by Sara V. Zook
“Oh, you’re leaving?” Carlin jumped to her feet. “But you just got here.”
“We just got in, and I’m tired,” I told her.
Carlin looked around the apartment. “You can rest here,” she offered.
“No, that’s okay. We have our own place.”
“Here in Seneca?”
I looked at Emry. “Yeah,” I lied, heading toward the door.
“Let’s go out to dinner sometime soon. That sounds fun, doesn’t it?” she suggested.
I nodded. “Sounds good.”
“Okay then,” she chirped, opening up the door for us. “Congratulations you two. So happy for the both of you. I guess we have a wedding to plan.”
“Bye, Carlin,” I mumbled, taking a few steps outside where warm air greeted us along with bright sunshine.
I could feel her stare lingering on our backs as we walked away. She was probably wondering where our car was parked as there was no one else’s but hers in the driveway.
After a few moments, I glanced back. The door was closed. Carlin was back inside. I turned to Emry. “Two ceremonies? This is going to be impossible to plan, and king and queen added to the mix?”
He entwined his fingers with mine. “Well, Ms. James, one of the perks of king-to-be is having contributors at your beck and call, or so I assume.”
“Shoving responsibilities other people’s way already, huh?”
Emry grinned.
We rounded the corner and hid behind a wall.
“Ready to go back to your place we’re staying at in … Seneca?” he asked, holding out his hand.
I rolled my eyes and laughed. “Your car or mine?”
FIVE
“Sir? You in there?”
Emry and I had just returned to Evadere. My head was still reeling from all these new titles being thrown my way. Wife I was thrilled about, but queen? The muscles in my stomach pinched together every time I thought about it.
I watched Emry make his way over to the bedroom door as I combed out my hair with a large, wooden brush. He swung it open to let the guard in who had been hollering from the hall.
“What is it?” Emry asked. He already sounded like a king, his tone one of authority with a hint of annoyance. I have to admit, it was kind of exciting.
The guard stepped inside and shut the door behind him. His eyes shifted from me back to Emry.
“Sir,” the guard said, his voice shaky. “We have a problem down in the dining hall.”
“With?” Emry snapped as goose bumps ran up my arm again at the manner of which he was speaking.
“Your cousin.”
Emry’s eyebrows rose.
The guard clasped his hands together in front of him. “Treyu.”
Oh, great, I thought. We hadn’t seen that creep in awhile. Who knows what he is up to this time.
“When did he get here?” Emry asked.
“Just about a half an hour ago. He ...”
My anxiety climbed with the guard’s hesitation. I gripped the hairbrush tightly in my hand.
Emry ran his fingers through his hair.
The guard sighed. “He has a girl with him.”
“Like a girlfriend?” Emry questioned.
“I guess so,” the guard replied. “Sir …” His eyes shifted again back to me. “The girl he has with him, she’s a human.”
I released the grasp I had on the brush as it fell to the hard, cement floor, pieces of the handle breaking with the collision. Emry turned to look at me. I could read his mind as easily as he could my own.
“I’ll be down to take care of it,” Emry said to the guard as he clenched his jaw together and watched the man leave.
“A human?” I mumbled.
“What is he thinking?” Emry yelled. “I mean, never mind that. I know he’s an idiot. He did this to annoy me. Everything he does is to annoy me.” He headed toward the door.
“Emry, wait.” I reached for his arm. “Take a minute.”
“For?”
“Take a minute to calm down. I know what you’re about to do.”
“Well, that’s funny, Anna, I don’t even know what I’m about to do,” he said taking his frustration out on me.
“You’re about to go down there and punch Treyu in the face and start a war.”
Emry sucked in a deep breath. “Which he deserves.”
I nodded. “He does,” I agreed. “But …”
“He’s found out about my engagement, I’m sure,” he remarked. “He’s upset the news has given me more attention than him. He can’t stand the fact that nothing is about him around here.”
