“He’s got a gold spinning wheel that his wife is not happy with, so he is offering it as a reward to anyone who can bring Rapunzel back to his family.”
“A spinning wheel made of gold?” asked Marco. “I have never heard of such a thing.”
“Let’s just say, my lord had a true talent at one time. Everything he touched turned to gold. If you don’t have use for a gold spinning wheel, I am sure he could be convinced to offer up some of his other golden treasures instead. Or if it is coin you are after, he did say he would give thirty pounds to anyone who at least provides information as to the whereabouts of his sister. Of course, he’d have to check out the lead first to make sure it was real before he handed over the money.”
“Thirty pounds?” repeated Marco, thinking how well he and his father could live on that kind of money. “Can you take me to this Lord Kin de Bar?”
“Of course. Just follow me, as I am headed back to Gillingham Castle now.”
“Gillingham?” he asked, taking a look at his surroundings. He’d been riding aimlessly and wasn’t even sure where he was. “Where are we now, Squire?”
“We are in Maidenstone, about an hour’s ride away from the castle.” Marco had already ridden six and a half hours today, so he supposed another hour wouldn’t kill him.
“All right, let’s go,” said Marco, riding past the tree and ripping down both missives in the process. “On the way there, take me past every place that you posted one of these missives.”
“What for?” asked Rock.
“I will be collecting the bounties on both Roger the Rat and Rapunzel, so there is no need to leave them posted any longer.”
Chapter 7
Rapunzel brushed her hair, staring into the mirror, feeling tired and drained. She would never get these dark circles to disappear from under her eyes if she didn’t get a good night’s sleep soon. Nightfall set in, and Rapunzel wanted nothing more than to go to sleep while she waited for Marco to return with her brothers. However, her new little half-sister kept her on her toes all day long. Medea was the troublesome age of two now – or at least for today.
Tomorrow she would be three, and Rapunzel was sure she’d be even more of a handful then. Medea was nothing like a normal toddler. After all, every time she’d seen a nursemaid with a child it had been a serene sight. But Medea had been running around the room all day long, first hiding Rapunzel’s hairbrush and then her little jars of colored paints for her face.
“Play,” said Medea, tossing one of Rapunzel’s rings into the air.
“How did you find that? I thought I hid it well.” Rapunzel snatched it out of the air and shoved it on to her finger with the other nine rings she was already wearing. Nothing was safe around this child.
“Play,” Medea said again, grabbing for things atop the dresser, knocking everything over. Rapunzel’s hand shot out and gripped the little girl’s wrist.
“When is your mother coming back?” she asked, amazed that she would ever ask such a question. Hecuba was the last person in the world she wanted to see.
“Marco,” said Medea, motioning with her head toward the window.
“He’s not here,” she said, letting go of the girl’s wrist.
“Play with Marco.” Medea continued asking for the man.
“I’m sure you want to play with Marco, but he is on a very important mission for me. Hopefully, he will be back soon.” She remembered what Marco told her about Medea. If she wanted the girl to like her, she had to be kinder to the child. Rapunzel would need to treat her like a little sister. He talked about teaching the girl things, although she didn’t know what she could teach a two-year-old toddler.
“Come and sit on my lap, Medea. We’ll brush your hair again and braid it this time.”
The girl seemed leery of her but then jumped up, about knocking Rapunzel off the chair. Her dirty, little, bare feet rubbed on Rapunzel’s fine gown. It felt odd to have a child on her lap for the second time now. She usually watched children from afar and didn’t touch them. This was all new to her.
“This is a boar’s bristle brush,” said Rapunzel, picking up the brush and running it through the girl’s hair. It caught on a snaggle and Medea cried out. When she did, her eyes became very dark as she watched Rapunzel in the mirror. Then she started to cry loudly, hurting Rapunzel’s ears.
Rapunzel didn’t think it could get any worse until she glanced up into the mirror to see an angry boar appear in the room right behind her.
“Oh!” she screamed, pushing Medea off her lap and jumping up. She ran to the hearth and picked up a poker and held it out in front of her as the boar snorted and charged at her. It had red eyes filled with fire, and it looked like it wanted to eat her. The boar jumped up, hitting Rapunzel in the chest, taking them both to the ground.
