and lightning. “Give Tella and me a moment alone.”
No one had to be asked twice. Julian and Jovan turned and walked quickly down the hall. Only Scarlett glanced at Tella, but she nodded that it was all right for her sister to leave them. This conversation with Legend was overdue.
As soon as the others were out of sight, Tella whirled on Legend, but she was caught off guard as the corridor shifted again.
The ceiling stretched four stories high as the walls transformed from white soapstone to rich mahogany wood, inlaid with bookshelves covered in pristine volumes, and cabinets full of treasures lit by delicate lights that floated like lost pixies. Her old prison cell was now a roaring fire, warming her back as extraordinarily soft furs cushioned her feet. Chairs appeared next, red-velvet with wide clamshell-shaped backs, like the ones she often favored in the dreams she shared with Legend. They rested in front of the blazing fire, inviting her to sit, while gentle violin music trailed down from the domed ceiling.
She couldn’t help but compare the scene to Jacks’s dark study with its worn whiskey-leather couch and its carpets dotted with burned specks from the fire. It was a place for making mistakes and bad deals. Although she hadn’t mentioned spending the night with Jacks, somehow she felt as if Legend was trying to make a point with his grand illusion—that what Jacks could give her would never compare to the things that Legend was capable of.
“Are you trying to show off? Or just distract me?”
“I thought you’d be more comfortable here.” Legend strode across the elegant study to lean one jacketed elbow against the mantel of the fireplace. “If you don’t like it, I can change it. What was that dream you were so infatuated with? Was it the one with the zebras?” He gave her a teasing smile, looking much more like the Legend of her dreams than he had when he’d first shown up in the dungeon. His grin grew wider as Tella felt her dress change, turning sleeker as her feathers shifted into black-and-white lines of silk, mirroring the fitted gown she’d worn in the dream he’d just mentioned. She’d been excited about the zebras, which he’d created after she’d told him she wasn’t sure she believed