Page 9 - My FlipBook

O UTR UN THE WIN D

The words of the Pythia echo through my mind. Bind your-
self to one, and you will surely lose your identity. Even without her
warning, I know I’d react with the same aversion.
“You’re seventeen, daughter.” His eyes don’t seem quite as
warm as they’d been at first, in Delphi. Guilt traps me. “You
should already be married.”
I can’t have him mad at me. He’s my only family. My only
chance at not being alone. I’m drowning, but I say, “I under-
stand. Of course.”
He gives me a tight smile, then leaves through the kitchen
doors. I’m only alone briefly. With the king gone, the rest of
the servants sweep in, gathering plates. I see Kahina down at
the other end of the table, wiping it. Breadcrumbs and drops
of spilled wine disappear under her wet rags. The anger from
earlier flares again, and I march over to her.
“Have I done something to offend you?”
Kahina falters in her work, then continues without ac-
knowledging me. I would rather her scream at me, hit me,
than ignore me.
Finally, she says, “You should be in your suite, princess.”
I cross my arms. “Answer my question.”
“Why?” She keeps making her way down the table, but I
follow her.
I try to make my voice into steel. “What have I done to
wrong you?”
“Plenty,” she whispers.
Confusion mixes with my frustration, and I toss my hands
in the air. “Like what?”
She’s only made it halfway down the table, but she furiously
gathers up the dirty rags and tosses them into a bucket.
“You know your father only took you back to marry you

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