Contents
11. Eleven
Overview
Over a private dinner, Ezra softens toward Amara by cooking for her and revealing painful truths. He explains the curse began with a sorceress enraged by his grandfather’s lie, and that escape requires a human bearing a matching star mark. Ezra shows his mark; Amara’s matches, confirming the stakes and urgency.
Summary
Poppy escorts Amara to a candlelit dinner where a shadow figure plays violin, soothing Amara’s nerves. Ezra arrives with wine from his family’s vineyard, and Amara thanks him for saving her in the gardens. He vows to protect her as a guest, and servants present an elegant meal.
Ezra watches Amara taste the beef wellington, then admits he cooked it himself, surprising her. He credits his late younger sister, who had dreamed of being a chef, and grief briefly silences them. Amara offers condolences for his family’s losses.
When Amara asks why the fae were cursed, Ezra reveals the origin: his grandfather hid a human girl in the castle and lied to her sister that she had died. The sister, a sorceress, cursed the fae to become beasts. Only a fae king bearing a strange mark could break it by finding a human with the same mark and falling in love.
Ezra explains his grandfather turned into a vox immediately and his father never bore the mark. This is Ezra’s final year within the five-hundred-year limit. He unbuttons his shirt to show an eight-point star under his collarbone; it matches Amara’s wrist. He apologizes for dragging her into the curse and stresses the urgency.
Amara acknowledges the gravity of the revelation. Seeking lighter ground, Ezra suggests dessert, ending the evening on a gentler note despite the heightened stakes between them.
Who Appears
- AmaraNarrator; attends a private dinner, learns the curse’s origin, and discovers her star mark matches Ezra’s.
- King Ezra KincaidCooks dinner, shares his family’s tragic curse history, reveals his star mark and the urgent deadline.
- PoppyLady’s maid who prepares Amara and escorts her to dinner, then departs.
- Fae servantsServe the wine and courses during the dinner.
- Ezra’s shadow figureA manifestation of Ezra’s magic that plays violin, setting a calming mood.