Emerald Mountains (The Dream Traveler Series Book 2)

by Nicole Knight

  The doors opened, and I stepped forward to enter the room.

  “The great Queen of the Morthlands, Queen Violet,” Axel called, standing against the wall just inside the dining room.

  Everyone in the room stood at once, their eyes flashing to me briefly before bending at the waist to look at the floor. They remained this way while I walked to my spot at the table. Once I stood behind my chair, it was pulled out for me. I sat down and waited.

  “The great King Thanian and Queen Clarissa, King and Queen of Urbem Glacies, our royal guests,” Axel called again as the doors reopened.

  The King and Queen followed the same path I took and ended up at the two seats to my right. Their chairs were pulled out, and they were seated.

  “You may take your seats,” I announced to the crowd.

  Everyone straightened and then took their seats. Once everyone was settled, their eyes were on us. I also watched them. Axel explained that they took the best security measures to make sure everyone here was a citizen of the Kingdom. Hopefully, no surprise guests would make an appearance tonight.

  In the crowd, I saw my extended family, some of the wealthier families that lived in villages near the castle, and some of the less fortunate that surrounded the area. I knew that we would have too much food for us all to eat, so some of the families that always go hungry are in attendance tonight so that for once, they can go home with full bellies.

  The procedures for events like this include a toast given by the King or Queen. The guests in attendance already had their glasses of wine on their tables. They couldn’t touch them until the toast was made. What the crowd didn’t know was that I was making several toasts.

  I rose as gracefully as I could from my seat. I felt all eyes fall on me again. I took the glass that Trin handed to me and then tried to speak as loud and gracefully as possible.

  “I would like to propose a series of toasts,” I announced. Everyone picked up their glasses, even the little kids with their glasses of water or juice.

  “I would like to propose a toast to our visitors, King Thanian and Queen Clarissa of Urbem Glacies,” I said.

  “To King Thanian and Queen Clarissa,” the crowd echoed.

  “To our newfound alliance with Urbem Glacies,” I said, and I heard the same shouted back to me.

  “To the Goddess,” I called.

  “To the Goddess,” the crowd repeated, enjoying the reference to their deity.

  “To my advisor Trinity, the chef, and Sir Axel. Who all worked around the clock to make this dinner so special,” I said.

  Trin’s face turned beet red, and I thought I caught a little pink showing in Axel’s cheeks from across the room.

  The crowd echoed me once again.

  “To us,” I finally called, finishing the series of toasts.

  “To us,” the crowd echoed, holding up their glasses again. We took our final sips.

  “You may be seated, everyone, and let dinner be served!” I shouted in excitement.

  I had made it through the toasts without messing up. That was enough to be excited about, even without the great news that we had yet to share.

  Dinner was brought out by servers and placed in front of the guest. The King or Queen are always brought their food last as a show of selflessness that it takes to rule the Kingdom. When I finally received mine, I almost forgot my table manners and dove right in.

  Dinner went smoothly without much incident. I chatted quietly with the King and Queen. It was this way for an hour while guests dug into second helpings. Then suddenly, Queen Clarissa broke protocol. She stood up and grabbed her glass. All eyes turned to her.

  She was so beautiful standing there. Her blonde hair hung beautifully, running over her shoulders and down to her stomach. It shimmered in the candlelight that lit the entire room.

  “I would also like to propose a toast,” Clarissa said.

  The room was now quiet enough; she didn’t have to raise her voice to be heard. She was so elegant; I hoped I could become half the Queen she seemed to be.

  Do the citizens of the Morthlands look up to me like I look up to her?

  Everyone in attendance picked up their glasses, including myself.

  “I would like to propose a toast to Queen Violet, and the Morthlands, our new allies,” she said.

  The crowd echoed the toasts except for the allies’ part, but they cheered and polished off their drinks. Smiles were worn around the room. It seems that I made the right decision in asking the Northerners to be our ally.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  I was in the middle of eating the best chocolate cake I had ever had when Axel came to stand behind me.

  “My Queen,” he said to get my attention.

  “Yes, Sir Axel?” I asked.

  He bent his head closer to my ear and whispered, “We have a problem.”

  “What kind of problem?” I whispered back.

  Worry hit me deep in my gut.

  “There have been reports of villages being ransacked by unidentified men. I believe they are rebels from Tate, sent to scare you into making a decision about marrying the Prince,” he said.

  My heart sunk into my stomach.

  They were revenge for my words said to Kennan at Lilith’s graduation party. He warned me my mouth would get me into trouble. Now I knew what he meant.

  “Any reported deaths?” I asked, feeling ashamed.

  I let Kennan get the best of me again.

  “A few,” he answered.

  I almost cried right then and there, but I needed to keep it together. I could cry later in the privacy of my room. I could see it in Axel’s eyes; he thought he knew how I felt. But it wasn’t the same as before; my words directly caused this.

  Axel’s eyes told me what he couldn’t right now. He wished he could hold and comfort me; however, that wasn’t proper.

  Should I tell him what really caused this attack? Would he be disappointed in me, or jealous of what I do back in Arlington?

  What do you wish to do, my Queen?” he asked quietly.

