Undercover Princess

by Connie Glynn

  ‘Saskia, get out of the car NOW!’ Ellie barked, the words a ferocious growl as she prepped her club to swing again.

  Saskia’s face turned cold in front of Lottie and a chill that had nothing to do with the wind ran up Lottie’s spine. Saskia grabbed Lottie by her hair and threw her into the back of the van. Lottie screamed as she landed. Unable to cushion her fall with her hands tied, she smacked her head on the floor, her tiara flying off. She heard the driver’s-side door open and called out for Ellie to run as she tried to pull herself up.

  The van doors opened. Saskia stood there restraining Ellie, from whom she’d wrestled the club. Ellie threw her head back and spat on her. Saskia let go of her abruptly, and smacked her hard across the face before shoving her in the van next to Lottie.

  Ellie looked up at Saskia and grinned. ‘You’re so screwed,’ she cackled, her freshly bleeding lip making her look as if she’d just feasted on a live animal.

  Saskia raised an eyebrow, then Lottie saw what Ellie meant.

  Jamie was hurtling down the snowy track so fast he was almost a blur in the frost. Alarm registered on Saskia’s face, and Lottie watched as she spun gracefully, pulling something from the inside of her jacket and aiming it at the figure thundering towards her.

  ‘JAMIE, LOOK OUT!’

  Lottie screamed the words hopelessly into the air but they were needless. Before Lottie could comprehend what was happening, Jamie was in front of them, ducking out of shot then surging upward.

  He swung his left hand, pushing away the barrel of the gun, followed by his right hand, which struck Saskia’s wrist hard. He deftly manipulated her hand so that the gun was now pointed at her. It happened so fast that Lottie could barely process what she was witnessing. Saskia reacted by stepping on Jamie’s foot and twisting round, causing both of them to drop the gun. She kicked it out of reach. If she couldn’t hold the gun, it was better to have it out of reach than risk it being turned on her.

  Jamie grabbed Saskia and flung her as far away from the two girls as possible before storming towards her.

  And then the dance began.

  They moved in a fluid mix of elegant and punchy steps, a sophistication and precision in every movement that made for a deadly but beautiful display.

  Lottie watched in horror as they laid into each other, amazed by the intricate accuracy of their dance.

  This was a Partizan fight, and it was deadly.

  They seemed to be a perfectly even match until Jamie thrust his elbow to block her arm and was able to land a blow to her stomach. Saskia doubled over and he used the chance to knee her in the nose. Lottie covered her face at the impact, disturbed by how effortlessly violent Jamie could be. Then, before Saskia could right herself, Jamie dived into the air as though he were weightless. Lifting his knee up, he easily spun his body to deliver a bludgeoning kick to Saskia’s head before landing and pulling a gun out of his jacket.

  It was clear that the move could have been lethal if Saskia hadn’t managed to hold her arm up in a last-ditch attempt at defence.

  She fell to her knees and slowly raised her head to see the barrel of the gun, all her previous composure beaten out of her. She looked at him, manic and bloody. She laughed, but it came out more as a wail. The sound made Lottie flinch.

  ‘You are such a perfect little pet of a Partizan, aren’t you?’ Blood spilled out of her mouth as she spoke, and she spat on to the floor as though she were a snake shooting venom.

  ‘You’ve lost, Saskia,’ he said coldly, his face calm as the frosty wind howled around them.

  She laughed again, the sound becoming a wheezing cough. Lottie recoiled, but Jamie remained unchanged, pointing his weapon at her with no hesitation.

  ‘I haven’t lost anything,’ she cackled. ‘I found myself years ago. You’re the one who’s lost.’

  Jamie didn’t say anything, and there was no sign of the biting cold having any effect on him.

  ‘You could be free of them,’ Saskia went on. ‘You could use your training to fight for a righteous cause instead of being wasted on these fatuous fools.’ In the clouded moonlight Lottie was sure she could see tears forming in Saskia’s eyes. ‘They don’t care about us. We’re just tools to them; everyone is a tool to them. They’ll never let us live how we want.’ She reached a hand out desperately. ‘Join us.’

