She narrowed her eyes. “Arwyn. You missed your lessons and lunch. So tell me one thing: how long has this affair been going on with you and Lord Raydir?”

I stepped backwards, unsure of how to respond.

“Arwyn Magnolia Kingston,” my mother said rather calmly. “Answer my question. How long have you—”

“Mother, why must you ruin everything?” I winced at how childish I sounded. “Why does it matter to you if Ray and I are”—I wanted to choose my next words carefully—“hanging out so much? You had no issue with it when we were young. What changed?”

“Darling, you know very well what changed.” She narrowed her eyes, clasping and unclasping her hands in front of her.

I groaned. “You cannot blame everything on the feud! Raydir has been my best friend since I was nine years old, and you know that. But unlike you and Father, I cannot let the feud come between us. I won’t let it come between us. Lord Alexander had nothing to do with the faulty carriage. Just because it belonged to the other dukedom doesn’t mean…” I shook my head. “This has gone on for too long. Maybe it’s time to try and find out the truth rather than using Alvenora as a scapegoat.”

I stormed past her and ran up the stairs to my room where I promptly slammed the door and flopped down onto my bed.

Why did this have to be so hard? Why did every little thing have to be about the feud?

A knock sounded at my door, and Ginny poked her head in the room, carrying a tray.

“Lady Arwyn, please pardon the intrusion. I thought you might want some tea and biscuits after the conversation with your mother.”

That piqued my interest. I sat up. “Did you bring those peanut butter biscuits from when I was a kid?”

Ginny smiled. “It wouldn’t be tea without them. Shall I serve?”

I gestured to the table in the corner of my room. “I still can’t believe after all this time, you remembered the biscuits.”

“I’ve been caring for you since you were a baby, Arwyn. And I cared for your sister before you. She, too, loved these peanut butter biscuits.”

I hugged my knees to my chest at the mention of my sister. Arabella had been killed five years ago in an accident that promptly started the feud between Gwyniar and Alvenora. “Yeah, I remember that.”

My mind trailed off to a faint memory of rainy days when Arabella and I would run around the kitchen while Ginny prepped the biscuits then sat in front of the oven, waiting for them to bake. When the timer would go off, we would squeal with happiness as Ginny took them out of the oven to cool. “I wonder what she would say if she knew I was sneaking out to see Ray. Given, you know.”

I thought back to the day of my sister’s ceremony. I never even had time to say good-bye. And here I was, about to follow exactly in her footsteps.

Ginny brought over a small plate and cup of tea, handing them to me. “You must miss her terribly.”

“She protected me. Even if she thought I was wrong. And that’s all I could ever ask for in a big sister. Five years without her has been too long. Every day since, I suspected that Mother knew about my relationship with Raydir. And every time I think about that, I feel guilty.”

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“Guilty for following your heart?” Her gaze traveled to the new necklace that was clasped against my throat. “Wanting to hold onto him is a natural feeling.”

I shook my head. “Guilty because I’m doing the exact same thing Bella was doing before she died: sneaking around with someone from Alvenora.”

“No one could’ve predicted the accident.” Ginny sipped at her tea.

“That’s true. But Father just had to blame Lord Alexander for what happened to the carriage. He knows,” I trailed off with a heavy sigh. “He knows it was an accident. No one could’ve predicted the wheels popping off the track or the carriage turning over on that windy road.”

Ginny reached out to brush her thumb over my cheeks. I hadn’t even noticed the tears that had trickled from my eyes. “She would be so proud of you today, Arwyn, to see the young woman you have become.”

I sniffled, this time swiping my own hand across my face. “Yeah. I just wish she was still here.”

A knock sounded at the door. Ginny jumped up and hurried to clear away the empty tray.

“Come in,” I called.

My mother appeared in the doorway, her hands clasped in front of her elegant blue gown. “Arwyn, darling, your father and I would like you to join us in the Great Hall for dinner. There is much we need to discuss.” Her voice had softened from earlier.

“I’m not hungry.” I refused to meet her gaze, staring instead across the room where Ginny stood wringing her hands nervously.

“Ginny, would you give us a minute?” my mother asked.

Ginny dipped her head in acknowledgement, picked up the tray, then promptly left the room.

“Mother—” I started to say but she cut me off with a flick of her wrist.

“Arwyn, I know this time must be difficult for you. With your twenty-first birthday approaching, there have to be a lot of feelings coming up for you. Regarding Lord Raydir, I know how you care for him. I understand those feelings can’t just go away overnight,”

“He’s my best friend,” I muttered. “I can’t just let him go.”

Her expression softened, and she reached a hand out toward me. Hesitantly, I took it. “Sweetheart, please join us for dinner later. It would mean a lot to your father and me to spend this time with you before your Fate Ceremony.”

There it was: the catch. This was all about the Fate Ceremony. It wasn’t about spending quality time together as a family because they wanted to. It never was. It was only because they had to before I signed my life away to be with someone chosen by the fates.

“Arwyn?”

“Fine.” I wretched my hand out of her grasp and walked with her to the door. “I’ll see you downstairs.”

A crease appeared between her eyebrows as she addressed me with a nod before leaving my room.

Locking the door firmly behind her, I moved over to my wardrobe and pulled out a dress. It was a long-sleeved, blue slim-fitting dress. Simple yet elegant.

Looking in the mirror, I glanced at my appearance: the way my hair fell in ringlets after tumbling out of its braid; how the necklace from Raydir caught the late afternoon light. It was more elegant than I ever expected.

My heart swelled just thinking about how things had changed around the palace. Dinners these days were difficult without Arabella to run interference. She always knew the right thing to say when I would fight with our parents.

If I had told her I didn’t want to go through with my ceremony, she would have supported me because that’s what she always did.

With the ceremony now only a few days away, I could only hope that the fates were on my side. I couldn’t bear the thought of leaving Raydir behind.

The sun was still high in the sky, so I knew there was time before I had to see my parents. So many things were happening in only a short amount of time.

Maybe Darqua was an option. Maybe following what our families—and fate—wanted for us was best.

Glancing around the room, I sighed. One way or another, I needed to get out of here.

The me of five years ago would have zero hesitation to climb out the window and make an escape.

But I was twenty-one. It was about damn time to face the music.