Jannike and Camryn exchanged a look, communicated silently and turned back to Gweneth.
“Uh, how badly did she injure him?” Camryn asked.
“Broke his arm. Ellard commed Mogens to treat him.”
“That explains the bad mood, although she should have told us,” Jannike said. “We could have gone to that bar down on Lower Lowest Street and drowned her sorrows. Good drinks there. They don’t water their stuff down.”
They also treated Lynx, Shiloh and Jannike like normal customers instead of giving them the royal treatment.
“We can’t imbibe strong drinks,” Gweneth said. “Mogens said so.”
“I believe I said we’d drown her sorrows,” Jannike said mildly. She scowled at the remaining steps and huffed out a breath. “Can’t stay here all day lollygagging. Let’s do this.”
“It’s not a race,” Camryn said. “We’ll rest at each street intersection.”
She made sure both Jannike and Gweneth paused at each junction to rest because she remembered what it was like to feel like an ungainly duck. “Why don’t we have a fruit juice at the estaminet here on the corner? It’s so hot today I could do with a drink. Besides, it will give Kaya time to cool off. We don’t want to decorate the tree without her and it won’t be much fun if she’s thinking about revenge on her guard.”
“Kaya’s ex-guard,” Gweneth said with a grin. “Ellard said the guard is scared of Kaya now. He’d only seen her sweet side.”
“Lead the way,” Jannike said. “I need to pee.”
“I doubt they have restrooms,” Camryn said.
Jannike lifted her nose and straightened her shoulders. “They will for the queen.”
“I want to pee too,” Gweneth said. “Lucky I have the queen as a friend. Oh, look at that bright red fruit down there. They’d look wonderful on the tree or as centerpieces if the fruit doesn’t keep well.”
Jannike gave a decisive nod. “Camryn, go and check it out. Gweneth and I will find restrooms and order a drink.”
Camryn restrained her burst of humor with difficulty then thought what the hell. She stepped back out of Jannike’s reach and bobbed a curtsy. “Yes, your majesty. Straightaway, your majesty.”
Jannike narrowed her eyes then did a lopsided wriggle. “I really need to pee.”
Camryn strode along the street with a spring in her step, her lips pursed as she whistled a random tune. She scanned her surroundings, unsure of which level they’d chosen for their break. Almost at the fruit stall, she came to an abrupt halt, her cheerful whistle dying a swift death. For an extended sec she remained frozen in place, her heart attempting to leap up her throat. A growl rumbled from her chest, chasing her heart in the direction of her mouth.
That was Ry.
What the fuck was he doing with that man-hungry bimbo?
The woman had her hands on his chest and puffed out her own until her breasts brushed Ry’s forest-green tunic top.
The bimbo leaned closer to pat his cheek, and he smiled, one of his rare full-out smiles that were reserved for her and the twins.
The pair were in a public place.
What the hell were they thinking?
Camryn blinked, both head and heart working in concert to convince herself her vision had become faulty.
Once the red haze of her sight cleared, she focused on the woman with the wandering hands, currently molesting her mate. Of course, she recognized her, had even chatted to the woman herself during one of the castle functions.
Rosina Simi was high born and a distant cousin to the royal family. A curvaceous feline with a fall of glossy black hair, the woman possessed the reputation of a femme fatale. Camryn thought her mouth too small and her eyes a fraction too close together, but she did have to admit Rosina posed a striking figure with her vivacious manner and the way she could talk to anyone and make them feel at ease. She’d lost her much older mate at a young age and had recently partnered with a foreigner from the planet Dalcon. A commoner, the gossip said. Currently away visiting his home of Dalcon for business purposes, according to the rumors racing around the city. Which begged the same question—why did Rosina have her paws all over Ry?
Before Camryn could decide on her next action, Rosina kissed Ry on each cheek, grinned at him and pressed a quick kiss to his lips. Then, with a final pat on his broad chest, Rosina stepped away. She gave Ry a brisk nod and the pair parted.
