Page 54 of North Queen
Her stomach twisted. There was only one person she trusted implicitly.
Catherine smiled. “For now, one thing at a time, my dear.”
But it was never one thing at a time. Norah swallowed down the lump rising in her throat. If she could just get through this ceremony…
Her heart raced. James had come earlier that morning, giving her the reassurance she had so desperately needed, guiding her toward what she already knew she needed to do. Still, it was hard, and she clenched her hands to keep them from shaking.
“Come now.” Catherine smiled. “It’s time.”
Norah peeked through the double doors to the throne room and felt faint. So many people were inside, surely over a thousand. Her corset and stiff gown did little to help her catch her breath.
“All right, just as we rehearsed,” Catherine directed, prodding her into place. “Yes. You’ll stand out of sight as I enter. I’ll walk to the end. They’ll open the doors again, and then you’ll come.”
Norah nodded as she drew in a deep breath. She could do this, she told herself.
“Smile, my dear,” her grandmother told her. “This will be the first time many have seen you. If it helps, keep your eyes on me as you walk.”
Norah nodded again, and Catherine hugged her tightly. The doors opened, and she waited to the side as the queen regent walked regally down the center of the hall, toward the dais. The guards again closed the doors, and Norah positioned herself behind them. Servants ran quickly around her, adjusting her gown and making sure everything was in place. Time seemed to stop, and she wrung her hands nervously. How long could it possibly take for one to walk to the dais? Was Catherine stopping between each step?
Then the doors swung open, and she wished them closed again. Murmurs rippled through the crowd, and she swallowed as she tried to keep herself calm. Never had she seen so many people—it was more than she thought she’d seen just moments before.
“Your Highness,” her captain, Caspian, murmured from the side. She glanced at him, and he nodded.
Walk.She was supposed to walk.
Slowly, she stepped forward. She took one step, then another. Down the center of the hall she walked—slowly, but all too fast. Her heart raced, and sweat beaded the back of her neck as she clenched together her frozen fingers. Norah looked for her grandmother, but there were too many people. She made her way between the masses on either side, focusing on the red floor runner in front of her.
Focusing.
Following.
Following the red. Dark red.
Dark red like the stained sacks in the back of the wagon in the courtyard. She walked the trail of blood.
Her mind roiled through the past several days, from waking in the forest to this moment. Waking from nothing. Into nothing. Remembering nothing.
Now she was about to be crowned queen. Then she’d wed a man she didn’t know—a man, a mortal. She’d unite their armies of mortals. And then she’d face an enemy beyond mortal men.
And the painting. She knew Catherine had shown it to her to give her courage, but it didn’t give her courage. It scared her. She didn’t know that woman looking back at her—that woman who would take the Shadow throne. What if she couldn’t be her? Perhaps the woman she used to be could have. But nother. Notnow.
She slowed.
Everything was happening too fast, and the moment hit her. Hard. The throngs of people were so close.Too close.There were so many.Too many.The hall seemed to grow smaller. Each step she took came slower, yet faster—shorter, but longer.
She couldn’t do this.
She couldn’t breathe.
And she stopped.
Whispers breezed through the crowded hall. All eyes were on her—as were their expectations, their judgements. And she could only stand there. She combed the front for her grandmother, but she couldn’t find her. She couldn’t move.
Then she saw Alexander.
He stood just to the right of the dais, close to her chair. Near to her—where he promised he’d always be. He waited, straight and formal, but his smile was warm. He gave her a reassuring nod.
Air filled her lungs. She could breathe.
