“Move out of the way Thomas.” snapped Quinton
The door swung open, hitting the wall with a loud bang that sent a shock wave through the room. Quinton was standing in the doorway darting his cold eyes around the empty space while a white mouse watched him through a narrow gap between two crates. Alexandra’s heart threatened to run off without her, and she held her breath, fearing her brother might hear her. Pressing deeper int the gap, she watched Quin's face contort violently as he continued his search of the stock room for an intruder.
“See Quinton, nothing here. Now, why don't you tell me what it is you were hoping to find here?”
“Didn't you hear them last night?”
“Hear who, brother?”
“The wolves... two of them. Howling at the moon. Taunting me.”
Tom looked at his brother in confusion. Wolves were relics of the past, things of legends, and a cautionary tale the pure-blood parents told their children. But everyone knew they had been hunted to extinction around the time of the great war, there hadn’t been a sighting in over a century. Thinking Quinton had gone mad, Tom opened his mouth to reply but their father coming up behind them interrupted him before he had the chance.
“What is the meaning of this you two?” Lord Hamilton's voice was stern, yet gentle “You both know only servants can go into the storeroom.”
Arthur Hamilton silently eyeballed his sons as he twirled the tip of his mustache on his finger. He was a tall, imposing man with broad shoulders, and gray hair pulled back to accentuate his square face. Any person who encountered the Lord of Manevia always found him to be intimidating, and his children were no exception. As his hazel eyes scrutinized his boys, Arthur tapped his foot on the floor, waiting for one of them to reply.
“I'm sorry, father. It seems Quinton was convinced that wolves were hiding out in our pantry.”
“Wolves?” Arthur’s voice boomed as he raised an eyebrow at Quinton “What nonsense is this?”
“I heard them, father. Last night. Two of them. Howling at the moon. One was right outside the castle walls on the beach.”
Alexandra's heart sank to her stomach. She knew Quinton heard her, but watching him tell her father about it made her feel small and helpless. How could she be so stupid? She let her guard down so much that it almost allowed Quin to discover her secret. Gods only know what they would do to her if they knew what she was. Not daring to move from her spot, Alex looked on, cowering, and hoping the situation was not as dire as it now looked.
“Impossible! Wolves had been extinct for ages now. No living pure-blood has ever seen one. It was the wind you heard Quinton, nothing more.”
“I'm telling you, father, it was wolves. The master’s warning is coming true. They are coming to take away everything we have worked so hard to build.”
“Enough of this foolishness.” Arthur bellowed at his son “I'm telling you, wolves no longer exist, and unless these critters are immortal, it was the wind you heard.”
Not saying another word, Quinton turned on his heels and stormed out of the room. His white cape flew behind him trying to keep up as he left, causing Alex to breathe a sigh of relief. A few feet before her, Lord Hamilton stood and shook his head in dismay. Placing his hand on top of Tom's shoulder, the old king appeared grim as his eyes trailed to the floor.
“I worry about the future of our kingdom with a leader like Quinton to succeed me.”
“I'm sure it will be all right father, fate works in mysterious ways.”
“That it does son, that it does.” Arthur nodded his head “Be sure to lock up the pantry behind us, will you boy?”
“I will do that now, father.”
Giving out a final huff, Lord Hamilton walked out the storeroom with Tom behind him. Turning to shut the door, Tom looked around the room one more time shaking his head with a look of relief on his face. As the lock latched in place, Alex scurried out of her hiding spot and ran as fast as she could back up the pipe to her room.
Back in her chamber, she stuck the bag of produce into the trunk, her heart still pounding from the close call she had. She was mad at herself for allowing Quinton to catch on to the fact that there were wolves still out there; waiting to end this reign of terror. Fortunately for her, no one seemed to believe him. Giving herself time to calm down, she put her hands on the trunk and concentrated on it being small.
