Please forgive the tardiness of this post! It’s technically still Monday, though, so it technically isn’t late. As an apology for making you wait longer than usual, this chapter is especially long. Find previous chapters here. What a beautiful night it was, with the air holding the coolness of the end of summer and the …
Find previous chapters here. ________________________________________ A large blot spread over the parchment, marring the curves of the letters around it. Steven frowned at the page. With a sigh, he dabbed the blotch with a cloth and picked up a razor to scrape off the blemish. That activity was one with which he was becoming …
Find previous chapters here. ____________________________________________ “Son!” Bill glanced at his mother, then back at the package in his hand. How did he get here, to the front of the castle? Wasn’t he in his cold bedroom a moment ago? He had been plotting how to run away. “Hush, Louise,” his father’s nasly voice rebuked. …
Previous chapters can be found here. ________________________________________ Annette was no stranger to being stabbed. Almost weekly, splinters left in the ashy remains of fires at the Ferngold castle would pierce her hands or feet. She would simply pull them out, squeeze out a few drops of blood, and continue with her life. Instinct told …
Find previous chapters here. ___________________________________________ There he was, back at last. Of course, he would need a good scrubbing before he could be thoroughly recognizable as her son, but he was back, and that was what mattered. She should have been elated, should have felt victorious, or she should have been furious at the …
Find previous chapters here. _______________________________________ Three days later, Will could barely believe they were still alive. The king’s wish for the Fern’s blessing must have come true. He lay on sticky, moist ground, exhausted and panting from having just escaped a pitfall that he and Annette had accidentally found. Despite facing a troll, four …
Find previous chapters here. __________________________________ “You must be mistaken,” Annette stated. The sage just smiled. “No, I am definitely not. It’s as clear as crystals, plain for all to see. Why, look at your faces. You have the same eyes, same nose, same cheekbones.” But if it were true—he was a prince. She started …
Find previous chapters here. ______________________________________ Trevor the sage did not often receive visitors to his cottage near the border of Clachan and Poldar. When knocking on his door besieged his peaceful reading, he muttered to his old grey dog, “I wonder who that is?” The dog raised an eyelid, blinked, and fell back asleep. …
Find previous chapters here. ____________________________________________ Repulsion filled Maxwell at the sight of his wife. “Take me to him,” she demanded. “To whom?” he drawled. Playing ignorant would infuriate her. Her eyes narrowed. “To the sorcerer. Do not play games with me, Maxwell.” He bit back the many rejoinders that came to mind, since he …
Find previous chapters here. ______________________________________ Will fought. He fought the branches of the tree that wrapped around him like vines. He fought with everything he had. And he cursed the foolishness of the girl for dragging him to Clachan and his eminent death. If only he could reach the dagger the king of Ferngold …