Chapter 1
masking unease
Nelia shivered as she stepped through the green arch. Each room was more exquisite than the last. With each item more beautiful than the one before, she lost her ability to feign disinterest. Instead, her eyes widened more and her open mouth hung lower.
When she had first arrived at the palace, she had been determined not to look around in awe. She didn’t want to seem uncouth. Mother had done a good job of instilling a minimum amount of pride in her. The last thing she wished was to give the impression that she never saw fine things in her life. Perhaps her faded dress screamed that gold chairs should impress her, but Nelia was single-minded in not giving the palace staff any reason to pity her. She had come for so much more than the luxury; she had come for ans
