Chapter 515
Amara was still reeling from everything she had heard when Candy leaned forward, her bracelets clinking softly as she reached for the tea pot again.
Her smile was deceptively calm, though her sharp eyes were studying the girl’s every twitch and hesitation.
“You may leave now, Amara,” Candy said with a graceful flick of her hand. “You are free to think. I expect you to return with your answer tomorrow, when our guest rises p>
Amara blinked, startled by the sudden dismissal. “O of course, mistress.” She stood quickly, bowing her head to Cherry and Coral in turn.
But her eyes, wide with awe and dread, lingered for a second too long on Coral’s disguised brown hair.
Then she turned and all but fled the balcony, the folds of her simple servant’s dress brushing across the marble floor.
Cherry watched her go with a faint smirk curling her lips. “She runs like a rabbit,” she remarked lightly. “But not away from the snare. I know their type. She will come back p>
Candy raised a brow but said nothing, merely leaning back into the cushions of her seat.
Coral shifted in her chair.
Her hands had been folded neatly in her lap through the whole exchange, but now she fidgeted slightly, her fingers tugging at the seam of her sleeve. Finally, she lifted her gaze to her aunt. “May I… step outside for a little while? Just to take the air p>
Cherry turned her head and studied her niece with a measured look, as if weighing the request against a scale only she could see. Then she smiled faintly.
“Of course, my darling. Fresh air will do you good p>
Coral hesitated for a moment longer, then bit her lip. “But… what if someone notices my hair? I cannot risk being recognized p>
Cherry chuckled softly and lifted her hand in a dismissive gesture. “The enchantment is already back in place. No one will see the truth unless I wish it. What they see now is a plain brown head of hair, nothing more. You are safe p>
Relief flickered across Coral’s face. She nodded once and rose gracefully. Candy, watching her closely, clapped her hands sharply.
“Liora p>
Within moments, the heavy wooden doors of the chamber opened, and a tall young woman in a fitted guard’s coat entered. Her expression was stern but respectful, eyes sharp and alert.
“You will escort Lady Coral,” Candy instructed smoothly, her voice firm as she gestured between the two. “She is to be kept safe at all times. Do not allow her to stray from your sight p>
“Yes, mistress,” the guard and maiden said together in unison, bowing low.
“A woman?” Coral rose a brow in disbelief. “A woman escorting me as my guard p>
“Don’t be sexist Coral.” Cherry said. “I’ve personally seen Liora in action. And I frankly prefer to any male guard p>
Cherry sighed. “Fine. I’ll be leaving then
Cherry gave it with a slight wave of her hand, her expression fond but distant.
With that, Coral swept out of the chamber, the two attendants flanking her.
The door closed softly behind them, leaving only the two older women in the balcony chamber.
A long silence stretched between them, broken only by the soft crackle of the lanterns beginning to glow as twilight deepened.
Candy exhaled slowly and leaned forward, resting her elbows against her knees.
Her eyes, dark and shrewd, searched Cherry’s face. “I confess, I did not think you would still be chasing the crown after all this time p>
Cherry tilted her head back slightly, as though the words were a compliment rather than a criticism.
She smiled, slow and deliberate, a smile that carried secrets. “And why not? Did you think I would so easily surrender what should have been mine p>
Candy gave a short, soft laugh. “No. But I thought you would have learned peace by now. That fire has not burned out of you, has it p>
“Peace,” Cherry repeated the word as though it were foreign. Her gaze drifted out toward the horizon where the first stars were beginning to prick the violet sky. “Peace is the dream of those who have already won, Candy. I have not won. Not yet p>
Candy leaned back against the cushions again, shaking her head with a mixture of amusement and exasperation. “I missed you, you know p>
For the first time, something softened in Cherry’s expression.
She turned her head slowly toward her old companion, her dark eyes suddenly luminous. She reached out, the movement gentle and deliberate, and her fingers traced along Candy’s chin.
“And I missed you,” she murmured, her voice low and rich, carrying the weight of truth.
The words seemed to hang in the air between them, thick and charged.
The distance that had lingered dissolved in that one gesture, in that single brush of skin against skin. Candy’s lips parted slightly, her breath quickening.
The silence that followed was not empty… it pulsed, alive, threaded with years of memory, of shared conspiracies, of nights whispered away in shadows.
The world outside seemed to fall still, as though the evening itself bent in reverence to the tension unfurling between them.
Candy’s hand lifted, slowly, hesitantly, as though she feared breaking the spell. But Cherry caught it effortlessly, cradling it between her own fingers.
She turned it, pressing her lips against the pulse of Candy’s wrist in a kiss that lingered longer than necessary.
The lantern light shimmered across their faces, casting both in half-shadow, half-gold.
And in that moment, the crown, the plots, the secrets, all of it seemed to blur, replaced only by the raw and dangerous tether that had bound them for so long.
Candy drew in a sharp breath. “Cherry p>
Cherry’s lips curled faintly, knowingly. “Yes, dearest p>
The heat in her voice, the invitation in her eyes, needed no explanation.
And then Cherry caught Candy’s chin in her elegant fingers and pulled her towards her.
She embraced her in a ferocious kiss that sent fire, tongues and passion in despair.