Slowly the chest grew smaller and smaller until it was no bigger than her palm. Picking it up, Alex placed it inside the hand satchel she kept under her pillow and heaved out a heavy sigh. Putting it back in its hiding spot, she glanced at Cosmo who gave her a playful bark.
“What’s wrong Cosmo?”
“Wee, rhee?,”
Smiling to herself, Alex could not answer his question. She didn’t know what it was about that resentful old man she found so captivating. How did this unbearable mage manage to infect every fiber of her being snuffing out the last bit of rational thought she had left? All she knew was that she needed to see him. She wanted to see if his inner darkness was a perfect match for the one in her own soul. And this was what she told Cosmo, as they laid in her bed and watched the hours tick away.
Chapter 10
A Step Forward
It was a beautiful, clear night as Alex stood on the dirt road leading up to The Black Paw tavern. The new moon made the path seem darker than it was, and she stood there, letting her eyes adjust to the darkness. Her long hair and cloak blew around with the high wind coming in from the ocean. Taking a deep breath, Alex filled her lungs with the salty air. She could smell it, a storm was approaching.
Walking up the dirt path, Alex stopped at the studded wood door leading into the tavern. She stood there, trying to contemplate what she would say when she saw Jay again. Cosmo sat on her shoulder, grunting and squealing at her to turn back. The little guy was right, Jay told her not to come back, and she had no reason for being there. Unable to come up with an excuse she nudged the door open a crack and peeked inside. Jay was standing behind the bar cleaning his glasses and putting them away as if he never moved.
Gathering her courage, Alex pushed the door open further and slipped through the crack. Hearing the creaking of the gate, Jay looked up at her from the bar, their eyes locked on one another. For a split-second his face appeared almost happy but changed to an expression of anger in an instant.
“What are you doing here?” he bellowed in his deep voice, “I thought I told you to never come back.”
Alex looked to the door behind her. She thought about turning around and running away, but she changed her mind. A part of her needed to get through to Jay somehow, she needed to get closer to him. Regaining her composure, Alex approached him until she was standing right in front of him looking up into his stern face. The scrutiny of Jay’s icy glare terrified her, but Alexandra stood strong.
“I'm not here for you. I came here to see Andy. Now would you please move out of the way?”
“What business do you have with my boy? Don't stick your nose where it doesn't belong princess.”
“I just want to give him something Jay, now please, let me through.”
Alex went to walk past Jay, but his large hand pressed against her shoulder, stopping her. Jay pushed her out of the way and up against the wall, his palm still pressing on her. His brilliant eyes peered deep into hers, piercing Alex down to her core. She knew he was not trying to hurt her, and as imposing as Jay might have looked, he did not scare her. She was about to take hold of his body and pull him in when the door to the cottage swung open, and the excitement of a child greeted her.
“Alex! You came back.”
Both Alex and Jay turned to see a smiling boy standing there, looking at up them. Andy’s eyes glistened with anticipation. The only thing Jay could do was groan while shaking his head with his hand on his forehead. Free to move about, Alex knelt to Andy's level and smiled back at him, ruffling his soft blond hair. The exhilarating feeling of wispy strands rushing
past her fingers still stirred familiar feeling Alexandra could not explain.
“That's right, I came back to see you again.”
Andy looked at her in confusion and then looked up at his dad before turning his eyes back to her. “Really? You came to see me?”
“Yes. I have a few things I had to give you. Want to see?”
Andy gave Alex an enthusiastic nod as he grabbed her hand and pulled her into the house. Alexandra looked behind her at Jay, who followed with a look of annoyance on his face. From his spot on her shoulder, Cosmo barked for her to turn back because she was clearly not making friends with this man. Jay looked furious with her, but Alex still thought she could get through to him, she only had to try.
Jay, however, would have to wait as Alexandra’s focus was on the little boy beside her. Walking over to the kitchen counter she picked up Andy and placed him on top. Reaching into her hand satchel, she pulled out the trunk and set it on the table next to him. The boy looked at the small trunk with curiosity, picking it up and studying it up close.
“What's this?”
