The Midsummer Captives (Firethorn Chronicles Book 2)

by Lea Doué

  Gwen expected Bay to jump up and tackle her with a hug, but she didn’t move. No doubt her ankle was bothering her after all the climbing and hiking.

  She looked over Gwen’s shoulder. “Where’s Eddy?”

  “Eddy is with the soldiers fighting the stone dragons. Some of them followed.” She took a seat at the table and gulped down two glasses of water.

  Bay’s nose wrinkled. “How did you get him out?” Her eyes widened, and she clamped her mouth shut as if remembering Hazel’s warning not to ask so many questions.

  “Sissi tricked you. He wanted to come, but she’d trapped him in his bedroom.”

  Bay frowned, but then her expression changed abruptly to an ecstatic smile. “Well, I have good news, too. Princess Hazel wants to adopt me. Once we find a cure for the potion, she and Holic can get married, and I’ll be royalty.”

  Gwen’s jaw dropped. Had the girl hit her head? Everyone knew Hazel was fond of her, loved her even, but she’d never mentioned adoption. Hazel was only four years her senior. And what about the potion? Didn’t Bay remember there was no cure?

  She frowned and twisted a napkin around her fingers. Something didn’t feel right. Where was Bay’s exuberance? The endless flood of questions?

  “Aren’t you going to congratulate me?” Bay said with a pout.

  Since when had Bay ever pouted?

  “Of course,” she said quickly. “Congratulations. I know you’ve always wanted to be part of a family again, and now you’ll be part of mine.”

  “I’ll be in line for the throne soon.” She smiled and sipped her lemonade.

  Bay had never had any interest in crowns and royal responsibilities; but since she would have at least three people ahead of her in the line of succession, it wasn’t a huge concern.

  “I wouldn’t worry about it. Holic isn’t likely to inherit the crown.”

  “Mmm.”

  Gwen watched Bay out of the corner of her eye. The girl slumped in her chair, crumbling a tea cake on her plate, her hands still wrapped in filthy strips of cloth. There was almost a smirk about her mouth, a pleased gleam in her eyes that was out of place given their current circumstances.

  A chill swept over Gwen’s body, and then her skin prickled with heat. The person sitting across from her wasn’t Bay.

  It was Sissi.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Gwen needed to know for sure if this girl was Sissi or Bay.

  “Your plan won’t work, you know,” Gwen said in a matter-of-fact tone. “I freed Eddy, and I’ll make sure everyone knows about you before you can do any more damage.”

  The real Bay would be outraged at such an accusation.

  The girl furrowed her brown in confusion. “What are you talking about?”

  “Show me your bare hands and tell me you’re Bay.”

  The girl… Sissi… pouted. “I had to do it. He promised I would be a queen one day, and then he left me. I had to take matters into my own hands.”

  Why the obsession with being a queen? Yes, there were advantages to being in such a privileged position, but there were also many challenges and responsibilities that Sissi didn’t seem to understand.

  Sissi started unwrapping her hands and smirked. “And you’re wrong. My plan has worked, and I will be a queen sooner than you think. He’ll see what a mistake he made leaving me behind.” She studied her bare hands, admiring the ring, which had only one ruby remaining.

  “You won’t be queen of this land.”

  “You think you will?” Amusement filled her eyes. “You’ll never know if he really loves you, or if it’s the potion.”

  She wouldn’t doubt Eddy’s feelings anymore. “It doesn’t matter, because he’s worth loving back.”

  “Men are worthless. They’ll only disappoint you.” She crossed her arms. “We can only count on ourselves.”

  How wrong she was.

  “Where is Eddy now? Do you think he’s dealt with my little surprise yet?”

  “Your surprise?”

  Sissi traced the golden dragon on her ring, circled the red stone with her fingernail.

  The ring. “You summoned the dragons.”

  “Uncle Ris didn’t leave me completely helpless. I can be anyone I want, for as long as I want. And I can control the dragons.”

  “Sorcery isn’t something to be played with.”

