“I apologize.” Alastair’s words interrupted Elaina’s thoughts. “But I am in need of the powder room. Where would it be? I’m afraid all this water in the air from the recent storm has me all sticky.”
After Lydia had given him directions and he had gone, Elaina excused herself as well. She wanted to see the contents of the letter in her hand, but she wasn’t entirely sure Lydia wouldn’t demand to see it if they were left unattended by their guest.
On her way to her room, however, she ran into Alastair again.
“I cannot apologize enough,” he said as she drew nearer. “But I seem to be lost.”
“It is no problem at all. Follow this hall to the end, and you will find another powder room there. It is not as large as our powder room downstairs, but it should be adequate.” As she turned to open her door, however, he reached out and gently put his hand on her arm.
“Before I go and while we’re alone,” he said, taking a deep breath, “I’m afraid there is something I must admit that is not quite appropriate for your cousin to hear, due to the nature of my work.”
“Yes?”
“Prince Nicholas revealed to me some of his research concerning the deaths of the gifted.”
“Oh?”
“And while I have been hired by the king to examine the rebellion and its cause, I must confess that I think I’ve discovered something on the subject that will interest our prince greatly.”
Elaina turned away from her door, too curious to go in now. “And what is that?”
“I believe the Shadow and our killer of the gifted is one and the same!” he whispered, his eyes bright.
Elaina gaped. “What proof do you have?”
He shook his head. “Not enough to convince the king yet, I’m afraid. But I’ve seen too many coincidences to ignore the correlation completely.”
“I am glad to hear it,” she choked out, “but I’m not entirely sure what this has to do with me.” Had he discerned her secret as well? Elaina prayed not.
“I’m sorry. I don’t wish to upset you,” he continued in a rush. “The prince just seems to trust you so much, and I will be gone when he returns so I thought . . .”
Elaina swallowed the lump in her throat and forced a smile. “I would be glad to relay any information you wish to share.”
“As I said,” he continued in a quieter voice, looking at the floor and moving one foot about in a half circle, “my gifted friend had great potential to rise high in the court. But what I didn’t tell your cousin is that this mystery man killed my friend before my friend had the chance to celebrate his twenty-fifth birthday.”
“I’m . . . I’m so sorry.”
“You see, I pursue the killer not only for the prince’s purposes, but for my own as well,” Alastair said, his voice growing more resolute with each word. “I am going to see him to justice.” With that, he turned and stalked away.
Elaina entered her room, though she didn’t necessarily remember actually opening her door or walking in or closing it behind her. Moving over to her window seat, she absentmindedly cut open the seal and read the note.
Lady Elaina,
Though he did not tell me where he was going, Prince Nicholas left a message that said he should be back in the library for our lessons on the first day of the last week of this month. If plans are altered, I shall inform you.
Master Dustin
Elaina began to fold the note back up to burn it, but a movement from outside her window caught her eye. Sitting up, she peered down into the rose garden beneath the window.
Just below her window, hiding in the bushes and staring up at her, was Conrad.
23
That Wretched Ship
When Elaina dared to peek out of her window again, Conrad was gone. Shaking, she left her room and went in search of Alastair. The house was large, though, and Elaina didn’t find him until she returned to the entrance to see Lydia bidding him farewell from the steps. He was already in the coach.
“Was his assistant with him?” Elaina asked Lydia as the coach drove away.
“Who, Conrad Fuller?” Lydia shrugged. “I didn’t see him. I assume so, since that’s where Mister Bladsmuth left him.”
Elaina went in search of her guards. Her trepidation grew when she found the front of the house empty. There was always someone within sight of the door. It wasn’t until she moved to the back of the house that she found the two men in uniform. They were huddled together, speaking in hushed tones. The servants were gathered around them whispering amongst themselves.
“Gerard?” Elaina called. “Cameron?”
“Here, my lady.”
“What has happened?” Elaina hurried to their sides, but came to a halt as she stepped on broken glass.
“Take care, my lady. It’s all over.”
“When did this happen?” she asked, peering closer at the jagged hole in the kitchen window.
“Just now, I’m afraid.” Gerard shook his head and scratched his thick brown beard. “Good thing no one was standing by the window. They might have been struck by the stone.”
“Did this happen about ten minutes ago?”
Cameron looked away from the glass for the first time. “I caught sight of someone rounding the corner about then. I chased him back here to find the glass already broken. Why?”
Elaina swallowed. She had always loathed the idea of having her two guards nearby, but suddenly, two didn’t seem enough. “I looked down from my bedroom window and saw a man staring up at me.”
Both guards stood upright.
“A diversion.” Gerard looked at his companion. “Must’ve known we would stop to look at the broken window.”
“Did you get a good look at him?” Cameron’s hand went to the sword on his waist. “If we go now, we can find him before he leaves the grounds.”
Elaina shook her head. “You don’t have to. I know who he is. He is the assistant to the king’s record keeper. His name is Conrad Fuller.”
Both guards stiffened.
“What is it?” she asked.
Cameron and Gerard exchanged a look.