“Watch this” Alex laughed and took the tiny box from him placing it back down.
With a wink, she waved her hands over the trunk, making it grow. Andy let out a gasp as the box grew to its original size, taking up almost all the space left.
“Cheap parlor tricks.” muttered Jay in the corner.
Cosmo barked at the man’s rudeness, and Alex shot Jay a quick glance. She did not understand why he had to be so negative about everything. It was clear the barkeep did not hold her kind in high regards, but she was only trying to help, why couldn’t he see that? Opening her mouth to speak, Alex was interrupted by Andy tugging on her sleeve. Shifting her focus back to the boy she came to see, Alex put Jay to the back of her mind and focused on the task at hand.
Flipping the lid of the trunk up, Alexandra pulled out the cured meats and cheese. Walking over to the small ice box next to the counter she filled it up with the goods she purloined from the castle pantry. Satisfied Jay and his boy would have enough for a few weeks, Alex turned her attention to the child. Taking out a bar of chocolate she handed it over to Andy who studied it before tilting his head at her.
“What's this?”
“It's called chocolate.” Alex smiled while pulling back the wrapper “Try it.”
The little boy bit into the bar of chocolate and let out the sound of delight as he chewed on his treat. Jay grumbled from his corner with crossed arms. Tapping his foot on the ground he looked over at the woman intruding on his life. Her sweet disposition sickened him, but at the same time, his heart ached at the longing of being with her. A strange urge to embrace the princess was welling up inside Jay, and he hated himself for it.
Feeling the tension building in the small space, Cosmo grumbled nervously, wishing this futile trip would soon be over. Rupert told him to give the two of them time to get reacquainted, but the pigrie did not think things were headed in the right direction. Gently he tugged on Alexandra’s hair, trying to get her to leave before things escalated to violence.
Paying him no attention, Alex pulled her old teddy bear from the trunk and handed it to Andy. “This here is Binky. He was my old teddy bear from when I was your age. He used to keep me safe at night. I want you to have him.”
Andy took the bear from Alex and hugged it tight to his little body. Looking up at her with a worried look, he studied her face, unsure why the princess was being so nice to him. “Are you sure I can have him?”
“Of course. I think it's time he stopped living under my bed and started living with someone who will take excellent care of him.” Alex looked at Andy with one eyebrow raised “You will take good care of him, won't you?”
The boy nodded his head as he clutched the bear even closer to him. Andy would cherish anything Alexandra gave him, after all, she was the mother he dreamed of every night for as long as he could remember. Every night he saw visions of a beautiful woman tucking him in at night and singing him to sleep with the voice of a nightingale. Now, as if by magic, the woman had stepped out of his dreams and into his home, and Andy hoped she would stick around forever as his little face marveled at this incredible stroke of luck.
Watching Andy hug the toy as his eyes glistened, Alex had to smile. Such innocence was addictive, and it was reviving a part of her that died years back, a piece of her soul she thought was lost forever to the darkness within. Being here with the boy and Jay made Alex’s head hurt as if a locked-up memory was trying to claw its way out of the dusty corners of her mind. Whatever it was though made her want to spend every waking moment in this cottage with the two of them. For the first time in her life, Alex felt at home, she felt like she belonged somewhere, even if she was not yet welcome.
Taking a breath to clear her head, Alex heaved the trunk off the counter, placing it on the ground. “I got a few more toys and a board game in there for you as well, want to look?”
The boy nodded his head, and Alex picked him up. Settling down on the floor next to the trunk with Andy in her arms she put her face in his hair. He still had that odd child smell to him which made her smile uncontrollably as she inhaled it. It was a scent she knew well as she remembered smelling it somewhere a long time ago, longer than her memory would allow her to go back.
Still grinning from something she could not explain, Alexandra shifted her weight so the boy could look in the trunk. Sitting there with Andy in her lap, the two of them went through the toys she brought him. The boy shuffled through everything in sight, stopping at the board game that used to be Alex’s favorite. He picked up the box and looked it over before turning his head to look at Alexandra.