  “Oh, this isn’t a game.” She eyed Gwen with distaste. “Some of us are just made to be served, while others are made to serve. Like you. That’s what you do best, right? You never would have made a good queen.”

  Sissi was right. She was made to serve, and that quality alone would make her a good queen.

  “The dragons are under orders to kill everyone except me and Hazel and Holic, so you won’t have the chance to mess things up.” Her expression drooped as if her next words saddened her. “Poor King Pyrus—to find one son and then lose two.”

  He wouldn’t lose any sons, if she could help it.

  Gwen lunged across the small table, ready to wrestle the ring away from the girl and have her locked up in whatever served as a dungeon in this place. Sissi’s eyes widened, and she stood quickly, her chair clattering to the floor. She sprinted to the low window and jumped out before Gwen could cut her off.

  Thorns and thistles! Gwen needed to alert the guards. The girl would head somewhere safe—whether in the forest or in the station—until her dragons had completed their task. She was saved the trouble a moment later when the door burst open, and Hazel, Holic, and Theo spilled into the room.

  “My darling, you’re safe.” Holic rushed over, arms open as if to embrace her.

  She sidestepped him and spoke to Theo. “We have to hurry. Sissi disguised herself as Bay, and she’s called the dragons to destroy the station. Eddy’s fighting alongside the guards, and I don’t know where the real Bay is.”

  “I’ll get the captain.” He strode quickly from the room.

  She took a few deep breaths, thankful he’d understood, and then rushed to Hazel and hugged her tight. “I’m so glad you made it out.” She glanced at Holic and added, “All of you.”

  “All of us except Bay,” Hazel said. “I should have known something was wrong. Bay isn’t afraid of heights. I finally told her my plans to make her my ward, just to get her to keep going.”

  Her ward. “So you’re not adopting her?”

  “Adopting her? No. What gave you that idea?”

  “Sissi. She must have misunderstood—her plan hinged on you adopting her.”

  “And what plan would that be?” said a deep, melodious voice.

  Gwen jumped in surprise and turned towards the window. Tharius was leaning against the frame, arms crossed, as if he’d been standing there all along.

  Holic took a step towards him. “What are you doing here?”

  “I’ve come to make you an offer.”

  “What could you ever offer that we would want?” Holic said.

  He paused before answering. “I can make right what Idris made wrong.”

  Gwen put her hands on her hips. She’d had enough of his enigmatic replies. “Just give us a straight answer, please.”

  Looking at her intently, he pushed away from the window frame and stepped farther into the room. “I can arrange for your sister to have her man back.”

  Hazel let out a small gasp.

  “I thought potions had no cures,” Gwen said, her tone challenging him to contradict himself, while hoping he could do what he said.

  “They don’t, and this would not be a cure as such. It’s a solution to a problem created by forces you couldn’t even begin to understand. I had no desire to learn sorcery, but I also had no choice. And I am very good at it. Will you accept my help or not?”

  Tharius waited patiently while silence filled the room.

  “The choice is yours, Holic,” Gwen said. It might be his only chance to be himself again, but accepting help from a sorcerer was never a straightforward decision.

  Holic looked from Gwen to H
azel and back again. He spoke softly. “My heart aches to think of giving you up, but I haven’t lost my mind. I won’t be controlled by this potion any longer, if he can help.”

  “I’ll take that as a yes.” Tharius held out his hand to Hazel. “If you would be so kind, Your Highness.”

  Hazel hesitated, hope and fear warring in her eyes. Finally, she bridged the distance between them and put her hand in his.

  “Now, young prince, you will take her from me.”

  Holic reached out slowly until his fingers touched Hazel’s, and then he grasped her hand tightly, pulling her to him in a fierce embrace.

  “Is that it?” Gwen said.

  Holic and Hazel swiveled to face Tharius together, and the prince kept one arm firmly around his first love. “It worked. Whatever you did worked.”

  “Of course it did.”

  Holic glanced around the room with a frown. “Where’s Gwen?”

