The Princess Game: A Reimagining of Sleeping Beauty (The Four Kingdoms Book 4) Read online

  The Princess Game

  A Reimagining of Sleeping Beauty

  Melanie Cellier

  Luminant Publications

  THE PRINCESS GAME – A REIMAGINING OF SLEEPING BEAUTY

  Copyright © 2017 by Melanie Cellier

  First edition published in 2017 (v1.2)

  by Luminant Publications

  All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, stored in, or introduced into a database or retrieval system, in any form, or by any means, without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  ISBN 978-0-6480801-0-7

  Luminant Publications

  PO Box 203

  Glen Osmond, South Australia 5064

  [email protected]

  http://www.melaniecellier.com

  Cover Design by Karri Klawiter

  Created with Vellum

  For my readers

  you encourage and inspire me

  Contents

  Family Tree

  Map

  Prologue

  I. Celeste and Aurora

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  II. Wind and Waves

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  III. Island of Thorns

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Epilogue

  Note from the Author

  Family Tree

  Map

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Family Tree

  Prologue

  Prince Frederic frowned down at the report the steward had just handed him. He would need to take the news to his father as soon as possible.

  “There you are, Frederic!”

  He looked up and forced a smile for his younger sister. There was no point worrying Celeste about it, she wouldn’t understand anyway. “Have you been looking for me?”

  She nodded happily. “All over.”

  He watched her expectantly, but she just smiled at him. “Did you want something?” He kept his voice gentle. He didn’t want to upset her, but the bad news he’d just received made it hard to concentrate.

  Her face crinkled in confusion. “I suppose I must have…”

  After a moment’s awkward silence, which she didn’t seem to find awkward at all, she pointed at the report in his hands. “What’s that? Something lovely, I hope.”

  He bit his lip and glanced back down at the report. Once he would have happily gone to his young sister for advice, but that time had long since past. Now he just wanted to shield her from unnecessary worry.

  “Oh!” She clapped her hands, not seeming to notice his hesitation. “Is it another wedding?”

  He stared at her. “Wedding?”

  “Don’t you remember? The last letter for Mother was about Cordelia’s engagement. Silly!” She giggled.

  He wanted to roll his eyes at the idea of Celeste calling him silly, but he stopped himself. It wasn’t her fault she’d been cursed, after all. He considered trying to explain to her that the letter about their sister’s engagement hadn’t been the last letter their mother had received, just the last one she had shown Celeste. Or that he held a report, not a letter. But he decided the effort would strain them both far too much.

  He couldn’t resist a small joke, however. “Who would be getting married? Cassian, perhaps?” He suppressed a chuckle at the idea of his reserved younger brother in love.

  “Cassian? Getting married? Is he, really?” Celeste looked excited at the idea, and he groaned.

  “No. I spoke in jest. Who would he be marrying?”

  “I don’t know.” She frowned before brightening. “But I didn’t know who Cordelia was marrying before her letter either.”

  Frederic resisted the urge to massage his aching head. “Yes, but Cordelia has been in Northhelm the entire winter. Cassian lives here, with us.”

  With each passing year, it became harder to remember that Celeste had once been the brightest of them all. The memory of what had been stolen from her, from their whole family, brought an unusual moment of rage. Once she had challenged him, now she just exasperated him. And he worried that one day he would forget and lose all patience with her.

  “It’s Cassian’s birthday today,” said Celeste, apparently ignoring what was too complicated for her to understand.

  Frederic stiffened. Cassian’s birthday celebration. He’d almost forgotten. A good thing Celeste had come to find him, whatever her original reason had been. He could talk to his father about the report while they ate.

  “You’re right,” he said, taking Celeste’s elbow and steering her in the right direction. “And we’re going to be late for his birthday meal.”

  Part I

  Celeste and Aurora

  Chapter 1

  “The latest shipment of medical supplies for the palace doctors never arrived.” My brother directed the comment at our father.

  I carefully kept my eyes on my plate. So, that had been the news in the report. The one he wouldn’t talk to me about. At least I’d managed to get him to Cassian’s meal on time.

  But another missing delivery? That was…what? The third this month?

  King Leonardo frowned at his eldest son and heir. “That’s unusual. Does the fault lie on our end or with the merchants?”

  I glanced at them both out of the corner of my eye. It wasn’t the first shipment to go missing, but apparently it was the first that the steward had reported to my family.

