Three Dark Crowns

Book cover

***Three Dark Crowns*** is the first book in the *Three Dark Crowns* series by Kendare Blake.

## Synopsis

*When kingdom come, there will be one.*

In every generation on the island of Fennbirn, a set of triplets is born—three queens, all equal heirs to the crown and each possessor of a coveted magic. Mirabella is a fierce elemental, able to spark hungry flames or vicious storms at the snap of her fingers. Katharine is a poisoner, one who can ingest the deadliest poisons without so much as a stomachache. Arsinoe, a naturalist, is said to have the ability to bloom the reddest rose and control the fiercest of lions.

But becoming the Queen Crowned isn’t solely a matter of royal birth. Each sister has to fight for it. And it’s not just a game of win or lose…it’s life or death. The night the sisters turn sixteen, the battle begins.

The last queen standing gets the crown.

## Plot

Queen Katharine is one of three triplets, each blessed with a different gift and trained far away from each other in their discipline. One of the three will kill the other two and rule their kingdom of Fennbirn Island.

Katharine is a poisoner, and the youngest triplet. Today is her sixteenth birthday and she is preparing for the *Gave Noir*. She is frail and weak after many years of ingesting poisons. But she must make the best showing possible at the ball tonight. Katharine lives with the Arron family, a prestigious family of poisoners who have raised the last three generations of poisoner queens. The head of the family, Natalia Arron, and her sister Genevieve Arron inspect Katharine before the *Gave Noir*. Genevieve keeps saying how Katharine is too skinny, the scars from previous poisonings will show, and her gift is not strong.

Natalia announces Katharine to the guests. The introductions begin. Katharine begins feeling overwhelmed. She is graciously rescued by Pietyr Renard, Natalia’s nephew, when he asks her to dance. Natalia calls Katharine to the feast. She must eat the poisoned food to demonstrate her strength. Katharine eats through it as quickly as possible and impresses the crowd, but she cannot escape before the effects hit. She vomits the meal onto the table and falls to the floor. No one will help her because of this disgrace. She curls up on the floor and falls unconscious.

Arsinoe, the second sister, is with her best friend Jules Milone and Jules’ familiar Camden, a mountain cat. Jules is the strongest naturalist in sixty years. Arsinoe’s gift has not developed yet. The girls go to the Winter Market and are called into Luke Gillespie’s bookshop for sandwiches and cake. Jules is worried about the Beltane Festival and the Ascension Year because she wants Arsinoe to live. Luke privately tells Jules that he is confident she will be the next queen because the Goddess put the strongest naturalist, Jules, in Wolf Spring to protect her.

At Arsinoe’s sixteenth birthday celebration in town, Jules and Arsinoe make their way to the main tent after sampling other tents’ wares. Jules’ grandparents, Cait Milone and Ellis Milone, are entertaining the guest from the Black Council, the *only* guest from the Council. The council member, Renata Hargrove, tells the girls Joseph Sandrin is returning from his banishment. They cannot believe it and wonder how much he has changed. He was banished when they were younger when the three tried to sail away from the island to save Arsinoe from her fate.

Mirabella, the third sister, is the one most likely to take the crown. Her people, the elementals, are excited to see one of their own finally conquer the poisoners. Mirabella is demonstrating her abilities by summoning lightning for the pilgrims, who are not impressed until she also summons wind. The pilgrims are from all over the island, just to see the naturalist queen in action. Mirabella summons a third element, earth, to create an earthquake and the crowd roars in response.

Mirabella lives with her foster family, the Westwoods. That night Mirabella has yet another nightmare about killing her sisters. In the morning she finds her foster sister and best friend, Bree Westwood. They are interrupted by six priestesses who lets Mirabella know that she has been summoned to the temple by High Priestess Luca. No queen has ever been favored by a High Priestess quite like Mirabella. The Temple is supposed to be neutral. At the temple, Luca teases Mirabella about her weak water skills. She says she has a favor to ask of Mirabella. A group of priestesses leads her to a secluded area, where a young priestess is there and willing to sacrifice her life to Mirabella. Mirabella is not happy at this test.

