by Mike Shelton
The old woman that had put Shaeleen to work that morning approached the siblings. She frowned at Shaeleen before saying, “You two will keep the guests’ glasses full. There is water, wine, and ale. No one goes thirsty tonight.”
Shaeleen and Cole nodded their heads.
Soon guests began to arrive. As conversations started and Shaeleen and Cole began to make their way around the room, offering drinks on a tray, Shaeleen tuned in to snippets of the conversations around her.
A man in his forties—dressed in a blue jacket over a white, ruffled shirt—stood talking to another man a few years younger than himself. The second man sported a long mustache that drooped down at its edges.
Shaeleen had to bite her lip to keep from laughing because his mustache was kind of scraggly.
“The regent has promised me new trade routes,” the first man said. “I’m going to ship goods from Gabor to Mistport, along the Myr River.”
A slight headache came to Shaeleen as she refilled their glasses.
The second man frowned darkly. “That is Prince Calix’s preferred route of trade. The regent doesn’t have the right to do that.”
“Regent Warin has consulted with Prince Basil—the young man will be king soon.”
Suddenly, Shaeleen couldn’t help but bend over as pain shot through her gut and up through her head. Her tray of glasses fell to the floor and shattered all around their feet.
The growing crowd quieted, all except for Lady Judith, who seemed to be by Shaeleen’s side in mere moments.
“What have you done?” she whispered harshly to Shaeleen. “Are you here to embarrass me?”
Shaeleen straightened. Her face felt drained, but some of the pain had subsided. Cole ran up to put his arm around her.
“Shae, are you all right?” Cole asked. “What happened?”
Shaeleen looked at him and shook her head minutely, hoping her brother would get the hint. She couldn’t explain in front of Lady Judith.
Soon a group of servants had cleaned up the mess, and then the crowd returned to their conversations.
“Nothing like that better happen again,” Lady Judith warned Shaeleen in a stern voice. “Or,” the woman added under her breath, “there is no deal.”
Shaeleen understood what Lady Judith meant. She would have to steel her mind against the pain. She would need to learn to ignore it.
Someone on the other side of the room called for more drinks, and Cole turned to refill their glasses. Shaeleen glanced around the room for a moment. She couldn’t listen to everyone. She had to focus on something. Off in a corner stood a group of men and women who seemed to be talking in conspiratorial tones, so she headed in their direction.
One woman said softly, “Prince Calix will make his move soon.”
Shaeleen took her time getting drink glasses ready to bring over to the group.
A man in the group nodded and said, “He can count on my house. Prince Basil is too lenient to be king, but Prince Calix has our needs in mind. He will protect the nobles.”
Shaeleen’s head started pounding, so she knew Prince Calix would not protect anyone but himself. She pushed the pain aside and approached the group.
“Prince Basil will not know what happened until it’s over,” another man said, the oldest in the group. His gray hair was slicked back on his head, and he carried a cane with a golden handle.
Shaeleen recognized this man from descriptions she’d heard before. It was Bancroft, the minister of relations with Gabor. It was said that his ancestors hailed from the northern kingdom. Looking at the man again, Shaeleen could see strength in his body, despite his advanced age. The kingdom of Gabor had been given the Red Jasper StrengthStone at the same time Galena had been given its IntelligenceStone by King Wayland.
“Gabor will stand with Prince Calix?” asked another woman in the group, who was hanging on the arm of the first man that had spoken.
“Yes,” the minister said. “Prince Calix can rely on the strength of Gabor to get him the throne of Galena.”
Another lie. Shaeleen’s gut turned sour this time. But she held herself straight and, during a brief silence in the conversation, poured them all fresh drinks.
Upon leaving, she heard the first man laugh and then say, “But what will we do with the regent?”
Shaeleen couldn’t hear the answer. She had to get away from the lies of this group, lies that they sometimes didn’t even know they were telling. But these people were openly planning to dispose of Prince Basil. She would have to tell Lady Judith about what she’d overheard.