Medea laughed from the other side of the room. Then, just when the animal’s sharp tusks raised into the air and came down toward her, it disappeared into a puff of black smoke.
“Medea, I’m home,” called out Hecuba, appearing in a green mist at the same time. Medea, still crying, ran to her mother. Hecuba picked her up and glared at Rapunzel. “Why is she crying?” asked the witch. “What did you do to her?”
“What did I do to her?” Rapunzel threw down the iron poker and sat up, brushing the dirt off her gown. “I tried to brush her hair, and she sent a wild boar to attack me.”
“She did?” Hecuba’s frown turned into a smile as she doted over her daughter. “You did magic for the first time, my little angel. I am so proud of you.”
“Angel? Hah!” Rapunzel stood up, getting tangled in her long braid. “She’s a little demon child. Medea has been playing tricks on me all day long.”
“She’s only acting like a sibling, so I am not sure what you are getting so upset about,” snapped Hecuba.
“Let me out of here,” said Rapunzel, trying once again to convince the witch to set her free.
“Nay. I need you to watch Medea. Besides, there is nowhere you can go with your curse.”
“Then lift my curse. I’ll take Medea out in the sunshine and fresh air while you search all day long for your perfect castle.”
“Nay, again. And I wasn’t just searching for a place for my daughter and me to live. I was following that fool that seems to amuse my child.”
“Marco?” Rapunzel’s heart beat faster just saying the man’s name. “What about him? Did you see him?”
“Aye, I’ve seen him. He’s gone to Gillingham.”
“Gillingham? Then, he’s gone to see my brother, Kin,” she said excitedly.
“Yes, he has. But I wouldn’t get too worked up about it if I were you.”
“He’s going to tell my brothers I am trapped here. And then they, along with my father, will save me, you’ll see.”
Hecuba chuckled and shook her head. “Sometimes men don’t do what you expect.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means I wouldn’t get your hopes up that he is going to tell your family anything about you. Or at least not yet.”
“Why wouldn’t he?”
“I saw the greed in his eyes when he tore down both missives posting the reward for your return as well as the one for Roger the Rat – his other bounty.”
“You’re wrong. Marco won’t keep my whereabouts from my family.”
“He will if the bounty he’ll collect means more to him than you do. Face it, Rapunzel, Marco isn’t what anyone would consider a heroic man.”
Chapter 8
After having traveled for nearly eight hours on horseback without any sleep, Marco was so tired that as soon as he arrived at Gillingham Castle, he shut himself in his chamber and went to bed. He hadn’t even taken the time to be introduced to the lord and lady of the castle. Rest was all that mattered. But every time he closed his eyes, he was back in the past atop a dragon, flying through the sky. Memories taunted him, making him feel the anguish of that horrible day over and over again. He awoke the next morning, feeling
even more tired than when he went to bed.
There was a knock at the door. The squire named Rock poked his head inside the room. “Lord Marco, I came to tell you that Lord Kin calls for you in the great hall.”
“I’m not a lord,” he grumbled, wishing he were. He donned his clothes while the squire rambled on.
“Lord Kin and Lady Olivia are anxious to meet you. When I told them about you, they said your family name sounded familiar.”
“God’s eyes, no,” he mumbled. He didn’t want anyone to realize his father was the Dragon Lord who lost control and ended up killing his men and destroying his own castle.
“What did you say?” asked Rock.
“I said, let’s go.” He pulled his boots on and got up, donning his weapon belt before he headed to the door. Something glittered in the sunlight streaming in from the open window. “Is that a golden sword on your waist belt?” Marco eyed the squire’s very impressive weapon.
“Aye, it is,” admitted the squire, holding it up proudly. “It was a gift to me from Lord Kin.”
“A gift? How rich is your lord?”
“Let’s just say he has recently come into a lot of treasure.”
Following Rock downstairs, Marco entered the great hall. He was immediately overwhelmed by the wealth and beauty of the surroundings.
