The past two days had been spent preparing and discussing strategy with Will and Warren. Warren is the only member of the Miners Will had met besides Trent and myself. Will—being a former high ranking palace guard—had been invited to the annual Cyrun Royal Ball, as he was every year. Trent and I now accompanied him as his oldest daughter, Bridgette, and her boyfriend, Tyler.
Planning without revealing too much information to Will about the Miners had been difficult. Essentially, he knew about my six abilities and that I seemed to have immunity from Praesidium’s effect because I’d grown up in the human realm. We had not mentioned Warren’s absolute immunity; Warren wanted to keep his heritage out of it. Will also knew Trent was an unregistered Traveler, a fact that I fervently wished we’d been able to keep from him. If Will ended up being a traitor, I knew there was no way either Trent or I would come out of this alive. It could very well be that we’d walk through the massive palace doors and Will would march us straight up to Tenebris. He’d declare our intentions, and we’d be cast into prison, where we’d be tortured for information and then put to death for treason.
Even if this wasn’t a setup, there was still the possibility that Will’s strong Cyrun connection to Praesidium would compel him to tell Tenebris the truth. The Miners were all somewhat immune to Praesidium’s constant pull on Cyruns because of our connections to the human realm, but Will had never left the influence of Cyril for even a minute. We were banking on his desire to help his daughter overriding the urge to obey his master’s wishes. According to the plan, we intended to keep Will away from Tenebris as much as possible, hoping to avoid any direct commands.
Our ultimate goal this evening had only become clear after Will revealed some of his knowledge from his time as a guard. We were here to discover Ganton’s diary. Will wasn’t certain it actually existed, he’d only heard rumors that had been passed down among palace guards for years. There was one room up in the palace library that was constantly guarded by four guards. No guard had ever been inside the room, but King Trinnen and then King Tenebris had visited the room occasionally during Will’s time as a guard. The rumor was that Ganton—the creator of Praesidium—left instructions about the necklace in his diary, which was kept in that room. The Miners were convinced the diary had to be real. There was no other purpose for guarding the room so carefully.
Personally, I wasn’t sure what to think, but I hoped the rumors were true. Either way, it seemed to me that whatever was kept in the room had to be important for it to be kept so private. Therefore, our goal was to break into the room and find out what was behind the doors. The plan involved several Miner members, though Will was oblivious to that fact.
I pulled at the tight waist of the purple dress I wore, desperate for breath. How did girls ever wear corsets? It felt like I was going to suffocate. Surely my face was turning red.
“You okay?” Trent whispered nervously as we continued up the long path that was lined with palace guards. They watched with hard stares as we passed. Will occasionally nodded to a guard, though the guards never acknowledged him in return—I’d guess it was against protocol.
“My lungs have never been so desperate for relief, but sure, I’m fine,” I whispered back bitterly.
Trent chuckled and wrapped his arm around my back. “Well, if it helps you feel better, you should know you look incredible.”
I blushed. “Thanks.”
Trent gently squeezed my waist as we approached the palace steps. The staircase was long and elegant. The two doors at the top were enormous and manned by several guards in red uniforms that were similar to the one Will wore, though Will’s lacked several notable weapons the other guards wore on their belts.
“Invitation?” The guard immediately in front of the right palace door barked.
“Yes, here you go,” Will said, digging into his pocket. He retrieved the invitation and held it out for examination.
“You are Mr. Longfellow? And these are your guests?” The guard asked in a monotone.
“I know you know who I am, Carson, but yes, fine,” Will rolled his eyes. “This is my daughter, Bridgette, and her boyfriend, Tyler.”
“Very well. Step aside for a security check and then you may proceed to the dining hall.”
“Thanks, Carson,” Will said, stepping around the guard. Trent and I followed.