  Lottie held her breath, the wind billowing between them as she sat helpless in the van, not knowing what Jamie was thinking. Her heart lurched as he opened his mouth to speak and she thought she saw his hand quiver for just a second.

  Before he could respond a voice blared out. ‘Put your hands in the air where we can see them.’

  Lights flared around them so brightly that they almost blinded her as twenty or so figures in black swarmed them. They grabbed Saskia and instantly cuffed her, pushing her up against the side of the van. Jamie carefully deposited his weapon on the ground and sat in the van beside Lottie, completely unaffected by the sudden siege, as if he knew they were coming all along.

  They were all escorted to the palace entrance and Lottie saw one of the masked figures pull off his headgear to reveal a weathered face with a severe scar. He nodded at Jamie, who responded with a salute, and the man bowed in return.

  Someone untied Lottie’s hands and wrapped a silver blanket around her. Everything melted into a warm and confusing blur of questions and anxious voices. Jamie and Ellie both shrugged off their questioners and bolted to Lottie.

  ‘Are you OK? Are you hurt at all? Either of you – Ellie, your lip!’ Jamie frantically fussed around them in a way that seemed very unlike him.

  Ellie shook her head, not really paying attention, and pushed past to grab Lottie and pull her into a tight embrace.

  ‘Lottie! Oh, Jesus Christ, I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry.’ Ellie kept repeating the words as she held her, but Lottie was distracted by what she could see over her shoulder.

  By the door to the palace, standing tall and unflinching, was Anastacia. She didn’t look at Lottie, Ellie or Jamie. Her eyes were on Saskia, a trail of moisture on her cheek, obscured by her chestnut hair, and her dress flapped around her in a blaze of deep red. Saskia was escorted to where Anastacia stood. Her guards paused by Anastacia and one of the figures bowed.

  ‘We’ll be taking her in for questioning, ma’am. Your father will also be informed.’

  Anastacia didn’t respond; she simply stared at Saskia, a fire burning in her eyes.

  The Partizan’s face turned from anger to something akin to determination. They began pulling her away again and Saskia cried out, ‘Ani, I was going to come back for you. Ani!’

  But Anastacia didn’t even turn round as her Partizan was dragged away. She clenched her fists so hard her knuckles turned white. Tears spilled in an uncontrollable wave of woe. These were not the tears of a shocked young girl; this was something more.

  Lottie’s mind conjured up the photograph of them in Paris. And suddenly it hit her, and she couldn’t believe she’d missed it before.

  They were in love.

  54

  Lottie, Jamie and Ellie once again found themselves standing outside the main hall in a perfect line, waiting to be allowed into their trial. Fewer than twenty-four hours had passed since the ball. The festivities had ended early and the guests had been asked to vacate the premises. What had followed was a sleepless night of blurry questions and emotion, and Lottie was desperate to throw on some pyjamas and sleep for a hundred years. Her world had altered, and she knew that things were going to be drastically different now.

  They had all agreed to stick with the story that they hadn’t had any clue that the attack was being planned and that Anastacia knew nothing about it. Except, it wasn’t a story. It was the truth.

  Ellie and Lottie had both sustained mild injuries: Ellie had cut her lip, but not badly enough to leave a scar, and Lottie had a bruise on her cheek and a sore bump from where she’d hit her head. Jamie remained unscathed, outwardly at least.

  Lottie held h
er breath as the doors slowly opened. The light hit her again in that same flooding bright stream, but this time she did not flinch from it. Instead she marched forward confidently to embrace her fate.

  In the hall sat the king on his throne, his wife and his mother by his side, with Simien Smirnov, the glass-eyed man, standing behind him. To Lottie’s surprise a fifth person was present, the gruff man who Jamie had saluted the previous night, who sat with a permanent scowl on his face.

  ‘It is clear, after the events last night, that there is a serious and present danger among us.’ The king spoke intensely, leaving no room for questions.