  Even I had attributed the first one to natural causes. But, the first one had been two months ago, and I had been concerned for some time now. It seemed the steward had a less suspicious nature.

  I looked over at Cassian, my second oldest brother. He seemed unperturbed at having his birthday meal disturbed by such a conversation. He hadn’t wanted anything extravagant for the day; he never did. Perhaps it still felt strange to him to celebrate without his twin, Clarisse, who had long since married and was living in Rangmere.

  “Did the merchants have an excuse?” he asked. “They’re usually reliable.”

  They claim to have delivered the supplies to the palace gate, I thought.

  “Apparently they’re claiming they made the delivery,” said Frederic. “And they want payment.”

  I hadn’t received a report on this particular incident yet, but I didn’t need to. I’d read about four previous ones.

  My father sighed. “Lanover may be the wealthiest of the kingdoms, but that doesn’t mean we will let ourselves be cheated.”

  I sti
ffened. Something strange was definitely going on, but I hadn’t been able to trace it to its source yet, and trouble with the merchants was the last thing we needed right now. If my father refused to pay, every travelling merchant caravan in the kingdom might decide to head for the borders as fast as they could go.

  I opened my mouth, and then shoved a spoonful of cake in before anyone noticed. I knew better than to try to contribute to the conversation. The curse would never allow it. A splitting headache wouldn’t help anything, and I needed to hear my father’s decision.

  “Blatant disrespect!” barked my uncle. Uncle Horace disapproved of irregularity. “Don’t pay them a single coin.”

  I forgot myself for a moment and snorted, but the sound twisted in my throat and emerged as a giggle. My uncle glared at me.

  I rushed to cover up my lapse. “I don’t think one coin would be enough.” I giggled again, this time intentionally. “The merchants always charge so much for the beautiful material they bring for my dresses.”

  Everyone stared at me.

  “They might get angry if you only paid them one coin.” I smiled around at them all with an innocent expression, hoping they would understand my hint.

  A momentary pause ensued, as everyone tried to think of a response. My youngest sister, Celine, rolled her eyes, and returned her attention to her slice of cake. Frederic shook his head slightly and Cassian looked at me pityingly.

  After an extended silence, my brothers turned back to my father. I maintained my artless smile, although my teeth clenched behind it. I had clearly been dismissed, the foolish child interrupting the conversation of the adults. The three of them were about to let Uncle Horace’s pride precipitate them into a kingdom-wide crisis and, thanks to my curse, I was powerless to stop it.

  I knew more about what was going on than any of them, and yet they had all looked embarrassed for me. The poor Sleeping Princess. Foolish Celeste, thinking she could contribute something to the conversation.

  I knew it wasn’t their fault. I knew it was only because of the curse but, for a moment, anger and frustration overwhelmed my good sense. I opened my mouth to speak and was instantly seized by a coughing fit.

  Once again I had the attention of everyone at the table, with the exception of Celine who seemed far too focussed on her plate. I suspected she was plotting something, but I struggled to bring my thoughts into line while the coughs still wracked my body.

  I held up my fork, and the curse loosened its grip, allowing me enough air to speak. “A crumb.” I smiled weakly, my eyes still watering from the attack.

  My father sighed and recommended I have some water. I meekly obeyed, my eye catching on one of the footman, who had come to clear away the empty dishes. I recognised him immediately. He didn’t usually wait on our family meals, but then we didn’t usually eat the midday meal together at all. Extra servants had been brought in for the special birthday occasion.

  He was one of my agents and a good one too. If I hadn’t known to watch him closely, even I wouldn’t have noticed him slip the note into the loose crack of the sideboard, the hiding place where we regularly exchanged messages. My fingers itched to retrieve it, but the curse kept me in my chair. I had already forgotten myself once tonight, and I didn’t look forward to the consequences if I slipped up again.

  Surely the note held information about the latest missing shipment. Perhaps it even included some new clue. It might contain some piece of evidence that would convince my father not to make a rash move. But it remained hidden away, impossibly out of reach.

  Of course, my agent had no idea his spymaster sat so close to him. He believed, like my own family, that I was nothing more than the Sleeping Princess. All thanks to my aunt.

  A wave of icy cold crept down from my scalp, although my face remained calm. I had long ago subjugated my external reactions. Stillness and a smile were always the safest postures when a wrong look or word could produce a coughing fit or crippling pain. I assumed the pose instinctively now whenever my mind or emotions threatened to break free of the lie I was forced to live.

