Enspelled: A Retelling of the Goose Girl by Aya Ling

Author:Aya Ling [Ling, Aya]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-09-06T04:00:00+00:00

“Princess, are you sure you want another cup of tea?” Cassie said worriedly as she gathered up the empty cup on the table and placed it on a tray.

“Mh-hmm.” I sat back on the sofa and crossed my legs, though what I really wanted was to jump on the bed and roll round and round like a ball.

“But you’ve finished two teapots! Is this what the witch doctor prescribed for your headache?”

I nodded.

“But you don’t look much better.” She stared at my face. “Why don’t you go into the gardens and get some fresh air?”

Yeah, that probably is a better idea. I’ll be running to the bathroom again if I keep drinking.

Outside, the breeze fanned against my face, clearing my head. I had been drinking tea and thinking about the problem of Alistair.

Who wants the prince dead? The witch? But for what reason would she want Alistair’s life?

No, it was more likely someone ordered the witch to kill him. Was it someone from Resan? Someone who didn’t want the marriage alliance to go through?

My foot hit a stone, and I stopped. At the same time, a shadow fell across the grass.

“Princess Aria!” I looked up. Today, she was dressed in an amethyst gown of a simple design, but it fit her torso in a way that showed off her slender figure. If she were born in Japan, she would have been scouted as a model.

“Hello, Rosemary.” She offered her arm. “I see you’re also here for a walk.”

“Er...ha-ha, yes.”

“Would you like to join me?”

With someone as dazzling and charismatic as you?

“Sure!”

Aria tucked my hand under her arm as if she were escorting me and led me down a narrow road lined with handsome trees.

“You look a little pale,” she observed. “Have you seen the witch doctor?”

Yes, and she told me I have to kill Alistair.

“Rosemary? You look like you’ve swallowed a lemon.”

Should I tell her the truth? As the prince’s cousin and the king’s daughter, Aria may have the resources to help me.

But if I blabbed the truth, she’d unearth Anne’s treachery as well. She’d ask why the witch doctor wanted me to kill Alistair, and since she was so good at extracting confessions, she’d find out I was masquerading as Rosemary. I might lose all her goodwill, and I didn’t want that.

Then I remembered poring over a map, trying to find a place to escape to after Rosemary was switched back, and my conclusion was to move to Isonburg, where Aria had a mansion.

“Aria, may I ask you a favor?”

“If it’s something I can do.”

“I have a maid from Resan who’s currently employed in the palace. She has been unhappy because of...of unwanted attention from the boys. Would you be willing to take her in? She confided in me that she would like to work somewhere else—the further from the capital, the better. I believe Isonburg would be ideal for her.”

Aria looked thoughtful. “Hmm. But men are the same everywhere. If she doesn’t learn how to deal with unwanted attention, she’ll encounter the same thing in Isonburg as well.

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