by Cheryl Oblon
Zoma frowned. “Traveling alone?”
“I agree. I should go with you for protection.” Ballan stood.
I laughed. “I don’t need protection.”
“With all due respect, you are a petite, underage female raised with royal protection.” Ballan puffed out his chest.
I focused on his sword, mostly used for show. Mentally, I yanked it from his belt and pressed it to his neck.
Marel gasped. “Kimess, please!”
I put the sword back but forced Ballan to his knees without as much as a wave of my hand. “I’m just making a point. I may look frail and innocent, but I’m not. It was hard to stand by and watch that king kill a man for following orders. Someone told him to shoot wildly. He was sacrificed for show. I could’ve saved him, but what good would it do?”
“So, you’re playing along?” he asked.
“What else can I do? The queen hasn’t decided if I live or die yet. I’m just trying to stay alive.”
Marel set out snacks and grabbed the first bite. “You don’t have to let them kill you, if she decides to.”
“Rebel? Run? I’d have to flee the country,” I said.
“Do it!” Zoma perked up. “Go, now. I’ll help. I’ll transfer your funds. Set up a fake name and history. With your powers, you’ll never go hungry or cold.”
I shook my head. “I should just take whatever I need from innocent people?”
“You can go home and collect gold and gems. Those are always worth something and they’re yours. You’ve inherited it all. You can find people who need your help for a career. It’s possible.” Zoma nodded. “There are some nice small nations out there that take refugees and don’t ask too many questions.”
I sighed. “Who will protect my cousins? My estate? I can’t throw my mother’s legacy away. My cousins could be blamed for knowing I would run. For helping me. I can’t let them be punished.”
“Your father is still in the dungeon,” Ballan said.
“My father ran from the guard. My cousins and I didn’t.” I almost regretted asking him into this, but Marel had been seeing too much of him. If she covered for me, he’d have to be in on it.
“What will I tell them? Julianne will sense you’re gone,” Marel said.
“You can tell them I had to go home for a few days. Get some of my mother’s things to help with the visions and rest in my own bed. They can cover for me, but you’ll know the truth that they don’t. If I’m found out, you need to make sure the queen believes they are innocent, please,” I said.
Marel nodded.
“You’d still do better with a male guard,” Ballan said as he sat on the sofa next to Marel.
Zoma sighed. “Aren’t you listening? She’s playing passive and going along with the queen to keep her head. To protect her family. If a guard goes missing, it only adds to the questions.”
“I understand you don’t need help. But the appearance of a male guard will keep people from trying to take advantage. Without a guard, you’d look like easy prey, and you’ll spend a lot of time protecting yourself and less getting at the truth. A rash of magical attacks will be noticed. If anything happens to you, I can contact Nemal.” He smiled. “He has a habit of doing favors for you.”
I looked away as Zoma giggled.
“Who will support my alibi? Marel won’t be trusted alone. Guards do check in. How will you explain you being gone?” I asked.
Ballan frowned. “I have friend who works near here. They could report you’re having visions and feeling weak.”
“The more people who know the worse it is,” Zoma said.
“I could take a few days off. Say my parents need my help at their estate,” Ballan offered.
“I can’t ask you to do that,” I replied.
“I’d feel better if you weren’t alone,” Marel said.
“But you’d be alone in the covering up. That’s not fair.” I wanted someone watching out for Marel.
“I have friends here. I can tell them I’m on a secret mission escorting someone. The official word will be vacation, and no one would contradict it. They would help cover for us.” Ballan shrugged.
“You trust them?” I asked.
“With my life and Marel’s,” he said.
“I suppose.” I worked my way around his brain. He adored Marel and wanted to rise up and impress Nemal.
“Who are you going to see?” Marel asked.
“You said you found where Simma is living. I need to speak to her in person. I won’t tell you exactly how I’m going to get there, but I need to try.” I might not get any information.
“I know where she is, but it’s very far,” Marel said.
Zoma nodded. “We’ll get her there.”
“And you can hide or trick things to think that I’m here and nothing is wrong. If they think I escaped, I might not have a chance to defend myself.” I wanted to slip out and back in without a problem, but that meant planning for the problems.
“You can break free,” Ballan said.
“And the queen can kill my family. I don’t want that. I want to live and do my job. I want the treaty to be signed and the Bachal to go home. I want my mother laid to rest and no one to think I’m crazy. I’ve played along and kept quiet while I had no better options, but I need to speak to this woman. I can’t trust the communication system here.” I wasn’t about to have a debate.
“I can’t get you a secure line for long, anyway. If you want to get this woman to trust you and share secrets, in person is best. I can scramble relocator histories much easier,” Zoma agreed.
“I need you to get the info from Marel and verify that Simma is still there. Can you do that?” I asked.
Zoma shrugged. “With all the defense surveillance going on with the Bachal here, no one will notice if I do a quick check on one area.”
“Sounds like you have a plan. Be careful,” Marel said.
“I will. If everyone is on board, thank you, and let’s start planning. I want to leave tonight when people are asleep. So I should probably nap now.” I ignored the nervousness building inside.