The inside of the palace was magnificent. Like the throne room I’d seen in my vision a few days ago, the palace was dominated by white and gold with occasional red accents. The floors and walls were made of marble with gold crown molding, gold pillars, and gold banisters on every staircase we passed. The doors to every room were also gold and etched with ornate patterns. The rugs were always some shade of red, reminding me of bloody splotches scattered about the palace—an accurate representation, I suppose, of all the blood on the royals’ hands.
“We’ll be eating in here,” Will whispered, gesturing to the open doors only a few steps ahead. “Remember to avoid conversation with Tenebris at all costs.”
The room we entered was incredibly spacious and well decorated. There were several long tables that lined the room in one large rectangle. Bouquets of flowers stood on short pedestals around the room. A waiter by the door directed us to three seats on the far side with our backs to the large windows. We were a little too close to the head table for my comfort—only about five chairs would separate us and the king.
The room was approximately half full as we arrived. Several more small groups and couples poured in after us until every seat was occupied.
A man dressed in a black tuxedo walked through a smaller pair of doors on the opposite side of the room. “All arise for His Majesty, King Tenebris and Queen Isabella,” the man called loudly over the crowd. Everyone stopped talking and stood from their places at the table.
“Isabella?” I whispered to Trent. “The queen’s name is Isabella?”
“Yes, now be quiet!” Trent urged nervously.
I was confused—Warren’s mother was named Isabella. But Tenebris had killed her. Could it be nothing more than an incredible coincidence that the queen was also named Isabella?
My thoughts were brought to a halt as I watched King Tenebris—wearing a sharp black uniform—enter the room. At his side was Queen Isabella, wearing a strikingly beautiful red dress that hugged her magnificent figure. Her gold curls were pulled back in an intricate twist that cascaded down her back.
As she drew closer, I sucked in a sharp breath. I recognized her. She looked like Warren’s mother had in my visions. She, too, had been beautiful. But there was something different about the queen. She wasn’t Warren’s mother, but her heavy makeup was obviously designed to make her look more like Warren’s mother had. A chill ran down my spine. How disturbing. Did she wear such heavy makeup for this reason? Was it on Tenebris’ orders so that she would look more like the woman he had once loved? The woman he murdered?
As the royal couple approached their seats, two members of the wait staff pulled their chairs out and they sat. The rest of the room followed and took their seats. I felt a tug on my hand. With a jolt, I realized it was Trent, pulling me down into my own seat. I’d forgotten to sit with everybody else. Embarrassed, I shot a furtive glance at the king and queen. Tenebris appeared mildly annoyed. Isabella seemed intrigued. I dropped my eyes to the table, hoping their attention would focus elsewhere.
Fortunately, at that moment, the wait staff poured into the room and approached the tables with large serving trays. A waitress set down a plate of unrecognizable food in front of me. I looked at it with hesitation.
Trent chuckled. “Don’t overthink it. It’s just fancy food. I’m sure it will be great.” To prove his point, he speared a forkful off his plate and popped it in his mouth.
“Do you know much about Queen Isabella? Do you remember the wedding?” I asked Trent in a whisper.
“Not really. I was only six when the marriage happened. Tenebris keeps the queen hidden for the most part, but most people say she�
�s very kind.”
“How about you, Will? Do you know her well? Has she always looked like that?” I asked over Trent who sat between us.
Will glanced at the person seated on his other side, then back to me. “That’s not really something we should be discussing, Bridgette.” The look he gave me clearly said, shut up!
Grumpily, I stabbed the piece of mystery meat in front of me and cut off a chunk, shoving it in my mouth. Only after I noticed the woman to my left watching me out of the corner of her eye did I realize my table manners were less than lady like for the current setting. I took a deep breath and tried to act normal for the rest of the meal.
Finally, the wait staff delivered dessert. By far, it was the best part of our dinner, though I still wasn’t certain what I was eating. It was some sort of pudding with pieces of cake scattered throughout. By the time our waiter took our plates away, I was certain my corset was going to burst at the seams.
