Before Beauty Read Online Free PDF Page B

that moment that she had been waiting for this, the
opportunity to test and push him. She wanted his kingdom, and was
searching for any chance to challenge him for it. This revelation
had infuriated him even more.
    “ Get out of my home. Leave my
kingdom, and do not return,” Ever had growled.
    “ Oh, we will be leaving.” Nevina’s
captain of the guard was suddenly at her side, glaring at him.
Nevina’s golden flames blazed even more brightly as her captain
spoke. “We cannot, however, allow this insult to our sovereign to
go unchallenged.”
    “ Soon,” Nevina’s voice had become
a purr once again, “as you watch your men fall, Everard, remember
who it was that caused the bloodshed. Know that it was your own
weakness and cowardice that was your undoing.”
    Ever had gritted his teeth as she
then waved her hand dismissively.
    “ Let’s take our leave of this
place, Captain. We will be back soon enough.” With that they’d
turned, Nevina’s skinny Chien girl hobbling along behind them as
quickly as she could.
    And that was where it had all
begun. Within an hour, the guests had been dismissed, none of them
announced as his bride. For that, Ever had been grateful, but he’d
been given little time to revel. He was immediately called to his
father’s study to choose spies, run through battle scenarios, and
where they had agreed to break the army into two camps, one on the
mountain and one in the valley. It was on that eve that King
Rodrigue had insisted they have no communication between the camps
before they engaged their enemy from the north.
    “ Father, there is one thing I
don’t understand.” Ever had hesitated before returning to his
chambers when they were through. “Why was she even invited? Was I
supposed to ask for her hand in marriage?”
    His father had sighed. “It was a
foolish hope on my part. Our relations have been better these past
few years. I believed we could forge a union between our powers
that would prevent future wars of this sort.”
    “ But their power is not like
ours.” Ever had frowned. “It’s one of deception and darkness. The
Fortress would never abide that sort of queen.”
    “ Everard,” his father had fixed
his gaze on him in a strange way, “I will be honest with you. Where
I once felt the strength of the Fortress run through my blood,
there is emptiness now. I do not feel its direction anymore. It is
up to us now more than ever to protect our home in these strange
times.”
    It had been on that night that
Ever had noticed the extreme dullness of the fire in his father’s
eyes, the slight trembling of his arms and hands. And yet, he had
remained silent.
    Now Rodrigue was dead. And as Ever
stared into the casket in which his father lay, he could see
nothing but the face of the girl.

CHAPTER THREE
    Stronger than Wine

    Find Solomon for me,” Garin instructed one of the
servant girls as she ran past him.
    As far as any guest was concerned,
the coronation ceremony was going splendidly. The aromas of the
seven course feast were wafting out of the kitchens, filling the
halls with the smells of wild boar, aged cheeses, and spiced stews.
Candles lit every corner of the Fortress, making it as bright as
day. Wine flowed freely, making the guests even merrier as they
awaited the coronation of their beloved prince. Unfortunately,
Garin had the feeling that the guests weren’t the only ones
enjoying the drinks tonight.
    He wound his way through the
guests as he quietly searched for Ever. It shouldn’t be so hard to
locate the man who was an hour away from being crowned king. Garin
was thankful that none of the guests seemed to suspect anything.
Even before they had begun to partake of the drinks, their faces
had been alight with the hopes and dreams that rested on Ever’s
shoulders.
    King Rodrigue had been a good king
by most standards, and Garin had sworn his loyalty to him without
question, just as he had done with Rodrigue’s father, and his
father before him, and