  “I need you to put together a group of Knights who will bring supplies and help to the ransacked villages. Tell them to help any way they can. Then have them come back and report to me on what they saw. I want to hear it first hand,” I told him.

  “As you wish,” he said, and then he returned to his post by the door. He spoke quietly to another knight.

  “Is everything okay?” the Clarissa asked me.

  “No, it is not, but this isn’t the place to discuss it,” I told her.

  She instantly understood. A dinner party wasn’t the place to make decisions and share devastating news, that’s not how things were done.

  ☼

  Once dinner ended, I went to my room to change out of my pretty dress. I changed into my comfortable nightgown and warm robe. I stepped into my slippers and walked down the hall to the library. There were already guards posted inside the tunnels making sure no one else could hear what I was about to discuss.

  Thanian and Clarissa were already seated in the library in their nightclothes as well. They were wearing beautiful silks and were sipping on tea. One look at Clarissa was enough to make me cold, as she was only wearing a silk spaghetti strap dress. She must feel this Kingdom is much warmer than hers, or she’s made of ice.

  Axel closed the door behind me. Trin and Wisdom were already in the room. Thanian and Clarissa’s advisor was standing behind them as well. They were all tired but focused on what we are here to discuss.

  I took my seat and proceeded to run the meeting the way Trin had taught me.

  “Thanian, Clarissa, Sir Axel is my most trusted Knight. He runs the security here; he is my advisor on warfare and is also my companion. He will fill you in on everything that has been reported. I can assure you; you can trust this man with anything you have to say,” I told them.

  “Very well,” Thanian said. Clarissa nodded at Axel.

  “Your majesties,” Axel started, “there have been attacks on several o
f our villages within the past two days. There have been close to twenty deaths so far. From what we have heard, unidentified men entered the villages stealing personal belongings and set several buildings on fire. The deaths are attributed to people who tried to protect their property, or were caught in the fires.”

  “Oh my,” the Clarissa said. Her hand covered her mouth, showing her shock and disbelief. Thanian was silent, waiting for more bad news.

  “It was after my discussion with Wisdom, that I believe it to be rebels from Tate,” Axel finished.

  “Explain,” I said, looking over to the man who is likely my great grandfather.

  “Well, as Sir Axel said, the men were unidentified. If they were from this Kingdom, they would have been easier to identify. I have some magical things I could have done to track a few of the items stolen since some of the objects were magical. However, these objects are far out of my range by now. I think whoever did this is far away from here. That leaves us to the conclusion that Tate or Corone is behind this. More likely, it is Tate, trying to scare you into making a decision to marry the Prince,” Wisdom explained.

  “How could they get far enough away so quickly?” I asked.

  This was beyond Kennan’s ability. I believe Samantha is the smarter one of the Smart family bunch. Maybe this was her?

  “There could be several factors at play. A gifted magic worker, a spell I have never heard of before, or a fast rider and horse with a well-placed ship at the shore. It’s difficult to be certain,” he said reluctantly.

  Clarissa looked at me, “Prince Kennan really wants you to bond to him. He is so determined that he has started raiding villages to scare you into it?” she asked.

  “I’m afraid so,” I answered. I’m not totally sold that this wasn’t Samantha, and going with the obvious is easier for now.

  “And what are you going to do?” Thanian asked me.

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “Do you wish to marry him now to bring peace to your Kingdom again?” he clarified.

  “No, if anything, I want to bond with him even less,” I said.

  Clarissa looked proud.

  “Well then, what are you going to do about the attacks?” Thanian asked.

  I looked over at Axel and gave him a small smile.

  “Sir Axel has men leaving the castle now. They will ride to the villages affected and give as much aid as they can. Then they are to come back and report directly to me,” I told them.

  “Can I be there when this is happening?” Clarissa asked, looking at me.

  “Of course,” I responded. “How about you, Thanian? Do you wish to be there?” I asked.

  “I wish I could, but I am going to have to trust this issue to my other half. Now that we have announced our alliance with you, it will only take a short amount of time for the news to make its way back with these rebels. One of us needs to be there to take charge and prevent any unrest that Tate may stir up. We have been anticipating a war with Tate for some time now. We have recruited a larger army than we normally keep. I will be directing about half of our forces here. Clarissa will oversee that everything runs smoothly with our side of the war effort. I must go prepare my Kingdom for what may come,” he said.

  “I greatly appreciate that decision,” I said. “Clarissa, we would be more than honored to have you stay here while we prepare,” I told her.

  “I graciously accept,” she said, bowing her head to me.

  “I am afraid I must leave in the morning,” Thanian said. “I believe I should make my way to our chambers to catch up on some sleep before the journey. Clarissa, would you care to join me, my sweet?” he asked her.

  “Of course, my dear,” she said, standing and taking Thanian’s outstretched hand.

  “Good night Violet, thank you again for your hospitality, and this wonderful evening, we will see you in the morning.”

  With that, Thanian and Clarissa exited the library. I took a deep breath while I tried to figure out my next move.

  Axel came and sat beside me on the large cushioned chair I was sitting on. He wrapped me in a hug and held me like that for a few minutes. He knew that the stress of today had taken its toll on me. I was fighting to keep my eyes open now that the King and Queen were gone.

