Chapter 1
Princess Bianca was missing. It had been a week since she had disappeared from her room in the castle where the royal family spent their summers on the night of her engagement to Sir Ari of Willowmere, and nobody knew where she could possibly be, not even her twin brother Thomas, who knew her better than everyone else.
Word spread quickly across the entire kingdom that her father, King Albrecht, was heartbroken and frantically in search of her—she was the mirror image of her late mother, Queen Bathilde, who had been beloved by all the people of Arnés. He offered gold, jewels, and a place in court for anyone who could find her—in addition to his eternal gratitude.
The people of Willowmere, who knew that Ari was a born flirt with a weakness for adventure and sharp-tongued girls, had no doubt that the princess had run away because of something he had done. Although his parents, Lord George and Lady Arabella were good friends with the King, and were also highly respected by all the residents of the town they governed, the same could not be said for Ari.
In fact, many secretly felt that he deserved to have his fiancée abandon him. Still, there were some reports going around that Princess Bianca had been seen cavorting with the fae folk and witches who lurked in the forests bordering Willowmere, so some of the other townspeople felt that perhaps there was more to the story than anyone else was letting on.
Despite the ambivalent feelings they had for Sir Ari, they shared no such reservations about their king. King Albrecht had always been just and fair, and he deserved to know where his daughter was. The townspeople were happy to join his search.
But not all were interested in joining the search for such altruistic reasons.
Tanya, a peasant girl who had never met her father because he had abandoned her mother before she was even born, could not fathom the depth of the king’s love for his daughter.
She was an ambitious young woman who wanted to leave town to start her own business and explore the world. So even though she wasn’t all that interested in eternal gratitude or in a place in court, the thought of gold and jewels made her hazel eyes sparkle so brightly that the nosy old woman who lived in the cottage next door to hers asked her if she was betrothed to someone.
“No, Rosie, I have no beau,” replied Tanya. “Sorry to disappoint you.”
“Well, dearie, you must find one soon! A beauty like you shouldn’t end up like that crazy mother of yours. What about that handsome young man who is always hanging around your cottage?”
“Seth is just my friend and business partner, Rosie,” said Tanya.
The old woman cackled. “I’ve seen the way that boy looks at you, my dear. He is no friend.”
Tanya sighed. “If you say so.”
Rosie began to speak again, but was drowned out by the sound of trumpets announcing the arrival of the king’s soldiers, and Tanya ran towards the town square, happy to finally escape the old woman’s nosy questions.
