The Elf Girl (38 page)

I nodded, finally understanding his reasoning, although it was still mystifying and unclear.

“Okay, so when I find Zora, everything else will play out?”

Eder sighed, looking down at his feet. “I hope so.”

“And you won’t tell me anything more?”

He shook his head. “I can’t. I’m sorry.”

“I know. Thanks,” I said, still upset.

He turned away and began to walk back into the palace.

“Eder, wait,” I called.

He turned back around. “Yes?” His eyes were hopeful.

“I won’t say anything, to the Queen, to anyone. I promise,” I said.

“Why not?” he asked.

“For some reason I trust you. I don’t know why, but I do. And you’re right. I need to find my sister. That’s the most important thing right now,” I agreed.

For the first time, I saw Eder smile. I liked him more when he smiled. He seemed more…genuine to me. And in the moonlight, he looked almost serene – like an angel, my guardian angel. Although he was vague, he
had
saved me. He had protected me. I had a feeling that later on he would protect me again, or at least be a significant presence in my future.

“Thank you,” he said finally, and I knew he meant it.

“Yeah,” I replied, wondering why in the Realm I was letting him just walk away. I didn’t have the answers I wanted. I hardly knew anything but vague fragments of an explanation, yet there I was, letting him go.

He disappeared into the palace, leaving me pondering what had just occurred between us.

Then I remembered something. Back when he saved me, Eder’s eyes were brown. Just a minute ago, when we were talking, they were green.

I shook my head and walked back inside the palace, not knowing what to believe anymore.

***

I was surprised to find everyone still in the dining hall when I returned…except Eder. He was nowhere to be seen.

Dessert dishes were being cleared away, and elves began rising from their chairs. Before leaving, Queen Taryn approached me. I quickly forgot about Eder and turned my attention to her.

“I heard that you don’t have anything to occupy yourself with after today,” she said.

“Who would say such a thing?” I asked, trying to be polite.

Queen Taryn was right, though. Tomorrow I would be bored out of my mind. I had toured the castle, met a bunch of elves, and even a fairy. What else was there to do?

“I have my sources, Ramsey. And I have decided you will be allowed to go into the city tomorrow, so long as you return at least an hour before dinner, which will be at eight.”

“Queen Taryn, thank you. I promise I will behave,” I told her.

“I’m quite sure you will.” She smiled at me. “Just know that Jacqueline will be with you wherever you go.”

“That is perfectly understandable,” I agreed.

“Then I hope you have a good time. Goodnight, Ramsey.”

“Goodnight, Queen Taryn,” I said.

I waited for her to leave before leaving myself.

I was going to the city! My wish would come true. I had hoped that I wouldn’t leave for Birchwood City without seeing the sights. Now I could spend the whole day there. I wasn’t too keen on having Jacqueline with me everywhere, though. I wasn’t a baby. However, I did understand why she had to accompany me. If Stellan and Addison were still suspects, I was one as well. They couldn’t risk me bolting before we even tried to find Zora. I hurried past several guards until I reached Stellan. Placing my hand in his, I whispered in his ear, “I can go to the city tomorrow.”

“Good; at least one of us will be having a good time,” he remarked.

“You don’t have to be with Thane again, do you?”

The look on his face said it all.

“I’m sorry,” I told him softly.

He squeezed my hand. “Don’t be sorry, Ramsey. I don’t mean to sound so upset. It’s just.…” He shook his head. “Can I walk you to your room?”

“Of course,” I replied.

He led me up the stairs, Jacqueline close behind. I was just glad Thane wasn’t there. That would have been creepy; a weird guy that I hardly knew following us up the stairs would have been awkward. We didn’t speak as we walked down the hall. Stellan didn’t look like he was open to conversation. Sometimes he acted like a two-year-old, and his behavior was growing old. I didn’t want to date – or court – a two-year-old. I was about to say goodnight when we reached my door, but instead he turned to Jacqueline.

“Can we have a moment, please?”

Jacqueline looked uncertain. I nodded to her.

“Very well, I will leave you,” she said. “I will see you tomorrow morning, Ramsey.”

I nodded in response. “Thank you,” I said.