  And nothing threatened my calm façade like the thought of my absent aunt. Which is why I generally tried to avoid thinking of her. I needed a clear head, not one clouded by hatred.

  Unfortunately, it’s hard not to hate someone who tried to serve you a death sentence when you were only a few days old.

  I took a deep breath. I usually kept my emotions under better control. I had to, since I was only truly safe from the curse when I was alone. In public, the more I played along, the more license the curse seemed to give me. These days, I usually uttered foolish statements and gave empty smiles without even thinking about it.

  “I suppose we’ll have to pay first while we investigate what happened to the supplies,” said my father, pulling my attention back to the table. “It’s best not to upset the merchants over something that may turn out to be a misunderstanding.”

  I let out a silent breath of relief as everyone began to get up from the table. Perhaps I didn’t give my father enough credit.

  Celine rushed over and grabbed my arm. “Come on. I want to show you something.”

  I let her pull me awkwardly towards the door, giving me the opportunity to bump against the sideboard. With a quick, subtle movement, I retrieved the hidden note and tucked it into my dress. I wanted to slip away alone, so I could read it, but Celine had a firm grip on my arm and whispered that it was about a dress. So I could hardly refuse–everyone knew Princess Celeste loved nothing so much as gowns and fashion.

  When we reached her room, Celine gestured for me to sit on the bed and then threw me a book.

  I fumbled the catch on purpose before looking down at it in confusion. “This isn’t a dress.”

  Celine slumped down beside me. “Thanks for that observation, Celeste, I never would have realised.”

  I suppressed a sigh. “I’m sure you said something about a dress…”

  “What’s the hurry? It’s not as if we have anything else to do.” She glanced sadly at the rain falling against her window. “I found this book in the library and wanted to show you a hilarious bit. Have you read it? Back before, I mean.”

  I examined the title. A history of my family. I had read it, of course. I had spent a lot of time in the library before I turned sixteen. Now, I could only study in private–the curse deemed studying an unsuitable occupation.

  I frowned down at it in concentration, and Celine shook her head. “Never mind. I’m sure you wouldn’t remember anyway. It’s about our family. Read it, and I’ll tell you when you get to the right bit.”

  I began to read, Celine peering at the page over my shoulder.

  Once upon a time, in the southernmost kingdom of Lanover, a handsome king married a beautiful queen.

  The first line jolted my memory. This was the history book that read more like a fairy tale. What about it had caught Celine’s interest?

  Everyone said that their children would be the most beautiful princes and princesses that the kingdom had ever seen. And, in due time, the king and queen had a handsome little boy. The young prince was soon followed by twins – another handsome boy and a beautiful princess. The whole kingdom exclaimed at her beauty.

  I forced my breathing to remain even. Celine had grown up with this story and was obviously so familiar with it that it had lost its significance for her. It didn’t even seem to occur to her that it might be a painful topic for me.

  A sudden urge to throw the book away gripped me but, if I did, I would suffer the consequences. The curse wanted me to play along, to act as oblivious as Celine clearly believed me to be. And a small part of me wanted to reread the disaster that had been my birth. I could sense the imminent tragedy hovering over the story as he described my older siblings’ arrivals.

  The people soon celebrated the arrival of a third prince, and when the queen fell pregnant again, they began to call the royal family blessed. Their fifth child was another girl, and the court exclaimed that she was
as beautiful as her sister had been.

  I paused for a moment, closing my eyes. If only my story had ended there. Another equally beautiful princess, and they all lived happily ever after.

  The king and queen planned a lavish Christening for their new daughter, who was to be named Celeste, and invited all the nobles in the land.

  I shook my head. If only that had been true, if only they hadn’t made one, very notable, exception. I wished, as I had a thousand times, that I understood why they had failed to invite my aunt. My parents had always refused to talk about her at all. But perhaps they had already guessed the craziness that obviously lurked within. Perhaps they had simply picked the wrong way to try to protect me.

  I turned back to the page, expecting to read about what had happened next, but instead found several paragraphs describing the decorations of the great hall, the clothing of the guests and my infant beauty. I witnessed my own stunning beauty every day in the mirror, yet even I didn’t quite believe the extravagance of his descriptions. And I somehow doubted that my Christening had been more lavish than every other event my parents had hosted in the nineteen years since.