Emry was so angry, his nostrils were flaring. I was waiting for the fire to start shooting out next.
“Come with me?” he asked, holding out his hand.
I liked how he was only demanding from those around here in the castle, not with me. I saw a little gleam in his eyes still hot with fury but with a touch of gentleness. I reached out and grabbed his hand as he pulled me out of the bedroom and into the hall. My heart pounded as I could only imagine what was in store for us tonight with the mess that Treyu had just created.
***
“Well, well, well,” Treyu bellowed out the second we stepped into the dining hall. “If it isn’t King Emry and his enchanting fiancé.”
“Better watch our mouth, cousin,” Emry warned as he eyed up the situation, his grasp on my hand tighter almost to the point of pain.
Treyu leaned against a table, a smug expression on his face. A young woman stood beside him, her dark eyes large as she assessed me and Emry. She was short and busty, her long, dark hair curled on the ends and her lips covered in bright red lipstick. A few guards filtered in behind us, and out of the corner of my eye I saw Ben enter the room also, but he stayed back, lurking in the shadows to observe as he so often did.
The girl let out a nervous laugh exposing bright white teeth in perfect alignment.
“Hi,” she said her accent southern. “I’m Cami.” She extended her arm out for me to shake her hand.
I glanced at Emry and took a few steps forward, grateful for the chance to unlock my own hand from his angry grasp.
“Anna.”
“I know,” she said again with a loud chuckle. “I’ve heard so much about you.”
“Oh?” I raised my eyebrows and looked at Treyu. That smug smirk hadn’t left his face.
“Cami, dear, come here,” he called to her. She hurried back to him as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder. “I’m thrilled everyone has come down to meet my Cami,” Treyu chirped. “I didn’t expect to have this big of an audience …”
Emry’s fists clenched together at his sides. “You know exactly why we’re here.”
“Oh, cousin,” Treyu continued. “That temper of yours is going to be the death of you. You need to learn to relax, loosen up a little bit.” He grinned.
Keep on pushing his buttons, Treyu, I dared him in my head.
“You look like you have something on your mind.” Treyu released his grasp on Cami and walked around the table to get some fruit that had been set out in a basket. He popped one of them in his mouth.
“Do you want to settle this here?” Emry asked.
“Sure,” Treyu replied. “There’s nothing that can’t be said in front of my Cami.” He walked back over to her and offered her some fruit. She opened her mouth as he fed it to her. “After all, we’re in love.” He bent over and touched his nose to hers.
Cami giggled.
I thought I might puke.
“What’s the matter with you, Treyu?” Emry snapped. “What would possess you to bring a human here?”
“Really, Emry?” This time Treyu glared at him. He left Cami and walked in front of Emry as if challenging him. “You want to start talking about humans?” His glare made its way to me.
I could see it took every ounce of Emry to remain calm, especially since Treyu was now almost in his face.
“You know how Anna got here is different,” Emry managed to sa
y without screaming, his teeth pressed together as if holding his anger back.
Treyu grinned again and backed up for a moment, making his way back over to the table. I stared at Cami who had a confused and scared look on her pretty face. I wondered how old she was, how many lies Treyu had fed her.
“Enlighten me, please, because I see no difference, and now you two are engaged. You’re going to grace us with a human for a queen? Did Atavia give you her blessing?” He posed beside Cami again. “Congratulations by the way,” he snorted.
Emry took a threatening step forward.
Ben came out of the shadows and stepped in front of both guys.
“Tell me, Treyu, are you trying to get yourself killed?” Ben asked. “Waltzing in here and parading a human girl in front of Emry like this?”
“I’m not afraid of Emry Logan,” Treyu told him, a flash of anger now on his own face that looked so very much like Emry. It made me recall the similarities between the two I had noticed up close the night Treyu had tried to seduce me.
Ben shook his head. “Obviously you’re trying to make some sort of point here. The problem is none of us can figure out exactly what that point is.” “I just wanted to bring my Cami here, show her around the castle. She’s never seen one before,” he continued, his voice snide.