  Lottie stood firm, eyes straight and emotionless as she’d seen Jamie do so often. She understood now the importance of presenting yourself as unflappable. It was like a suit of armour, not just to protect yourself but to protect those who might worry about you. Lottie could not have Ellie worrying about her if she was going to remain her Portman: she needed Ellie and her family to think the traumatic events at the ball were easy for her to brush off and that she’d readily put herself at risk again for Ellie’s sake.

  It wasn’t true. Lottie had never been so terrified in her life, but that was exactly why she needed to be there, to make sure it never happened to Ellie.

  ‘Sir Olav –’ the king gestured his hand to the scarred man – ‘we understand that we have the rogue Partizan in confinement but she will not speak.’

  Lottie thought of Saskia, a girl she’d been jealous of and trusted as a mentor, and her heart lurched. She couldn’t imagine what Anastacia must be feeling right now.

  Sir Olav rubbed his hands together in thought and Lottie could see a strange dagger-shaped tattoo just above his wrist.

  ‘So far the only information we have is from your Portman.’

  Lottie mentally stored the fact that he knew she was a Portman; it was important to know who was high-ranking and trustworthy.

  ‘The Alcroft parents knew nothing,’ continued Sir Olav. ‘Their daughter, Anastacia, claims her Partizan had an unusual but not worrying interest in the princess.’

  Lottie knew that was a lie. Jamie and Ellie had filled her in on how most of the notes had been left by Anastacia as a way to scare them out of the school.

  The king turned to Lottie and gave her a sharp look. ‘I see, and what exactly have you learned, Miss Pumpkin?’

  Lottie took a deep breath, trying to remember the information without slipping back into the memories of the van, of Saskia’s bloody face, of Anastacia weeping. She shook her head, shaking the thoughts away. ‘We know they’re called Leviathan, Your Majesty,’ she began. ‘We know they’re targeting the children of important families, particularly royalty and –’ she prepared herself before she said the next words, worrying about the reaction they might provoke – ‘we know there’s special interest in the capture of the Maravish princess, but we don’t know why.’

  The king simply nodded his head. ‘Good work.’

  It took everything in Lottie’s power not to start squealing in excitement. Did I just get praise from the king?

  She had to quickly remind herself of the circumstances, but it didn’t stop her feeling a little elated. The queen smiled at her, as if she could read her thoughts, and Lottie returned the look with one of the respectful nods she’d so often seen Jamie and the king exchange.

  ‘Well then.’

  All Lottie’s good feelings evaporated at the raspy voice of the king’s mother.

  She tapped her fingers on her cane irritably as she looked at them with a scathing gaze. Her hair was down this time, a flowing wave of silver cascading over her waist, which made her look as if she could at any moment cast an evil spell on whoever crossed her. ‘Let us move on to the more pressing matter.’

  The three teenagers held their breath, knowing what was coming.

  ‘Why on earth was the real princess, our Eleanor, allowed to be put in harm’s way for this girl?’

  Lottie felt her body go hot and her hands twitched nervously at her side. She was amazed at Jamie’s ability to stay completely calm.

  ‘It is unacceptable that the princess should put herself in danger for her Portman.’ She said it like it was a dirty word. ‘The idea is simply atrocious.’ She looked at each of them, as she tapped her cane. ‘Well, do you have anything to say for yourself?’

  Lottie gulped, feeling all at once furious and ashamed. She’d believed there was nothing she could have done to stop Ellie running out to the van, but that was not the truth. She could have prevented it by truly pretending everything was fine when they’d called – but she hadn’t even considered that. She had to remember that she was expendable. ‘I’m sorry, Your Majesty, I –’

  ‘Not you!’ the king’s mother screeched. ‘Her Partizan!’ She gave Jamie a fierce look before turning back to Lottie. ‘You behaved exactly as a Portman should in that situation. Portmans are very difficult to come by; it would be most inconvenient if we lost ours.’

  Inconvenient.

  Lottie’s mind went blank. They didn’t know. They didn’t know that she hadn’t even remembered she was a Portman in the van. She hadn’t been thinking about how inconvenient it would be if they lost her. She hadn’t thought about surviving for her princess. She’d only been thinking about herself. She wasn’t what they thought she was, and part of her resented them for it, but a larger part resented herself for it. She didn’t want to react like a regular kid would in that situation. She wanted to be strong; she wanted to have a place in this extraordinary world no matter how dangerous it became.

