Her mount impatiently danced across the cobblestones as Aliah searched again for her daughter in the gathering crowd. Dominic stood on the steps leading up to the castle's main entrance, surrounded by court dignitaries and officials. No matter how hard she looked, Mina was nowhere to be seen.
The last of the garrison was lined up behind her and Captain Madigan, and the rising sun was turning the morning sky a brilliant purple. Out of the corner of her eye, Aliah saw a hand waving. She turned in her saddle to find Mina's maid trying to get her attention.
The trembling woman wrung her hands, even more distraught than she had been earlier when she informed the royal couple their eldest offspring had elected to go for an early morning ride rather than attend her mother and brother's farewell. Dominic had sent the woman in search of Mina, but the shake of her head told the queen her daughter could not be found.