King Tenebris stood from his large, velvet chair. “If you would all please join my wife and I in the ballroom for dancing, we’d be delighted. We will also be joined by several other guests who were not with us for dinner. Please mingle and enjoy each other’s company.” He inclined his greasy black head, which was returned by low bows and curtseys from the rest of us. I stumbled a little as I rose, but overall, I had to give myself credit considering the boa constrictor wrapped around my middle.
I turned to face Will and Trent. “Well,” I sighed, “the hardest part is over. It shouldn’t be so hard to avoid him in the ballroom, I’d imagine.”
Too late, I noticed Trent’s eyes grow wide. “Who are we avoiding?” a velvety voice asked behind me. I didn’t have to turn to know it belonged to King Tenebris.
I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment before pasting a false smile on my face. I turned around to see King Tenebris and Queen Isabella standing in front of me. I curtseyed once more, this time without the stumble. “An old boyfriend of mine,” I lied. “Things didn’t end well, and now that I’m joined by Tyler this evening,” I reached back to pat Trent’s arm, “I’d imagine it would be a bit awkward to run into him.”
“Ah, yes,” King Tenebris said. “Young love does have a tendency to end messily, doesn’t it?”
I tried to contain my anger at his words. Yes, a murderer would think that, I suppose. Behind me, Will and Trent laughed good-naturedly. I glanced at Queen Isabella who stood half hidden behind Tenebris. To my surprise, she was looking directly at me with curiosity. Her eyes were beautiful but cold—they sent a chill down my spine. I quickly dropped my gaze.
“Will Longfellow,” Tenebris stepped forward and took Will by the hand as he reached up to pat his shoulder. “It has been a few years. It’s nice to have you join us again. Who are these young ones you have with you tonight?”
“This is my daughter, Bridgette,” Will touched my back, “and her boyfriend, Tyler.” He pushed Trent forward slightly.
“Is this the daughter you went home for?” Tenebris asked.
“No, no. Kayley is at home, with her mother.”
Knowing how Will felt about the subject, I noticed his tone grow marginally more strained as he discussed Kayley with the man who refused to help her get better.
“That’s too bad. You’ll have to bring your wife with you next time. I’d love to meet her.”
“Yes, she’d enjoy that very much. I’m sure you have many others you’d like to greet, so we’ll leave you to it.” Will bowed once more. Trent and I followed his example, then turned to follow the crowds out the large double doors, breathing a sigh of relief.
Chapter 27
The Diary
I glanced at my wristwatch—we were precisely on schedule as we left the hall. Katherine, Damion, and Trevor should be entering the palace any time now, dressed in uniforms like the servants wore. The palace grounds were protected from Travel, so we had to get creative in our ways to breach the castle. For the past two days, Trevor had been working to dig a tunnel from outside the perimeter walls that would come up in one of the staff supply closets in the basement. Elsie had sewn the costumes they’d be wearing based on Will’s descriptions. From what I’d seen at dinner, they should blend in just fine.
We walked down the long hall to a magnificent archway which led into the ballroom. Once inside, we were met by a cacophony of music, dancing, and laughter. Beautiful women in their finest dresses were being spun around on the floor by men dressed in white, gray, and black tuxedos. Occasional red guard uniforms like Will’s were sprinkled into the mix. We were shuffled off to the side as a couple came spiraling toward us, oblivious to our presence.
“The upper classes are pretty fond of dancing, I take it,” Trent grumbled as he caught my arm, keeping me from tripping over my dress in our hustle to get out of the way.
“That’s an understatement,” Will agreed. Though he was evidently trying not to enjoy himself, there were traces of amusement in his face at the scene before him. “Don’t you two have somewhere to be?”
I checked my watch. Less than two minutes until I was supposed to meet the others at our rendezvous point. “Well, I do. You okay here, Trent?” We’d decided Trent should stay with Will and keep an eye on him so that he didn’t run off to alert any guards to our presence. He’d also be the lookout for any strange activity at the party scene.
“Just dandy,” Trent said as a rather large man bumped him from behind.
“Sorry,” I whispered. “I’ll try to be fast.”
“That would be appreciated.”