  Hazel’s face mirrored Gwen’s confusion.

  “I’m right here,” she said.

  “You can talk all you want, my dear, but he won’t hear you.” Tharius addressed Holic. “You will never see her again. She doesn’t exist for you other than in your memory. I’ve essentially made you blind to her, tricking the potion into dormancy.”

  “You’ve cursed him,” Gwen said.

  He shrugged. “Call it what you will.”

  “But if he’s cursed,” Hazel said, “then there’s a way to break it, a chance that he could fall in love with her again.”

  “That will never happen.” Tharius waved away her concern.

  “How do you know?” Hazel asked. She had Holic back, and she clearly didn’t want to lose him again. “You have to tell us so we can be careful.”

  “Very well.” Tharius strode to the table and piled the leftover food onto a napkin. “If he kisses her, the curse is broken.”

  Holic sighed heavily. “What kind of cure is this?”

  “It’s no cure at all, and it’s all you will get.” Tharius folded the napkin and placed it in the satchel he’d taken from Eddy. “If you don’t like it, you can always break it. Go ahead, kiss her. I’ll even point you in the right direction.”

  Holic stayed at Hazel’s side, frowning.

  Tharius’s motives worried Gwen. “Why are you helping us?” she asked, although helping might not be the best word.

  “It suits me to have you all happily settled in your ever afters for now.”

  “There’s more to it than that.”

  “Would you have it be as simple as two paragraphs and a backstory?” He faced her, a dangerous gleam in his eyes. “I’ve told you my reason, and you would do best not to pry any further. Now, if you will excuse me, I have pressing matters to attend to.” He bowed elegantly and exited through the window.

  Gwen sighed. If his main goal was Idris, then he posed little threat to her or her people. She would send a report to Father when she had time, but right now, she needed to help find Sissi.

  She hugged Hazel quickly and startled Holic when she squeezed his shoulder. “I’ll see you both soon.” Although Holic wouldn’t see her.

  *

  As soon as she entered the small stable, a familiar buckskin head peered out of a stall at the far end and nickered. “Buttercup!”

  “Bring Her Highness’s horse out, and have him saddled.” Theo stood behind her.

  “You’re riding out, too?”

  “We found some tracks. She’s headed away from the station.”

  A groom led Buttercup over, and the horse bumped her shoulder with his nose and snuffled her hair.

  “I’ve got no treats, you great lump, but I’m glad to see you, too.” She mounted and rode out beside Theo on his roan. Four soldiers followed them.

  Theo led them straight down the road in the opposite direction of where Eddy fought with the dragon soldiers. Sissi wasn’t trying to hide her footprints; they were clearly visible in the center of the dirt track. They would catch her easily on horseback if she didn’t stray into the trees.

  A crow cawed, startled out of the canopy, and then Bay stumbled down a small incline and onto the road in front of them.

  Or was it Sissi?

  The girl, whoever she was, panted heavily. Twigs and leaves stuck out among her tangled curls, dirt smeared her face and clothes, and her feet were bare.

  So was her finger.

  Theo and the guards remained silent but alert as Gwen rode closer.

  “Bay?” She pulled Buttercup to a stop, still doubting her eyes. “How did you get here?”

  “I ran.” She frowned and wiped her brow. “The dragons left. I guess they didn’t like the fire, and I think the dragon soldier I saw was Sissi. She said you were all safe with the soldiers and to meet up at the falls.”

  They must have just missed each other.

  “At least I didn’t need to be rescued this time.” She picked a leaf off her tunic. “I’m sick and tired of sorcery tricks. Does anyone have some water? And where’s my princess?”

  This was definitely Bay.

  “Princess Hazel is fine. We have no water with us—we’re looking for Sissi. She disguised herself as you before she ran off.”

  She squinted and glanced from face to face. “Guess that explains your funny looks when you saw me.”

  “Well, we’re glad to see you now.” Theo held out a hand and pulled her onto his horse. “Up you go.”

