“You’re Northhelmian?” Marie wondered if he would find her incredulity rude.
If he did, he didn’t show it. “I am indeed.” He chuckled. “I don’t look it, I know, but I was born here as surely as you were.”
“Then can you tell me…” she paused, suddenly unsure what to call him. “What’s your name?”
“I would be honoured if you would call me Father,” he said.
She was shaking her head before he’d finished the word. “I’m sorry but, no, I’m not ready for that.” Her head kept shaking, seemingly of its own volition, while she spoke. “In fact, I’d rather that you didn’t tell anyone else about our… connection yet, either. This is all very new for me and I’m just not ready.”
“Very well.” He sounded disappointed. “In that case, it would be best if you called me Rebel or R like the rest of the camp does.”
Marie noticed that he hadn’t answered her question, but she didn’t like to press him about something so unimportant. Especially not when she had so many other questions.
“How were you able to spin straw into gold? You’re clearly not a godmother.”
R giggled, strangely amused by her comment. “Certainly not! Of course, as you know, all power resides with the High King. But he dwells in his Palace of Light and dispenses it through the godmothers. And sometimes the godmothers use… tools… objects of power to assist them in their work. I discovered that it is sometimes possible to acquire such items and turn them to my own purposes. For a price, of course.”
“Bewitchment,” Marie breathed.
R shrugged. “If you will.”
Marie tried to keep the discomfort off her face. Although she didn’t know of any rulers of Northhelm who had actually met the High King, they had always given him their allegiance. Her own father had told her, only days before, how much they relied on the assistance of the godmothers. The High King’s messengers had never brought anything but good to the kingdom.
“Is that… wise?” she asked.
“Wise?” R’s face twisted with bitterness. “I have always paid the price for my use of power. How did you think I came to look like this?” He gestured at his face. “And I have always made the price clear to others who would seek to use it, too. The present queen understood the pact she was making with me.”
Marie stared at his strange appearance with renewed intensity. The idea that his appearance had been twisted by magic only made him seem even more unnatural.
“And you shouldn’t just blindly believe what you’re told about the godmothers. For every ‘worthy’ young person gifted with riches, position and love, there are others who are deemed to be villains. And for them, the godmothers have no mercy and will gladly take from them everything they have.”
Marie weighed his words. Many of the tales included villains, of course. But they were always deserving of their fates. They always had the option to choose another path and rejected it.
Or did they? What if the stories were wrong? Was it so terrible of this man to use the power he had acquired to make tales of his own?
She frowned. “And who am I in this story you’re creating? The hero or the villain? Because it seems to me that everything I had has been taken away.”
He leaned forward, his expression earnest. “My dear Marie, you are the hero. Nothing has been taken from you that was not illegitimate to begin with. Everything I have done has been done for you. To give you the position that is your birthright.”
Marie looked around the empty cave. “And what position is that?” She tried to keep her own bitterness out of her voice.
“Why, that of queen, of course!”
She whipped her head back around and found him staring at her with burning intensity.
“For centuries, I have worked and bargained and it has all led to this. That you, my daughter, should have the position that should have been mine. Ruler of Northhelm.”
Chapter 16
Rafe had clearly been waiting for her. He pounced on her as soon as she re-entered the main caverns.
“Are you all right? What happened? What did he say to you?”
She looked at him and, for a mad moment, wanted to blurt out the truth. Oh, I’ve just been chatting with my father, who is apparently centuries old. He claims that more than four hundred years ago, a godmother took Northhelm away from him, the older son, and gave it to one of his younger brothers. And he’s been working all those years, interfering in people’s lives, to acquire the power he needed to reclaim the throne for the true bloodline. So now he wants his child, which would be me, by the way, to lead his army of rebels and take my place as queen. So, you know, nothing of any particular importance.
It sounded mad, even in her own mind. And she was afraid that if she opened her mouth, she would either laugh hysterically or cry.
This is not where I pictured my life going, she thought.
Rafe was still staring at her, his expression concerned, so she pulled herself together enough to answer.
“Oh, he just interviewed me, asked me what skills I brought to the camp, things like that.”
Rafe’s brow furrowed, but she was saved from further questions by the arrival of Lisa and Danny.
“So?” Lisa sounded almost breathless with excitement. “What did you think? He’s great, isn’t he? You’re so fortunate that he singled you out like that!”
Marie smiled weakly.
“Did he say anything about camp security?” Danny looked concerned. “I’ve been worrying that he might think us slack when he returned.”
“No, he didn’t mention it,” said Marie, glad to be able to give one truthful answer. She glanced between the siblings. She would have to remember to ask R exactly what ‘object of power’ he’d used to ensnare all the young foresters to his cause. It seemed like the sort of knowledge that would be useful to have.
She looked at Rafe a little guiltily. If he was in her position, he would probably have thought to ask.
She had come out of the unexpected meeting with plenty of new knowledge but not a lot of extra insight into her own situation. On the face of it, the decision should be easy: lead a group of bewitched and untrained rebels against her own adoptive family to take a throne she’d never wanted; or remain loyal to the family who had loved and raised her, gather intelligence against the rebels and remain a princess, however illegitimate.