“Be back soon.” I stretched up on my toes and kissed Trent on the cheek.
“Be safe,” he whispered as he squeezed my hand.
I slipped back out the large archway, with the excuse of looking for the restroom if anyone stopped me to ask where I was headed. I walked as casually as I could manage considering the amount of stress I was under, not to mention the corset digging into my flesh.
I moved swiftly toward the east wing under explicit directions Will had given me about the layout of the palace. There was a staircase located on the far eastern side that led up to the fourth floor—my target.
Once I reached the stairs, I assumed I was out of sight, so I used my speed to climb the steps, knowing it would be unlikely I’d be seen at the pace I could move. Once I reached the fourth floor landing, I swiftly ducked into the first hallway that was only a few yards ahead, then slipped through the brick wall into the first guestroom. From there, I moved through three more guest suites, a cleaning supplies closet, and a staff restroom before I reached my destination—a small storage closet in the library.
“Hey, Ava,” Trevor’s voice welcomed me as I materialized through the wall. “Nice of you to join us.”
“Glad I could make it,” I teased back. “Have you checked to see if the guards are really there like Will said they’d be?”
“I checked,” Katherine’s voice replied through the darkness. “There are four of them spread out along the north wall of shelves.”
“Excellent. We all clear on the plan from here?”
“Yep!”
“Got it.”
“I’m with ya.”
“Great, whenever you’re ready, Damion,” I said.
“Lights out in three, two, one.” With the wave of Damion’s hand, the small crack of light from outside the closet door disappeared.
“Are you slowing time?” I asked Katherine, though I got my answer as I asked. My voice slowed and Trevor and Damion immediately appeared to be moving in slow motion. My ears pressed down on me as even small hums and buzzing noises in the air were repressed, traveling at much slower speeds. Katherine, on the other hand, opened the closet door without any delay, and, thanks to my speed, I could almost keep up with her.
She jogged toward the south wall, and I followed as close behind her as I could manage. It was the strangest sensation to know I was moving at my fastest speed, yet to feel so sluggish. After a few twists and turns around bookshelves, lounge chairs, and tables, I
could see the wall where the four guards stood, nearly frozen in their looks of confusion at the sudden loss of electricity. Slowly, they began to converge toward each other, as if to discuss what had happened.
Katherine approached the first guard, holding an open bottle of purple powder under his nose. The dust was supposed to knock out the person who inhaled it. After a moment’s exposure, the guard collapsed to the ground, unconscious. Katherine hurried forward to the next guard until all four men lay unresponsive on the floor.
I caught up to her and gave her a thumbs up. We stepped in front of the middle set of shelves. I waited for Katherine to tap the sequence of books as Will had instructed. The code was supposed to open the secret door to the room beyond. Katherine did as she’d been told without success. She looked at me in confusion.
I motioned to myself, indicating I wanted to try. While I could move quickly, I couldn’t speak quickly, since the sound waves I produced would still be slowed. Katherine, however, could speak at a normal rate since time hadn’t been slowed for her at all. As a result, I was left to communicate through actions.
Will said the door was enchanted so that no magic could penetrate it, even my ability to move through solid objects, but I tried anyway, shoving myself against the books. Nothing happened. I tried a few times, continually running into the solid shelves.
I placed my hands on my hips to think. I was fairly certain Katherine had touched the sequence of books in the correct order but decided it was best to double check. Fifth shelf, tenth from the right, I thought, touching the spine of that book. Seventh shelf, third from the left, then fourth shelf, sixth from the left. Will had forced us to memorize 5,10R, 7,3L, 4,6L as the code. I was impressed he’d remembered after all these years. Maybe he always dreamed of coming back and discovering the room’s secrets. Maybe that’s why it had been so easy to convince him to help us.
As I tapped the last book, the entire shelf radiated a faint gold light, then sunk back, revealing a black space behind. A sense of trepidation filled me—I had no idea what actually lay hidden behind these doors.
The Cyrun Page 21