Аманда Хокинг - Torn

“Yes, of course.” I nodded quickly and stepped carefully over the books. I’d almost made it out when Thomas stopped me.

“My son doesn’t tell me much of his life,” Thomas said, and I paused at the doorway, looking over my shoulder at him. “We’ve never been close. This job is a hard one. It keeps you isolated, and that is something that you and I have in common.”

“I don’t feel that isolated,” I said. “I’m always surrounded.”

“You’ve been fortunate, but it won’t always be that way.” He licked his lips and paused. “Sometimes you have to choose between love and duty. It’s a hard choice, the hardest you’ll ever make, but there is only one right answer.”

“And you’re saying that it’s duty?” I asked.

“I’m saying duty was the right answer for me,” Thomas explained carefully. “And duty will always be the right answer for Finn.”

“Yes,” I nodded, lowering my eyes. “That I know all too well.”

“Trackers are often looked down upon.” He held up his hand to silence me before I could argue. “Not by everyone, but by many. We’re pitied. But it’s an honorable life, living in service of people. Knowing that we are essential to creating a better world for the kingdom.

“The Queen lives in service as much as a tracker, maybe even more so,” Thomas went on. “Her whole life has been given to the people here. There is no greater honor than that. No greater deed. That is going to be your honor, Princess.”

“I know,” I said, feeling even more overwhelmed by the prospect.

“In the end, you find that with sacrifice, you receive more than you give,” he said.

“I’ve enjoyed talking with you Princess, but I will let you get to your room.”

“Yes, of course,” I said.

Thomas bowed before me, and I turned away. I ran all the way up to my room, lifting my dress so I wouldn’t trip on my hem. My hair had come loose so it fell around my face, and I was grateful for it. I didn’t need anyone to see the shame on my face or the tears that stained my cheeks.

“You look amazing,” Willa assured my reflection for the hundredth time.

I stood in front of the mirror, and Willa was behind me. I’m sure I appeared as if I was admiring my white gown, but I barely even recognized myself.

The day before my engagement party, I’d cheated on my fiancé, who was a perfectly wonderful guy. He was my friend, and he was Finn’s friend. Tove had been nothing but good to either of us. He didn’t deserve it. He didn’t deserve having to deal with me.

After Finn and I kissed, I’d wanted to cry and feel sorry for myself because we couldn’t be together. But I couldn’t do that. Not anymore. I was a Princess, with a duty to her kingdom and her fiancé. Tove and Förening deserved more, so I had to be more. I had to become what they needed.

“Come on, Wendy.” Willa grabbed my arm, pulling me away. “The party is about to start. We don’t have time for you to keep staring at yourself.”

I nodded and followed her, thinking I’d have time to compose myself, but as soon as I stepped out of my room, I found Tove waiting by the door.

“Sorry,” he said when he saw my expression. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“No, it’s okay.” My mouth felt numb, and it was hard to speak.

“I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone.” Willa winked at me as she walked away.

“I hope it’s not bad luck to see you before the engagement party.” He dug in his pocket. “I’m not sure what the protocol is, but I had to give you something. I thought it’d be better to do it before the party.”

“You didn’t need to get me anything.”

“Yeah, I did.” Tove pulled a ring box out of his pocket. “It’s kinda my job. I should’ve given it to you when I proposed, but that was kind of a lame proposal.”

“I liked it.” I smiled at him. “It was sweet.”

“Well, I hope you like the ring.” He held it out to me, the velvet lid still closed. “My mom hates it.”

“I’m sure I’ll love it then,” I said, and he laughed.

I took the box from him, and with trembling hands, I opened the lid. It was a thick platinum band, designed to look like ivy wrapped around it. A giant emerald was inlaid in the center, with a few smaller diamonds dotting around the band.

“Oh, Tove, it’s beautiful.” As I slid it on my finger, I was actually getting choked up. It was a lovely ring, and such a lovely gesture.

“Yeah?” Tove had a relieved lopsided grin and ran a hand through his hair.

“Good. I was really worried. I had no idea what you would think.”

“No, it’s absolutely perfect.” I smiled up at him with tears in my eyes.

“Good.” He bit his lip. “You look really beautiful today.”

“Thank you. You look really good yourself.” I motioned to his nice suit pants and vest. “You clean up good, Markis.”

“Thank you, Princess.” He held out his arm so I could take it. “Shall we head down to our engagement party?”

“We shall,” I said and looped my arm through his. We walked towards the ballroom to become the leaders the Trylle needed.

Aura - a field of subtle, luminous radiation surrounding a person or object.

Different colored auras denote different things. (See: http://amandahocking3a.blogspot.com/p/auras.html for definitions of specific colors.)

Changeling - a child secretly exchanged for another.

Förening - the capital and largest city of Trylle society. A compound in the bluffs along the Mississippi River in Minnesota where the palace is located.

Hobgoblin - an ugly, misshapen troll that stands no more than three feet tall.

Host family - the family that the changeling is left with. They are chosen based on their ranking in human society, with their wealth being the primary consideration.

The higher ranked the member of Trylle society, the nicer the host family their changeling is left with.

Mänsklig - often shortened to “mänks.” The literal translation for the word

“mänsklig” is human, but it refers to the human child that is taken when the Trylle offspring is left behind.

Markis - a title of male royalty in Trylle and Vittra society. Similar to that of a Duke, it’s given to trolls with superior abilities. They have higher ranking than the average Trylle, but less than the King and Queen. The hierarchy of the Trylle society is as follows: King/Queen Prince/Princess Markis/Marksinna Trylle citizens Trackers Mänsklig Host families Humans (not raised in troll society) Marksinna - a title of female royalty in Trylle and Vittra society.

Persuasion - a mild form of mindcontrol. The ability to cause another person to act a certain way based on thoughts.

Precognition - knowledge of something in advance of its occurrence, especially by extrasensory perception Psychokinesis - blanket term for the production or control of motion, especially in inanimate and remote objects, purportedly by the exercise of psychic powers. This can include mind control, precognition, telekinesis, biological healing, teleportation, and transmutation.

Stork - slang term for tracker; derogatory. “Humans tell little kids that storks bring the babies, but trackers bring the babies here.”

Tracker - members of Trylle society that are specifically trained to track down the changelings and bring them home. Trackers have no paranormal abilities, other than the affinity to tune in to one particular troll. They are able to sense danger to their charge and can determine distance between themselves and their charge.

The lowest form of Trylle society, other than mänsklig.