“Just how well do you know Mister Fuller, my lady?” Cameron finally asked.
“Hardly at all. I have only met him once or twice while at the palace. We haven’t exchanged more than a single word.” She eyed them suspiciously. “Why?”
“We’re not really authorized to say—”
“Cameron,” Elaina said, putting her hands on her hips. “I just looked out of my chamber to find a man in my roses. I believe I deserve a decent explanation.” She lifted her chin. “Or shall I have to ask the prince for assistance when he returns?”
Cameron paled slightly, and Gerard held his hands up defensively.
“Of course you won’t need to go to him. We can tell you enough.” He rubbed the back of his neck and glanced about at the servants. “But first, may we move indoors where it’s a little more private?”
As soon as they were in the dining room, Elaina ordered the doors closed. Once the room was shut off from the rest of the house, she turned and folded her arms. “Well?”
Gerard walked to the window and stared out. “Conrad Fuller has been spotted in a number of inappropriate places since arriving at the palace. It’s really been putting the guard into a bit of an uproar.”
“What kinds of places?” she asked.
“The chambers of other visitors. The servants’ quarters. Even the armory once, though the fellow doesn’t look strong enough to lift a javelin, let alone anything of value.”
“Then why hasn’t he been stopped?”
Gerard glanced at Cameron, who shrugged. “It appears he is taking advantage of his relationship with Alastair Bladsmuth. Every time evidence is requested, no one can prove anything. He doesn’t take any objects. He’s just . . . looking.”
“Why he would be beneath your window, however, is beyond comprehension,” Cameron muttered, gripping the edges of his sheathed knife until Elaina wondered if the leather woul
d give away under his strong hands.
“I think this is a matter for His Highness,” Gerard said slowly. “We will, of course, remain here, and if we catch him doing anything inappropriate, we will surely apprehend him. And when Prince Nicholas returns, you should speak with him about this. Perhaps his father will believe your word over ours. But until then, I think it wise that you remain close to home until the prince returns.”
“My aunt should be home from visiting any time.”
“As much as I am glad to hear that,” Gerard said, “I’m afraid I mean permanently. Until the prince arrives home, of course.”
Elaina took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders. “Thank you. I am grateful for your honesty . . . and your loyalty.”
As soon as the guards had returned to their posts, Elaina began heading back to her room. On her way, however, she spotted a movement in the parlor.
Lydia was still sitting by the fire. She was no longer seated properly on her chair, but was draped sideways across its arms with her feet hanging off one side and her head leaning back against the other.
“What was that all about?” She pushed herself up on her elbows. “I heard something break.”
“Someone threw a rock through one of the kitchen windows.”
“Oh my! Was anyone hurt? Did they see who did it?”
“No, thankfully.”
“But did anyone see who did it?” Lydia repeated.
Elaina took a deep breath. “Not exactly. But we have an idea.”
“Well, before I grow old and die, tell me who it was!”
Elaina sat down in the flowered chair across from Lydia’s and traced the nearly invisible stitching with her fingers. The sun had dulled the fabric’s bright colors, making the room look much like the way Elaina felt. Sickly gray.
“Lydia,” she began slowly, “did you enjoy speaking with Mister Bladsmuth today?”
“Oh, he is just delightful!” Lydia’s beam returned in full. “I mean, he is a little older than I had always imagined a man I might find attractive, but really, he is intriguing!”
“Good.” Elaina tried to smile. “When you were saying goodbye to him before he left . . . did you talk to him any more about . . . me?”
“Why would I do that?”
“It was just that earlier you seemed to be on the verge of talking about me.” Elaina couldn’t look her cousin in the eye. “And you stopped yourself, which was good. But I’m afraid you may need to be more careful with what you share with him.”
Lydia sat upright in her chair. “And why would that be?”
“It’s only that Mister Bladsmuth is a man of many contacts,” Elaina said, hoping not to give too much away about Alastair’s real occupation. “And should he unwittingly share some of that information, not knowing that it’s personal—”
“Are you really doing this?”
Elaina looked up at Lydia in surprise. She had never heard her cousin shriek before.
But Lydia was not finished. “You cannot simply be content with stealing the prince from me. No, you have to go imposing regulations on my words with the first man who shows half an interest, as if I were some . . . some . . . sailor on your father’s ship!” She picked up a pillow and threw it at Elaina.
Elaina blocked the pillow with her hands. “That’s not what I’m saying—”
“You! The biggest hypocrite in Ashland giving orders!”
“Now what is that supposed to mean?”
“You think you can tell me whom to trust and not to trust, when I’ve been warning you about the prince all along. But no! You haven’t listened to a word I’ve said! You’ve become inseparable from the most untrustworthy man in the entire kingdom!”
“Lydia, that’s quite enough!” Now Elaina was shouting, too. “I have worked with the prince on the most professional of terms since he ordered me to train him!”
“Oh, of course!” Lydia rolled her eyes and waved a hand. “Because it’s highly professional to disappear with a man for an hour during a luncheon thrown by his own mother.”
“He needed to speak with his father!” Elaina stomped over to her cousin and yanked another pillow out of her hands. “Really! What do you want of me? What more can I do to appease you?”