Ry stared after Rosina for a few secs and disappeared into the crowds himself, luckily for him in the opposite direction to where Camryn stood rooted to the ground.
It took a sharp elbow to the back from a package-laden porter and the appearance of several street urchins, one of which attempted to pickpocket her, for Camryn to jerk from her horrified trance.
She grabbed the boy’s skinny wrist before he managed to remove her currency from her pocket. “Where I come from they chop off hands when they catch a pickpocket.”
“I didna do nothin’,” he whined, staring at her through sullen gray eyes.
Not a local but one of the new arrivals. A distinct rumble sounded in the region of his stomach, and that decided Camryn. “Come with me.”
“I didna do nothin’,” he said, struggling against her grip. He had the strength of an insect when faced with her determination.
She dragged him along the street until she reached the estaminet where Jannike and Gweneth sat waiting for her return.
Jannike lifted a brow. “Something wrong?”
“He tried to pick my pocket.”
Gweneth stared at her as if she had two heads. “Okaaay.”
“Do you want me to com the guards?” Jannike resettled her weight on the spindly chair, her fingers hovering over her com.
“No.” Camryn gestured at a curious waitress, her head cocked as she eavesdropped. “How many friends do you have?”
“I no nark.”
“I counted three. Is that correct?”
“Dunno.”
“Three,” Camryn repeated.
“How can I help you?” The waitress’s prominent overbite displayed teeth with pointed edges. All the better to eat you with.
Camryn shivered, aware of how many different beings made Viros home and the other places they’d visited, with residents who presented a danger if approached in the wrong way. “Yes, do you sell food as well as drinks?”
“We do a line of meat pies,” the woman answered.
“Perfect. I’ll take four to go. Please package them separately.”
“It will be done,” the waitress said and hustled away.
The urchin’s stomach grumbled again, and Camryn gentled her grip, squatting in front of the child so they were at eye level.
“Where do you live?”
“Lower town.” A faint tremor passed through his skinny frame. His clothes, however, were clean and the holes mended neatly with contrasting thread. Someone cared about this child, enough to keep him clothed at least.
“Do you have a job?”
“No one hire us.” He dragged his feet across the ground and wouldn’t meet Camryn’s gaze.
“What do your parents do?”
“Parents dead. Live with grandsire. He sick.”
“I see.”
His gaze shot to hers, much older than it should be. “You no see.”
“Here you go,” the waitress said and handed over the pies.
Camryn released the urchin and presented the four pies to him. “If you would like a job, you and your friends should report to the guardhouse at the castle. Ask for Camryn, and I will come to meet you. Come in two cycle marks.” She checked her timepiece and nodded. “Yes, two marks will be perfect.”
“How much you pay?”
“I will give you each one gold coin,” she said.
“Need to ask friends,” the urchin said.
“No problem. I will see you later.” Camryn stood and dusted off her hands on the backside of her trews. “The pies smell good, and I’m hungry. Would you like to try one?”
“Hell, yeah,” Gweneth agreed. “These days I’m always ready to eat.”
Camryn strode off to find the waitress and place the order, but her mind wasn’t on food or drinks.
It centered on Ry.
Chapter 5
The tree stood in the castle reception room, in front of the windows and the eve light shimmered off the green, pink and white boughs. Camryn stared at the picture it made, but couldn’t drum up enthusiasm when her mind kept circling what she’d witnessed earlier in the cycle.
Everyone else seemed in high spirits, excited about trimming the tree and participating in one of the traditions they’d heard so much about.
“Camryn paid four urchins to help us make decorative chains,” Jannike said.
“Is everything still here?” Lynx asked, scanning some of the knickknacks collected by his mother, the former queen.
“Did someone check their pockets?” Shiloh said at the same time.
“Jannike kept an eagle eye on them, but once they got over their nerves and awe at being invited into the castle, they enjoyed helping us make decorations,” Gweneth said. “Anyone know of someone hiring? A suitable job for four boys?”
