The Prince of Machines (The Last Mechanics)

by Holly Law

  “Will he mind, do you think? That I would rather be at the school?”

  “Not at all. He may call on you easily enough there.”

  They finished their tea with lighter conversation that put Elisha at ease. Having Lenora there made her feel much better. They walked together to the Prince’s office. He was having a conversation with the mayor, who paled slightly when he saw Elisha. He bowed to her and began to speak.

  “You are dismissed, sir,” the Prince said abruptly. His gaze on the mayor was intense and unyielding. Elisha could only wonder what they had been talking about. “We will continue this later.”

  “Of course,” the mayor said, bowing low to the Prince. He left quickly.

  The Prince smiled at Elisha. “I see Lenora has hunted you down. Are your differences resolved?”

  “They are,” Lenora said with a fond smile at Elisha. “She would like to return to the school. May I have her things brought back in the morning? It is too late in the day for such a move now.”

  The Prince frowned slightly and studied Elisha for a long moment. “Has my home proven distasteful to you?” he asked her.

  “No, your highness,” Elisha said politely. “It has merely made me realize I have a great deal left to learn.”

  The Prince stood, straightening his shirt as he did. “I am sorry it has had that sort of impact on you. Of course you are welcome to return to the school, but know you are welcome here and always will be. I will call on you tomorrow afternoon to make sure you are settled back in. I suppose I can only hope you enjoy the rest of your day here enough that you will choose to stay.”

  “I would think the school a more appropriate place for, Elisha,” Lenora said, her eyes suddenly wary of the Prince. Elisha didn’t quite understand.

  “Of course,” the Prince conceded. “I have enjoyed her company and will miss the ease of having her so nearby.”

  Elisha woke early the next morning and was dressed by the servant. The servant moved with expediency and even had her hair done in under half an hour. She was presented with a simple, but delicious breakfast. She was shown to the front where the mechanical carriage had been called for her. The Prince was there waiting for her.

  “I thought you would like to be back in time for your classes,” the Prince informed her. “You should arrive just in time.”

  “Thank you,” Elisha told him. “You have been…”

  “I require no thanks,” the Prince said with a dismissive wave of his hand. “I merely wish you happy and content. If things do not work out, tell me at once. I do not wish to hear of one as lovely as you spending the night in a drainage tube. Am I clear?”

  “Yes,” Elisha said, trying to hide her embarrassment.

  The Prince offered her a hand and helped her into the carriage. He kissed her hand and walked back inside.

  Elisha was greeted at the door of the school by her brother. He hugged her fiercely. “Don’t you ever run away from me like that again,” Eldwin told her. “And if you do have to run, at least let me come with you!”

  Elisha flushed in embarrassment. “I was in the usual spot. I thought you’d come and join me,” Elisha told him.

  “Not with them watching me. But what is this I hear about you staying in the Prince’s manor?”

  “He invited me to stay after he found out.”

  “You know what sort of man he is. What were you thinking?” Eldwin demanded.

  “He was nothing but courteous and polite. The room I had was on the opposite side of the manor.”

  “Elisha’s back!” Hellinsi called out as she came to the top of the stairs. Her eyes were wide with surprise. She was down the stairs quickly and hugging her. “I’m so glad you came back. Though I wish you could have seen Rebeka and Demisi kicked out. It was wonderful! I’ll tell you all about it during lunch, but you must tell me all about spending the past few days with the Prince. Class is about to start. Come on.”

  And with that, Elisha found herself pulled to her first class.

  Chapter 19

  Elisha glanced around the shop full of odds and ends. She enjoyed being out of the school and looking at parts for machines gave her something to do. She was happier still that Eldwin had joined her. She hadn’t spent very much time with her brother in the past few months since he had tried to warn her about the Prince and Lenora. She knew he had meant well, but it had created a rift between them when she had decided to stay.

  “What do you think?” Elisha asked, picking up a very rusty machine. It was of a moderate size, bigger than what she usually worked on.