“You can go back to that wretched ship from whence you came! You can leave my house and my life and never speak to me again!”
“I wish I could!” Elaina’s breathing felt strained. “But I can’t.”
“I know. And your position of the pathetic orphan is what makes this entire situation more dreadful.”
Elaina’s arms fell limply to her sides. She opened her mouth, but no words came out. Instead, her stomach twisted as hot shame washed over her, though she wasn’t sure exactly why she felt guilty. She had anticipated an adverse reaction from Lydia, of course, but nothing like this. And the rejection hurt worse than she had thought it could.
With nothing else to say, Elaina turned and trudged up to her room. It was the last place she wished to be, after her earlier scare. But it was the only place she had left to go.
How are you feeling? The stars’ chorus of voices was gentle as twilight bled across the sky.
Elaina leaned against the window frame. “I was afraid you wouldn’t come tonight.”
We’re always here. You know that.
“You don’t always speak.” Elaina toyed with the figures on her wooden bracelet. “It makes it a little difficult to feel like I’m being heard sometimes.”
He always hears you. And we hear you, too. You need to trust us in this, Elaina. You’re never truly alone.
“It can feel that way.” Elaina’s throat constricted. She cleared it again. “I only . . . I feel like the world is spinning faster than I know how to keep up with.”
Are you speaking of Conrad Fuller?
“Yes. And no. My father is still missing. And now Lydia is angry with me. Really angry, I’m afraid. And Nicholas . . .” She stopped herself.
What about Nicholas?
Elaina got off her perch and stomped back into her room to pace. “Nothing. Forget I said anything about him.”
You miss him, don’t you?
“I shouldn’t miss him.” She rubbed her eyes with the palms of her hands. Lydia’s words had haunted her all evening, and she had worked to convince herself otherwise. But the more she lied to herself, the brighter the awful truth shone before her.
“The problem is that Lydia is right!” She kicked a pillow that had fallen on the floor. “I know better! I know better than to allow him to get into my head.” Or my heart, she added grimly to herself. “But sometimes, just sometimes, I glimpse a part of him that’s so much more a man. It’s as if he leaves his boyish foolishness behind, for just a few brief moments. But as soon as I pause to take a second look, he’s back to his old games.” She grabbed a pillow from the bed and returned to the window seat. Squeezing the pillow to her chest, she drew up her knees and let her head rest against them. “Also, my head aches.”
The stars laughed gently like a thousand bells ringing over the city rooftops. A good night of sleep will heal that. As for the prince, however . . .
Elaina lifted her head to look up at the sky. “Yes?”
Have you seen no change in him since arriving?
Elaina ran her hand through her loose hair. She hadn’t bothered to roll it into rags. Her head throbbed too much. “I’ve only known him for a few months. He changes so fast I can’t keep up with him.” When the stars didn’t reply, she mashed her face into the pillow. “I just feel so alone.”
Are you alone because you have no choice? Or because you’ve chosen to be that way?
“What do you mean?” Elaina pulled her face from the pillow to glare up at the stars.
You may object, but it already seems as though you’ve made the decision to trust the young prince with much. And yet you push him away.
Elaina started to reply, then stopped. They had a point. He knew her secret. Well, he had guessed that. But
he had also proven faithful in keeping it. And the truth about her mother? Well, he had pulled that from her as well. But again, it had only made him more determined to protect her.
And yet, every time he tried to pull her closer, she pushed him back.
Still . . . Elaina’s heart quickened a little as she remembered the feel of his hand gripping hers as he pulled her through Kaylem’s crowded streets. The way he had leaned over her protectively when they’d raced through the streets on his horse, ready to take an arrow for her, should one have been loosed. The rough stress in his voice as he’d begged her to keep guards for her own protection. The esteem in which he’d held her opinion in the meeting room.
We’ve seen many humans come and go. And one thing we’ve learned through it all is that no human can make this journey alone.
“You wouldn’t happen to also be able to tell me anything about Conrad, would you?” Elaina tried to sound teasing. “Or where my father’s ship is? I could use a distraction, you know.” Not that she expected an answer. She’d been asking that question every night since the Adroit’s disappearance.
Some things you will need to learn for yourself, little one.
“The Maker won’t even let you give me a hint?”
Elaina, you know we speak only what he directs.
“I know.”
Sometimes he has humans learn lessons easily. Other times, hard lessons are required to accomplish other purposes.
“What?” Elaina shook her head and gave a tired laugh. “Are you saying that the world doesn’t exist solely for me?” She yawned and stretched. “Well, if you can’t tell me where he is, then I suppose I shall go to sleep now.” She paused, the memory of Conrad’s face still fresh in her mind. “Would you stay with me while I fall asleep?”
We’re always here. You needn’t even ask. But Elaina?
“Hm?” Elaina asked as she pulled a blanket over her on the little window seat. For some reason, she had grown tired beyond comprehension.
Cinders, Stars, and Glass Slippers: A Retelling of Cinderella (The Classical Kingdoms Collection Book 6) Page 17