Soon the guests were led to the tables, and then Lady Judith stood up, at the head table, with her husband, Lord Gregory, the current minister of defense under Regent Warin, the princes’ uncle.
Lord Gregory was indeed a specimen of strength, and high intelligence shown from his dark eyes. He was wearing his blue military uniform, perfectly pressed and held firmly across his large body by his broad shoulders. But he didn’t look happy to have everyone there for his birthday.
Once Shaeleen and Cole had walked around and filled any empty glasses, Lady Judith stood and raised her glass in the air. “I propose a toast. Today is my husband’s fortieth birthday, and I couldn’t be more happy.”
A lie. But Shaeleen kept the pain concealed – but only barely. I can’t take much more!
“Lord Gregory has worked tirelessly to defend our borders during the reign of our beloved regent,” Lady Judith continued.
Shaeleen had taken a few steps back. She wiped beads of sweat from her forehead. Cole rapidly moved to her side.
“Are you all right?” Cole whispered as he leaned in.
“I’ll be fine,” Shaeleen said through gritted teeth. A battery of emotions and feelings swirled through her body. Some of what Lady Judith said next was definitely true, but some was sorely false. How could Shaeleen decipher all of it? She would have to tune out the rest of Lady Judith’s words in order to maintain her own decorum.
Finally, the woman put her finishing touches on the toast and said, “So, I toast to my good husband…”
That part is true, Shaeleen thought. He is a good man.
“…and to our beloved regent…”Lady Judith continued.
Shaeleen’s gut heaved with pain. Lady Judith does not love the regent.
“…and, finally, to our favorite prince, Prince Basil.”
This final statement caused Shaeleen’s vision to blacken as her stomach churned and her mind exploded with the implications of what she was hearing.
“I need to go,” Shaeleen whispered to her brother.
Cole set down his tray of drinks and pulled her by the hand out into the kitchen. As they moved through the doorway, Shaeleen turned back and, above the raised glasses of the crowd, met Lady Judith’s eyes. They sparkled with wicked betrayal—and a warning that Shaeleen better not go too far.
“Outside,” she groaned to her brother, and Cole rushed her out a back door and down the walkway.
Shaeleen leaned over, with her hands on her knees, and vomited into some bushes behind the mansion. The pain in her head exploded, and she began to fall over. With the help of Cole, she sat down on the cobblestone walkway, but harder than she had intended to.
“Shae, Shae!” her brother said, sounding worried. “What happened in there?”
Shaeleen only shook her head, for she couldn’t speak. Then she wrapped her hand around the stone in her dress pocket, and a green light enveloped her arm, running up to her neck, then to her head, down into her heart, and finally to her stomach. It felt cool and refreshing, washing away the pain she had felt.
Cole had scooted back a few feet but had stayed on the ground with her.
What must he be thinking?
Then noises came from the direction of the back door.
“Shae,” Cole said, reaching his hand toward her glowing arm, but he stopped before he touched it. “Others are coming. You must stop.”
Shaeleen didn’t want to stop. The euphoria from t
he TruthStone was a blessing after the pain from the lies she had heard. But she knew Cole was right. If she was found glowing, who knew what trouble would ensue?
“All right,” Shaeleen said to Cole, and she reluctantly let go of the stone. The green glow subsided just as three men came around the corner and past the bushes.
CHAPTER SEVEN
As Cole helped Shaeleen to stand back up, the three men gave them sly smiles, and one of them winked, a tall, skinny man, who looked like he had taken too much to drink himself.
“Having a little fun outside, I see,” the man said. “Maybe you could share her a bit.”
Cole was instantly in the man’s face, his muscles tensed. “She is my sister, sir.”
The man, half drunk, stepped back and put his hands up. “No need to get angry, young man. Just looking for some fun at this boring party.”
Cole put his hand on the man’s chest.
“Cole,” Shaeleen said and put her hand on her brother’s arm. “It’s fine.”
