Authors: ID Johnson
She nodded again.
Caleb got up and began t
o pace behind his chair and Russell’s. Gordon tried to be the calm voice of reason but he could see the King’s disposition was shifting quickly. Caleb was generally extremely kind and considerate but when he felt that others were wasting his time or not being proficient, he lost patience quickly.
He would really hate to see Caleb take his frustration out on this diminutive creature next to him.
“Perhaps,” Gordon said to Caleb, “if we showed her the map?”
The king nodded his consent and Gordon pulled the piece of parchment out of his pocket.
“We found this, in Princess Katherine’s room,” he began. They knew there was some connection between the princess and Rose because of the information Katherine had given them this morning, but they weren’t quite sure what it was. “Have you ever seen it before?”
Katey was shocked. She couldn’t believe they had found the map she had drawn. She
shifted closer to Gordon, who let her take it. Gordon glanced up at Caleb, who had stopped pacing and stood with both hands resting on the back of his chair, watching her intently. He nodded at the king, letting him know that he believed Katey had seen the paper before.
“You drew the map?” Caleb asked her.
Yes, she confirmed, as she continued to study it. Seeing it now reminded her of Matthew, especially looking at the back where she had written, “
I am scared
.” She felt the sting of tears against the back of her eyes, overwhelmed with the pressure of this interrogation and her desperation to see him again.
Caleb saw her looking at the writing on the back. “He wanted you to come with him but you were too scared? What were you scared of? Philip? Your parents? My
soldiers?”
Katey couldn’t keep up with the rapid fire questioning so she
just stared down at the paper, trying to hold back her tears.
Gordon could see that she was getting upset. He put his arm gently on her shoulder. “We just want to find him,” he said quietly.
She looked up at him, nodding. That’s all she wanted, too.
Caleb was holding his head in his hands. He didn’t know what else to do. He wanted to make her talk, even if she knew nothing more than they already knew, at least there would be some sort of confirmation. He took a second to try to regain his composure before asking, “Do you know where that tunnel lets out?”
She honestly had no idea. She had heard that most of the tunnels running under Blackthorn were about a quarter of a mile long but she also knew that some of them were longer. She hadn’t gone very far down the expanse, just far enough to make sure Matthew could clear the height. She felt a tear splash against the back of her hand and she sat the map back down on the table, fearful that she might ruin it.
The frustration was mounting again. “Aren’t you from Clovington? Shouldn’t you have some sort of an idea where this tunnel leads? “ Caleb could hear Gordon calmly saying his name, but he was back to pacing asking his questions of the ceiling.
Then, he realized the girl was crying. He wanted to be empathetic but instead he was beginning to feel furious.
Taking a deep-breath, he walked over to where she sat, pushing the teacup and map aside, he sat down on the table in front of her, straddling her gown, his face just inches from the top of her head. “Listen, Rose,” he began, taking her right hand
in both of his. “I’m desperate. I need your help. I have to find my brother.”
Katey was frozen, all but her tears. She still had her left hand clasped against her eyes, trying to physically push
them back. He gently took her by the chin and forced her to look at him. She had no choice but to stare directly into those icy-blue eyes.
“What do you want?” he asked calmly. “I’ll give you anything. The finest gowns. The most luxurious jewels. Anything you ask for. Anything you want. Just please, tell me, what you know. Where is he?”
Katey began to sob now. She wanted to say something, anything. She wanted to tell him about the conversations she had with Matthew, the time they had spent together. She wanted to let him know how very much his brother missed him, too. How he was looking forward to spending time with him once again. She desperately wanted to help. But she couldn’t. She just could not open her mouth.
Caleb could see that he was getting nowhere. If she were going to speak, she would have done so by now. He let go of her face and dropped his head into his hands. “Dammit,” he said quietly. As he stood up and walked around the edge of the table, the frustration and anger became overwhelming. “Dammit!” he yelled, kicking the table.
“Alright, alright then,” Gordon was saying, pulling Katey against his shoulder. Russell sat paralyzed in his chair, having never seen Caleb react this way before.
When Caleb reached the hallway, he saw Cook standing against the wall across from the interrogation room. The look on her face told him
she had heard everything. “Don’t say anything,” he said charging down the hallway, looking for something, or someone to punch.
Gordon offered Katey a handkerchief, which she gratefully accepted. Though she felt terrible that she was not able to help Caleb, or Matthew for that matter, she took some solace in his understanding. He rubbed her shoulder and whispered his reassurance to her, “It’ll be okay,” he said softly.
She prayed that he was right but somehow, she suspected that this was not over yet and that the worst was yet to come.
***
She had been waiting for him, anticipating his arrival, imagining all of the things she
would do with him, if only she played her cards right. At first, he had sent one of his lackeys to fetch her, wanting to meet in a more public place, no doubt. But she had pretended to have a headache and so she was able to lure him into her layer.
When he knocked on the door, she dismissed her ladies (ah, yes, she had ladies now) to the
adjoining room. She was wearing only her chemise and a loosely tied silk robe. She was afraid that he might insist that one of his men accompany him, but he didn’t. He was alone. And now, they were alone.
“Your Majesty,” she said, as she opened the door. Dusk had fallen and
the room was lit only by the waning sunlight and a few candles.
He hesitated, not sure of the appropriateness of entering a lady’s boudoir alone. However, he was tired and frustrated and just wanted to see what information she might have to offer him regarding the whereabouts of his brother. He was also interested to know if she could disclose any information about Philip’s plans, whether or not Leopold was fully committed to this engagement, and whether she thought Placidia would be willing to offer any assistance at all should it be necessary.
She poured herself a goblet of wine, offering him one, which he brushed off, and she gestured for him to sit on the sofa where she settled in next to him, right next to him.
He cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Princess Katherine, thank you for taking a few moments to meet with me. I understand that you’re not feeling well and I don’t want to take up too much of your time. I know it’s been a very long few days for you.”
She sipped the wine slowly, looking over the rim of the goblet, staring him straight in the eyes. As she sat the vessel back on the table she said, “No need to apologize, Your Highness. It was simply a case of mistaken identity.”
Her smile was sweet and genuine and under ordinary circumstances, he may have found himself attracted to her. But tonight, he had only one thing on his mind. “I know you indicated earlier that you hadn’t seen Matthew or heard mention of him. I was wondering, now that you’ve had the opportunity to think about it for a while, is that still the case? Does anything come to mind at all?”
Rose leaned back on the couch, her knee brushing against his. She pretended to think for a moment. She tossed her bright red locks back over her shoulder, nonchalantly, exposing her neckline and wafting her perfume in his direction. Finally, she said, “No, no, I’m so sorry. I really wish there was something, anything, I could say to help you. But Philip never mentioned Matthew to me.” She gently placed her hand on his knee. “I’m so very sorry you’re having to go through this. It must be so difficult not knowing where your dear brother is.”
Caleb glanced down at her hand on his
leg, feeling very uncomfortable but not wanting to be rude. He wasn’t exactly sure what was happening. He knew that Katey and Philip were not yet married but she had also arrived at his castle wearing only Philip’s robe, an indicator that their relationship had been consummated. He leaned as far back into the corner of the couch as he possibly could, unsure if another man’s wife was making advances on him or if she was just ignorantly kind.
Rose continued. “I can’t help you find Matthew, but I do believe there are other ways that I can be of, uh, service, to you.” She began to run her hand up his leg a few inches, and then back down to his knee as she spoke. “Listen,” she said, leaning in closely, “Philip is a fool. He didn’t understand what an asset I can be. You, on the other hand, you’re
a brilliant military leader, the most powerful man in the world. Surely you can see what aligning with Placida can do for you. My sister can invade from the northeast while we come at them from the southwest.” Her fingertip began to trace circles on his arm where it rested on the back of the sofa, her face so close to his he could feel her breath on his cheek. “They would have nowhere to hide. And,” she continued boldly, “There’s a very simple way to ensure the ties between Placidia and Arteria never falter.”
He was extremely uncomfortable now. He couldn’t quite understand why but he truly did not find Princess Katherine attractive. She was a
beautiful women but the thought of letting this continue was out of the question. He had not and would not consider a marital alliance between himself and the Princess of Placida. He pulled himself up from the couch abruptly and stepped to the side, placing the armrest between them.
She was startled by his hasty
retreat. Surely, he found her appealing. All men did. “What’s the matter?” she asked leaning back on the sofa. “Did I say something offensive?” Things seemed to be going downhill rather quickly and she needed to find a way to regroup and start again. She didn’t know how many of these chances she might have.
“Katherine, thank you so much for your time,” he said, as he began to back towards the door. “It’s getting rather late and I am expected in the dining hall. It’s
too bad you won’t be joining us,” he added as a polite after-thought.
She was afraid to let him leave, afraid she wouldn’t get another opportunity. Yet, he clearly didn’t appreciate her aggressive behavior. “Yes, me, too,” she said. “Forgive me if I’m not quite myself,” she added, rubbing her temples as if she actually had a headache. If he only knew exactly how far from herself she truly was.
“I understand,” he said politely as he reached for the door. He was afraid to turn his back on her; afraid she might lunge at him from behind. And while he was not particularly attracted to her, it had been quite some time since he had been with a woman. He was afraid he might make a decision he would regret. He fumbled for the latch behind him, opened the door and stepped out into the hall, all without turning around.
She stood but didn’t dare step towards him, afraid he might take off running down the hallway. “Please consider my offer!” she called as he was closing the door.
The door was still open just a crack, “Yes, of course,” he replied without opening it any further and then quickly shut the door behind him, taking off down the hallway as hurriedly as possible without actually breaking into a sprint.
***
Katey had been sleeping. After the interrogation, Cook had reappeared, offering her shoulder to cry on as she led her to a small space next to the kitchen, a little room where many of the servant girls slept. There were several pairs of bunk beds and Cook showed her which one would be hers. Katey’s sobs had begun to subside as the gentle woman stroked her hair and reassured her that everything would be just fine.
Just before she dozed off, Cook had said, “When you feel better, come over to the kitchen and I’ll give you something to do. Nothin’ makes a girl feel better than a job well done!”
Now, Katey intended to do just that.
Cook had left her a gown, the kind the servant girls wore, and she slipped it on. Obviously, she had never worked in a kitchen before, she had honestly never truly worked before, but she thought she may as well do something useful, and, as long as she was going to be playing the role of Rose, she would much rather be doing kitchen work than the sort of work the real Rose performed.
She could smell the dinner preparations before she even reached the doorway. She took a deep breath, not realizing just how hungry she was. She was able to step in undetected and stand near the door for a moment, surveying the room. Cook was chopping vegetables near
a large stew pot. Another girl was slicing meat and two others were busy bustling around, preparing dishes. After a moment, she approached Cook, gaining her attention as she came across the room. “Rose!” she exclaimed joyfully. “Girls!” she called, the others momentarily pausing. “This is the new girl I was telling you about. This is Rose. Isn’t she lovely?” The other girls all gestured in her direction. One of them genuinely smiled at her but the rest either were too busy to acknowledge her or instantly jealous of her appearance, which, Katey found was often the case. Nevertheless, if these were the girls Katey was to be working and living with, she wanted to be friends. She smiled and waved shyly.