“Keira might want help out at the farm. I know it’s berry picking season,” Ellard said, speaking of his best friend’s mate. “Com her on the morrow and ask. Do you know how to contact them again?”
Camryn joined her friends next to the tree. “I can find them again. I followed them in feline form to their homes. I have their scent. No problem finding them again.”
Lynx picked up a paperlike chain and frowned at the delicate links. “So what do we do?”
Sheera and Leeam blinked into sight and Jannike jumped.
“Steady there, sweetheart,” Shiloh said. “Be careful of the babies.”
“Baby,” she snapped. “There is only one. Gweneth said so.”
“Ooh!” Sheera clapped her hands together. “We’re in time to help. What do we do?”
Everyone looked to Camryn and she forced a bright smile. She caught Ry’s expression and knew he’d sensed her mood. She winged a thought his way but encountered a sturdy mental wall where not so long ago there had been no barriers. Pain lanced through her, shifting her rigid smile for an instant before she managed to set it in place again. “Everyone should grab a handful of decorations and hang them on the tree wherever you think a bauble should go. There is no right or wrong. The cookies require strings in order to hang. Take a piece of ribbon, thread it through like so and tie it. Then you can hang it on the tree.” She looped the ribbon through a hole in the cookie, tied it and placed the first ornament on the tree. “Ready, set, go!”
Camryn stood back and watched everyone hustle, the soft laughter and sounds of excitement as her friends chose decorations and selected the perfect spot to place them. Ry approached her and slung his arm around her shoulders. She kept seeing that woman with her hands all Ry, and her entire body stiffened. Her nostrils flared, and she caught the very faint scent of flowers. Camryn leaned closer and sniffed, pressing her nose to his tunic. Her gaze rose and a trace of guilt flickered in him before his expression blanked.
“You’ve done a good job with the decorations,” he said. “Everyone is enjoying trimming the tree.” Ry kept his arm around her shoulders. “Are you going to join in?”
“Yes.” She required time to think. Turning, she plucked up a paperlike chain and handed it to him. “Show them what to do with these.”
She chose one of the short strings of beads the boys had sewn together and rounded the tree, thankful for the foresight to allow space between the tree and the window. Secs later, she’d draped the ornament on a branch and stood back to study the effect. It needed lights.
“We need lights,” she said aloud. “I couldn’t think of any way of duplicating the effect with materials from Viros.”
Sheera placed an ornament on the tree and grinned, her face alive with pleasure. “What do the lights look like? Do you have a depiction?”
Camryn picked up her tablet since she’d brought it down to show the young boys what the finished tree would look like. She turned it on and flicked through several photos until she reached a movie. She pushed play and held the tablet out to Sheera. “The lights are the sparkling things on the tree.”
Enthralled, Sheera watched the entire movie before lifting her head and beaming at Camryn. “I think I can make some lights for you.”
“Wait until all the decorations are hung then you can work your magic.”
“What color should I make?” Sheera asked.
“Why don’t you choose since you’re providing the lights?”
Sheera nodded and wandered off to join Leeam. They exchanged a secret smile and something in Camryn twisted.
Jannike’s com gave a piercing signal and her friend toddled over to answer. “Hello. Yes. Yes, that’s right.” She glanced at Camryn, her eyes bright with enthusiasm.
“Like that? Do those lights look right?” Sheera asked, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet.
Pale green lights twinkled from every branch, elevating the tree from pretty to special.
Camryn nodded. “That is a Christmas tree.”
“Anyone hungry?” Lynx asked.
“Yes,” Jannike said, placing her hand over her com unit.
“Me!” Gweneth rubbed her belly and leaned into Ellard.
Kaya rolled her eyes. “Silly question. They’re always hungry.”
“I’ll go and ask for a snack for everyone,” Shiloh said.