But it turned out that nothing about the situation was simple. Her family might have raised her, but they hadn’t loved her enough to tell her the truth. And to remain with them would be continuing to live a lie. Even her role as the ‘spare’ would be a sham since her parents, knowing the truth of her birth, could hardly allow her to ever take the throne. No wonder they had always been so protective of William. She wondered why they had never had any more children of their own. Was that part of the enchantment, too?
Her birth father, however strange, had at least greeted her with openness from the first moment of their meeting. And he certainly seemed to value her for who she was. His welcome
affected her more than she would have anticipated after her other family’s deception.
All their lives, the king and queen had believed that she was a nobody – worse than nobody since she was the daughter of a monster. (And why did they believe him a monster, anyway? It was the old king who had made the unreasonable demand. It was he who had threatened death. R had merely come to the rescue.) She could almost taste the satisfaction of informing them that actually it was she who had the truly royal blood.
These thoughts consumed her as they all made their way towards the dining cavern, Lisa chatting about the new recruits. Marie wasn’t listening to her friend, but eventually the sound of Lisa’s voice filtered through into Marie’s consciousness. And thoughts of Lisa and Danny were all it took to cause her to reject her foolish and selfish thoughts. What did her pride matter in the face of all these poor, bewitched foresters? Why should they be put in danger in order to put her on the throne? She had always sai
d, and believed, that William would make a far better ruler than she would, anyway.
Of course, R said that the foresters weren’t in any danger. That he had never planned for them to actually fight… That’s why I’m gathering an army of untrained youngsters, he’d said. Northhelm will never go to war and slaughter their own children. Once I’ve gathered young people from the city, the army will have no choice but to stand down. And it won’t be such a great step, in their minds, for you to take the throne. It’s why I made sure you were raised as a royal. You have all the training and respect that you need.
It made sense, in a twisted sort of way. But it still seemed wrong to Marie. And that was even before she considered William. She truly had no desire to take the throne from her brother. And what exactly did R plan to do with her father and brother to make way for her ascension?
Her mind went round and round in circles, twisting itself into knots. She needed time to absorb and to think. Which is exactly what she’d told R. Thankfully, he seemed willing to give her the time she needed. He wasn’t done recruiting, after all.
Rafe clearly noticed her abstraction. The worried look didn’t leave his face throughout the evening meal and every time she looked up from her food, he was watching her. When Lisa announced she was heading for bed early, Marie eagerly joined her. She wasn’t ready for a proper conversation with Rafe yet.
The night brought little clarity but, with the dawn, Marie made a decision. She wouldn’t decide anything immediately – she would wait and watch. Regardless of which path her future took, she didn’t want to be helpless ever again. She wanted to be able to defend herself. So she would use the time to train, and she would observe.
If R really had been wronged, and if he really had impossibly extended his own life, waiting hundreds of years for the perfect opportunity to right the wrong done to him without bloodshed, then he deserved that she at least give him a chance. However much her instincts rebelled against the idea, he was family.
While it wasn’t an answer, really, the decision did bring a measure of peace. It at least allowed her to face Rafe at breakfast.
He was quick to take the seat beside her and to whisper in her ear. “Did he seem to suspect anything? Do we need to run for it?”
She shook her head, smiling to throw off Lisa and one of the other girls who were watching them from the other side of the table.
“No, no, we’re safe. At least for now. He was very welcoming. Apparently, I remind him of his daughter.” It was as close as she could come to the truth.
“He has a daughter?” Rafe sounded incredulous.
Marie shrugged. “Apparently.”
Danny arrived and took the seat on Rafe’s other side, so he was forced to abandon the conversation again.
After the meal, Marie returned to the kitchen. She was sure R would have released her from kitchen duties, but she liked the friendly group who prepared the food. Plus, a kitchen was the perfect location to gather information and gossip and, if she did ever wish to take a leadership role amongst the rebels, her hard work now would prove that she was not above serving them.
In the afternoon, she joined the group practicing archery. Peter cast her a contemptuous look, but she ignored him. If she only had time to practice one weapon, it was an easy choice. She hadn’t liked wielding the heavy sword. Lisa smiled a little ruefully at her but didn’t seem surprised.
Once again, Rafe acted as her personal tutor, but this time he took care not to actually touch her. Marie wondered if his careful avoidance was a response to her clearly unwanted flirting, or if he sensed that she was keeping the truth from him. She couldn’t decide which option was worse.
Unsurprisingly, her archery suffered from her mental and emotional distraction, and she shuffled off towards the stream with the rest of the girls in a dejected mood.
Lisa sidled up beside her and offered a sympathetic smile. “Don’t worry, it wasn’t that bad.”
Marie gave her an incredulous look. If Lisa had noticed from the other side of the clearing, her efforts must have been pathetic indeed.
“I’ve never been much of an archer myself,” Lisa admitted, “which is a bit of a disgrace when you’re a forester.”