Back at the Arrons’ home, Greavesdrake Manor, Natalia is using a nettle tincture on Katharine to punish her for failing at the *Gave Noir*. Katharine’s pet snake, Sweetheart, is missing as well, and is presumed dead. Afterwards, Giselle, Katharine’s maid, attempts to soothe Katharine’s blisters with a lukewarm bath.

Natalia receives a surprise visit from Pietyr. He does not want Mirabella to win the crown because he thinks it will be the priestesses ruling if she does. Natalia agrees and is certain it would make the whole island weaker if the Arrons were replaced with the Westwoods on the Black Council. Pietyr tells Natalia that he wants to make Katharine more beautiful and help her with her poisoning abilities to make people want to fight for her as they will fall in love with her. In exchange for helping her ascend to the throne, Pietyr wants a seat on the Black Council. Natalia agrees. He then goes to Katharine’s room to tell her about the plan. He promises to make her the first one that the suitors will think about.

Arsinoe walks with Jules to meet Joseph. Jules is nervous that he will be unrecognizable after five years apart. She believes they all should have been punished, not just him. Arsinoe leaves Jules at the docks, saying that she and Joseph deserve to reunite first. All of Jules’ hesitation vanishes when Joseph rushes towards Jules as soon as he sees her. He is surprised to see Camden and to discover that Arsinoe does not have a familiar yet. Autumn, a priestess from the Wolf Spring Temple, tries to make Joseph come to the temple to worship, but Joseph declines. Joseph tells Jules he has people he wants to introduce her and Arsinoe to, especially his foster brother William Chatworth Jr.

Jules’ mother, Madrigal Milone, takes Arsinoe hunting with her and her familiar Aria. Arsinoe soon discovers that Madrigal really invited her to help orchestrate a love spell between Jules and Joseph using low magic. Low magic is looked down on and forbidden. It is also a wilder form of magic and has a kick-back. Unlike gifts, there is a cost for using it, and it can be uncontrollable or have unintended consequences. Madrigal has some of Jules’ hair and material from Joseph’s clothes. At first Arsinoe agrees to help and uses her blood to bind Jules and Joseph together. But she begins to feel guilt and throws the spell in the fire. It burns with a foul smell and Madrigal becomes very upset.

Mirabella is devastated by what she had to do to the young priestess at the cliffs. While thinking about what happened, Mirabella meets Elizabeth, an initiate of the temple with a woodpecker familiar named Pepper. Priestesses are supposed to renounce their gifts, including naturalists giving up their familiar. But Elizabeth does not want to relinquish Pepper until she is sure she is going to make the ranks. Elizabeth tells Mirabella the sacrifice was Rho Murtra’s idea. Mirabella knows Rho is brutal, but also knows she will be a good ally when the battle for the crown begins.

Meanwhile, Rho speaks with Luca because she is worried Mirabella is too soft. She performed the sacrifice, but it was clear she did not enjoy it. They discuss how Mirabella has to rise to the occasion because the next set of triplets will be born when they are both long gone. Luca is worried the Arrons will maintain their hold on the Black Council, keeping it out of the Temple’s control.

The next morning, Mirabella wakes from yet another brutal nightmare about her sisters. Her foster mother, Sara Westwood, takes Bree, Mirabella, and Elizabeth into town look for dresses for the Beltane Festival. Elizabeth announces that Joseph has come back to Wolf Spring and has brought a possible suitor for Arsinoe. Sara decides the suitor should meet Mirabella, too. Bree makes a joke about all the suitors and the queens, but Mirabella stops her, frustrated with Bree because being a queen is much worse when it means you have to kill your sisters.

