“And you told my father.”
“How do you know it was me?”
“He told me.”
“Your father told you it was me?”
“No, it was Louie!” I felt relief come over me, but his glare remained icy in my direction.
“What about Louie?”
“Louie told me you did it. Louie told me you told my father about my eyesight. It was you!”
“No, I didn’t tell! How could you believe Louie? How do you believe a word he says?”
His fists remained at his sides, his breathing heavy. I looked to Monty for support, wishing he would speak up and tell Pete that I was with him the whole time and that I was nowhere near his father. Unfortunately he remained where he was, astonished by Pete’s rage, not wanting to interfere.
“Louie lied to you.” I said, anger surfacing in my tone of voice now, but I tried to appear as calm as possible. My face softened. “Don’t you trust me?” I pressed.
Louie emerged from behind the white curtain, his face exposed. The golden mask was in his hand at his side and he smiled at this. I knew he wouldn’t help me. I knew he had planned this. He hated to see me with his cousin so much that he told his uncle his son’s dreaded, dark secret. He must have told Pete’s father that I was the one who knew it all along and that I told him. His plot was to destroy our friendship and shifting my gaze away, I knew he had.
“It’s over!”
Pete’s hand wrapped around my silver dragons, his voice rang in my ears, playing back like a broken record. I remained stunned for as long as time would let me. His grip became tighter and he pulled the necklace toward him, straining the metal chain until it broke, pulling my neck with it. He looked down at the necklace, meaningless now, and back to me. I looked to Monty and Louie for help, finding that Monty was just as astonished as I was and Louie was still smiling, watching his plan succeed. I knew Pete had greater thoughts. His hard stare turned to the balcony.
“No. No,” I was whispering. I knew he could hear me. I knew he saw my face filled with desperation. “Spare my dragons,” I found myself saying, as though I had no control over my words, as though I was in a nightmare. I reached out to take it from him, but to my despondency, he pulled his hand out of my reach and turned away from me.
With a last glance down at the charm, he turned his harsh gaze back toward the balcony and threw it in that direction. It sailed over the balcony, out of my reach, and I launched to try to save it.
“No!” Through the drowned out voices, I was unsure if I had spoken or not.
“Chenille no!” It was Monty. He tried to stop me from diving for the precious charm, and when that failed, aimed to be my savior. “It’s just a stupid piece of silver!” he cried out.
This stupid piece of silver would cost me. Louie watched his plan make a turn for the worst. I knew he never wished this for me. But even his attempts would have failed, if he had even attempted at all, just because I knew they wouldn’t believe I would do such an insane thing. I jumped, reaching to get my charm and in doing so, sent myself into the balcony. I looked down, where my dragons were heading, and where I was heading, to my death below.
* * * * *
Chapter 5 - New World
When I woke up recovering from reincarnation, I found myself in the body known as the Queen of Catastrophe. I was alone, hooked up to monitors, probably that reported my brain activity in hopes for reincarnation. I was hooked up to IVs I assumed contained fluids for hydration and a combination of vitamins and minerals to keep my hair and skin healthy. The curtains in my room were a light snowy color, keeping out only a little bit of light, but the warmth felt nice. The room was an obvious basic white color, that of a hospital. The only thing that stood out in my room was the vase at my bedside. A heavy blue and white artistic vase held a bundle of multicolored flowers. I waited to feel my blood warm and the feeling came into my legs, so I stood up, detached the machines, and left my room. Surprisingly, no one had noticed me, though doctors buzzed around creatures with trauma, rushing from room to room. It was easy to leave without being noticed since Caspian wasn’t around or at least not in my sight.
I took a shortcut through the City, eager to get home. Even though I was at the palace in no time at all, I had taken more time to look at it, wondering what my fate would be when Pete confronted me. I walked to the door noticing how unkempt the gardens were, how the weeds were taking over and killing several climbing roses that wrapped around the columns in front of the palace.
