Behind The Palace Walls
1133 Words
Chapter Three
Celyn barely slept.
Every time she closed her eyes, she saw the king standing in that chamber. Those golden eyes. The blood on his arm. And the way he had stared at her pendant as though it belonged to a memory he couldn’t escape.
By morning, she had more questions than answers.
The palace bells rang before sunrise.
Celyn sat up, momentarily forgetting where she was. Then everything returned—the palace, the king, the missing princess, and the pendant beneath her nightdress.
She touched it.
Cold.
Whatever strange warmth had filled it the night before was gone.
She dressed quickly in the clothes Mara had left for her: a long gray dress and white apron. She tied her hair back and stepped into the servants’ corridor.
The palace was already awake.
Servants rushed past carrying trays, buckets, baskets, and folded clothes. Nobody paid much attention to her, which suited Celyn. She preferred watching people when they didn’t know she was watching.
She had spent most of her life being told that questions were dangerous.
At home, questions earned her a slap or another chore.
Here, they earned her whispers, warnings, and frightened looks.
But she had never been this close to answers before.
She didn’t know whether the truth would save her or destroy her.
Still, she wanted it.
For once, she wanted something that belonged to her.
Her own name.
Her own history.
The truth about the woman who had given birth to her.
As she followed the other servants toward the main hall, two girls near the staircase lowered their voices.
“That’s her.”
“The girl from yesterday?”
“Yes.”
Celyn kept walking.
“She’s the reason the king’s wolf went wild.”
“I heard he almost shifted.”
“Then why was the eastern wing sealed?”
Celyn slowed.
The girls noticed her and immediately stopped talking.
One hurried away.
The other stared at Celyn before following.
Celyn frowned.
The king’s wolf had gone wild because of her?
She hadn’t done anything.
Had she?
The memory of the previous night returned—the moment the guard grabbed her wrist and his wolf suddenly fell silent. The fear on his face had been unmistakable.
Then there was Kael.
Why had his wolf reacted to her?
And why did everyone seem to know something about her that she didn’t know herself?
“Celyn.”
She turned.
Mara stood behind her.
“You’re late.”
“Sorry.”
“Come.”
Celyn followed her into the dining hall.
The room was enormous. A long table stretched beneath crystal chandeliers, surrounded by nobles dressed in fine clothing.
Celyn immediately recognized Kael.
He sat at the head of the table.
He wasn’t looking directly at her.
Still, she felt his attention the moment she entered.
Mara handed her a tray.
“Serve the table.”
Celyn nodded.
She moved from one person to another, keeping her eyes lowered while listening to the conversations around her.
“The southern territory has refused the king’s order.”
“They won’t refuse for long.”
“You’re underestimating their numbers.”
“They have no Alpha.”
“They have something worse.”
“What?”
The speaker fell silent.
Celyn continued serving.
Then she reached Kael.
Her hand tightened around the serving spoon.
She placed the dish before him.
“Your Majesty.”
Kael looked at her.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then his gaze settled on her neck.
The pendant was hidden beneath her dress. He couldn’t see it.
Yet somehow, Celyn felt as though he knew it was there.
“Come with me after breakfast.”
Several nobles looked up.
A man three seats away frowned.
“Your Majesty?”
Kael didn’t look at him.
“I said she should come with me.”
The man’s expression darkened.
“She is a servant.”
Kael finally turned.
“And?”
Silence swallowed the room.
The noble cleared his throat.
“I only meant that servants have duties.”
“She has one.”
Kael’s eyes returned to Celyn.
“Serving me.”
Celyn felt the nobles’ eyes burning into her back.
She lowered her head.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
But something told her this had nothing to do with breakfast.
She had only been in the palace for one night, yet she already felt as though she had stepped into the middle of a secret everyone else understood.
The nobles watched her too closely.
The servants whispered when she passed.
And the king looked at her as though he was trying to remember a life she had never lived.
Celyn tightened her grip on the tray and forced herself to keep moving.
After the meal, Celyn waited outside.
Kael emerged several minutes later with two guards.
He stopped when he saw her.
“Walk.”
She obeyed.
They entered a corridor she hadn’t seen before.
There were fewer servants here and more guards. The windows were narrow, and several doors were secured with silver locks.
Then Celyn noticed one door.
A crescent symbol was carved into the wood.
The same symbol she had seen on her pendant.
She stopped.
Kael took another step before realizing she wasn’t beside him.
“What is it?”
Celyn pointed.
“That symbol.”
His expression changed.
“Have you seen it before?”
“On my pendant.”
Kael’s eyes remained on the door.
“Don’t touch it.”
“Why?”
“Because I told you not to.”
Celyn crossed her arms.
“You keep saying that instead of answering my questions.”
His gaze shifted to her.
“You’re very persistent.”
“I’ve been told.”
The corner of his mouth twitched.
For the first time, Celyn was almost certain she saw a smile.
Kael stepped closer.
“Do you know what that symbol means?”
“No.”
“Has anyone explained your pendant to you?”
“My father said it belonged to my mother.”
“And your mother?”
“Died when I was young.”
“Do you remember her?”
Celyn’s expression softened.
“No.”
“Nothing?”
She shook her head.
“Just her voice.”
Kael studied her.
“What did she sound like?”
“I don’t know.”
“Try.”
Celyn closed her eyes.
For a moment, something strange moved through her.
Warmth.
Moonlight.
A woman’s arms around her.
A soft lullaby.
She opened her eyes.
“I remember singing.”
“What song?”
“I don’t know.”
“Any words?”
She shook her head.
“No.”
Kael said nothing.
His eyes remained fixed on her face.
Celyn felt a strange pressure in her chest, as though some forgotten
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