“It's...” Doon started to speak, then hesitated. He gazed out a window for a few seconds before finally finishing his thought. “It's more complicated than that, Kitten, I can promise you that.”
“So, what happened to you to make you this way?” Kitt asked.
Doon raked a hand through his hair, which somehow only made it more disheveled. “You make it sound like I'm broken.”
“No... not broken,” Kitt shook her head. “But you are cold, vicious, cocky, and you have an aversion to human contact. I'm just interested to know why you are the way you are.”
“Why is anyone the way they are? Why are you the way you are?” Doon's reply sounded somewhat frustrated. “We are what our environment makes us, I suppose.”
Kitt couldn't contain her curiosity. She knew she was being invasive, and yet she couldn't stop herself. “So... what was your environment like?”
“Maybe someday I'll tell you the story. Or... more than likely, I won't.” Doon picked up a large wrench and waved it around like a sword. “Now, I know you have an insatiable desire to be close to me and probe my innermost thoughts and feelings, but I really must stop talking and get back to work.”
Kitt snorted and rolled her eyes. “Oh my. Your ego is a bit out of control.”
“Um... who has an ego?” Before he turned his attention back to the engine, Doon sent a smirk over his shoulder. “I'm not the one who assumed someone was entering a race so they could kiss me, was I?”
25
Kitt was sitting beside Loreina, which might have been dreadful if not for the fact that the queen was in a surprisingly good mood. Loreina was positively overflowing with excitement at the thought of the upcoming race. They were sitting together in the royal box, perched high above the rest of the audience. Their seats were close to the finish line, which meant they would have a clear view of the winner.
The queen picked up a pamphlet, donned a pair of minuscule reading glasses, and read the names of the contenders. “The Viscount of Wyndermere, Baron Von Stuart, General George Harriot Strong, Captain Francis Doon...” Loreina's voice trailed off for a moment. “My dear, if you win a kiss with Francis Doon, I'll be positively simmering with envy!”
“Wouldn't he be the one winning a kiss from me?” Kitt attempted to correct her.
“You might say that, but I'd think of it as a win if I was you.” Loreina tossed her hair over her shoulder and continued to read aloud. “Count Roden, Sir Wyatt Hughes, Lord Duncan Morys Amberle, The Marquess of Boxton Berryton and finally... Sir Roderick Kelp, representing for the Royal Black Wings.” Loreina chuckled when she read the final name. “If your own lover was the one who won a kiss, how devastatingly boring would that be?”
Kitt's eyes swelled. “What?”
“Oh, dear dear dear. Did you really think I don't know about Roderick?” Loreina was grinning from ear-to-ear at her daughter's shocked expression. “Don't worry. I haven't told anyone! And I would be a bit of a hypocrite if I judged you for it, would I not?”
“I... suppose.”
The blare of a seismic horn suddenly pierced the sky, letting everyone know the race was about to begin. From what Kitt could gather, the airships would race around a predetermined course three times, trying to overtake and outmaneuver each other. Most of the contenders were obviously unfamiliar to her, and it wasn't as if she could ask Loreina about them, because she wasn't sure what Lyneah would already know.
“What if I end up having to kiss a total stranger?” Kitt asked, hoping there would be at least one racer who was a stranger to Lyneah.
Loreina chuckled at Kitt's plight. “Then you had better hope he doesn't use his tongue!”
As Kitt shuddered at the thought, the horn blared a second time, and the airships sprang into action. A small red ship quickly broke free of the pack, putting distance between himself and his rivals.
“Oh dear, you won't want him to win!” Loreina exclaimed.
“Why? Whose ship is that?”
“That would be Count Roden. I don't believe you've met him, and I wouldn't be surprised if you haven't even heard of him. He's unimportant.”
“Is there some specific reason I wouldn't want him to win?” Kitt dared to ask.
“Well, to begin with, the man is a eunuch!” Loreina threw back her head and cackled at the thought. “If he wins, I'm not certain you'll be kissing a man or if you'll be kissing something else entirely!”