The hall was enormous, reminding Marco of the castle his family once owned in Italy. But this room had gold urns filled with tall rushes and wildflowers in every corner. A gold spinning wheel was at the opposite side of the room, and colorful tapestries lined the walls. Beeswax candles boasted the aroma of cinnamon and fresh spruce. And on the tables were cloths made of silk covered with an array of golden dishes and goblets. This was the setup even for those below the salt. He’d never seen anything like it.
“Ah, there’s Lord Kin now, motioning you over,” said the squire, waving to his lord. “Follow me, please.”
Marco followed Rock across the great hall, kicking up fresh rushes that smelled like lavender and rosemary. The room was crowded with people, and most of them were staring at him.
“Lord Kin,” said the squire with a bow, looking up to the dais and nodding. “This is Marco Drago del Rossi the Third. He is here to search for your sister. He is a bounty hunter.”
“Del Rossi,” said Lord Kin, sitting in his chair, raising a glass to greet him instead of standing up. Then again, nobles did not stand when meeting others who were not nobility. Next to him was a lovely woman with long ebony hair, wearing what looked like a golden pearl necklace over her blue velvet gown. How rich were these people? “I would like you to meet my wife, Lady Olivia.”
Marco reached up to the dais and took Olivia’s hand, bringing it to his mouth in a kiss.
“I hear you are interested in joining the search for my brother’s sister, Rapunzel,” said Olivia in a soft and very feminine voice.
“Yes,” he said, releasing her hand and clearing his throat. “I heard it mentioned there was a reward offered?”
“The reward for bringing home my sister, unharmed, is that solid gold spinning wheel in the corner.” Kin pointed to it. “I gave it to my wife as a wedding present, but she doesn’t like it.”
“Doesn’t like it?” asked Marco, wondering what kind of a woman would turn away an item of that size that was made of solid gold.
“Kin, are we going to eat sometime today?” grumbled a man with a scar across his face as he approached with a pretty lady holding his arm. “I am hungry enough to eat a horse.”
“Not his horse,” said a younger man with brown hair who joined them. “All that gold would turn to stone in your stomach, Stefan.”
“Marco, this is my youngest brother, Sir MacKay, and my eldest brother, Sir Stefan with his wife, Lady Bonnibel,” Kin introduced them.
“My lords, so nice to meet you,” said Marco with a nod of his head.
“And here come our twin brothers and their wives,” said MacKay.
“Meet Lord Hugh – or Wolf as we call him – and Lord Arnon. Their wives are Lady Winifred – Red, and Lady Freya,” said Kin.
Once more, Marco nodded and kissed the hands of the ladies. The sound of all of them being called Lord or Lady while his name was mentioned without a title was gnawing at his gut.
“Del Rossi,” said the man named Wolf, reaching out to shake Marco’s hand. He was tall and had long, black hair that nearly reached his waist. Clasping Marco’s hand, Wolf noticed the ring on his finger. “That is quite an interesting ring you have there.”
“It looks like the eye of a dragon with those claws around the stone,” said MacKay, pushing closer and stretching his neck to see it. MacKay wasn’t quite as tall as the rest of the brothers. All the men had dark hair except Kin who was blond.
“A dragon’s eye?” asked Arnon, his voice sounding just like Wolf’s. Everything about him was identical to his brother, except he had dark gray eyes, while Wolf’s were more of a light silver. “Let me see that.”
“It’s just a ring,” he said, waving his hand through the air, trying to make light of it.
“Didn’t my brother say your name was Marco Drago del Rossi?” asked Stefan curiously in his gravelly low voice.
“Drago – like dragon?” asked Wolf’s wife, Red. Marco thought Red was a good name for her, since the long braid down the back of her head was a vibrant shade of red like he’d never seen before.
“It’s just a name,” he said.
“I think I’ve heard the name del Rossi before. You are from Italy, aren’t you?” asked Stefan.
“My lords,” interrupted a soldier, rushing up and bowing before he spoke.
“What is it, soldier?” asked Kin.
“My name is Sir Dwight,” said the man. “I am part of an army patrolling the borders.”
“The Scottish borders?” asked Stefan. “You have come far. What is it you want?”