  They followed Sissi’s tracks for half a league before they disappeared into the forest. Theo and a soldier went on foot to search among the trees. Bay flopped forward over Theo’s horse, exhausted.

  Ten minutes passed. Twenty. One of the soldiers heard horses approaching from the direction of the fortress. Moments later, Eddy appeared, riding double with a soldier, and four more followed them.

  Gwen’s heart skipped a beat. “You made it.”

  “We smashed most of them before reinforcements arrived.” He smiled bigger than he’d ever done before. “It felt good. Really, really good.”

  She smiled in return.

  Sissi had grossly underestimated the dragon guard, thinking nothing could destroy her mentor’s creations. She had so much to learn, and there was no one to save her now.

  Bay woke from her doze and asked again for a drink of water. One of the new soldiers shared what he had.

  Eddy dismounted and limped over.

  Gwen joined him on the ground. “What happened to your horse?”

  “You should be asking what happened to me.”

  She stared at him and raised an eyebrow.

  “Apparently, I need to take more riding lessons.”

  She chuckled. “I’m glad you’re all right.”

  “They won’t let me ride alone now. They’re all determined to get me back to my father in one piece.”

  “Are you excited?”

  His face contorted into a variety of emotions all at once. “Excited. Nervous. Part of me wants to run back to my room in the fortress and hide, but that’s not even possible now. It’s a lot to take in.”

  “What is?”

  “Everything.” He rubbed a hand along his jaw and then crossed his arms. “The lights, the colors, the people, the talking. I don’t know if I can go back to the way things were.”

  “We never can go back to the way things were.” She looked at the ground, speaking as much to herself as to him, thinking of Lily and Hazel moving on to new chapters in stories that might not include her. “We just move ahead and do the best we can.”

  He squeezed her shoulder. “Who belongs to the empty horses?”

  “Theo and a guard are tracking Sissi.” She told him briefly about Sissi’s treachery and Tharius’s visit.

  “We lost the trail,” Theo announced as he approached. Without missing a step, he strode up to Eddy and swallowed him in a hug. “But I’ve got what I’ve been looking for right here. I’m taking you home.” His voice broke on the last word. “And then I’m going to find our mother.”

  Gwen pulled ou
t Eben’s handkerchief and wiped her eyes. By the time she’d mounted Buttercup, they had composed themselves. She turned to Eddy. “Would you care to ride with me?”

  He accepted and heaved himself up behind her. He did need lessons.

  She and Eddy rode near the back of the group. Before they rounded the first bend in the road, Buttercup’s ears pricked, but he continued walking, unconcerned. She glanced back and gasped.

  A raven-haired man sat on a horse at the top of a small ridge beyond the trees, barely visible in the distance. Sissi, unmistakable with her dark hair and pale skin, sat behind him.

  Eddy followed her gaze. His arms tightened around her waist, the only indication he’d seen them, too. He looked at her questioningly.

  She shook her head. If Tharius had the girl under his protection, they had no business going after her. A whole station full of soldiers was no match for such a powerful sorcerer. Besides, if his goal was to rid them of Idris, who had already caused so much sorrow, she had no desire to hinder him. He posed no threat to them.

  Eddy must have agreed. “We’ll keep an eye on his movements and let him be for now.”

  They rode in silence, listening to the Iturian soldiers recount tales of their battle with the stone dragons.

  Finally, Eddy whispered into her ear in a joking tone. “Have you decided on a date yet?”

  She laughed quietly. “Let’s get you reinstated as heir first. We’ll wed the day after, if you wish.”

  His arms tightened around her waist. “Really?”

  “There’s no need to wait for Lily’s wedding, or Hazel’s. My own happiness won’t take me away from them in the ways that matter most. I’ll always look out for them.”

  She turned to kiss his cheek, but he tipped his face so that her lips landed on his. The soldiers had fallen strangely silent around them.

  “’Bout time,” Bay said.

  Buttercup snorted and ruined the moment, but it was all right. There would be many more happy moments in the days to come.

  Acknowledgements

  Always I am thankful first to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for His love and grace.