Kitt simply shrugged. If Loreina wanted her to have ill feelings for a man she had never met, it wasn't going to happen. Behind the red ship, there was a ship that had been painted to look gold. Doon was in third place, and the three ships held their positions until they were on the opposite end of the course, at which time Kitt could barely see them.
When Loreina realized her daughter was straining to see the action, she handed her an odd-looking device. “Here,” she said as she passed the gadget to Kitt. “This is a monocular. It will let you see the race, even from a great distance.”
“Really?” When Kitt raised the monocular to her eyes, she gasped. The airships suddenly looked so close, it was as if they had leapt straight at her. She could even see the faces of spectators at the opposite side of the arena. Doon was now in second place, right behind the red ship. Roderick, who was previously in fourth place, had fallen to fifth.
“If it's a bit blurry, you can adjust the knobs on the sides. It might get better or it might get worse, depending on your eyes.” To demonstrate, Loreina gave one of the monocular's knobs a slight twist.
“It made it worse,” Kitt announced with a sigh. As she tried to get the monocular back to the way it was before, she heard a loud boom. Several of the spectators screamed—not because they were frightened, but because they were delighted. The cannon fire came from Doon's ship as it fired at the red leader.
“He shot at him?” Kitt shrilled. “Is that allowed?”
“Of course it's allowed! How have you forgotten?” Loreina rolled her eyes. “It adds to the excitement, of course. What would an airship race be without a bit of friendly fire?”
“Friendly fire?” When Kitt peered through the monocular, she could hardly believe her eyes. “More like on fire! I think the red ship might be going down!”
Loreina snatched the monocular from Kitt's hands so she could see too. “Oh! So it is. How exciting!”
A second shot from Doon's airship sealed the red ship's fate. As Captain Roden's flaming ship plummeted to the earth, Kitt had to watch through squinted eyes. “Are they going to be okay? Are they going to die?”
“Possibly. Or not. It's been known to happen before.” Loreina simply shrugged, as if the potential loss lives were not a concern to her. “Doon is brutal. I like that.”
Brutal or not, Doon's lead didn't last very long. By the end of the second lap, he had fallen to third place. The gold ship pushed ahead, followed by a solid brown ship. Roderick's Royal Black Wings vessel held steady in fourth place. None of the other ships seemed interested in firing on each other, and they all kept their distance from Doon. It seemed he was the only one hellbent on destroying other ships, and that fact made Kitt feel strangely disappointed. In her mind's eye, she imagined Doon on the deck, pacing back and forth, barking orders and demanding more carnage.
When the ships went around the corner, Doon was back in second place. His ship seemed capable of pulling off sharper turns than the rest. And while he quickly gained ground, the gold ship held its lead. Almost as soon as Doon pushed into second place, Roderick's ship managed to slip into third.
Loreina was clapping her hands maniacally as the ships jockeyed for position. “Oh, this is so exciting. So exciting!”
“Who commands the gold ship?” Kitt asked as she viewed the front-runner through the monocular.
“That would be the Marquess of Boxton Berryton. He's a handsome man in his own right, though perhaps a bit of a dandy. If he was the ultimate winner, it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.”
The three ships in the l
ead managed to hold their positions through the bulk of the second lap. And by the lap's end, there was a significant distance between the third place ship and the fourth place ship. At that point, it seemed highly likely that either Doon, Roderick or the Marquess would win the day.
By the middle of the third and final lap, Kitt's palms were sweating, especially after Doon pushed into the lead. He surpassed the Marquess with ease, as if he had been saving back some of his ship's power for the end. When the gold ship slipped into second, Roderick's ship subtly increased its altitude and drifted into second place, right behind Doon.
“Oh my...” Loreina was breathing heavily as she watched the action unfold. “If I'm this nervous, I can only imagine how nervous you must be!”
“I... yeah,” Kitt agreed. “It is pretty nerve racking.”
And it was about to get even more nerve racking. When the ships reached their final turn, Roderick's ship opened fire on Doon's. Kitt was watching through the monocular when it happened, so when she heard the explosion, she actually saw pieces of debris flying from Doon's ship, and she screamed.