“I come to tell you, we have spotted a carriage crossing the border with your sister, Cinderella in it.”
“You saw Ella?” Kin rose to his feet. “Was she harmed in any way?”
“How do you even know her?” asked Wolf, sounding suspicious.
“She was not harmed,” said the man. “And I don’t know her personally, but I recognized her from the drawing on the missive that’s been posted throughout England.” He pulled a piece of vellum from his pocket and handed it to Kin.
“This is one of the missives I had my scribe make and post from here to the border. Are you sure it was her?” asked Kin.
“She’s been missing for a while,” added Arnon.
“I am sure,” said the man. “They stopped to water the horses, and I heard the driver call her Cinderella. But before I could approach them and ask about it, they left.”
“Why didn’t you follow them?” asked MacKay.
“I am sorry, my lord, but we needed to maintain our post and could not follow them into Scotland.”
“I suppose not.” MacKay shook his head. “I will get a group of my men together and travel up north right away to see if I can find her.”
“Boys, what is this? A meeting without including your father?” An older man dressed in an expensive tunic and covered with a cloak came in the door and walked across the great hall to join them.
“Father, have you returned from Babeny already?” asked Wolf. “Is everything in order at my castle?”
“Aye, Wolf, everything is fine. As well as everything at Arnon’s castle in Slapton and Stefan’s in Breckenridge, too,” he answered.
“How about my new castle in Wickhambreaux?” asked MacKay.
“Aye, they are all secure, and everything was in order as of this morning.”
“This morning?” asked Marco. “Babeny and Slapton are in Devon. It would take you more than an entire twenty-four-hour day with no stops to get there.”
“Our father has a way of traveling very fast,” said MacKay with a chuckle. “Father, this guard tells us he’s seen Ella.” MacKay looked around, turning a full circle. �
��Where did he go?” The guard had left without any of them noticing.
“Since it seems I have to introduce myself, I am Lord Lucio de Bar, father of all the men standing here,” said the man in a deep, commanding voice.
“Pleased to meet you, Sir. My name is Marco.” Marco didn’t bother to tell him his last name, but when the man reached out to shake his hand, the oddest thing happened. The stone in his ring started to glow.
“Del Rossi, what the hell is that?” asked Kin from up on the dais. He jumped up, slapping his hands on the table and looking down to Marco.
“Yes,” said Lucio. “It is an extraordinary ring. Why don’t you tell us about it?”
Marco was pleased to see his ring glowing. However, he wasn’t about to tell the de Bars anything about it. It was time to change the subject quickly.
Chapter 9
It seemed like Marco was never coming back. Rapunzel stood at the window early in the morning, missing him more than ever. She watched for him returning with her brothers, but there was no one in sight. She would even welcome the vision of her sister, Cinderella, again, just to have something different to look at. Her boredom in her tower prison was driving her mad. If Medea hadn’t been there to keep her mind sharp, Rapunzel would have been talking to herself by now just to have conversation.
The inside of the castle was more than cramped since Hecuba stayed the nights with them. Medea was four years old today, and although Rapunzel tried to connect with her on a sisterly level as Marco had suggested, it wasn’t working well at all. It bothered her that her half-sister was the spawn of the evil witch, Hecuba. She needed to talk this over with someone but, of course, that was not an option. All Rapunzel wanted to do was to go home and live the life of a lady like before.
“Try it,” Hecuba told Medea from behind her. The witch was teaching her daughter magic again, and Rapunzel wanted nothing to do with it. The little girl thought it was a fun game, but Rapunzel didn’t agree with her.
In the past few days, Rapunzel had been attacked by a boar, and had her gown soiled with not only dirt but also vomit when Medea swallowed some of Rapunzel’s face paints. Seeing how much pain Medea was in, Rapunzel had no other choice but to stick her finger down the girl’s throat to empty her stomach of the toxic contents. Rapunzel shuddered thinking about the awful experience, never wanting to have to repeat it again. Her hand was also cut with the scissors that Medea decided to throw at her. If Rapunzel hadn’t protected herself, she would be scarred on the face right now.
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