Briette Quotes

“Will you go?” Maelyn asked. “Not a chance,” said Briette. “ ‘I shall eagerly await your reply and I wish you health and wealth. Your affectionate friend, “ ‘The Duchess of Merridell’ ” Heidel snorted. “Duchess of Mudsuckers.” “Wait, she wrote an additional note at the bottom,” said Briette. “ ‘I nearly forgot! I must also thank you for assisting with the birth of my beautiful daughter. She is strong and healthy, thank our Good Sire above. I remember you were curious about the name and at long last I have chosen it! Her name is Roselle.’ ” Briette stopped. “Is that it?” said Heidel. Briette stared at the name. She covered her mouth with her fingers and began to blink rapidly. “What’s the matter?” said Maelyn. Briette stood, the parchment falling to her feet. “I uh, I have to go upstairs.” “What is it, Briette?” Heidel asked. “I’m sorry. Please excuse me.” Briette cut between the armchairs and managed to get out without stumbling. She passed through the corridors and climbed the stairs, holding the wall as she went. Her thoughts spun, her heart staggered. Now she knew what had been in the basket. Miss Gerda would have told her. Briette was sure of it. I’m afraid there is more, she had said. But the poor woman had not been given the chance. And the dream! The dream in which her own reflection reached out and pulled her hair. It was a memory. Her mind had fabricated a mirror to make sense of the dream but no mirror had ever been there. The face she had seen was not her own, though it matched in every way. It had belonged to another child. Her name was Roselle. Briette entered her chamber, shut the door, and slid down in front of it. She covered her face and wept a blend of joy and sorrow. “I have a twin.” *”
― Anita Valle, Briette

“Some feelings could not be spoken, for instead of understanding, you found yourself despised.”
― Anita Valle, Briette

“A ball meant a long, laborious evening spent with people too cheerful, music too lively, clothing too frivolous, food too abundant, and conversation too trite.”
― Anita Valle, Briette

“Now that Briette had shown attention, she could not leave until dismissed.”
― Anita Valle, Briette

“There was absolutely and unequivocally nothing worse than being a princess.”
― Anita Valle, Briette

“Briette sighed. “I don’t think your intentions were bad, Sir Ansley. And in the end, you warned Calister of what the king planned to do. I simply have a favor to ask.” She smiled. “Which brings me to Calister.” Calister stiffened. “At your service, my lady.” Briette raised her voice so they would all hear. “At the castle, King Jarrod tried to have me arrested. Calister not only fended off the knights, he fought actually King Jarrod himself. A man nearly a foot taller and three times his weight. I have never seen such courage. Noble deeds deserve a noble reward, don’t you think? Calister… come here, please.” Calister crept toward her, uncertain. Briette carefully extracted the long sword she wore at her side. “I must ask you to kneel before me.” “Kneel?” Calister looked confused, then his eyes popped with understanding. “Oh!” He dropped to one knee. Briette lifted the sword and touched the flat of it to his shoulder. “Calister, do swear that you will honor and defend the kingdom of Runa under Princess Maelyn?” “I will,” said Calister. “That you will defend truth and justice, and strive to protect those weaker than yourself?” “I will,” said Calister. “And that you will uphold the noble ideals of chivalry to the benefit of your good name and the greater glory of our land?” “I will,” said Calister. Briette smiled. “Then, by the power invested in me, I now dub you Sir Calister, a knight of Runa Realm. Quite possibly the youngest knight this kingdom has ever known. You may rise.” Calister stood, blinking hard to hold back tears. “Th-thank you, my lady. I – I promise to be a faithful knight, and….” His face crumpled and he fell against Briette and squeezed her tightly. “Thank you, my lady!” “Bree. I am always Bree to you,” she said, returning the hug. She could see the servants over his shoulder. Rupy sobbed openly, Sir Ansley beamed with pride, Old Shivey nodded her head, and Havi wore a crooked smile. The duke, however, remained hard and impassive, his eyes turned away. Calister released her and wiped his eyes. Briette turned back to the group. “I will send for Calister in a few days. We shall make arrangements for him to be transferred to Lumen Fortress where he will continue his training with the knights there. Sir Ansley, I will rely on you to check on him regularly and see that he is progressing in his studies. Can you do this?” “Of course I can! Gladly!” said Sir Ansley. “Thank you. His lost hand is but a minor setback and I intend to have equipment made that will compensate for it. And please continue taking him to visit his mother. I’m sure she will be very proud of him.” Calister smiled, his face red. He rubbed his eyes again and laughed at himself. “I’m sorry, a knight shouldn’t cry.” “The good ones do.” Briette grinned and held out the sword. “Here. Take this as my gift to you. And wear it proudly! I’m sure you will have many adventures, Sir Calister.” Calister clasped the sword and bowed grandly. “I will strive to be worthy of this honor, my lady Bree.” “Oh, he’s adorable!” Miriella cried. Maelyn’s smile was more reserved. Briette hadn’t told her that she would knight a fourteen-year-old”
― Anita Valle, Briette

