The Tears of the Rose by Jeffe Kennedy Read Free Book Online Page B

again. “We have seen visions. He will be the next High King, and the Twelve Kingdoms shall flourish under his rule. We will destroy the Tala, utterly and for all and forever. We shall take back Annfwn, the paradise that should have been Glorianna’s, that Her sister stole from Her. And you shall lead us there, Glorianna’s chosen one.”
    Kir’s visage gleamed with a glowing, nearly fanatical light. Could this be true? It would mean that Andi—and Ursula—were wrong about the child being a daughter. But then, they had already tried to mislead me in other ways. And Dafne, making out that Andi had been so noble—was that more misdirection? After all, Andi’s actions had spoken very loudly.
    High Priest Kir came closer, then knelt before me, kissing the tips of my fingers. “Do you see the parallels in your story?”
    â€œI’d never heard this, that Moranu stole Annfwn. I’d never heard of Annfwn before those Tala showed up.”
    He nodded gravely. “It’s a wound to Glorianna’s children and so we don’t speak of it. Annfwn is said to be paradise, where we once all lived. Shouldn’t paradise belong to Glorianna?”
    â€œBut Her sister Moranu stole it?”
    â€œThrough vile treachery. It was High King Uorsin’s lifelong quest to recover Annfwn for Glorianna.”
    My mouth was sticky, the scent of roses too strong with the burning candles. “What happened to his quest?”
    Kir glanced from side to side, as if checking for eavesdroppers, and lowered his voice. “Salena of the Tala.”
    â€œMy mother?” And Andi carried our mother’s mark. It all began to make sense, Andi’s change, her betrayal. The half-breed blood showing through.
    â€œYou are wise, Your Highness. Uorsin sacrificed his dream of gaining Annfwn to make a lasting peace for Glorianna. And, some of us believe, so that you could be born. You . The third, most important daughter. Glorianna made flesh.”
    My heart thumped with the wild possibilities of it. I’d prayed for guidance and Glorianna had answered. Could this be my purpose? “Prince Hugh always said he thought my beauty came from Glorianna’s touch.”
    â€œYes, Your Highness. Her radiance is visible in every aspect of your grace and loveliness. Small wonder the poets told tales of you. They will again, as you lead Glorianna’s church to greatness. As you lead her children into Annfwn.”

    That night, I sat in front of the mirror in the grand guest room set aside for my use. Ursula had been given the master’s suite, which seemed unfair. Truly, our ranks were equal now. Though she might be heir to the High King, I would be Queen of Avonlidgh sooner than that, as Old Erich couldn’t possibly last much longer.
    And, if Kir had spoken truly—which I believed he did, for he spoke in Glorianna’s chapel, surely at her behest—I carried Uorsin’s true heir. Even Ursula—as much as she tried to be a son to our father—she knew as we all did that he’d longed for a boy to take his place. It had been a last trick of Salena’s to saddle him with daughters.
    Though no one said this aloud.
    Kir, though, had put a new spin on our family history. Perhaps Glorianna had guided Salena to our father so that I might be born. Then, her role complete, she passed on. Perhaps she redeemed her devil nature before her death and now rested in Glorianna’s arms.
    For the first time since I heard that Hugh was forever gone from me, I brushed my hair before bed. I’d started when I was five, when my nurse taught me to do it for myself. My beauty, she’d said, was a tribute to Glorianna, so I owed it to the goddess to maintain that.
    One hundred strokes every night, to keep the shine.
    I should never have stopped. I counted them as I drew the brush through the red-gold locks, sinking into the peaceful, even feel of it. The woman looking back