Chapter 26

Before I have a chance to brace myself, Arden pushes the door in, revealing the room to me. My breath catches in my throat.

They must have brought me to the wrong room by mistake because the room I started into had to be more than triple the size of the room I stayed in the last time I was here. It's spacious and light and even the air feels more crisp in here.

To my immense surprise, there's a *window* carved into the gray stone. There's no glass in the window, and instead, shutters have been attached to the rock at the window's smoothed circular edges making it possible to close them if necessary. Sunlight filters into the room, hitting the stone walls in such a way that it causes the embedded crystals to sparkle. The room shimmers and as I step into the room, giving everything an ethereal and dreamlike quality.

Similar to the last room I stayed in, there are tapestries on the walls, though the ones adorning this room are light and delicate with frilled edges and more variety of colors. There's a fireplace built into the left side of the room and the surrounding stone is painted a creamy shade of white, adding a lightness and contrast to the natural stone.

On the opposite wall stands a bookcase that spans the entire length of the floor to the ceiling, filled with shelf after shelf of books. A happy thrill flickers down my spine at the sight of so many books and I can't wait to go through them all-discover what's there. Among the books scattered throughout the room are vases of brightly colored wildflowers adding flashes of color.

At the back, center of the room is a large bed done up in a shade of robins-egg blue-creamy and light and draped with frothy white canopies. It's piled high with enough pillows to drown myself in. Beautiful and comfortable-looking. I don't think I've ever seen a bed look so inviting.

My eyes catch on a tall white object tucked into the corner against the bookshelf. The unexpected sight sends a jolt through me and all I can do is blink as I absorb what I'm seeing. The curved white instrument shines softly in the sunlight, and the strings glint happily, asking to be played.

*A harp*.

But how did he know.

Realization dawns on me like a splash of cold water. My gaze flickers around the room for a second time, taking everything in again with new eyes. My stomach clenches and flutters at what I find. The room is filled with everything I'd jokingly asked the King Lothbrook for the last time I was here. I rifle through the memory, finding that it's all there. And I don't know whether that fact makes me want to laugh or cry.

Arden interrupts my reeling thoughts by saying, "You'll find that there are no chains, unfortunately, but surely you'll find a way to be comfortable regardless."

A laugh slips out of me at the joke and I turn to face the two shifter guards still standing in the doorway, both eyeing me with watchful expressions.

"It's beautiful. But--" I clear my throat uncomfortably, my hands clenching awkwardly into the fabric of my riding dress, "I mean, are you sure that it's meant for *me*? Are you sure we're in the right place?"

Arden snickers, "Yes, we're sure. We'll wait out for you in the hallway while you get cleaned up. I was told that some clothes should fit you in the armoire and a tray of food was sent up for you that should be here soon. When you're done dressing, we'll show you around the castle."

Like Arden told me, there's an array of clothing hung neatly in the room's armoire. I don't know what to do with the fact that it's all close to my size. This room can't possibly have been made up for *me*. But the tiny details make it impossible to deny that fact.

After washing my face and combing through my hair, I pull out a dress from the closet, barely looking at it before slipping it over my head. It's a happy shade of blue with white flowers dotting across the airy fabric. The dress clings fitted around my breasts and stomach before loosening in breezy waves around my hips and legs while the shoulders dip ever so subtly off my shoulders.

I give myself a quick once over in the mirror to make sure I'm presentable to be moving out and around the palace. I don't have the patience to do anything for my hair and it hangs in long loose waves down my back. I can't help but notice that the shade of blue complements the icy color of my skin and hair nicely, makes my skin appear to have a more rosy hue to my cheeks than I do, and gives light to my gray eyes.

Satisfied that I'm decent enough, I slip on the pair of flat slippers I'd come here in and make my way to the door. Arden and Xavier are right where they said that they'd be.

Arden eyes my dress up and down, and grins, "That color suits you, Princess."

Embarrassed heat rises to my cheeks, "Thank you."

"Let's be off then," Xavier says, turning on his heel to lead the way down the hallway yet again.

They'd mentioned that they were planning to show me around the castle, but curiosity got the better of me and I asked, "Where are you taking me?"

"If you're going to be living here for the time being, you'll want to have a basic understanding of how to get around the place," Xavier explains, tone denoting that it should be obvious, "The halls around here are almost impossible to keep track of. It's easy to get lost around here if you don't know what to look for."

He's right. From what I've seen, all of the tunnels look the same. But his matter-of-fact statement throws me off balance, and I turn to squint up at him, "You meanI'm not going to be confined to my room?"

"Confinement is only for prisoners and hostages, Princess," Arden drawls, "We're told that during your stay this time around you're neither of those things."

*Confinement is only for prisoners and hostages.* There's no real reason that those words should sting and linger as long as they do. I don't let myself think about my usual state of isolation in the Seelie Court. Being kept alone for my health is different, though, right? *Right*? For some reason, that statement doesn't ring as true as it used to.