“Oh god!” Kitt wailed. “Is Doon's ship going to be okay? Is it losing altitude? What if it's ruined? What if he's hurt?”
“You seem awfully concerned about Doon, darling,” Loreina casually observed.
“Well... I wouldn't want him to get injured because of a stupid race!” Kitt noticed her fingers were trembling, and she couldn't bear to watch any longer, so she handed the monocular back to Loreina.
Doon's ship attempted to fire back at Roderick, but missed. It was hovering above Doon's ship, just out of reach of his cannons.
“Don't they both work for you? It seems a bit counterproductive to have your own ships firing at each other!” Kitt exclaimed.
“Doon's ship belongs to Doon, not me,” Loreina corrected her. “However, Doon is my privateer, so if his ship sustains any significant damage, I will probably pay for the repairs.”
That gave Kitt at least some small relief. Having spent so much time on Doon's ship, she didn't want to see it destroyed.
The two airships were within a hair's breadth of each other when they reached the race's end. Doon tried for another counterattack, which Roderick carefully evaded. Both ships maintained an impressive speed, and both were fueled by fierce determination. Since Kitt and Loreina were close to the finish line, they had a clear view of the winner.
And there was no question about who had won. Loreina's own Royal Black Wings ship passed over the finish line, barely ahead of Doon. Roderick was the winner of the airship race.
And oddly enough, Kitt felt rather proud of him.
26
Princess Lyneah's birthday ball was apparently the biggest celebration in some time, and Kitt had never been more dolled up in her life. Extensions had been added to her hair, and then styled extensively. Curls and ribbons flowed around her with every move she made. Her emerald green dress was equally covered in flounce. The gown was swallowed up in frills and ruffles and lacy trimming. Kitt never felt more like a princess than she did that night.
When she arrived at the ball, couples had already assembled on the dance floor. Pale moonlight shining in from the skylight above made the dance floor glow like silver. As she watched the couples waltz around the room, bathed in silver-white light, Kitt was in awe. It looked like something out of a fairy tale.
It wasn't long before Kitt found a dance partner of her own.
“My lady,” she heard someone speaking to her from behind. “Might I be so fortunate as to have your first dance?”
When Kitt turned around, Miles was standing in front of her. From head to toe, he was dressed to the nines. It had been so long since she had seen him, she was almost tempted to throw her arms around him and capture him in a hug. “Miles!” she exclaimed. “Oh my, you look so handsome! Like such a gentleman!”
“You are too kind, young lady,” Miles said as he bowed to her. “And you, of course, are looking beautiful enough to stop a man in his tracks.” With a chuckle, he added, “Even an old man like me.”
“Oh, Miles, you're not old!” Kitt objected. “And of course I would love a dance with you!” She leaned closer to his ear and whispered, “Although I have to admit, my dancing skills are very rudimentary. I certainly don't have the formal training and grace that a princess would be expected to have.”
“Don't worry. With a good partner, you should do well enough.” Miles winked at her. “And I'm not trying to say I'm a good partner... but I am a good partner.”
“Indeed you are!” Kitt agreed as she accepted his arm and followed him to the dance floor. “How is Doon's airship? Is it very badly damaged?”
“It suffered only minimal damage, thank goodness.” Just before the waltz commenced, Miles assisted Kitt with her posture and moved her hand to his shoulder. “I encourage you to talk to Doon before the night's end. I think he's quite sore about losing. He's been sulking for the last four and twenty hours.”
“He really wanted to win, did he?”
“Oh, yes! I'm afraid his ego suffered a substantial blow.” When the music started, so did their dance. Kitt was a bit clumsy, but she tried to follow his lead as best as she could. Since her attention was focused mostly on her feet, she struggled to follow the conversation. “But I believe a blow to the ego is healthy for him. His ego can be rather... obese.”
“Mmhmm,” Kitt agreed.
“Although, to be honest, I expected him to win myself. Doon's skills as a pilot are truly unmatched.”