“You never waste any time, do you? You need to eat first. They can plan,” Marel said.
I was safe here, but my progress had stalled. I had a window, and I needed to use it before my life was decided for me. I wanted the truth.
Chapter 23
Sneaking through the castle at night was a bit easier with Ballan. He knew the guard rotations on every level, so we made it to a relocator pad with minimal risk. Zoma had given me an earpiece to wear inside so I could hear her. Once out of the castle, it’d be good at my estate, but after that, there was no way to know.
We stepped on the pad, and I whispered, “Ready when you are, Zoma.”
“I’m going to mask it with an energy glitch. The Bachal ship inside the dome keeps trying to read our security codes so we’ve had blips and extra measures put in. Give me a minute,” she said.
I looked at Ballan and wished he were Nemal. No, Nemal never would’ve come. He’d turn it over and have a formal inquiry. Sure, he’d broken some rules to protect me. To help me stay alive. Still, if I had information that would help—he’d bring in his mother and other officials because he’d believe they’d be honest. Something just didn’t add up about my family. This was personal, and the whole court didn’t need to know about it.
“You okay?” Ballan asked.
“Fine.” I nodded. He looked less official out of uniform. “I don’t remember you from school.”
He shrugged. “Princess Minnette was upset by something that involved me. I never got all of the details, but I was sent to another school.”
I smiled. “I see.”
“She’s not a great fan of yours,” he said.
“Minnette likes to be alone in the spotlight. Normally, that suits me fine.” I had to watch what I said from now on. Maybe I could trust him, but I’d be around others.
“H
old still,” Zoma said in my ear.
Seconds later, I stood on the same pad that I’d used to go from and to school every day. I was home.
The large manor house seemed small after weeks in the castle. But it was all mine. For a moment, I expected my mother to come out of her library. The pain cut deep.
“What about your droids?” Ballan asked.
“Disabled,” I repeated just after Zoma said it in my ear.
“Surveillance?” he asked.
“Offline temporarily,” Zoma supplied.
“We’re good. No humans until the morning, so we have a couple of hours. I can grab a few things then we can head for Simma’s. You can keep watch down here if you want.” I headed for the stairs.
“Shouldn’t we wait until dawn for Simma’s? Do you want to ambush her in the dark when she’s asleep?” Zoma asked.
“You’re sure she doesn’t have a relocator pad? Is it an easy move, or will we have a long walk?” I asked her.
“I have a fix on her home. She has basics but is lacking several key things. There is a big tree near her home. I can use it for a fix and put you near it. I’ll set my computer to scan that area for life signs. When you return, I’ll pull you back home,” she said.
I asked. “You’re sure it’ll work?”
“It should work. Putting you home rather than the castle is probably best. Then we can talk about the next move. I’m not getting a communication signal from Simma’s place. I think she’s trying to stay off the castle’s radar.” Zoma’s genius was priceless, but since she had magical gifts, she wasn’t employed for technical work…or she wouldn’t be when she was done with school.
“Okay. Back here it is. What if I need to bring Simma back with me?” I asked.
“Two life signs or three, I’ll send you all back to your home, and we can sort it out there. Midnight tomorrow? Then you can sleep or slip back into the castle under the cover of darkness,” Zoma asked.
“Sounds good. I’m crazy, aren’t I?” I asked.
She laughed. “Really, I thought we were trying to prove you’re not.”
I giggled as I grabbed a few things. Some personal jewelry. My favorite shawl. A picture of me and my mother and grandmother based on a portrait. I was little, so it was before Marel would’ve been painting. I’d hidden away all pictures of my father to make it easier on my mother.
I snuck into her room, feeling like I could be caught by someone, but we had plenty of land. No neighbors would see in. Whatever surveillance the castle might have set up, Zoma certainly had gotten around.
I rummaged through my mother’s drawers. The castle investigators had been thorough. All her medications and herbs were gone. Her jewels were there, and her clothing. I opened some drawers that had books and needlepoint she’d been working on. I felt like something here could help me, but what?
I dug through big drawers and finally headed for her closet. I went to the back and found a box in the corner under a pile of quilts. Like mother. Like daughter. We’d both buried our secrets here.
I carefully opened the box and found notes on my father. His trips, his friends, his family, and his thoughts. Maybe there was a diary? I searched but found only a photo album. Odd, most pictures were digital and set in a computer or displayed via frame or wall. I flipped through the pictures. At first, they were normal. Her as a girl. My great aunt’s elevation to Royal Seer.
My grandmother’s elevation to Royal Seer after my great aunt had gone mad. Thankfully, there was no record of the executions. There were wedding photos and pictures of me. Then, nothing. I flipped and flipped blank pages until I found a package at the end.
I pulled out a few photos. My mother and another woman sitting together doing needle work. Reading. Touching the images, I knew that other woman was Simma. My father hadn’t lied. My mother had kept these other pictures so carefully hidden.
At least I was on the right track. I couldn’t carry it all. I grabbed some of the pictures of my mother and Simma and all of the notes in my mother’s handwriting. That was enough to prove I had something, if I needed to.