As Cole jerked his arm away and peered down at Shaeleen, the three men continued on their way.
“Your hand. It’s freezing,” Cole said.
Shaeleen shrugged. She couldn’t tell and frankly didn’t care at the moment. She was just glad the pain was gone.
Just then, a servant poked his head out the back door and beckoned them back inside to continue pouring drinks for people.
For the rest of the night, Shaeleen tried to stay away from hearing too many lies. She had heard enough minor lies to tell Lady Judith those later on. Hopefully the woman wouldn’t push for more.
Toward the end of the evening, Lady Judith pulled Shaeleen into another room. She sat down on a sturdy stuffed chair, spreading her skirts around her, and, with a glass of wine in her hand, commanded Shaeleen to tell her what she knew.
“Well, there were so many people it was hard to tell for sure,” Shaeleen began and felt the stirrings of a small headache. She couldn’t even lie to herself.
“Try,” Lady Judith said.
“One of the men is cheating on his wife,” Shaeleen said first. “He said he wasn’t, but I know he was.”
Lady Judith laughed. “Tell me something I don’t know.”
Shaeleen sifted through what she had heard. She definitely wasn’t going to tell Lady Judith what she now knew about Prince Calix. She had heard something earlier that was interesting, though.
“I heard someone who works with Prince Basil say the prince is going to send someone off to bring his intended bride to him,” Shaeleen said. “He also said the prince was going to Gabor, but that wasn’t true.”
“Yes. Continue.” Lady Judith waved her hand in the air. Each finger was adorned with a jewel large enough to support Shaeleen’s family for all of their lifetimes.
“Well,” Shaeleen paused for a moment to gather her thoughts, “based on what wasn’t said in the conversation, I think his wife may be coming from Verlyn.” Lady Judith stood at hearing that news, but Shaeleen felt a small headache from what she had said.
This TruthStone is infuriating sometimes.
Shaeleen was finding that people may or may not choose to speak the truth, but then—on top of that—sometimes they thought they were speaking the truth, but it was still a lie. Those statements were the ones that were harder to decipher. The pain in her gut always came first, with a dreadful headache afterward—though the headache also came when someone, herself included, danced around the real truth.
Shaeleen was fairly certain the intended bride of Prince Basil was coming from Verlyn, but she had felt in her mind a difference between intended bride and future wife. However, she wasn’t going to give Lady Judith any more information than she had to.
“And what else did you hear, my dear?” Lady Judith asked as she sat back down and motioned Shaeleen to sit on a smaller chair opposite her.
“She will be here for his seventeenth birthday,” Shaeleen continued, “when the prince will announce the betrothal—and accept the crown of Galena.”
Splitting headache once again. What did I say wrong?
Lady Judith tilted her head to the side. “Anything else?”
She seemed to be fishing to know if Shaeleen had overheard anything about Lady Judith’s and her cronies’ plan to betray Prince Basil. But Shaeleen wasn’t going to share what she had heard about that.
“One of the ministers was telling a man who owns a large shipping company that the fish in Mistport are especially good this year. But it was a lie.”
“Hmmm,” Lady Judith mumbled. Then she stood and excused Shaeleen.
As Shaeleen reached the door, she turned around and blurted out, “And you don’t really care for your husband—who is a good man, by the way.”
“How dare you?!”
Shaeleen quickly turned and left the room before Lady Judith could yell at her. She couldn’t help the small grin that formed on her face. She enjoyed goading the woman.
Going back into the ballroom, she found Cole, who seemed relieved to see her return. The number of guests had dwindled, and the few that were left were more than a little drunk.
“Let’s go, Cole,” Shaeleen said. “We’re done here. I have kept my side of the bargain.”
Cole nodded, and together they walked toward the kitchen. On the way there, they crossed paths with Lord Gregory, who eyed the two suspiciously.
“Happy birthday, sir,” Shaeleen said with a curtsy. Cole joined in with a last-minute bow.