  She turned to Jamie. He continued to stand tall, accepting the scolding words without flinching.

  ‘Quite,’ the king said, though his posture and tone suggested he disliked having to agree. ‘Sir Olav, would you please prepare an appropriate punishment for your student?’

  Lottie felt a sense of injustice building in her. Jamie had saved them. He’d done everything he could to …

  Jamie gave her a look of warning. She bit her cheek hard to stop herself from saying anything. Before he could give the same look to Ellie, she stepped forward to speak. To Lottie’s amazement, she didn’t protest. She didn’t even raise her voice.

  ‘May we leave now?’ Her fists were clenched as she spoke, but that was the only indication of how she felt.

  The king rubbed his forehead as if he had a terrible headache, and then sighed. ‘You may leave.’

  They all slowly turned to the door, and as they did the king spoke again.

  ‘I’m glad you are all safe and I’m impressed with how you handled yourselves – but these are our rules.’

  Ellie paused at the door without looking back, then they made their way out, leaving an uncomfortable silence behind them.

  55

  Before the three of them headed back to Ellie’s room, Ellie asked Jamie to give her a moment alone with Lottie. He nodded somewhat reluctantly and went on by himself.

  ‘Come with me,’ she said softly, grabbing Lottie’s wrist. Her words were slightly muffled through her swollen lip.

  She walked Lottie through the corridor, up a winding staircase to a tower room with a huge balcony overlooking the back of the grounds, an endless garden covered in thick snow. Ellie leaned against the stone balcony, her face inscrutable, looking more like Jamie than herself. Lottie followed her gaze out over the garden, wondering what it would be like once the snow cleared.

  ‘Lottie,’ she began, not looking at her, ‘I have something important I need to ask you, but I need you to promise me something first.’ She turned to her then, holding eye contact in a way that Lottie couldn’t pull away from.

  ‘Of course,’ she replied, ignoring the hesitation in her gut.

  Ellie shook her head. ‘No, Lottie – that’s the point,’ she said with a sigh, the lack of sleep suddenly showing on her face. ‘I want you to promise that before you answer my question you’re not going to think about me. You’re only going to think about yourself and how you feel.’

  Lo
ttie froze, thinking of her mother and the promises she’d asked of Lottie on her deathbed. There was that strange and awful crawling on her skin, the knowledge that this was not a promise she could possibly keep. She couldn’t explain it to Ellie; it was something only Jamie would understand. She couldn’t answer only for herself, because this was her life now, being there for Ellie. But she didn’t vocalize this; instead she held her breath and nodded.

  ‘I promise,’ she said reluctantly, knowing it wasn’t quite true.

  ‘OK.’ Ellie looked shaky, her hand fidgeting. ‘And I want you to really think about this before you answer.’ Lottie nodded again. Ellie let out a short breath before continuing, looking as if it hurt her deeply to ask. ‘Would you be happier if you’d never become my Portman?’

  ‘No,’ Lottie replied, almost before Ellie had even finished the question.

  She didn’t need to think about it, and it had nothing to do with devoting herself to Ellie. She knew deep down that it was true. She didn’t care how scary things became, or what she had to sacrifice, the last year she’d spent with Ellie had been the happiest she’d been since losing her mother. This was the closest she’d ever been to fulfilling her promise to be happy. She felt like she’d found a part of herself that she didn’t even know was missing.

  ‘This is where I belong,’ she said earnestly, grabbing Ellie’s hand and squeezing it. Tears trickled down her cheeks, but she didn’t care. ‘Being with you is the happiest I’ve ever been; you make me a better person.’

  Ellie’s face scrunched up in a desperate attempt to hold her emotions in and she sniffed loudly to try to maintain her composure. She pulled Lottie into a tight embrace, squeezing her so hard she almost couldn’t breathe.

  ‘Me too,’ Ellie whispered in her ear.

  56

  The three teenagers sat in silence on Ellie’s black satin bed.