Noticing him, she smiled.
'Alek. Come on in.'
When he sat opposite her, he asked, 'Ellie, why can’t the girls go home?'
Yakov looked surprised, Elena arched an eyebrow at him. 'Cat told you?'
'I noticed she’d been crying and asked why. Surely if they got here by their own devices they’d be able to get home again?' He forced away the feeling of loss that swelled at the thought of Cat leaving.
Yakov gave him a penetrating look. 'I wouldn’t think you’d want her to leave.'
Alek looked at his hands, avoiding the older man’s gaze. 'I want her to be happy.'
Elena frowned, pressing her lips flat while regarding Alek. In an apologetic tone she said, 'Alek, I'm sorry. I can’t send them home and the girls cannot reverse the spell. It’s not possible.'
'Spell?' Yakov and Alek looked at her in surprise.
'Yes. They’re here because of a spell they cast. It can’t be reversed because they asked for this,' Elena said sternly. 'I understand it’s distressing to watch them mourn their old life, but they will get used to this one. They are meant to be here.'
He didn’t know what to think now. It almost made him feel foolish for coming. Thanking Elena he went to leave but stopped at the door when a thought occurred to him. 'Ellie. What was the spell for?'
She gave him an indecipherable look. 'To locate their soul mates.'
Chapter Twenty Two
Loi woke before the others the next morning and rolled onto her back. Rain buffeted the windows. That sounds really heavy, she thought, rolling onto her side to peek out of the window. Sure enough, rain hit the courtyard, the clouds gathered thickly overhead. Might as well get up and have a shower, at least I don’t have to wait for anyone else, she thought, hunting for her slippers. Tiptoeing through the room, she was astonished to see they had an over-stayer. Audrey and Nnelg lay curled up together on the dog’s generous bed. So cute, wish I had a camera to capture it. She smothered a giggle as she slipped into the bathroom.
Awhile later she sprawled across her bed fussing over Lucky while the others sorted themselves out. Nnelg and Audrey had played up as soon as everyone woke so had been banished from the room, which left little Lucky all by herself, not that she seemed to mind. Loi gently rubbed the cat’s tummy while Lucky, in the throes of pleasure, alternated between curling one forepaw in then the next.
'Aw.' Kassie’s voice came from behind her. Loi turned to find her gazing down at Lucky. 'I’m so glad she seems to have settled in well, especially with the lack of time I’ve had for her.' Kassie said it guiltily, Loi reached out to give her a one armed hug.
A whining at the door let everyone know Audrey waited for them. They hurried after the dog to the Great Hall for breakfast. Afterward, Elena summoned them to the library for a quick reminder of the plan. 'Today will be your final free day for some time, so do enjoy it,' she urged them all at the end of her speech.
They headed for the solar, following Audrey who seemed to know where they were going. Either that or we’ll end up in the kitchen, Loi thought in amusement. While they walked she realized Cat wore a dark blue dress. How unusual, Cat hardly ever wears dresses. Then she spied Cat’s high boots underneath and smirked; I’ll bet she has her pants on too, Cat didn’t like the exposed factor of dresses. 'Aww, Kitty Cat, don’t you look pretty,' she teased.
Cat flushed red and gave a defensive shrug. 'I like it. Anyway, I have my pants and boots on underneath.'
When they reached the solar, Sabyn and Rumal lounged on chairs, the others looking over a map. They glanced up at the girls’ footsteps.
'We’re off to visit the town are we?'
Loi started. She hadn’t noticed Citaan in the corner of the room. The gold eyed woman smiled at them and indicated the window highlighting the heavy rain. 'It’ll stop within the hour, why don’t we take horses?' Citaan addressed Gredel who nodded. The men led the way to the stables.
Alek gave me an oddly cool greeting when we arrived and now he marched ahead of us all. Sian bumped into my arm, I turned to look at her.
'S’up?' she arched an eyebrow.