Lord Gregory looked from Shaeleen to Cole and back again. “You are the carpenter’s daughter. What are you doing here?”
“I came to help your wife, as penance for not acting very nice the other day. I apologize to you also, my lord.”
There, I can tell the truth and be nice.
Lord Gregory waved a hand in the air. “No need to apologize, young lady. And who is this?” Lord Gregory asked as he scrutinized Cole.
“This is my brother, Cole,” Shaeleen said.
Cole extended his hand and shook Lord Gregory’s with it. “My pleasure, sir.”
Lord Gregory kept a hold of Cole’s hand for a moment longer and seemed focused on Cole’s eyes. “You are endowed with much power, young sir. I hope you intend to use it to protect the kingdom.”
Cole stood straighter. “Yes, of course, sir.”
“You could be a great addition to the king’s council when you are older.”
“I will always be willing to support the throne of Galena,” Cole answered with pride in his voice and his eyes.
Then Lady Judith called from across the room, “Oh, Gregory, come bid our guests goodbye.”
Lord Gregory let out a sigh and then looked embarrassed.
Before they parted ways, Shaeleen gave him a look intending to say that she understood. After taking a few steps, Shaeleen turned back around and called out, “Lord Gregory?”
The minister of defense turned.
“Guard the regent and the prince well,” Shaeleen said in warning.
Lord Gregory frowned and took a step back toward Shaeleen, and she was sure he would have more questions.
“Gregory!” Lady Judith called out once again.
“Coming,” Lord Gregory grunted.
That gave Shaeleen and Cole a chance to get away. Soon the two of them were out on the road leading back to their home. It was late and dark, but the warm night still brought sweat to their faces as they walked briskly toward home.
“So, what did you really learn tonight, Shaeleen?” Cole asked with a voice that brooked no argument.
Shaeleen sighed. Her brother was loyal to the crown and would not be happy with what she had to tell him.
“Prince Calix is planning on taking the throne,” she said in summary.
Cole stopped walking for a moment and stared at her. “Is that what the warning to Lord Gregory was about?”
Shaeleen nodded her head.
“We must warn Prince Basil,” Cole said emphatically. “He will be the next king.”
> Shaeleen tried to hide the headache that then hit her between the eyes, but she didn’t know if she had been successful. A pattern was developing that she didn’t like: every time someone mentioned Basil being the next king, she had felt pain. If not him, then who? Prince Calix? Nobody wanted that. Well, except for Lady Judith and her greedy friends.
“Race you home,” Shaeleen said to avoid more conversation. Then she picked up her skirt in one hand and started running. Underneath the long skirt, she had on her more serviceable shoes.
Cole laughed at her and took the challenge.
Soon both of them entered their front gate—winded, tired, and laughing. That was a good relief from a long and painful day.
I’ll have to find more ways to laugh, she thought, or I will kill myself with the pain.
CHAPTER EIGHT
The next afternoon, Shaeleen was sitting in her room, reading the journal entries by the previous TruthSeers. She held the stone in her hand, and its green light glowed around her and the book. She was trying to find information on how to limit the pain she would feel when hearing or telling a lie.
“Shaeleen!” her mother, Gleda, called out.
As Shaeleen’s bedroom door began to open, Shaeleen dropped the TruthStone into her blankets as fast as she could, hoping her mother wouldn’t notice.
“Shae,” her mother repeated more quietly. Then she glanced over her shoulder, turned back again, and walked into the room. “What was that light?”
“There wasn’t any light,” Shaeleen said, forgetting not to lie. Her stomach roiled, but she continued on. “Maybe it was just the sun you saw.”
Her mother cocked her head and looked at Shaeleen intently. “You have been acting strangely these last few days. You’ve been cooped up here in this room for hours on end. Something is going on.”
Before Shaeleen could deny or affirm her mother’s statements, Cole stepped up to her door and said, “Yes, Mother, there is something going on with Shae.”