“Enough with the games,” Ben snapped.
Treyu shrugged his shoulders. “Think whatever you want, Ben. I went to Earth for awhile, had some fun, met this young lady who caught my intrigue.” He stopped to flash a smile at her. She was so consumed with Treyu doting over her. She didn’t have a fighting chance against him. “We’ve been inseparable ever since.”
“She doesn’t have a family back on Earth, a job, a life waiting for her back there?” Ben asked.
“Go on,” Treyu commanded. “Tell them.”
He gave her a hard shove. She moved forward almost falling on her face from the force. We all watched, still in shock at what was happening, as this young girl faced all of us. She wiped her hands against the pants of her legs as if trying to wipe off the abuse that Treyu had just publicly portrayed to everyone.
“I’m from Louisiana, and I do have a life there, of course. I was going to college to become a psychologist, but then I met Treyu here, and he convinced me that psychology was just a really stupid thing to be studying for,” Cami tried to explain.
“Trying to figure out the human brain.” Treyu laughed as he mocked her. “Such a waste of time. Who even cares what they think.”
She glanced back at him. “Right,” she whispered. “So yeah, anyway, my family thinks I’m on a little vacation. They don’t know I’ve quit school yet.”
“You quit for this idiot?” Emry asked.
Treyu reached out for her arm and jerked her backwards. She cried out in pain.
“Treyu!” Ben yelled.
“Oh, it’s okay,” Cami said, shaking her head. “I’m all right. Really, ya’all.”
My mouth dropped open. It was like he had her under some sort of spell. She left her entire life for him on Earth, quit college and everything to be his puppet?
“What are you going to do?” Emry questioned him. “How are you going to fix this?”
“Fix what?” Treyu asked defensively.
Ben crossed his arms in front of him. “What exactly are your plans?”
Treyu’s attempt to play off like he was innocent wasn’t working with any one of us. I wondered how close Ben knew Treyu. Had he known him since he was a child? I also wondered how close of a relationship he had had with Atavia growing up with her being his aunt. He was just such a creep. Cami was a pretty girl. She could have found someone a thousand times better on Earth. I couldn’t believe how he had just uprooted her from everything. And how had he explained Evadere to her? I’m sure the same questions were floating through everyone else’s brains.
“My plans are for Cami and I to be married,” Treyu announced.
One of the guards gasped.
Cami clapped her hands together like a child and even jumped up and down a few times. This amused Treyu.
“Unbelievable,” Emry said. “She’s your toy, a toy you will undoubtedly get bored of and send back to Earth.”
Treyu made a poor attempt to look shocked. “Whatever, Emry. Don’t lecture me on toys, when you have one of your own.”
Emry’s fists clenched again. I was surprised that he hadn’t used his powers yet to set Treyu straight.
Ben turned to us. He must’ve thought Emry was getting close to losing it. He put his hand against Emry’s chest.
“You’re letting him get to you,” Ben whispered. “Your aggravation is his pleasure.”
I was relieved Ben had said that to him, someone other than me judging the situation rationally before Emry had the entire castle walls tumbling down on Treyu’s head.
“He obviously wants a battle,” Emry whispered back. “He’s challenging me.”
“Who knows what he’s doing,” Ben hissed. “He’s a fool, always has been.”
So he does know Treyu fairly well.
“So I was thinking …” Treyu said, his finger running up Cami’s arm. “When you and Anna marry, perhaps we could have a joint wedding, one for you and one for Cami and I …”
“You just came here to irritate Emry,” Ben remarked. “Always causing trouble.”
“It’s out of the question and you know it,” Emry growled.
“Royalty marrying … humans.” Treyu burst out laughing.
“You’d better figure out how to fix this,” Emry warned him.
Treyu rolled his eyes. “I told you, there’s nothing to fix.” He turned to the girl. “Come on, Cami; let’s go somewhere where we’re more welcome.”