Pietyr is offering Katharine food and spending time with her in the library. He is feeding her rich foods to help her gain weight, teaching her how to carry herself in a crowd, and shows her how to kiss. Katharine seems to know Pietyr’s just training her and his affections are not real. They agree he will make her competitive with her sisters. Katharine teases him that she will win him over too.

Natalia leads Katharine to the Volroy to poison a prisoner. A young boy named Walter Mills killed another boy he says murdered his sister. Natalia tells Katharine that Walter has already been tried and Katharine just needs to administer the poison. Katharine opts to do it in the cell instead of in front of an audience as a type of mercy. Katharine makes Natalia sit with her and Walter as they drink poisoned wine. Walter dies.

Joseph and Jules are spending time together one evening. Neither wants to go home yet, so Joseph takes her to the ship he arrived on and they go to his room on the boat. Joseph admits that he wants his foster brother Billy to be Arsinoe’s king consort, Jules to be commander of the Queensguard, and himself to be a member of the Black Council. Joseph presents Jules with a ring and explains that on the Mainland, giving a girl this type of ring means he wants to marry her. Jules accepts the ring.

Jules and Joseph set up a picnic for Arsinoe to meet Billy. They all meet at Luke’s bookshop. Arsinoe leads Billy to the cliffs to show him a little bit of the island. He seems to really like her, and Arsinoe is not sure what to think about that. Billy even mentions being the king consort someday. Meanwhile, Joseph tells Jules he has loved her since they were children, before he was banished. They kiss.

Mirabella wakes from another nightmare. Luca says it is just a dream. Mirabella thinks it is a memory of her sisters when they were still living at the Black Cottage and loved each other. Luca tries to convince her that the memory is made up, otherwise killing her sisters would be impossible. Mirabella goes out to the woods and finds Elizabeth there. Elizabeth asks Mirabella to take her with her when she leaves to be queen. Mirabella agrees, and tells her she does not have to go to the Indrid Down Temple, she can have choices in her life.

Luca and Rho discuss Mirabella. They don’t think she has what it takes to kill her sisters, regardless of the strength of her gift. Rho explains that she has been digging into some old legends and making up a few of her own. She recounts the legend of the White-Handed Queen, or a queen who ascends to the throne without spilling her sisters’ blood. There is also the legend of the Blue Queen, or a rare fourth-born sister who is deemed so blessed that the other three sisters are drowned at birth. Finally, Rho explains about Sacrificial Years, when two of the three queens are so weak that the more powerful third queen killing them is not seen as a sacrifice, but as murder. The weak queens are fed to the fire at the Quickening by the crowd, not the queen, so that she does not have to kill them. Rho and Luca decide to make Mirabella ascend to the throne as a White-Handed Queen by instigating a Sacrificial Year so that Mirabella does not have to kill her sisters.

Katharine and Pietyr meet with Natalia. Natalia presents Katharine with her lost snake, Sweetheart. Katharine is overjoyed and takes her leave to get reacquainted with her pet. One she’s gone, Natalia tells Pietyr the real Sweetheart is dead and that this is a replacement. She reminds him not to get too involved with Katharine. She asks how far they have gone and tells him to make Katharine does not fall in love with him. Lastly, Natalia tells Pietyr that she is going to meet with the first suitor, Billy, soon.

Pietyr goes to check on Katharine in her room. They talk and tease each other about the suitors she is going to meet. It is clear they both care for each other. Pietyr talks about how she needs to use charm and humor to win the suitors over. Katharine’s new snake moves to strike her and Pietyr jumps in the way and takes the bite for her, endearing himself to her. When Katharine goes to grab some salve for his wound, he thinks about how only a king consort is fool enough to fall in love with a queen.

Weeks later, Joseph tells Jules that he is going to Trignor to return a repaired boat to its owner. He asks Jules to go with him, but she declines because she feels guilty at neglecting Arsinoe to be with him.