Feeling anxiety twist my stomach I shrugged. 'Dunno.' When we reached the stables the grooms helped set us up with a horse each. The whole time we were there, which must have been close to an hour, Alek avoided me. What the hell? Had I said something? I racked my brains for any possible faux pas I might have made as we rode the horses out toward the inner gate. He rode out in front talking to Gredel, Citaan hung back, riding beside me. I answered her questions as well as I could, but this really threw me. He was so affectionate yesterday. What's going on?
Sian watched as Cat distractedly replied to Citaan, her eyes fixed on Alek’s back. So weird, out of the four of them Cat seemed to have the tightest friendship so far. Maybe Elena or Yakov thought it inappropriate? That must be it. She felt a sense of relief, of course it is, he is the Crown Prince after all.
Kassie kept shifting in her saddle, the trot felt so uncomfortable. Her horse was h-u-g-e in comparison to her but with such pretty markings, almost like Lucky. She reached forward, trying to stroke his neck. Ugh! Darn this bouncing, she thought, scowling.
Rumal, riding alongside Kassie, could see she looked uncomfortable. 'Are you okay?' She jolted away with the trot instead of rising, it surprised him; the other girls rode fine. 'Have you ridden before?'
'A a a a little,' Kassie managed to squeeze out through the bouncing.
Rumal let out a sharp whistle and the others halted, pulling their horses around. 'I’m taking Kassie back for a pillion saddle. Ride on ahead, we’ll catch you up.' The girls looked concerned but Kassie nodded to them. They turned their horses, following Gredel and Alek out.
Citaan is a good horsewoman, Sian thought, watching the blue haired woman beside them. She looks like she’s part of the horse. Another twinge of envy ran through her. The men also rode with a nonchalant air of expertise. 'Do you ride often?' Sian turned to Daron who smiled at her.
'Yes. We don’t bother the griffons for short trips. I enjoy riding. It makes a change to being in the air.'
We reached the outer gate and waited while guards opened it. A clattering of hooves behind us announced Rumal and Kassie’s arrival. Kass looked much happier seated behind Rumal, her arms around his waist. Audrey stood beside my horse sniffing its legs curiously. While I’d had plenty of horse riding experience on Earth I'd never taken her with me before, so the horses were a novelty. At least she wasn’t barking at them. I kept a firm eye on her. Audi, as a farm dog breed, wasn’t inclined to hunt animals, but she did like to herd them which could make for interesting results in a situation like this. Though the horses hadn’t even blinked at her or Nnelg’s presence. I’d decided to ignore Alek’s weird attitude for the moment. I wasn't going to let it ruin my day, there would be time after dinner to have a chat.
Loi loved the pleasant ride into town. She hadn’t been horse riding in years, not since she moved to New Zealand. In Scotland her family owned horses, she’d learned to ride at four years old. Out of the four of them, Loi rode the best, though Cat was close on her heels. Getting away from the castle and all those people felt fantastic. Sabyn rode beside her, appearing lost in his thoughts. Loi took the opportunity to study him, yet again, without seeming rude; a striking man with his glacial blue eyes and dark blond hair pulled into its customary plait. She watched in amusement while his lips moved, eyes vague.
Sabyn ran through the names of the townspeople they needed to speak to. This trip to show the girls the town provided an opportunity to catch up on necessary royal business. While they mightn’t look the part in their relatively casual clothing and manner he, Daron, Gredel, and Rumal acted as Alek’s advisers and bodyguards when the occasion called for it. Not that Alek would ever stand back in a fight, but they were required by Elena to stop him from getting killed.
Nnelg swooped down out of the sky, darting over the top of Audrey, teasing her. The dog’s ears and tail stood high while she ra
ced after him, yelping. 'Audi’s really fast,' Daron commented, impressed.
Sian laughed at the comical sight of the dragon and dog playing tag. 'She is quick,' she agreed. 'It’s always amazed me how speedily she’ll appear when she’s vanished somewhere. Cat’s parents have a little dog that used to be run ragged by Audi. Which surprised us, ‘cause Jack is such a speedy little thing. He’s the only dog I know who can climb trees.'
Daron looked skeptical. 'Climb trees?'
'Yes. Jack gave more than one person a surprise with that trick.'
'You’ll have to show Nesha once you can talk to him, otherwise I’ll never believe you,' Daron said with a cheeky grin.