I stepped into disturbing silence. There was no activity, nothing at all to report. A coat of dust would have convinced me that nothing had changed since I left, but everything was clean and in its place. Pete must have heard me stepping onto the marble floor with all of the silence, but it wasn’t he who appeared at the top of the staircase, it was Fitzray. He was not a boy, not my boy. He would always be the son of Luna Silver. He was a man now, the same age as I had seen him last when Pete threw him over the Bridge of Secrecy. His green eyes widened and he seemed lost for words.
“Chenille?” I barely heard him, but I nodded in response.
“Who’s there Fitz?” Pete called.
Fitzray gave him no response, simply stared at me. Pete appeared at the top of the stairs, stood beside his brother starting to shake his head. He looked the same. He hadn’t changed since I left.
“Chenille. Chenille.”
He started to walk down the stairs slowly, smiling hesitant and then more boldly by the time he reached me. He embraced me, calmly held fast to my arms and rested his chin on my head. His grip only became softer and he stepped back to look at me, proceeding to guide me up the stairs to our room. Fitzray watched us cautiously as we disappeared down the hall, the door closing behind us.
Pete sat down beside me on the bed smiling. He threw his cape off onto the floor and pressed his hands to my shoulders. He edged slightly closer to kiss my forehead and released me. He leaned back into the pillows and shook his head still smiling, now starting to laugh. At first, I thought it was insanity, but then I realized he laughed playfully, something I had never heard before.
“I thought you were gone for good.” He remarked and started to laugh again. I didn’t find what he said funny at all.
He continued to laugh to an almost suspicious extent, being there was no need for his strange humor and I got up cautiously. I realized he smelled sweet and started to back away.
I was sure he had been drinking the juice of a plumeberry, a berry whose juice is abundant with the toxicity of the plume plant. Such juice causes numbness due to excessive release of endorphins and encouraging erratic, non-judgmental behavior. Too much of the juice could make someone pass out for a couple of hours and by then the toxins would have inflicted a lot of damage. An average plumeberry had enough toxicity to cause its victim to want more as well. People and creatures referred to it as the vampress poison flower because it possesses the effects of real vampire poison no vampress has.
Pete didn’t go completely off the edge, but it was plain to see that he was drunk from the stuff. I started to walk out of the room when he stopped me.
“Don’t let my behavior fool you. I’m just the same.”
I barely glanced back at him. “I’ll see you at dinner.”
I closed the door behind me and turned, hoping to see Fitzray in the hall. He wasn’t there. I walked quietly to his room, or at least what I assumed was his room. When I peered inside, I saw it was strangely dark. The heavy curtains kept any light from coming through. It was clean, which made it difficult to tell if it was one of the many guest rooms or not, but then I noticed a stack of hardbound books on the desk located in front of one of the dark curtained windows. When I stepped inside to investigate, the door closed, startling me. The only light that came from the hall was gone now.
I felt a grip on my arms and was harshly spun around to face what I could not see. I was positive it was Fitzray, now feeling his embrace and the repetition of kissing on my face.
I broke away from his grip to feel my way around the room until I saw a faint ripple in the wall suggesting a curtain. I pulled it aside to allow the light to flood into the room. I examined the books on his desk and then turned to a servant who knocked on the door.
“Dinner is ready,” she paused to curtsey, “my Queen.”
I turned back to Fitzray. “There are a lot of things I wanted to see.” I eyed the books again.
“You can see everything after dinner.” I considered not having dinner, even after Fitzray insisted.
I took my seat at the table with Fitzray and Pete. There was an awkward silence until Pete looked at me, compelled to speak.
“We need to have a meeting with our Allies. You know, one of those annual things. We are scheduled to leave in a couple of days. I suggest you come with us, even though you’ve just recovered from reincarnation. It’s important that you meet our Allies.”
I hesitated and my eyes flew to Fitzray as though I instinctively searched for an answer from him, for his glance to assure me. His eyes were not directed toward me though, until the silence forced him to look at me curiously.
