The False Queen Deleted Scene

As a huge thank you for all of your support throughout the launch of The False Queen, I wanted to share a deleted scene with you all from one of the early drafts. The scene originally took place on Blaise, Sapphire and Gaia’s travels towards Reili and ultimately got removed because it didn’t further the plot. But it was always one of my favourite interactions between the trio and so I thought it would be nice to share it with you as a little bonus on release week! I do hope you enjoy it…

The next morning, after a night on a feather bed inside a clean tavern, the weather had dramatically improved, our moods with it. Gaia twisted her face around, basking in the golden sun and Sapphire rolled up her sleeves so that her forearms caught the light too. ‘Mother above, that feels good,’ she inhaled a deep breath.

We had been riding for hours, the last town a few miles back, and as we turned a winding corner in the road I gasped.

‘What is that?’ I asked.

‘That,’ Gaia smiled, ‘is the ocean.’

My eyes were wide as I took in the large expanse of water. The sun glistened off the waves and seemed to dance and twinkle like stars. I took a deep breath in, and the smell of salt filled my lungs.

It wasn’t like I hadn’t seen water before; we had lakes and streams in the Iron Woods, but I had never seen such a large volume of it. It stretched on forever, spreading out across the horizon with no end in sight.

Gaia jumped down from her horse first and extended a hand to me to help me down. ‘Take your boots off and leave them with the horses,’ she ordered, a gleam in her eye.

Without question, I followed her orders and let her lead me towards the ocean. The hot concrete turned soft beneath my feet, and when I looked down, I saw the solid ground had merged into something soft and yet grainy at the same time. I wiggled my toes, and the yellow dirt ran between them. I looked up at Gaia who studied me, a smile on her face.

‘Sand,’ she explained.

I grinned and wiggled my toes again, letting them sink into the warm sand before picking up a handful and letting it run between my fingers. An unusual object, like a rock but more delicate, that twisted into a hollow middle remained in my palm, and I squealed in delight as I studied the unique shape.

‘That’s a shell.’ Sapphire approached us, footsteps silent in the sand. ‘Hold it to your ear.’

I did, jumping as the sound of waves crashing amplified against my ear. I pulled it away and strained my other ear to the ocean in front of me, the same sounds from the shell but softer.

Gaia let go of my hand and I ran towards the water, my feet fighting not to sink into the sand. When I reached the water’s edge, the waves lapped gently at my feet, the frothy water cool and refreshing.

I bent to cup some in my hands and held it to my mouth, but when I took a sip I spurted and spluttered, spitting out the awful salty water.

Gaia and Sapphire both boomed cackling laughs from behind me. ‘Don’t drink it! It’s not like the lakes in the Iron Woods, it’s salt water.’

‘Well, I know that now!’ I spat into the sand.

I took in the new sights and smells, things I never dreamed I would see. ‘It’s beautiful,’ I sighed. ‘Do we need to leave right away?’

Sapphire looked to Gaia who beheld my pleading expression, her face softened. ‘The next village is only a few miles away. We can stay until the sun sets and then we’ll carry on by moonlight.’

I threw my arms around her in a tight hug before rolling up my trouser legs and going for a paddle. I couldn’t help but pick up every shell, examine every piece of seaweed – Sapphire had called the slimy green plants – and watch as crabs scuttled about on the sand.

When the sun began to set, the water took on a new colour. The sky turned orange, and it made the water look red instead of bluey green.

The three of us sat together, side by side on the sand and watched as the sun disappeared, as though swallowed by the water. The ocean turning from crystal clear, to bloody red and finally becoming an ominous inky blue once the sun set completely and the moon shone in its place. Then the water chased us up the beach as the tide came in and before I knew it, it was time to leave.

As we mounted the horses once more, turning away from the ocean and heading to the next village over, I clutched that first shell in my hand, lifting it once more to my ear. The ocean crashed against it, and I smiled.

‘Thank you,’ I whispered, knowing they could both hear me. The moon lit up Gaia’s answering smile and a wave of contentment I hadn’t felt since we left the Iron Woods washed over me. I slipped the seashell into a pocket on the inside of my cloak, and we rode on.