  “That’s a lot of rust.”

  “But it’s about your size for a machine,” Elisha countered. “We don’t get many of those. No one gives them to me, and I can’t remember the last time you fixed a machine. We can get the rust off, and you can tinker a bit.”

  “I would prefer to not draw attention to my abilities,” Eldwin said dismissively.

  “Come on, Eldwin, the Prince is perfectly aware that you can fix machines. It’s not like he’s been nasty to you.”

  “I think you’re being naïve, and I don’t like that you repair more and more machines for the Prince. Nothing good will come of it. Every day I hear more and more nasty rumors about him. And you…”

  “I have spent several days with the Prince every week for nearly six months,” Elisha countered bluntly. “I have seen nothing that would indicate he would ever hurt me or you. I haven’t seen any indication he has hurt anyone. The worst indication I have seen is that he is a bit too fond of the company of women, and we have a good understanding that nothing of that sort is going to happen between us. You worry needlessly.”

  “And I think you are far too easily swayed by pretty gifts. I thought you better than the type of girl whose allegiance can be bought with precious gems and fine cloth. And I don’t buy that he won’t try anything with you. I’ve seen how he acts around you. He flirts with you non-stop, and you return the attention! It’s no wonder half the town is convinced he is courting you. Of course, everyone referring to you as the Prince’s Lady doesn’t help matters. They treat you with almost the same deference they treat him. Lady Lenora doesn’t even get that courtesy. And he doesn’t stop it.”

  “Yes, he does,” Elisha interjected. “If he overhears anyone saying it, he corrects them.”

  “Only when you’re there,” Eldwin disagreed. “He doesn’t correct them when he is out by himself. He encourages it. I’ve seen and heard him do it myself.”

  “I think you must be mistaken,” Elisha sniffed in denial.

  “I don’t hear you turning down the honor when you’re by yourself either.”

  “Sometimes it is easier to not argue,” Elisha informed him. “People don’t understand the correction.”

  “Yes, because they’re convinced you’re to be his princess.”

  “This is ridiculous, Eldwin! You know better than this. Why must you listen to wild rumors?” Elisha told him furiously. “And what you accuse me of! I know far better than to flirt back with a man like him. We are close friends, nothing more. And the finery you accuse of turning my head are repayment for fixing machines. And perhaps he doesn’t correct others in public about me being called his lady because he has promised me a title of nobility should I choose to go to Melink and serve him when he leaves. I know you don’t like him, Eldwin, but everything you say reeks of jealousy. And for no reason! He has been nothing but kind to you! And I am buying you this machine because clearly you need something else to do besides wander the city and listen to stray rumors.”

  Elisha lifted the machine and brought it to the clerk, a middle aged woman who seemed dazzled by Elisha’s presence. “I would buy this machine,” Elisha informed the woman, hiding her irritation with her brother.

  “That will be five silvers, my lady,” the shop keeper informed her. Elisha counted out the silvers and placed them in the woman’s hand.

  “Could you have it delivered to Lenora’s Finishing School?” Elisha inqui
red. “I intend to shop more, and I do not wish to carry that heavy thing with me all day.”

  “Of course, my lady,” the woman told her at once.

  “Thank you,” Elisha said and turned and left the shop. Eldwin followed her, still looking far from happy.

  “Thank you, my lady,” her brother told her mockingly. Elisha rounded on him instantly and balled her hand into a fist. “Careful, my lady, you’re not supposed to be doing things like that anymore.”

  “Supposed to or not,” Elisha said angrily. “I can still beat the tar out of you any time I want.”

  “No, you don’t have it in you anymore. You’re the Prince’s tamed lap cat now. No rough housing for you. Go enjoy your day. I can’t spend more time with you when all you do is spout off the goodness of the Prince. Maybe you’ll get lucky and he’ll stop by later. My lady,” Eldwin said, mocking her with a low bow.