“You can come with us.” I could hear a hint of insistence in his voice. He wanted me to come and I didn’t blame them, either of them. I wasn’t even sure how long I had been away from them. They were uneasy inviting me, but what would I do at the palace alone?
“I’ll come.” I said quietly. Pete smiled to himself as he stared down at his food. He was pleased with me and I was glad I had agreed.
“I’ll have a servant pack some of your things.”
“That’s not necessary. I can do it myself.”
Pete looked up, stared at Fitzray for a moment as though telling him something. “You should get some rest then. You’ll need your strength before we set sail.”
“We’re traveling by boat?”
Fitzray nodded in response and then calmly put a hand on my shoulder. “Go on upstairs.” He insisted.
Without question, I did as I was told, retreated to my room. I rested, regained strength I had lost, and braced myself, awaiting to see the new world, and what the world had become in my absence.
Chapter 6 - Sea Travel
My first night at sea was hard. Feeling the rock of the boat was a lot to get used to. I didn’t know what could have possibly brought my sick stomach to the dinner table that night, but I knew our first meeting on the boat was going to be important.
I took my seat at the head of the table beside Pete, Fitzray to my right. A vampire Pete had introduced to me earlier, gone by the name Raven, started to give us an update of our plans for the voyage. I knew he was Pete’s right hand man under our alliances and foreign affairs. I recalled Pete had told me he was a commander, which he looked everything but so, except for a rigid scar on the right side of his jaw line. Pete told me that he had won several battles with a foreign enemy.
Pete sat back and sighed, losing interest in another man who interrupted Raven. He proceeded to look across the table, his face filled with disgust. He was looking at a child who appeared to have the same expression on her face. She was looking down at her bowl of soup. I could see a hint of curiosity in her eyes.
“We should reach Alfur in about a month’s time if we don’t get caught in any storms on the way. Though during this time of the season I wouldn’t be surprised if-,”
The girl beside him pulled on Raven’s sleeve, cutting him short, making Pete’s face twist even more to glare at the innocent girl.
“Daddy, look what’s in my soup.”
Raven peered over to her bowl. “What’s wrong with it Lanna? It’s like the soup you eat back at home.”
“No, the soup back at home doesn’t have that.” She pointed a small finger at her bowl, leaning away from it.
“I don’t have time for this.” I heard Pete mumble gruffly beside me, so quiet I hoped Raven hadn’t heard.
“They’re just noodles sweetie,” he replied simply.
“But Daddy they look like worms!”
“You don’t have to eat it Lanna.”
His face became hard, a blunt warning to his little girl that this was still his place of business. He turned back to us, glanced down at his food to avoid Pete who now held the arms of his chair so tightly I heard his fingernails scratching the old wood. I put my hand to his, pulling his fingers from the wood and held his hand lightly. I felt him relax and silently reminded him that she was just a child and did not know any better.
Raven scratched awkwardly at his black and white hair and continued. “The weather could get bad and if we get thrown off course it could take days out of our way to get back.”
“I know the Captain of this boat,” Pete remarked, resting his elbows on the table, “he’ll get you there on time.”
“Will you be expecting us?”
Pete shrugged. “It all depends on how well my traveling goes. I may or may not be waiting for you by the time you reach Alfur.”
“I can’t come with you?”
“No.” I knew Pete was going to leave us once we reached our first port. From there he would sail to various places, taking a different route to Alfur, and in Fitzray’s opinion, the better route.
“Why not?” He rolled his eyes over to look at me.
“I want you to stay here with this trusted Captain and my right hand man.” I knew he was referring to Raven. “I know you won’t enjoy yourself if I drag you around with me to complete deals and sign papers. I know you want to be with me,” he paused, “but I can’t be in two places at once.”
My eyes darted away from him and I dropped his hand. That wasn’t what I meant.