His hand grabbed the back of her head along with a handful of hair. She cried out in pain but managed to get her feet to start working and hurry alongside him.
Emry watched them leave and then turned around and stomped out of the dining hall in the opposite direction.
SIX
“So, I was thinking,” I said the next morning.
Emry glanced my way from across the room indicating he was listening.
“I want to ask Jo to be my maid of honor.”
Emry walked over to me.
“What do you think?” I asked, balling my hair up high on my head and wrapping a hair tie around it to hold it in place.
He pressed his lips together in an attempt to smile, but I knew better. He had a lot on his mind.
“I think it’s a great idea.”
“Emry, are you sure you want to be planning this right now?
We could always …”
He pressed his finger to my lips, silencing me. “No, don’t even say it. It’s fine. Everything’s fine. I do want to plan the wedding. I don’t want to postpone anything, especially not because Treyu is being so stupid. I’m not going to let him get to me.”
I raised my eyebrows. “Really?”
He laughed. “Yes, really. Just go – talk to Jo and then I’ve arranged for you to meet with the fashion contributors. They’re going to help you out with your dress and anything else you want. Take Jo with you.”
“Really?” I asked again, feeling like I was about to clap my hands and jump up and down in the same manner as Cami had last night.
“Go.” He pulled away from me so I’d leave.
“What are you doing today?” I asked.
“Boring castle stuff.” He laughed. “Got to try to save the world, bring peace to mankind and all that bull.”
I could tell he wanted time to himself today. I reached for a sweater I had tossed on the floor the night before and headed for the door.
“Love you.”
Emry flashed a smile. “Love you, too. Enjoy your day.”
***
I took a half step into the kitchen and paused just to look around. People were running around everywhere preparing food and cleaning up. These were Atavia’s servants, now Emry’s servants, soon to be mine. I bit my lip.
Servants. The word didn’t sit well with me. These people were all going to have to be paid for their work as far as I was concerned. I wondered if they all lived in the castle.
I scanned faces for Jo. She was bent over in a corner appearing to be cleaning up something spilled on the floor.
I hurried over to her. The noise from everyone moving about ceased. I could feel everyone’s eyes on me as my face grew pinker with each step. I turned my head to meet some of their gazes. What were they thinking? Did they know about the engagement? Did they hate me?
“Anna!” Jo exclaimed, jumping to her feet. She wrapped her arms around my neck and gave me a huge hug.
I smiled, though still aware of the continuous gawking.
“Come on, back to work,” someone shouted out.
Jo looked around for a moment. “Everyone’s been talking about you.”
“I can … tell,” I mumbled. So they did know.
“Is it true?” Jo asked. “You’re going to be queen?”
I was relieved to see that most people in the kitchen had gone back to what they had been doing.
Nodding, I lifted up my hand to show her the ring Emry had given me. “Yes, queen, but more importantly, married to Emry.”
“I’m not familiar with married …”
I grinned. “Yeah, it’s like you’ve been hidden away as a Scave or something for most of your life.”
She laughed. “Wow, Anna, this is beautiful,” she said in reference to the ring. “So very happy for you and Emry.”
“Thanks,” I said retrieving my hand. Looking up, I met the gaze of a man cleaning a pan. His eyes shifted back to his task. “How are you doing? You know, you don’t have to be stuck in this kitchen all day. You can just relax and do whatever you want without Atavia around anymore.”
“I like being here,” Jo stated. “It’s fine, really.”
I shrugged, not getting it, but not wanting to push the issue further right now and risk Jo’s mood turning sour. “Well, I have something to ask you.”
“What?”
“There’s this tradition on Earth that when you get married, the bride chooses a maid of honor to stand beside her at the ceremony. The maid of honor gets to help with wedding planning and details and gets to wear a pretty dress.” I smiled. “I would love it if you’d be my maid of honor, Jo.”