Mirabella has yet another nightmare about her sisters’ deaths, and she is not sure she can be the victor. Bree and Elizabeth hear her crying out and come to see if she’s okay. She tells them about the nightmares and that Luca says they are just dreams trying to prepare her for what is to come. She decides she must leave Rolanth. The girls help disguise her by giving her Elizabeth’s priestess cloak. Mirabella runs away.

Arsinoe is continuing to practice low magic with Madrigal so that she has a chance to kill her sisters. While taking some of Arsinoe’s blood for later, Madrigal slips and mentions what Jules’ father looks like. Then she tries to deny she remembers him. Madrigal tells Arsinoe she might make a love potion to try and catch someone who looks like Joseph for herself. Jules and Camden find them and is angry. Arsinoe admits to Jules that she will need low magic to defeat her sisters.

Mirabella has traveled to the western coast and is hungry and weary. A storm blows in. She notices a sailboat is capsizing and sees a lone sailor in the water beside it. Mirabella uses her magic to save him and pull him to shore. They are both soaked, and the boy is unconscious and cold. She starts a campfire on the beach to dry their clothes and then uses her body heat to warm him up and saves his life. When Joseph regains consciousness, they have sex.

Back in Wolf Spring, Joseph’s mother Annie Sandrin has a dream about him being lost at sea. Everyone is worried, no one more so than Jules. Jules, Arsinoe, Billy, and Camden go in search of Joseph.

When Mirabella wakes up the next morning, she goes to find the boy she spent the night with. She asks his name, and he replies Joseph Sandrin, making her blood run cold at what they have just done. Joseph sees Mirabella clearly for the first time and realizes who she is. Joseph is so ashamed of himself, yet unbelievably, he feels drawn to her. As the day progresses, Mirabella endears herself to Joseph, who thought she already lived and acted as if she has been the crowned queen and realizes this is not true. He aches to imagine letting her go. They try to part ways but end up spending another night together.

Arsinoe uses low magic to track Joseph. She cuts runes into Jules’ skin, squeezes some of her blood on an old shirt of Joseph’s, and lights it on fire. She has Jules breathe in the smoke from the fire as it burns her blood and the shirt. Jules becomes a vessel for the smoke, and the magic encased inside her beings to lead her to Joseph. Arsinoe and Billy follow her. The find him walking hand in hand with Mirabella in the woods, but he drops her hand and runs to Jules when he spots her. Mirabella realizes that Joseph is engaged to her sister’s foster sister and best friend. She doesn’t want to be seen so she hides out of sight sadly watching the reunion of Jules, Joseph, Camden, Billy, and Arsinoe.

Arsinoe sees Mirabella hiding and pretends to drop her knife so she can go back for it to talk to Mirabella. The sisters meet face-to-face for the first time in ten years. Their reunion is cut short upon hearing horses approaching. It is Rho coming for Mirabella. Rho knocks over Arsinoe and takes off with Mirabella, telling her Luca is not please and that they can’t start their battle yet.

Luca visits Sara to convince her to spread the legends of the White-Handed Queen and the Sacrificial Year to prepare the people to sacrifice Arsinoe and Katharine at the Quickening Ceremony if needed.

The Chatworths arrive at Greavesdrake Manor so Billy can meet Katharine. Pietyr has prepped her by telling her she needs to sneak away, and kiss Billy like she has been kissing him. Pietyr grows jealous as the even progresses. Katharine does sneak away with Billy and kisses him but doesn’t feel any passion towards him like when she kisses Pietyr.

Upon their return to Wolf Spring, Cait treats Arsinoe’s cuts while Joseph tries to defend Mirabella by explaining how she saved his life. The Milones won’t hear of it. In her room, Jules tells Arsinoe about her concern that Joseph can’t stop bringing up Mirabella and it’s making her suspicious. Arsinoe insists that Mirabella was only using Joseph to get to her. The next day while shopping in town for a gown to wear to Beltane, Arsinoe and Madrigal discuss the destroyed love spell for Joseph and Jules, and that maybe what happened between Joseph and Mirabella is the result of the unpredictable low magic. Meanwhile, at a pond, Joseph confesses what he did with Mirabella to Jules. Jules tells him to leave before Camden rips his throat out.