“Uncle Jarrod groaned. “What are you doing here?” “I came to have a word. Good thing I did, too, I see you’re up to your usual tyranny. Do me a favor and get that blade away from her throat.” “Gerda!” the duke barked. “Go home at once! This is not your concern!” “Not my concern, eh?” Miss Gerda approached Uncle Jarrod, her arms folded. “I assure you, what I have to say concerns every one of us. Jarrod, do you not recognize this child?” “Nothing you say is going to spare her. She is arrested for treason.” Miss Gerda watched him. Being much shorter, she had to look up to meet his eyes. Her plain dress and apron looked very drab beside the king, but she regarded him without embarrassment. “You’ve been friendly with the duke a long time, Jarrod. Came an awful lot in your younger days. And you liked me then, remember? Especially that summer when you came for a long stay. You like me… quite often. And I was stupid enough to think it would last.” “Silence, woman, your words are meaningless. Nobody wants to hear this.” A trace of dread lurked behind Uncle Jarrod’s eyes. “That fall, I left the duke’s manor and returned to my home kingdom of Clerlione. I had told the duke my mother was ill, but that wasn’t it. You see, Jarrod, something came of the time you and I spent together.” She raised a hand to the duke and his prisoner. “Briette.” Briette, still pinned against the duke, suffered a jolt so hard it nearly stopped her heart. She could not have moved even if the duke had let her. Uncle Jarrod’s face was pinched with contempt. “Don’t be a fool.” “Think about it, Jarrod. That summer. It was eighteen years ago. Briette is seventeen. Look at her face, you’ll see.” Uncle Jarrod cleared his throat and stared at the floor. He raised a hand and stroked his beard. It seemed a long time before he spoke. “Let the child come here.” The duke lowered his hands. Briette started walking, though she felt separated from herself, as if watching this happen to somebody else. She made the mistake of letting her eyes drift to her sisters. They stared at her with a mixture of wide-eyed horror and pale disbelief. Arialain had covered her face and was shaking. It seemed a very long walk though in truth it was only six or seven paces. Uncle Jarrod gripped her chin and lifted her face. Briette stared into his clear blue eyes and tried not to think. He looked deeply troubled. Shaken. He released her chin. “It is hard to say. There are little things…. But I’m not sure.” “Then you must take my word,” said Miss Gerda. “If she is what you say, then why didn’t you raise her? She came here as an orphan.” Miss Gerda grew somber. “I wasn’t ready to have a child. Without a husband to support me, how could I care for it? I had to work. I left the baby with my sister in Clerlione. She was married but had no children, and was happy to take Briette. I returned to work for the duke and for two years, all was well. And then came the Red Fever plague.” Briette hugged her sides, her eyes shut. This was too much to bear. She wanted Miss Gerda to stop talking. “By the time I reached Clerlione, my sister and her husband were dead. I was frantic, thinking Briette had died too. But I found a neighbor who told me that my sister had given the baby to the king of Runa Realm. I was shocked. And for a while, quite miserable. But in time, I came to be glad of it. As a princess, she would never know poverty or hardship. So I stayed at the duke’s and kept my silence. But occasionally, at a festival or in the market square, I’d see her. And I was proud.” She smiled at Briette. A short silence followed. Then Heidel spoke up. “Let me be quite clear on this. Briette is Uncle Jarrod’s daughter?” “And”
― Anita Valle, Briette

“Boom! Boom! Boom! Briette lifted her head. She had fallen asleep on her crossed arms, resting over the book. What was that? Were they having a summer storm? Boom! Boom! Boom! The door. The main door of the manor. How strange! Briette looked at the guttering candle on her table. It wasn’t much shorter, she might have slept an hour. Still, it was very late for the house to have a caller. Briette waited, listened for footfalls on the stairs. It was normally Calister who answered the door. He would be asleep now, four floors above, and probably could not hear a thing. Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! And the caller was not patient. Briette sighed and rose stiffly from the bench. She wasn’t sure if chambermaids should answer the door, but given the circumstances, she hoped Miss Gerda would forgive her. She took the staircase that led up from the kitchen to the grand dining room. Her candle sputtered and in the near-blackness, Briette jammed her small toes against the leg of a chair. She winced, grinding her teeth, and hobbled through to the entrance hall. If this was merely a messenger who could have come at daylight, she intended to give him an earful. The front door was large, heavy and stern. Briette slid back the latch and gave the iron ring a hard tug. It swung back, whining softly on its hinges. “Holy Noses, that took an age,” said a deep voice. “Where’s the steward?” Briette looked at the caller, lit by her candle. In an instant, her whole body turned to pudding. “I – I – I think he’s asleep. They all are. Um – uh – won’t you come in?” She stepped back, lowering the candle, and hoped he did not see her shaking. The man stepped inside. He was a tall man, grandly stout, with a well-shaped salt-and-pepper beard. He wore robes of blue velvet, heavy jewelry, and above his stern face, a magnificent crown. King Jarrod of Grunwold. Chapter 18 He”
― Anita Valle, Briette

“Maelyn made a disgusted sound. “The first man, a wool dyer, lent ten silvers to a second man, a farmer. The farmer, finding it difficult to pay back the ten silvers, gave a sheep to the wool dyer. The farmer claims the sheep is worth ten silvers, cancelling his debt.” “Ah ha,” said Briette. Maelyn held up a finger. “But! The first man, the wool dyer, says the sheep is worth only five silvers, and therefore, the farmer still owes him five more. The farmer insists he paid ten silvers for that sheep. The dyer says it’s not his fault if the farmer made a foolish purchase, the sheep is worth only five, therefore five silvers are still owed.” “Oooh....”
― Anita Valle, Briette

“Briette balled up the rag and flung it down. It struck the marble floor with a wet smack. She worked herself down to sit in the window niche and pried off her cumbersome shoes. At least the midsummer ball wasn’t held in her castle. It spared her the task of scrubbing away the marks of muddy heels tomorrow. The ball was being given by the Duke of Merridell in the kingdom’s wealthiest town. Briette”
― Anita Valle, Briette