“Why don’t you com the order?” Nanu asked.
Shiloh gave a half-shrug, a hint of boyish embarrassment creeping into his mien. “I thought the kitchen staff might like to come and see the Christmas tree.”
“Great idea.” Lynx clasped Shiloh in a quick hug. “I’ll come with you.”
Jannike continued with her call and Nanu wandered over to discuss some repair that he and Ry had deemed necessary to ensure the Indy remained in tiptop shape.
Camryn listened at first then tuned out while she packed up their excess supplies.
Sheera blinked into place beside her and Camryn managed to hold back her squeak of alarm. “That is so pretty. Can I change the lights if I want to?”
“Sure, feel free. There are lots of different types of lights. Some blink off and on and others play corny Christmas carols.” She raised her right hand in a stop signal. “Don’t ask me to describe those because I refuse. I think the plain lights are pretty, but the flashing ones are nice too.”
Sheera opened her mouth to speak, her question evident.
“Yes, I have depictions of those too. Let me find another video for you to watch.”
“Ooh, they’re pretty. I might try them now.” And with a wave of her hand, the twinkling lights changed and flashed pink and white, off and on. Sheera wrinkled her pale nose and played with the colors and the sequence of off and on.
Jannike finished her call and Camryn wandered in her direction. “What’s up?”
“A woman offering us a case,” Jannike whispered. “She’s being blackmailed.”
“What? Why?”
“Anything wrong?” Ry asked.
“No,” Camryn said. “We’re discussing the urchins who tried to steal from me earlier today. It’s an epidemic of crime. You know we stopped a robbery too. The poor woman was very appreciative. She sent us a gift basket. No idea what they call them here, but that’s what she gave us. We weren’t in any danger,” she added before Ry could start on a lecture.
“Good,” he said and ambled off to join Lynx and Shiloh who had returned with some of the kitchen staff.
Jannike resumed the conversation proper. “Because she had an affair with the wrong male, and now someone wants to profit from it.”
“Why did she contact you?”
“She witnessed the way we stopped the bag snatcher in the market and thought that, given my status, I could be trusted to help her.”<
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“That doesn’t make sense,” Camryn said. “If she wants this sorted out without anyone else finding out, why would she ask you? You’re the queen. People notice whenever you’re wandering around the market. They pay attention to all of us because we’re different, which makes me wonder again, what she’s up to. Hell, she could be intending to kidnap you or worse. Who was it? Did she give you a name?”
“Credit me with a little sense,” Jannike snapped. “I’m not stupid.”
“No, of course not. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to imply you were.”
“Her name is Rosina Simi. She’s willing to pay us.”
“Who?”
“Rosina—”
Camryn shot a considering glance in Ry’s direction and found him watching her. She gave him a crisp nod and turned away before she reacted in a manner that would create a scene.
An interesting development. One that raised her suspicions and her curiosity.
* * * * *
Camryn checked on the twins and found them both wide-awake, their solemn eyes blinking at her. She thanked the maid for sitting with them. “If you have time before you retire for the eve, go down to the reception room and take a peek at the Christmas tree.”
The round-cheeked maid, who used to work in the kitchens under a tyrannical cook, beamed and clapped her hands together. “I can’t wait to see. The other staff have been talking about the tree and pondering the need to bring it inside the castle. I tried to explain but I wasn’t sure what I was describing.”
Sevile gurgled and copied the clapping motion, his chubby hands not quite getting the action right. Camryn smiled, her heart squeezing in response. It was easier to understand her sister-in-law’s fears for her children now that she had her own, and she wished Max and Ellen lived closer so she could tell them again how sorry she was her drunken antics had created so much angst in their lives.
“It’s all finished now.” Apart from presents, and they could take care of that. Maybe they could put small gifts under the tree for all the castle staff. They worked hard looking after them all and deserved a treat. Making a mental note to discuss it with Lynx, she smoothed her hand over the soft fuzz on her son’s head.
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