  Suddenly I remembered that Trin and Wisdom were still in the room. She had been awfully quiet throughout the meeting.

  “Trin, you did an amazing job with everything. I am so proud and lucky to have you,” I told her.

  “Oh please, I don’t need the praise. I’m just so happy that everything went as smoothly as it did,” she said.

  “What now?” Wisdom asked.

  “Now we all go to bed. Today has been exhausting for us all,” I said.

  Axel stood up and offered me his hand just like Thanian did for Clarissa.

  “My sweet,” he said with a smile as I placed my hand in his.

  I smiled back at him. Despite the tension and the weight our jobs put on our shoulders, Axel could make me smile. My heart felt a little lighter with his hand holding mine.

  He escorted me back to my room and stayed there while I drifted off to sleep.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Iwoke back up in my apartment. My clock said it was only 6:00 AM. But it’s been days since Thanian left to return back to Ubrem Glacies.

  In the Morthlands, it is my job to prepare for the inevitable war against Tate. I needed to keep the Kingdom running as best as it could during the time. Each day consisted of meetings with my few trusted friends and family. There was the occasional meeting with Clarissa, but she had her own things to attend to.

  Here in Arlington, Mom is still trying to get rid of the things in the attic, to her new boyfriend’s encouragement. I had yet to meet the guy, but I know he owns the pawnshop in town. Mom had started selling him some of the old treasures hidden up in the attic to have the opportunity to talk to him. Within the past month, they have started chatting regularly and went on several dates.

  Mom told me all about him, but won’t let me meet him yet.

  “It’s not the right time,” she told me. “I don’t think either one of you is ready for it.”

  I knew I was ready, but I guess he wasn’t.

  Grandma is on a good day, bad day, basis; the number of days of each seemed pretty even. Grandma was still in good health besides her lapse of memory.

  I was waiting around for a perfect day. I had brought one emerald back here with me for her. When the time is right, I will bring her to the castle and let her meet her younger sister. I have not yet to told Grandma about Beetie.

  One look at the woman and Grandma would know they are related. I figured I would let Beetie do all the explaining like she did for me.

  I checked my phone, which had several text messages. I had three text messages from different guys. All of them wanted to “hang out.”

  Madison had texted me once, asking what our plans were for the day. While I lived across state lines, I lived less than two hours from Arlington. It was easy enough to meet up with Madison when I wanted to, at least until summer was over and she went to school on the other side of the country.

  Me: Hey Mads, I don’t know. What do you want to do?

  Mads: Tommy asked if I wanted to go out tonight, but I am kind of nervous about it. I don’t want to go alone. Will you go too?

  I remember how this went down last time. Mads asked me to go to Lacey’s party with her the first time Tommy asked her out. She had been so caught up in the fact that a boy was paying her attention; she completely ignored me. I had been made fun of the whole party, and I ended up flipping a football player over my shoulder. He had made unwanted advances, and I lost control and needed to put him in place. Then I was chased most of the way home by the football player’s friends.

  I had forgiven Mads for that day, but I haven’t forgotten about it.

  That’s why the sight of that text message raised all kinds of alarms and red flags. I had been hanging out with Madison just o
ne on one without any incident. That didn’t mean I wanted to test my luck in a group hang out again.

  When I didn’t respond right away, I got another text.

  Mads: Please, please!

  Me: I don’t know. I really don’t want to third wheel it again after last time.

  Mads: Please, what if Tommy can get someone to go with you? That way, you aren’t left alone.

  Me: So I can be awkward with someone I don’t know?

  Mads: Please?? I’ll owe you big time!

  Me: If he doesn’t pay for my dinner, you are.

  Mads: Oh my goodness, thank you!!

  Me: Tell Tommy to make sure he isn’t gross.

  Mads: Will do! :)

  I really have no interest in going on a blind date with someone. I already have a boyfriend, one I like very, very much. Would I tell him about this? I don’t want to worry him with all the other stuff I have going on, but I don’t want to keep this a secret. I still haven’t told him that I kept Eduard alive, or that I found more emeralds.

  It wasn’t fun keeping these secrets, but I know him well enough. Eduard was a valuable source of information regardless of how everyone feels about him. Keeping him alive is a necessary evil. It also keeps more blood off of my hands.

  I’d rather lie than kill any day.

  As for the emeralds, I wasn’t sure how I could incorporate Axel into this world. There was so much to consider. He doesn’t have a birth certificate or even a social security number. He could stay with me in my apartment, but he wouldn’t be able to do much here without proper identification.

  Do I know someone who can fake that? I need to sort this out before I bring Axel here.

  ☼

  At five, I met Tommy and Madison at the restaurant.

  “You look nice,” Madison told me.

  “Thanks, you too,” I said.

  “Your date is meeting us here,” she said. “Tommy still won’t tell me who it is.”

  Tommy smiled a little, “Sorry, I’m keeping that a surprise.”

  The restaurant they had picked is one I had never been to before. It was a little on the pricey side. My date better pay for my dinner, because I wouldn’t be able to afford it otherwise.