As Jacqueline walked away, Stellan took both of my hands in his. “Ramsey, I need you to promise me something,” he said.

“What? What is it?” I asked, bewildered by his sudden seriousness.

“I need you to promise me that whatever happens with Zora and Queen Taryn, you won’t forget that I care about you.”

“Why would I forget?”

“Ramsey, just please promise me. No matter what, I don’t want to lose you.”

I put my arms around his neck and looked into his eyes. I could see the fear inside them. Why was he so worried? Why did I have to make a promise that I knew I would keep?

“I promise,” I said.

I decided it was better just to make the promise. I didn’t want to make him worry any more than he already was. It didn’t matter if it was useless worry or not.

He pulled me closer as I kissed him, his arms wrapping around my waist, holding me tightly. For some reason, I was a little hesitant. One part of me felt carefree and content in his arms. Another part was worrying over what he meant when he said, “no matter what happens.” My head was buzzing with confusion. I could barely focus on the kiss. I pulled away from him and opened my door.

“Goodnight, Stellan,” I said. I was anxious to be alone, a first for me.

“Goodnight,” he replied.

He smiled, then turned and walked away from where I was standing.

I hoped I hadn’t revealed any of my uncertainty. I wanted to keep those feelings to myself until I had time to sort through them. I shut the door and walked into my room. I grabbed the nightgown I noticed hanging on the coat rack, reminding myself to thank Aditi the first chance I got. Her only task had been the gown, but she had obviously thought beyond that. If it hadn’t been for Aditi, I wouldn’t have been able to sleep very well.

I was about to change when I remembered my clothes soaking in the bathroom sink. I wanted them to be dry and ready for tomorrow, so I knew it would be best to take them out now. I walked into the bathroom and gasped, covering my mouth with my right hand and dropping my nightgown.

My clothes were no longer in the sink. They were hanging over the bathroom tub. I felt them, and sure enough, they were already dry. They were ready for tomorrow, but I hadn’t put them there.

Who had done this for me? Was it Aditi? No, I washed the clothes after she left, right before dinner. Who else could have gotten into my room in that short amount of time? For a moment, I thought of Eder, and then discarded the thought. It was silly. The elf was strange, but why would he hang up my wet clothes?

A noise came from the bedroom. I whirled around and slowly crept out of the bathroom.

Princess Brielle was sitting on my bed, her legs crossed and her hands clasped over her lap, her long hair pooling over her shoulders. She smiled at me.

“Hello, Ramsey,” she greeted.

“How did you…?”

“After living in a palace for sixteen years and only being allowed to go into the city on weekends, you learn to pick locks. How else would I get out of here?”

“Um…thanks for telling me how you escape from the palace, Princess.”

“Don’t act so surprised. I know you saw me last night at the tavern.” I bit my lip and felt my cheeks redden with embarrassment. I had hoped the Princess would forget that I saw her last night. “Yes, not my finest moment, I’m afraid, but it sure was fun to mess with Arnold. He was the guard who escorted me home. And cut the Princess stuff. It’s Brielle, all right?” she said.

I nodded. “Okay…why are you in my room…Brielle?”

“Well, for one thing, I had to hang your clothes. If I hadn’t taken them out, they would still be sopping wet in the morning. Do you even know how to wash your clothing?”

I ignored her snide remark and returned to asking my own questions. “How could you have dried them so fast? I saw you at dinner. You left only a few minutes before me.”

“Let’s leave that for me to know. The point is that they are dry,” she told me.

“What’s the other reason you are here?” I asked, feeling both uneasy and suspicious of her sudden appearance in my bedroom.

“I heard you were going to the city tomorrow.”

“And for some reason that interests you?” I asked.

“Want some company? Surely, you can’t be happy about Jacqueline following you all day. She is quite a bore. I mean, all serious and such. No real fun involved. Since tomorrow is Saturday, I can escort you. I won’t have to sneak out of the palace at all.”

“You must have a guard with you when you go to the city,” I said.

“We can sneak away. I’ll find Jacqueline and tell her she is off tomorrow. You can come with Danica and me.”

“Danica is your guard?” I asked.