“Can we play?”
Alex looked over at the old board game. The top of the box stated it was for three or more players, meaning Jay would have to play with them. She looked over at the man leaning against the wall, glaring at her. Something told her he would not be up for playing a game with them, at least not tonight. Thinking it was best to listen to Cosmo and end her intrusion for the night, Alex put the game down and pressed the boy closer to her.
“Maybe we can play some other night. It’s getting late. I think it’s best we get you to bed before your father gets angry with me.”
“Okay.” Andy sounded disappointed “Do you think you can tuck me in?”
“I believe we can arrange that.”
Alex got up and grabbed the blanket out of the trunk before taking Andy's hand to lead him upstairs. Jay watched them go upstairs from the corner he planted himself in, growing angrier by the second. The princess was everything he’d dreamed of and more. He yearned to hold her in his arms, run his hands on her smooth porcelain skin, kiss her lips and never let her go. This desire for the girl ignited a fire in him that Jay could not put out, and he hated himself for it, and he hated her for these feelings she stirred in him, emotions he couldn’t get rid of no matter how hard he tried.
While Jay’s temper raged out-of-control downstairs, Alex tucked Andy into bed, singing him to sleep. It did not take the boy long to retreat into the realm of dreams, leaving Alexandra with little choice but to confront Jay. Heeding Cosmo’s warning, Alex began to make her way down the stairs. Her apprehension grew with every step she took down as she was hoping Jay was in a forgiving mood that night.
Barely having the chance to clear the bottom landing, a large arm slammed on the wall just above Alexandra’s head. The loud bang made her heart leap in her chest as Cosmo squealed on her shoulder with a raised mohawk. Her eyes trailed up to see Jay leaning in closer. The ice in his blue eyes held her in place as Alex dared not move. Jay’s face was close, dangerously close, so much that Alex did not just smell the whiskey on his breath, she tasted it.
“Who do you think you are?” Jay roared. “You can’t just walk in here and act like you own the place. Andy is my son, not yours! You got no reason getting yourself involved in his life, or mine.”
Those words hurt her
a lot more than she would have expected and Alex fought the tears starting to well up in her eyes. She knew Andy was not hers, she reminded herself of the fact earlier. So why, why did it hurt so much? What was it about the little boy upstairs that made her lose herself to feelings she had never experienced before? Suddenly Alex did not care about trivial facts, her affection for Jay and his boy took over, and the tears fell freely down her face.
Jay paid no attention to the tears in her eyes. He was angry with himself for caring about her, and at her for being nice to him. As much as it pained him to do it, he wanted Alex to hate him as much as he hated himself. So, he continued to dig into the girl he cared about, taking all his frustration out on her.
“What do you get out of this princess? You probably think of us as some charity case. Does this make you feel better about what you really are? You disgust me, coming in here and acting like you care while during the day you sit there and enjoy the fruits of our suffering. What is it you plan to do to us once you are done playing around? After all, it’s a criminal offense for us, dirty peasants, to touch the jewel of Manevia.”
Jay finally took it too far, and Alex could no longer hold back her ire. Hot tears continued to stream down her face as she flew into a rage. Alexandra did not understand how he could say things that were so cruel when all she wanted to do was help him. Trembling with anger, Alex reached over and slapped Jay as hard as she could.
Jay pulled back looking at the princess, startled. Rubbing the cheek with a bright red handprint on it, he continued to glance at Alex. Her tear-streaked face was red, and she shook uncontrollably with her fists clenched. Instantly Jay regretted his actions. He realized he did not want to lose the girl for good, but as he was about to reach out and hold Alex, her eyes shot up to meet his.
“How dare you,” she yelled at him, “how dare you assume you know anything about me? You won't even give me a chance to prove you wrong. I hate the damn pure-bloods as much as you do! Do you think I like being treated as some property? Can't you see that all I want to do is be a regular person, just like you?
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