Kassie enjoyed the ride now, her arms around Rumal’s waist. The pangs of nerves she usually got when the horse galloped didn’t happen this time and she laughed, feeling a thrill of excitement at the pace. Rumal laughed with her, urging the horse to run faster before allowing it to drop to an easy walk. The utter ease and confidence with how he rode felt intoxicating. While the horse recovered from the run, Rumal told her about his home life on Delanta. His family raised horses, which explained his obvious skill. Until he’d linked with Ofelaan he had trained with his father and Uncle, learning how to break horses.
'Our breed of horse is considered one of the top in the world,' Rumal’s rich voice was full of pride.
'Are your sisters training too?' Kassie wondered if women would be allowed to.
'Vecina is, but Breena has decided she wants to be a messenger, so she’s training for that instead.'
'How does that work? Being a messenger?' She remembered Melanite talking about it.
'Breena is training to run long distances each day and learning how to camp out safely by herself. It’s a dangerous job for a young woman but she loves meeting new people and traveling so it suits her perfectly.'
'Do you have any brothers?'
'Just one, he’s five and just learning to ride well at the moment. He’s spoilt rotten by the girls, but he’s a good kid. I’ll have to go back for a visit soon,' he sounded wistful.
Kassie fell silent while thinking about it; I’d really like to go too. It would be fascinating to see another land.
Citaan and I cantered ahead of the others. When we sighted the town we stopped to rest the horses, allowing the others to catch up. Nnelg blinked in, startling us, and as usual Audi came racing up a moment or two later. 'You’re going to have to carry her home at this rate,' laughed Citaan when the dog flopped onto the ground, panting. Nnelg had learned to be vocal with her and made a soothing chattering noise while he curled around her, waiting with us for the others to arrive. Sabyn and Loi arrived next, while Rumal and Kassie came last. I was pleased to see her smile. Kass normally just rode the beginner trails when we went horse riding, so it relieved me that she could ride double. Rumal appeared the most skilled of the men at riding, his reins loose on the pommel even with Kassie seated behind. The riding stables would never have allowed that on Earth.
Remembering all the rigmarole of the safety gear and instructions before each trek we went on caused me to laugh. The others glanced at me and I looked to Loi. 'It seems so strange not to be wearing a helmet or to be following each other in a line on a particular path.'
She nodded, a serene smile gracing her face. 'It’s the way riding should be.'
'What’s the name of this town?' Sian asked. 'You guys just keep referring to it as town.'
Daron laughed. 'Normally everyone knows what we’re talking about when we say town.' He indicated the now visible buildings in the distance. 'That’s Gartoll.'
Alek slowed the pace when they reached the town gates and stopped, swinging a leg over the saddle to the ground. He gave Urell’s head a good rub around his ears as the horse liked then went to help Kassie down from the pillion saddle. Cat ignored him now, which only gave him more to consider.
He couldn’t get what Elena had said out of his head. They cast a spell to find their soul mates, he thought, who knows how genuine her feelings are for me. He’d barely slept all night. I finally meet someone who I begin to consider my equal only to discover this. Part of him wished Elena hadn’t told him. The guys had been giving him looks all day, but he wasn’t in the mood to discuss it yet.
Citaan watched curiously to see what the girls thought of the town. Many townspeople gathered when they arrived, crowding the streets, the word spreading quickly that the Prince visited. Citaan hung back, observing the developing relationships within the group. I wonder why Alek is behaving so coolly toward Cat, she thought curiously, I’m sure Gredel said they looked like they were a couple. Cat didn’t even seem interested in him. She stuck with the other girls, chatting and greeting people.
Sian walked hand-in-hand with Daron and observed more than one set of raised eyebrows at that. It made her smirk. Compared to the village of Lothost, Gartoll looked grand with wide paved streets, all the buildings complimented one another with their almost romantic alpine chalet style; high pointed roofs, arched entrance ways and beautifully detailed windows.