“Yes, she is. Queen Taryn chose her because she is an elfen and not a shape-shifter.”

“Why can’t she be a shape-shifter?” I asked.

“Shape-shifters are needed on a whim for missions and tasks. The Queen said I needed someone who could watch over me.”

“Obviously Danica wasn’t the right choice, since you can slip away from her,” I pointed out.

“Don’t be too hard on her,” Brielle replied, playing with the folds of her gown. “Danica has more important things to do, like be with Thane, for example.”

“What?”

“Oh, you didn’t know? I guess Thane guarding that elf you are with takes up most of his time. You probably haven’t had a chance to observe them together. Usually they are all over each other. That’s how I can get away. Danica gets distracted by her fiancé quite easily.” Brielle smirked and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear.

“Thane is her fiancé?”

“Yes, their wedding is in July,” she told me. “They want to make sure they can never be separated, not that the Queen would ever even think of dismissing them, but it’s good to be cautious during times like these.”

“Wow, I had no idea,” I remarked.

“You haven’t been around the two enough to know.”

“You have a pretty good thing going then, don’t you?” I guessed.

“Sure I do! I can do as I please most of the time. It’s only when Queen Taryn is around that I have to act my best,” she explained.

“I see.”

“So how about it?” she asked.

“I don’t know….Couldn’t we get into some kind of trouble?” I asked her.

“Trust me, Ramsey. I know what I’m doing.”

“Okay,” I said. “Will you talk to Jacqueline and the Queen?”

“Yes, of course. I’ll see you in the morning. Come to my quarters at six,” she instructed.

“All right, I guess I’ll see you then.”

“Goodnight!” Brielle said and walked toward the door.

“Goodnight,” I replied. As she opened it I added, “And please don’t break into my room again without warning me.”

She laughed and shut the door behind her. I sighed and went back into the bathroom to dress in my nightgown. Looking at my dry clothes, I shook my head and walked back into the main room. I blew out all of the candles except for the one by the bed. As I got under the sheets, I thought about the Princess. Brielle was an odd elfen. That much was true. How had she dried my clothes? Why was she so secretive? Was it just what Thane said, that she was isolated?

More importantly, why did she suddenly want to spend so much time with me, when earlier she was so cold and uninterested? I didn’t even know why I had accepted her offer to accompany me into the city; I hadn’t been able to say no.

I decided there had to be more to her than mere social issues and I would have to figure her out sooner or later. For now, all I wanted was sleep. The day had been filled with too many surprises. My room was broken into twice, I met a fairy who was actually nice, I had a strange conversation with Eder, and Stellan said some things that totally confused me. What would tomorrow bring? I shuddered and blew out the last candle.

I would wait until tomorrow to think about that.

~17~
Party Like a Princess

That night I had disturbing dreams filled with confusion, blood, and horror. They included Zora.
Her pain-stricken face swirled behind my closed eyes. I reached out to her but I couldn’t grab hold. She was slipping away. There wasn’t any time left….

When I woke suddenly, my eyes and face were wet with tears. Wiping them away, I got out of bed and ran into the bathroom. After being sick for a few moments, I washed my face and sank onto the bathroom floor. I shook from the horrors of the nightmare. Seeing Zora again like that and not being able to help had made me sick to my stomach. Burying my face into my knees, I tried to stop the sobs from coming. They rose up and out of my throat. I could do nothing to stop them. I stayed that way for a while. I didn’t realize how much time had passed. As my sobbing quieted and I picked myself off the floor, I finally noticed the time. It was five in the morning. I had only one hour until I met with Brielle.

I dressed into my newly cleaned clothes and rushed out of my room to the dining hall, trying to forget my horrid nightmares. On the way, I almost collided into Jacqueline. After my quick apology, she escorted me to breakfast. Addison wasn’t there when I arrived and neither was Stellan. I was relieved, and guilty for being content with their absence. I didn’t want Stellan to ask me for any more promises. I also didn’t want to reveal my nightmare to either of them. Nor did I want to be around anyone until I met with Brielle. I ate quickly and quietly. I didn’t want to be late to Brielle’s room. Whether she was strange or not, she was still the Princess of the Elf Realm. Being late would certainly not do.