  Elisha didn’t let it show until her brother was out of sight, but his treatment of her wounded her. She hadn’t realized how distant they had become. She had never had such a rift with her brother before, and it was like a tear in her own heart. She could not hold the tears back when they came. Those tears that made her decide it would be better for her to be back at the school. She did not wish to cry in public.

  Elisha was miserable enough without running into Trinsin outside the school. Elisha was well done with her classes and avoided the lady whenever possible. She was Lenora’s friend, but Elisha could never understand why Lenora tolerated the prickly woman.

  “Where’s your Prince today?” Trinsin inquired with a hint of mockery in her tone.

  “I haven’t the faintest idea,” Elisha said dismissively, moving past her to the stairs.

  “I thought you would always know where he was. I bet he knows where you are, being as fond of you as he is.”

  “You are mistaken, Trinsin, and like so many in the city, insist on listening to wild rumors rather than truth. Excuse me, I have things I need to do inside,” Elisha informed the lady, ending their conversation. She did not wait for a reply as she brushed by her and into the school. Classes were changing as she walked upstairs to her room. She knew fewer than half the girls in the school now. Many had graduated, and some had already gone on to find husbands. The newer girls could only stare at her and treat her with reverential deferment. It was a huge shift from what had once been. None brought up her past, and truthfully, it seemed like much of the city had forgotten that it had ever scorned her.

  Elisha went to her room and sat down at her desk to continue working on machines. She carefully picked up a few machines parts and started connecting them to create her own machine. She needed something to cool her in the warmth of the summer sun. Elisha worked intently on the machine, and it wasn’t until she felt a hand on her shoulder that she realized someone else was in the room with her. She jumped slightly, startled by the touch and looked up at Lenora surprised.

  “I’m sorry to startle you,” Lenora apologized. “I did knock. You were just so engrossed in your machine, you didn’t hear me.”

  “Oh, sorry,” Elisha apologized. “I was just trying to make something to keep this heat off me a bit.”

  “A worthwhile invention to be sure. They have some devices like that in Melink. I came up here to apologize for Trinsin. I heard her giving you a hard time on the steps. She’s a bit prickly, and I wish she wouldn’t give you such a hard time. I’ve spoken with her repeatedly.”

  “I’ve come to expect it,” Elisha said with a shrug. “She has always been that way to me. I think nothing of it and pay no attention to what she says. And she hasn’t said anything that I haven’t heard before repeatedly. I know most of the city thinks he is courting me, and I correct them. I know far better than to assume his attentions are anything beyond the friendship we have both agreed upon.”

  Lenora was silent for a moment and there was some conflict in her eyes. Lenora sat down in a spare chair near Elisha. “Elisha, I have for some time begun to wonder myself,” Lenora began, something thoughtful and conflicted in her eyes. “I have to wonder after the Prince’s attention of you. I have known him for many years, and I have never seen him treat another as he treats you. He has been very attentive to you, and even his few friends he doesn’t go out of his way to see as often. And then there are all the gifts. I know he claims them as payment, but I feel he now pays you more than your work is worth. There are ladies in Melink who have far less finery than you. And he knows you well, too. He knows what you will wear and accept without question.” Lenora reached out and touched the mechanical butterfly in her hair that was encrusted in gems now. “And the invitations to all those parties. Every few weeks, you are on his arm as his date to this party or that party. He has never attended a party with the same woman twice. This is not his normal behavior.”

  Elisha looked at Lenora and felt confused by the lady’s switch of opinion. It had been Lenora all along urging her to keep in mind the Prince’s reputation and that his attentions truthfully meant nothing. She didn’t know what to make of the change. She trusted Lenora entirely, and if there was something off with the Prince’s behavior, Elisha trusted Lenora to know.

  “But,” Lenora added cautiously. “I have also pointed out these facts to the Prince and have asked after his interest in you. He does deny any interest beyond friendship with you.”