“If only we could be,” Raven piped up.
Pete leaned back starting to laugh. The conversation quickly turned into what powers they desired, including the ability to be in two places at once, which was unheard of. They started to brag about the powers they already had. This led to vivid descriptions of their poison and mostly Pete’s bragging about his mind control, which was hardly ever spoken of, but because the King himself brought it up, it was talked about like casual conversation.
I looked over to Fitzray surprised he had engaged in the conversation as well, but then I realized he too had been drinking the plumeberry juice Pete had shared with everyone. I was convinced Pete was already addicted to the stuff.
I stood up excusing myself, remembering I was not the only woman on the boat. I knew Raven’s wife was nearby. Lanna had left as soon as she finished eating and giving her soup one last glare.
“I’m leaving. I’ll be in my cabin if you need me.”
Pete didn’t look up, he just waved his hand to dismiss me, almost shooing me away.
Before I could turn away, Fitzray caught my hand. I was amazed by his swiftness. Pete saw this, stared at his brother for a mere second with disapproval and then laughed at a joke someone made.
“You’re going so soon?”
I snatched my wrist from him in response and turned away from all of them. I walked into my cabin, dressed into my night robe and sat on the edge of my bed to think. It wasn’t long until I heard a knock at my door and I remained quiet, hoping to be left alone. My door flew open and Fitzray swayed in, closing the door behind him with his foot. He smiled, walked over to me crookedly, putting a hand on the bed for balance.
“Are you all right?”
He shook his head. “I had to get out of there.”
I got up slowly and walked to the door making sure it was closed all the way. He was behind me in an instant.
“Don’t go back down to the dining room. It’s too dangerous there.” He guided me back to the bed and sat across from me on one of the old chairs.
“I want to stay here tonight. It’s too risky to go back to my cabin with that gang of maniacs running around the ship. I fear for the Captain though.”
“What about Raven’s wife and daughter?”
“They are in their own cabin. They’re safe.”
Fitzray st
ared at me, quietly adjusting the collar of his exquisite coat. It was navy, and at its cuffs and around its buttons was a beautiful golden stitch. The coat’s color and style appeared appropriate for the occasion, being our first night out at sea. He unbuttoned the brass-plated buttons, to reveal a thin white cotton shirt underneath his coat. He looked more like a sailor now, more than the others did.
He glanced up from unbuttoning his cuffs. He began to tell me about his past travels at sea with a few others, including Caspian in his past life, before reincarnation. He also mentioned how he got a navy cutlass sword for Lucian while on his journey. He told me about the old sea legends and of the songs they had sung.
“I had a good time at sea,” he said, watching my eyes close. His voice began to blend into the sounds the boat was making until I felt close to being asleep. Before I was asleep, I heard him speaking to himself.
“Chenille, Chenille are you asleep?”
“What?” I mumbled.
“Did you hear that?”
“No.” I turned my head in his direction, keeping my eyes closed. I tried not to let his disruptive tone bother me.
There was a scream, my eyes flew open in alarm and Fitzray was on his feet. The dim lantern that was once hanging beside the bed was now in his hand. He went for the door, turned his head, mentioning for me to stay, and left.
I heard another scream and ran to the door, pressing the side of my face to it. I strained to hear Pete or Fitzray’s voice, but all I heard was commotion and panic. I wanted to see what was happening, but I felt forced to obey Fitzray’s command. The floorboards creaked and I could tell someone was standing in front of my door.
“Captain!”
This was followed by the sound of bellows and demands with the occasional clash of swords. I pressed my back to the door, my hand resting lightly on the doorknob. I silently panicked with them.
“Chenille open the door!” It was Fitzray.
The moment I opened it, Fitzray rushed inside and I closed the door. His coat was gone. His white shirt was ripped in several places, lined with his dark blood. I could faintly see bruises through his shirt. A gash was on his forearm.
Candescent (The Opalescent Collection Book 1) Page 3