Back in Rolanth, Luca wonders what happened to Mirabella while she was gone because she is acting a little strange. Mirabella doesn’t reveal anything. Instead, she finds out what is expected of her during the Quickening Ceremony and she will wear. Mirabella is also placed under even tighter temple guard, with six priestesses surrounding her at all times. After meeting with Luca, Bree comes running for her, and takes her to see Elizabeth. Elizabeth’s hand has been cut off because Mirabella was found with her cloak and the priestesses think she was an accomplice to Mirabella’s escape. Mirabella is furious and upset.

Madrigal and Arsinoe do another low magic spell in the hopes of summoning Arsinoe a familiar. They pour Arsinoe’s blood they had collected onto an old, twisted tree. Madrigal stabs her knife into Arsinoe’s hand, pining it to the trunk. She unpins it right as she sets the tree on fire. That night Arsinoe dreams of a terrifying bear roaring before the burnt tree. She wakes Jules, Billy, and Joseph and takes them to the tree and tells them about the spell and her dream. At first nothing is there, but when the bear does come, it looks old and sick and attacks them. It dislocated Arsinoe’s shoulder and slashes her face. Camden attacks it and kills it but get injured in the process. Billy, Joseph, and Jules struggle to get Arsinoe and Camden to much-needed medical care from the priestesses at the Wolf Spring Temple.

Katharine, Natalia, and Genevieve discuss Arsinoe’s injury as they mix poisons. Natalia and Genevieve think it could be Mirabella’s revenge, which catches Katharine’s attention. A visitor arrives for Natalia. It is Billy’s father, William Chatworth Sr. It is revealed that William and Natalia have been lovers, and that is why Joseph was sent to the Chatworths for his banishment. William has come to tell her a secret he heard from Sara. The priestesses plan to make Mirabella a White-Handed Queen through a Sacrificial Year at the Quickening Ceremony. He asks what else he can do to help. Natalia tells him that now they have this information, the Arrons will take care of the rest.

Arsinoe wake up and can feel the bandages and stitches on her face. She demands to see a mirror to see what the bear did. In the mirror she sees the severe damage and that the gashes in her face have been sewn together. She begins to get a little hysterical but calms down a bit and says thank goodness she’s never cared how she looks. Jules goes down to the docks to visit Joseph. She admits to him that she wishes they had gotten off the island five years ago. Billy visits Arsinoe and brings her flowers. She asks him if her scars will prevent him from marrying her now. He says he wasn’t going to marry her anyways, but it’s easy to see there’s a real kinship between them.

At Greavesdrake, Natalia informs Pietyr of the Temple’s plan to sacrifice Arsinoe and Katharine. They vow to not let it happen. Pietyr admits that he knows it would be foolish to love a queen, he has fallen in love with Katharine. He says he knows Natalia love her too, and she confirms it.

As Arsinoe recovers, Billy takes her out for a picnic and a sail. He shares the news of the Temple’s plans for Beltane. Arsinoe doesn’t believe it will happen. Billy wants to take her to the Mainland on his ship and she can stay with his family. They try to escape.

The Beltane Festival begins in the Innisfuil Valley. Mirabella is with Bree and Elizabeth at the Westwoods’ tent and the girls talk about if Arsinoe is really gone as they have heard. In the Arrons’ encampment, Pietyr sneaks Katharine some food. They kiss but she can tell there is something different about his touch this time. She assumes it’s because she will have a king-consort soon. Pietyr takes Katharine to the Breccia Domain, the chasm where the dead queens' bodies are thrown. Katharine is fascinated by it, while Pietyr thinks it is morbid. They kiss again knowing they will have to keep their love for each other a secret.

