Suddenly, the skin on Allegra’s cheeks tingled as if singed. She was certain that The Which of Front Tier had looked right at her. The last in line and the only female magi seer, she had taken the widest path to her position before the monarchs, and her arc had swept her closest to the now trembling Allegra.

So regal was the bearing of The Which that Allegra wondered if the average citizen would choose her as the true queen, had Allegra’s own mother not been seated on the throne. In addition to her exceedingly exotic aura, The Which was adorned with a luminous amber stone embedded in her forehead like a third eye. It served as both tiara and testament to her position and had been painfully placed there when The Which was very young, shortly after she had exhibited an ability to divine events.

The Which didn’t acknowledge Allegra as she passed, and now stood silently before the king and queen, seemingly uninterested in exposing her hiding place. That good fortune would not last long.

Geneva crept back up to Allegra like a winter’s chill and draped over her shoulder like a cloak.

“I can’t see,” Geneva proclaimed peevishly.

In a blink, Olaf’s eyes were on them. His movements were so subtle as to be almost imperceptible. He lightly touched Queen Nor’s shoulder with a waft of his wrist and, when her eyes met his, lifted his chin slightly and without expression toward the open chamber door. Allegra saw her mother see them. The queen’s brow twitched into a slight furrow, and her lips compressed into a thin line of wry disapproval. Wordlessly, she rose from her throne and approached.

“Nicely done, Geneva,” Allegra purred, perturbed but not angry.

Allegra kept her eyes defiantly forward, but she could feel Geneva wilting behind her.

Queen Nor stepped up to them with an unwavering gaze of her own. “Darling, you know better.”

Allegra thought she caught the smallest of smiles at the corners of Nor’s mouth. “Why can’t I be a party to this?” Allegra asked. “I doubt it will change my fate.”

The Tellers turned as much as decorum would allow. Xander the Firm rubbed his forehead firmly.

“Don’t be petulant, Allegra,” the queen cautioned. “You have everything else you could possibly wish for.”

“Except freedom.”

Allegra saw a flash in her mother’s eyes that reminded her of why Nor was equal in power to Xander. That glint of steel was the reason the chambermaids liked to refer to the crowned couple as King and Queen Neither and Nor. The queen’s tone remained measured.

“You should be honored,” the queen said. “It is your sacrifice that keeps this kingdom safe.”

“Then, obviously, I am well pleased.” Allegra’s verbal curtsy was more ironic and effective than if she had done it physically.

Nor considered her daughter for a moment. She gave in to a fleeting smile that was thin but not without pride. Still, she closed the door in Allegra’s face without comment.