Putting the rest back, I tried not to think about the parts of my mother I didn’t know. The pain and the suffering she’d lived with because of what people expected from her. Was she spying on my father? Was he spying on her? What was my father’s true affiliation? Clearly, family didn’t come first to him.
I shoved the precious pieces deep down in my bag and put everything back the way it had been. Dashing downstairs, I realized I was truly home. It felt safe, even if, logically, I knew I wasn’t.
“Are you hungry?” I asked Ballan.
“Not really.”
I shrugged. “Let’s grab a few snacks. I’m not sure if Simma will be a welcoming hostess.” I headed for the kitchen and found the droids had kept my favorites in stock. They were programmed, after all, and no one had declared I wasn’t the ruler of the fifth family.
“You look happier already,” he said.
I grabbed some fruit and eyed the bread. “I’m home. I will be back here someday to stay. To rule and to live. It’s not just a dream.”
He smiled. “I believe you. I’ll make some sandwiches, in case.”
“Thank you. I’ve never not had servants.” I should be able to make a sandwich, but fruit would be enough to keep me going.
He bowed. “My lady.”
“Don’t tease. Marel said you were kind,” I replied.
“I am.” He worked on the sandwiches. “She is very nice. You’ve brought her back to court and in the mix. She’s grateful.”
“She’s loyal. I understand Minnette caused you both some trouble. She’s done that for me. You and Marel have been talking a lot?” I asked.
“I had a huge crush on her in school. We were young, but she’s still that bright and very artistic girl. She was always drawing and humming. Happy. My family life wasn’t so happy, and I wanted to be around her. Now she’s a gifted artist and attending an important person like you.” He wrapped the sandwiches and tucked them in a separate sack. “Water?”
“Yes. Over here.” I pointed to where we kept our bottles. “From our own spring.”
He grabbed three. “Excellent.”
“I think Marel will become a very important artist and stop attending me at some point. She’s far too talented and modest. I could simply use a droid.” I shrugged.
“It’s an honor for her. Minnette froze her out. I know you know this, but I don’t think you realize what a risk you took.” He smiled.
“Nemal took it. He assigned Marel to me,” I replied.
“He’s very clever.” Ballan checked the time.
“He is, and brave.” I didn’t want to gush about the man. “Should we get on the pad?”
“Yes, now,” Zoma said in my ear.
“Zoma says yes,” I relayed to Ballan.
We headed over in silence, but Zoma didn’t keep quiet.
“Nemal is so brave and handsome,” she teased.
I cleared my throat, and Ballan offered me water. I shook my head and pointed to my earbud. “Zoma is a pest.”
“I’m just saying there are few men who would take you on. You’re powerful, scary, and rich. They want you, but they couldn’t handle you. Nemal knows you’re not crazy, and you’d be safer with him.” Zoma giggled.
“Stop it, Zoma. We’ll see if I live until I’m old enough to get married. But Minnette and plenty of others would work hard to keep me out of the royal family on that level.” I looked at Ballan, who seemed to ignore me entirely.
I was no fool. He’d listened to my side of the conversation intently.
“You’d be safer, and once you have a daughter, no one will touch you or her. Royal Seer line is safe and called princesses, as well,” Zoma said.
“Can we just go, please?” I asked.
“Fine. Good luck. Midnight, so we have time to move you back to the castle. I’ve covered my tracks well, but I
want a buffer in the timetable. Three, two, one,” she said.
Chapter 24
We materialized next to a huge tree. This was a remote area of the country. People still lived in large cities, for the most part. The royals spread out on estates and owned most of the farmland. This was the outskirts. The fringe areas where people who didn’t want to work in the cities or manage the farms eked out an existence.
“You know where we are?” Ballan asked with a hand on his sword.
“The outskirts. Better than a poorer side of a city.” I saw the small cottage as the sun slowly rose, filtered through the protective dome.
“Is anyone else here?” he asked.
“Just the spell caster who was a friend of my mother’s.” I approached and found the silence oddly comforting. Around home there was a buzz from all the droids and the connections to our technological needs. Here, there was nothing but nature.
I walked to the house, with Ballan keeping an eye out for anything. It was very early to make any sort of proper visit, but this wasn’t proper. I knocked on the front door and felt the fear of the woman inside.
“I know you’re in there! I don’t want to hurt you. I just need to talk. I’m Kimess,” I said.
In a blink, the cottage disappeared. She was afraid. I wondered how my mother would handle this. She was in my thoughts so much, but I’d ignored her to keep focused on survival. Mother was kind and respected by many. I was too young. I needed another approach.
“Spells won’t stop me. I’ll protect you if you help me. Otherwise, I’ll shake your house until it’s rubble and take you back with me the hard way,” I shouted.
“Damn!” Ballan said.
When there was no reply from inside, I envisioned where the door was and mentally shoved it open. The spell crumbled, and we could see the cottage again. I entered before she could counter my work.
“How dare you!” Simma grabbed a poker from her fireplace.
The woman was older than the one in the picture I had. But it was her. Kind eyes, more curves, but dark, short hair and a serious face. “Simma, I need your help.”