Joseph and Jules are preparing for the Hunt. They paint matching lines of black on their chests and faces. Joseph asks for her to paint her handprint over his heart too. They kiss. Jules feels like it was a mistake to kiss and Joseph asks if she will ever forgive him. Jules replies that they can’t think about this right now, but that if it doesn’t end up working out then it wasn’t meant to be. The Hunt begins. Bree and Elizabeth drug Mirabella’s guard with a sleeping draught so they can sneak Mirabella out to watch the Hunt. Jules and Joseph get separated. Jules comes across a bear in the woods and goes after a stag instead. Mirabella hears Joseph’s voice calling for Jules. She goes to find him and kisses him. Mirabella asks if their nights together mattered to him. Joseph says he wishes they didn’t, but they do.

Katharine helps Natalia after the Hunt. Natalia tells her that the food she will eat at the *Gave Noir* will not be poisoned and to eat her fill. This way she can prove how strong she is to everyone.

Jules finds her mother sleeping with Matthew Sandrin, who engaged to Madrigal’s sister Caragh Milone before she was sentenced to the Black Cottage and had to end their engagement. Jules is disgusted. She runs away into the crowd and comes across Luke, who has a dress for her that Arsinoe commissioned for her. They hear a disturbance. Arsinoe and Billy have been caught and brought to Beltane. The Black Council assembles with the foster families. They are going to hold Arsinoe’s trial for trying to escape again. Before they can punish or execute her, Mirabella stops the trial by summoning a storm. Mirabella wishes this would kindle some friendship with Arsinoe. Arsinoe is not pleased that Mirabella tried to make amends and says this just makes her hate her a little less. Then Arsinoe leaves with Jules.

When Jules gets Arsinoe back to their encampment, Arsinoe shares the news about the Sacrificial Year. The group thinks that if they can make Arsinoe look strong, then the crowd won’t want to sacrifice her. Jules thinks she should call the bear she saw in the woods and control it, making it look like it is Arsinoe’s familiar. Joseph is worried by this plan, but Madrigal thinks it could work. Joseph asks what he can do to help, and Jules tells him he needs to stay away because she doesn’t want anything to break her concentration.

It is time for the Disembarking, when each of the suitors will row ashore and present themselves to the queens for the first time. The first four suitors do not give Arsinoe a full bow. Billy arrives last and only bows to Arsinoe, causing a commotion. Natalia struggles to make all the food for the *Gave Noir* without the priestesses knowing it is not poisoned. She and Pietyr are sad that they don’t get to eat poisoned food at the feast but are glad they have a plan to try and save Katharine. Pietyr is not sure it will work though.

At the bonfire that night, Jules leads Joseph to her tent and wants to have sex with him, as they always planned to do on the night of Beltane. Joseph stops her and apologizes, saying he just wants to hold her. Pietyr makes Katharine promise that if anything seems out of sorts, she will run and meet him at the Breccia Domain. She asks him if he trusts Natalia. He says he does, but he still thinks things could go wrong. She promises to go to him. Bree and Elizabeth help dress Mirabella for her performance. She will be wearing very little clothing and her fire will cover the rest of her. The three girls discuss how the priestesses are acting strange, and that there is something in the air they can’t put their finger on. Madrigal is working on another low magic potion with Arsinoe. She asks Arsinoe if Jules told her she saw her with Matthew. Arsinoe didn’t know but is disgusted with Madrigal. Madrigal explains that the potion is made with water, Arsinoe’s blood, and the bear’s blood. She will have to drink it. It won’t make the bear her familiar, but it should link them.

Katharine is called first to the Quickening Ceremony. She impresses the crowd with her *Gave Noir* to end all *Gave Noirs*. Natalia watches as Luca is stunned. Arsinoe goes next. Jules gives her the vial of potion to drink. On the sage, the bear arrives and Jules commands it to obey Arsinoe’s orders. Arsinoe is surprised by the crowd of naturalists that have assembled to watch her after what happened. Both Katharine and Arsinoe’s demonstrates went well. Luca and Rho know they faked their display of power over their gifts somehow and are enraged. They still want to make the Sacrificial Year happen regardless.