Shops lined either side of the main street, with covered verandas, now crowded with townspeople wanting to see the Prince and his Guard. The intense fascination of the crowd unnerved her, she pressed closer to Daron who glanced down at her and winked. 'Not to worry, they’re just curious. '
Alek walked toward a larger detached building that I assumed was the town center. The crowds of people grew and plenty of people smiled at us while calling out greetings to Alek and the men. Others just watched, standing back quietly.
On the veranda of the larger building stood a well-dressed, portly man with whom I guessed were his wife and daughter. Both women wore full length dresses in patterned silk that fluttered in the slight breeze. The dresses were fitted to under the bust then flowed down, flattering their fuller figures. The dresses wouldn’t have looked out of place in the castle but amongst all the casual townspeople, did. The daughter, a plump cheeked brunette with thin eyebrows appeared to give someone behind me a very dirty look. I glanced back to see Loi, with Sabyn standing beside her. Good luck with that, I thought in amusement.
'Welcome, your Royal Highness,' the portly man bellowed. 'You do great honor to our humble town with your presence.'
Alek managed to keep a straight face. 'Not at all, sir, it’s our pleasure to come and show the Sorceress’ guests your township.' He turned back to the group behind him, avoiding Cat’s gaze, and introduced the mayor, his wife and daughter, to the girls who all inclined their heads, murmuring greetings.
Everyone’s eyes turned to the four of us. I almost stepped closer to Alek, freezing at the last moment then moved closer to Loi instead. With the dirty looks being shot her way she could do with the backup. The mayor’s wife and daughter held a mini court on their veranda, observing us with their noses in the air. It looked very comical, many of the townspeople gave them disapproving looks. I wasn’t bothered. They didn’t look like people I wanted to know.
Loi noticed the mayor’s wife and daughter glaring at her again, she turned to Kassie. 'Is it just me or do those two on the veranda keep glaring at me?'
Kassie discreetly looked, confirming. 'It does look like they’re glaring, I wonder why? We haven’t met them before, have we?'
Loi shook her head. 'Never.'
They heard Citaan chuckle and turned to look at her. 'The mayor’s daughter has had a crush on Sabyn for years. Her mother determinedly thrusts her into every opportunity to be close to him.' She gave Loi a mischievous wink. 'I think she’s a little tetchy at having her grand plans ruined.'
Sian looked through the shop windows. The girls joined her, curious to see what each window revealed. Their newly made acquaintances tagged along, appearing to enjoy the experience of seeing it all through strangers’ eyes. All the shops seemed interesting and there were more than a few that she wanted to have a good look inside. The men finished their business with the mayor and wandered with them. Sian froze in front of one store when she spied magickal i
tems. A beautiful wand and pentacle lay on display in the window with dozens of small tumbled crystals around them. She stepped back to look for Daron. He stood a few feet away looking a little flustered, surrounded by adoring girls. Sian giggled at the sight. Each of the men had circles of women around them. The townsmen had to talk loudly over them because they couldn’t get any closer. Annoyance was obvious on more than one face. 'Daron?' Sian called loudly. 'Can I borrow you for a moment?' The profound look of relief on his face made her want to giggle, his admirers took to giving Sian envious looks.
Daron felt very relieved to have an excuse to get away from the pressing throngs of females. Honestly, if he’d passed through by himself he’d never have known there were so many females in this town. The downside of visiting anywhere with Alek was the guaranteed crush of unwelcome attention and an absolute lack of regard for personal space.
'What sort of shop is this?' Sian asked excitedly.
He glanced through the window. 'It’s the local arcane store.'
'Really? Is this sort of store is normal?'
I heard Sian grilling Daron about the magick shop but didn’t turn, too busy studying a dress in the window of another shop. Something about it seemed wrong. But I couldn’t place a finger on what. The dress, a lovely soft rose color, had graceful bell sleeves with a mandarin style collar. It fitted the mannequin like a glove, but there was still something wrong about it.
Kassie noticed Cat frowning at a dress in the shop down from where Sian gushed over a wand to the very happy shopkeeper. 'What’s wrong, Cat? Are you trying to memorize the pattern?' Kassie teased. Cat’s head snapped round to her, her mouth dropping at Kassie’s words.
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