“Something I think you’ll like,” he said. “Something I smuggled in.”
Elsabet looked down and held her breath. It was Jonathan’s painting, the portrait he did of her for Midsummer, laid out in vibrant colors, bright and green, with shining fruit and the jolly faces of the little dogs.
“I recovered it at his apartment before it was ransacked and searched. It really is quite lovely. He was . . . quite talented.”
Elsabet stared at the painting and took Gilbert by the arm. What a perfect time Midsummer seemed to her now, after all that had happened. All that warmth and innocence. Looking into the painting, she could almost imagine herself back there again, with Bess at her side and Rosamund always looking out for danger.
She reached down and ran her fingers across the Volroy, whole and complete in the painting.
“He found the time to finish it,” she whispered.
“What?” Gilbert turned and looked at her. “Oh, Elsie, I meant for it to please you. I thought you might like it.”
Elsabet smiled and squeezed his arm. She wiped the tears from her cheek.
“I do like it, Gilbert. I love it.”
HAVE YOU READ
‘Exquisite world building and luminous detail, this is high fantasy at its best’
‘Achingly gorgeous and gruesomely fascinating’
Kirkus, starred review
Also by Kendare Blake
Three Dark Crowns
One Dark Throne
Coming Soon
Two Dark Reigns
The Young Queens and The Oracle Queen were previously released as e-only novellas in 2018.
They are collected together for the first time in this paperback volume, entitled Queens of Fennbirn.
First published in the US 2018 by HarperTeen,
First published in the UK 2018 by Macmillan Children’s Books
This electronic edition published 2018 by Macmillan Children’s Books
an imprint of Pan Macmillan
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Associated companies throughout the world
www.panmacmillan.com
ISBN 978-1-5098-8062-1
Copyright © Kendare Blake 2018
Cover design & typography by Blacksheep-uk.com
Image reference: Depositphotos
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A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Typography by Aurora Parlagreco
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