The Gathering Storm by Robin Bridges Page A

immediately thought of a thousand better ways to spend my afternoon. Cleaning up after my brother’s horse came to mind. Instead, I said, “It is a beautiful day. I greatly admire the grand duchess and your sister is very kind. I never met Princess Alix before, but she seems kind as well.”
    “You don’t find her enigmatic?”
    “What do you mean?”
    “In some ways, she is much like you. Her aura is also tainted with dark secrets.”
    “Do you think my aura is really so dark?” I gave a little laugh, even though there was nothing amusing about his words. “And have you discovered what it is that I conceal?”
    “I will discover your secret one day, Duchess.”
    Something in me snapped. I pulled my arm away from his and skidded to a stop. “May I enlighten you, Your Imperial Highness?” I hissed, hoping no one could overhear us. “The princess Alix and I are witches from hell. We have come to collect the souls of both you and your brother to give to the devil himself.” The sad thing was that it didn’t sound quite as ridiculous as I had intended.
    I stared at him, horrified that I could have said something so stupid to the tsar’s son. Why did I always seem to lose all sense of reason when I was around him?
    Fortunately, he looked amused. “You are such an odd girl,” he said, taking my arm again and coaxing me to skate forward. I relaxed a little, knowing he was not taking my inappropriate jest seriously. “Be careful, though, Duchess.”His voice was hushed, but icy in my ear. “They still burn witches in Russia.”
    I couldn’t keep myself from shuddering, though whether it was from his threat or just from the closeness of him I couldn’t be sure.
    I tried to steer our conversation away from witches. “Anyway, I do not believe the Hessian princess conceals anything, except her own shyness,” I said. “Her infatuation for your brother shines on her face.” I saw nothing unusual in her cold light. It was the same intensity as the tsarevitch’s.
    “Perhaps,” George said as we made one last turn around the pond. Alix and Nicholas had already returned to the pavilion, and they waved to us. “But I see a soul in despair when I look at the princess.”
    “She lost her mother when she was eight, did she not? As well as her younger siblings? Surely that would cause a lasting despair.”
    “Perhaps.”
    “Your sister likes her,” I pointed out as Xenia and her aunt skated toward us.
    George frowned. “Xenia is a hopeless romantic.” His sister’s eyes flashed again as she broke free from Elizabeth and sped past us in a silver blur. “And extremely irresponsible,” he added with a sigh.
    The grand duke led me gracefully back to the pavilion, one of his hands barely touching the small of my back. “That was most enjoyable, Your Highness,” he said, lying beautifully.
    “My pleasure,” I answered with a quick curtsy. I couldsense his relief that our skating had come to an end. His rigid posture seemed to relax as he sat down close to his brother and the German princess.
    I felt the same relief as I sat near his sister. Xenia was pouting at the table, holding a cup of cocoa.
    “I wish I could have skated longer, but Aunt Ella thought I was getting too cold. You two looked lovely together. Did you see Nicky and Alix?”
    “They skate together beautifully,” I said wistfully. They did make a handsome couple. I envied the German princess just a little, because she belonged here so much more than I did. I would never be accepted by the Light Court. Not with the darkness inside me.
    The servants were gathering up our things as we took off our skates. Grand Duchess Elizabeth was already in her fashionable footwear and was speaking with Alix by the park gate, where Elizabeth’s imperial carriage waited beside the impressive black imperial carriage, with its golden crest of a double-headed eagle on the door.
    “Thank you so much for coming!” Xenia said to me. “We shall see you next