Mirabella takes the stage and begins her fire dance. The crowd is entranced, especially Joseph. Mirabella is focused on Joseph in return. Meanwhile, Jules scans the crowd for Joseph in the hopes that he is watching her and is impressed by her ability to hold control of the bear. Instead, she sees him watching Mirabella with a lustful look on her face that he has never had while looking at her. Jules loses control of the bear and it attacks the crowd, lashing out at the priestess standing closest and knocking over the plates of food from the *Gave Noir*. The bear then setting his sights of Mirabella and her fire. Joseph throws himself in front of Mirabella and covers her with his body. Just before the bear attacks it rears up and begins pawing at its face like it is in pain. Most, but not all, of the crowd escapes. Everyone wants to make sure all the queens are accounted for. No one can find Katharine and she is not among fallen. They know this means she is out there somewhere. Mirabella cannot believe Arsinoe sent the bear after her. Joseph tries to comfort her until the priestesses order him away. The Quickening has ended, and the Ascension Year has now begun.

Katharine is running through the woods to Pietyr, just like he told her to do. Upon finding him, they hold each other. He calls the priestesses bloodthirsty and says that he does love her, despite the fact that he was not supposed to. Katharine is surprised by his declaration but returns it. And then Pietyr pushes Katharine into the Breccia Domain.

A day and a half later, Natalia is still devastated at Katharine’s disappearance. Search parties have scoured the area for Katharine to no avail. Luca comes by to tell her that she is going home and that she knows the *Gave Noir* was not poisoned after all. Luca also shares that one of the delegations fled with their suitor in tow. Natalia tells Luca that the Black Council has never tried to impose its will on the Temple, and Luca accuses her of turning away from the Goddess and warns that she could quickly fall out of favor with the Goddess for trying to control the ascension of the true queen. They both want to punish Arsinoe for beginning the battle a day early with the bear attack. However, they agree that it was such a show of strength they know the public will react poorly if they punish her.

Mirabella discusses the attack with Bree and Elizabeth as they ride home. Elizabeth says the naturalist would have to be unbelievably strong to do what happened. Mirabella tells them who her protector truly is, it is Joseph. They wonder if he will protect her again since he is friends with Arsinoe. Mirabella does not want to put him in that position and is under no illusions anymore. She is convinced that Arsinoe meant to attack her with the bear. Mirabella is ready to kill her sister when she has the chance.

Pietyr aids in the search for Katharine, then has one last drink with Natalia before he heads home. He has nothing more to do here. Pietyr was so convinced they would have Katharine’s head at Beltane because of the sacrifice they had planned. He never thought Arsinoe would come into play. Pietyr leaves. One day, a girl appearance at Greavesdrake. Natalia does not recognize the wet, dirty, mangled, girl at first. It is Katharine. She is alive and says she wants her revenge and then she wants her crown.

Billy comes to visit Arsinoe and brings a box of chocolate his father sent. Joseph walks up and says he needs to see Jules to talk to her about what happened. Arsinoe is angry with him and feels betrayed. She accuses Joseph of possibly choosing Mirabella over her someday. Mirabella puts the box of chocolates down and tells Joseph that she will find Jules for him. While arguing with Joseph, Jules eats one of the chocolates from the box and suddenly doubles over in pain. They realize the chocolate is poisoned. As Jules struggles to recover from the poisoning, Arsinoe makes Joseph promise to be at her side until the end. Madrigal makes blood offerings with low magic to save her daughter. Two days later, Jules wakes up to find Arsinoe in her room. Arsinoe admits that she ate three of the chocolates, but never felt a thing, but Jules had one and it almost killed her. The girls realize this means Arsinoe was never a naturalist, all this time she has been a poisoner.

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