“I wish he hadn't fired on the other ship,” Kitt said with a sigh. When she spoke, she stumbled a bit. Apparently, it was impossible for her to talk and waltz at the same time. “When I saw that ship go down in flames, it was horrifying!”
“Alas, I tried to talk him out of violence, but he insisted. Doon never does anything halfway,” Miles told her. “I think we were all surprised by how quickly the ship ignited, however.”
“What happened to the people on the red ship? Were there any casualties? Have you heard?”
“There were injuries, but no casualties. I cannot begin to tell you how relieved I was to hear that. There are times when violence is sadly necessary, but an airship race is not one of those times.”
The more they danced, the more Kitt felt confident in her feet. Her moves weren't perfect, but at least she didn't look completely ridiculous by the dance's end. Still, she hoped Loreina wasn't watching. She didn't care to explain why Lyneah's dancing skills had eroded.
As soon as the dance was over, Miles steered her in Doon's direction. When Kitt realized what he was doing, she opened her mouth to protest. “Oh no... no no no! I don't feel like talking to him right now.”
“But I do think he'd appreciate it. He might not admit it, but I think he admires you.”
Kitt was adamantly shaking her head. “He might admire me, but I don't admire him! My life's a mess right now, and Doon is the reason. The only reason!”
“Very well.” Before they reached Doon, Miles let go of Kitt's arm. “You needn't speak to him if you object so strongly.”
Kitt thought he looked disappointed, if not downright despondent, by her aversion to Doon. And because she did not want to disappoint Miles, she quickly changed her mind. “Oh, very well...” Her shoulders hitched as she marched toward Captain Doon. “I suppose there's no harm in speaking to him... just for a bit.”
When she approached Doon, he was holding two wine glasses, one in each hand. By the time she reached him, he had drained the first glass and started on the second.
“Impressive!” Kitt exclaimed when she was finally standing at his side. “I don't see anyone else attempting to guzzle two drinks at once.”
“The queen's been flirting with me since I arrived. Believe me, this is necessary.” He took a swig from his second wine glass and sighed. “Ah. So refreshing!”
“Where is Loreina right now?” Kitt asked.
“No idea. I only managed to evade her a moment ago.”
“Hmm. I'll be on the lookout. If I see her coming our way, I'll warn you.” Kitt flashed a meager smile in Doon's direction. “Oh, and sorry you lost the race.”
“Mmmgmmf.” Doon grumbled an inaudible reply. Clearly, his loss was still weighing heavily on him. “Have you locked lips with Roddy yet?”
“Roddy?” Kitt chuckled at Roderick's new nickname. “No. But it's supposed to happen tonight. Pretty soon, in fact.”
“Well, good luck with that.” Doon took another swig from his wine glass, and then another. “I should probably tell you I'm leaving the castle soon.”
“What. Really?” Doon was tall, so she stood on tiptoes to whisper into his ear. “Can I come with you? Will you take me home?”
“That was the plan, yes.”
Kitt wondered if it was too soon to breathe a sigh of relief. Doon didn't sound like he was lying, but she didn't know how much she could trust him. At this point, only a fool would trust his words implicitly. “You must be the most heavily armed man in the room,” she suddenly changed the subject and pointed at the holster and sheath that dangled at his hips. “I don't think anyone's ever brought so many weapons to a ball.”
“I like to be prepared for anything,” Doon casually replied. “I even have a second gun stashed under my coat.”
“And why am I not surprised?”
“Look out, I think Roddy's heading this way.” Doon said it furtively, as if giving her a warning.
“You keep calling him Roddy. You sound pretty chummy with him all of a sudden.”
“Well, I met him after the race. He's a good chap. A really good chap. We had drinks at the pub and swapped stories and whatnot.”
Kitt's eyes widened. “Seriously?”
“No. That was utter hogwash. I've actually never met the man before.” Doon was chuckling as he raised his wine glass to his lips yet again, draining it of its last drops. “Just looking at him, though, he looks like he'd be about as dry and boring as dust.”
The Barefoot Barmaid (Belles & Bullets Book 1) Page 15