  Elisha smiled at that statement and felt like she knew the territory she had entered much better. Lenora was simply being swayed by the rumors just like everyone else. “Lenora, I have no interest in the Prince. He is a good friend and nothing more. If he were to turn his attentions on me in a different manner, I would refuse them. I am well aware of his reputation and do not wish to be one of his many conquests. That part of his demeanor remains unchanged, you will note, despite the interest the city claims he shows in me. Perhaps that is evidence against what you have suspected.”

  “Perhaps,” Lenora conceded and smiled at her. “You never fail to astonish me, Elisha. You have become a truly amazing woman. You are by far the best student I have ever had and I suspect I will ever have. I don’t know if you can even see how much you have grown since you came to live in the school.” Elisha blushed at the unexpected compliment and politely thanked Lenora.

  Chapter 20

  Corpal sat on a couch in his study examining a small machine that rested in his hand. Elisha had made it just the other day, and he still could not fathom its purpose. It twisted and spun on itself in intriguing patterns, and when he touched one part or another, it moved. It had become a puzzle that he couldn’t quite figure out. He had stared at it for hours trying to figure out the mystery of it.

  “My Prince,” Amalia called from the door, entering unannounced. Corpal looked up at her calmly. He knew she would not enter unannounced for no reason. “I have found the machine.”

  “Excellent,” Corpal said, smiling at the welcome news. He was growing tired of Sumvale and was eager to return to Melink. The mountain city was primitive, and the arrogance of the locals frustrated him to no end. He would be glad to return to civilized Melink. “Where would I find this machine?”

  “It is secured under the town hall. The only passage to it is through an old water pipe. It is in amazingly good condition and does not require any maintenance. Is there any indication of how to use it?”

  “No, my Prince, but with the restoration of your ring, would that not be enough?”

  Corpal paused in thought. He often forgot that the ring on his finger once more was functional. He had gone for so long with it being nothing more than a decoration that he forgot its all-important purpose. He smiled at Amalia’s reminder and reached out through the ring to the general area underneath the town hall. Within moments, he felt the presence of the machine he had been so near so many times. He could feel that it functioned fully and would perform its task at the slightest nudge from him. He could also sense that it was immensely powerful and would be of great value to him.

  “I thank you for the r
eminder, Amalia,” Corpal said pleased. “Indeed, it is more than enough to utilize the machine. Have it brought to the surface so I may study it. I would imagine Elisha would enjoy the sight of it.” He could almost imagine the girl’s eyes when shown a machine that large and functional. It would be beyond her wildest dreams.

  Amalia made a face then. “I do not think it would be possible to move the machine without activating it, my Prince. It was well-positioned, and clearly, those who placed it there hoped it would not be moved again. It is secure in its location. The machine is capable of freeing itself, and that is the only way I could see to free it.”

  “I see, convenient perhaps,” Corpal mused. “I had planned to use other methods of ridding myself of this city, but that would do the trick. I had initially intended to bring this city into my empire, but the mayor has been uncooperative. He and the city must pay the price for this defiance.”

  The look on Amalia’s face was one of complete horror. “Your highness, I don’t think you understand the size and strength of this machine. If you were to use it, it would destroy the whole city. It is one of the most powerful machines I have ever seen. You can’t possibly intend to…”

  “Then it will serve my purpose all the better,” the Prince said, cutting her off.

  “But it would kill everyone within the city!”

  “I am more than capable of protecting the parts of the city I wish to protect, which would be limited to this palace. It will be pleasant to have the landscape and view restored to what it once was.” The Prince paused for a moment in thought. The use of the machine would have to be grand and done in a way that it was clear its use was his. “Amalia, you will go, the mayor and inform him that I intend to leave the city within the next month, but not before I give the citizens of this city a display of my power and wealth. I will throw a parade the likes of which this city has never seen before. I want performers brought in from all across the empire, exotic animals, machines, and of course I expect you to dance, Amalia, you are so well known for it I cannot deprive the citizens of the opportunity to see such a beautiful sight.”