Marie smiled at her new friend, grateful for her support. Clearly the emotion didn’t reach her eyes, however, because Lisa leaned in closer so she could whisper her next words.
“And don’t worry about the other thing, either. In my experience, when someone tries that hard not to do something, it’s because it’s exactly the thing they most want to do.”
Marie blushed and looked at the ground, too embarrassed to meet the other girl’s eye. Transparency wasn’t a good quality in a diplomat, and she’d thought she was better at hiding her feelings. What else had Lisa picked up on?
Lisa laughed at her. “I’m pretty sure that’s twice now I’ve just told you not to worry. I’m sure no one else even noticed – it’s easy to pick up on things when you’re very tuned into them.”
“I’m sorry,” said Marie, looking up quickly, genuinely sad to think she might be causing pain to someone who had welcomed her so openly.
Lisa shrugged. “I have no claim on him. And I never thought I did.” She sighed. “Hoping something isn’t the same as having it, and I know that well enough.” She managed a small smile. “You have to be tough to survive in the forest. We’re a strong breed.”
“I knew that even before I came here,” said Marie, gripping her friend’s arm. “And I could hardly doubt it now that I’ve met you and Danny.”
Lisa flashed her a grateful smile, and then shook her head. “Enough about us, though. I’ve been meaning to ask you all about your friendship with Rafe. I meant what I said about him the other morning. He’s always got some story to tell of his travels, but he somehow always evades talk about his family and his home. So, of course, I’m dying of curiosity.” She fixed Marie with an expectant gaze.
Marie felt relieved she and Rafe had taken the chance to get their stories straight on their walk back to camp the day before. Not that he’d given her that much information about himself, now that she thought about it. Still it was enough that she shouldn’t get herself into trouble now.
She assumed a guilty expression. “I may have slightly overstated it when I first arrived.”
Lisa put her hands on her hips and gave the other girl a mock glare. “Marie! I’m shocked!”
Marie grinned at her new friend’s playfulness. “Well, ‘old’ is all a matter of perspective really.”
“You sound just like my grandmother.” Lisa grinned back at her.
“The truth is that I only met Rafe when he came through Northgate. We kept in contact after he continued up north into the forest, and he invited me to join him when he decided to come out here. I wasn’t sure at first.” She shrugged. “But here I am now.”
“Oh, of course. I was so sorry to hear about the way your family treated you.” Marie could easily read the curiosity in Lisa’s face and knew the forester wanted to ask about Marie’s situation. But she didn’t have to fake her look of pain in response to the mention of her family and, after a pause, Lisa let the topic drop.
“So you’ve never met this big family of his then, I suppose?” She said instead.
“Unfortunately not. Although, like you, I’m filled with curiosity over what sort of family would produce Rafe.”
There was a moment of silence as the two girls contemplated this question.
“Nope,” Lisa said at last with a single shake of her head. “I simply can’t imagine a family full of Rafes. Although…” she gave Marie a cheeky, sideways glance, “if his brothers look anything like him, I wouldn’t say no to meeting them.”
Marie giggled. “Well, it is supposed to be a big family. And he does have brothers…”
“Oooh, enough for all of us, I hope,” said one of the other girls who had just wandered over to join them.
“As long as I get first pick!” said Lisa with a giggle of her own.
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They arrived at the stream before the newcomer could reply and both abandoned the conversation to launch eagerly into the water with the other girls. Marie joined them more slowly, trying to stop her mind from revolving around Lisa’s earlier words.
Could her friend be right? Was there a different possible interpretation of Rafe’s avoidance of her? And did it matter, anyway? He would never trust her again once he discovered her double role in camp.
Chapter 17
Life in the forest camp settled into a routine. In the mornings, Marie helped in the kitchen; in the afternoons, she practiced archery; and, at all times, she attempted to avoid R. At first, he sought her out frequently, but he quickly picked up on her reluctance and seemed content to give her space.
She observed him from a distance and tried not to attract unnecessary attention to herself around camp. Word had quickly got out, however, that she was a favourite of R’s, and many of the rebel foresters treated her with deference. It hadn’t been her desire, but neither did it seem disconcerting. She had been raised a princess, after all.
Only Rafe, Lisa and Danny treated her in the same way as before, apparently blind to the changed perceptions of the other foresters. Marie was grateful for their friendship. They brought fun and light to her days in the camp, marred only by her constant chafing desire to go searching for William. She had to keep reminding herself he was almost certainly safe back at the palace after scouting out the camp. It was nothing but foolishness to let baseless worries about him overwhelm her when she had enough real worries of her own.
With R back in camp, Danny had resumed his role as head hunter. On days when game was scarce, he didn’t make it back for the afternoon training and Rafe stepped in to take his place. Marie’s skills slowly improved, and she moved up to one of the middle targets.
Despite her pride in her new ability, Marie was conscious that it wouldn’t have helped her during the attack in Northgate. She mentioned the thought aloud one mealtime and Lisa quickly agreed.
The Princess Pact: A Twist on Rumpelstiltskin (The Four Kingdoms Book 3) Page 11
