I reddened. For a second, when he said his kids, I thought what it might be like if they were our kids.
Don't go there, Eliana. Not the time, not the place, and certainly not a path you should be walking down right now.
I was having a lot of thoughts today that would be better served at another time.
Right, back on track. I rolled my eyes at Jay. “You know exactly who I mean. The mother unicorn."
Who would probably have not-so-politely delivered a hoof into his buttocks if she'd heard him mocking her name. Unicorns were gentle creatures, but this one certainly had spunk.
And I still wasn't sure how all of that worked. I could understand them. They could understand me. But could they understand all of us? Would she have understood Jay’s jesting about her name? Questions for another time.
Jay softened, seeing my concern. “Relax. She and Baby are still doing fine. They do seem restless, though, especially the mother. Sorry—especially Zacarina. It’s like they know that their brethren are missing." He sighed, a grimace of frustration splaying over his features. "And like they also know that we haven't got a clue where to even begin looking for them."
I swallowed hard. Here went nothing…
“I do."
"You do what?" He looked at me, eyes narrowed in confusion.
“I have one,” I said. I held his gaze, widening my eyes meaningfully.
He stared at me blankly. "Have one what? Wait—a clue?"
His chair screeched as he pushed back from his desk in excitement, and it clattered to the floor. He crossed around his desk and picked me up to twirl me around, laughing in disbelief. A startled laugh of my own escaped me as I held on to him for dear life, the room spinning around us. Gently, he placed me back onto my feet and ran a hand through his hair. “Eliana, that's just… I can’t believe this. I mean, of course, I can believe it, you found it.” He shook his head in awe. “This is amazing. You’re amazing.”
My breath caught in my throat. Jay was thrilled but didn’t question that I’d been able to succeed with such an impossible task. He always had so much faith in me. I didn’t know what I’d ever done to deserve it.
“Where did you find it?” he asked eagerly. “Do you realize what this means? We may actually be able to find the missing unicorns now!"
Whoa, there. It sounded like I had better set some expectations for my “amazing” clue, and fast.
"It's not much," I warned. "And I can't tell you how I know this, so don’t ask. But if we want to find the unicorns, we’ve got to find the word Rumpelstiltskin and figure out what it means."
Jay's eyes widened in instant recognition. Of course, they did. He knew the word just as well as I did. After all, he had been my constant companion as a child, and Rumpelstiltskin had been our favorite of all the nonsense words we’d played around with.
It made my heart twist in the strangest way now to think of how we'd used it so cavalierly. Why hadn't we questioned its meaning before now, even if it had just been a little bit? Maybe, if we had, we'd have started the process of wearing my mother down on the subject early. Maybe, right now, we'd already know the meaning of the mysterious word. Maybe we'd have a real place to start looking for the unicorns instead of just combing endlessly through the library collection, feeling like a fool.
Oh, wait, that last one was just me.
"Did you ask your mother?" He returned to the other side of the desk, picked up his chair, and righted it to resume his seat. He'd known the source of the once-silly word as well as I did.
I sighed and tried not to let the extreme frustration I felt on the subject show. “I almost wish that I hadn’t, to be honest with you. But I did. She's being stubborn and refuses to say anything."
"A woman in your family? Stubborn? Nooooo." He let the sarcasm roll off his tongue, and I glared to let him know that it wasn't at all appreciated. He ran a hand through his hair and huffed out a breath, eyes distant as he thought it over. “I haven't ever heard the word before. Have you?”
“If I had, I wouldn’t be here.”
“And are you sure it has something to do with the unicorns?"
"One hundred percent positive," I said, nodding resolutely.
His brow furrowed. “How can you be that sure? Did you find something in the meadows that you didn’t show me?”
I bit my lip. I still couldn't tell him that. If he knew I believed the unicorns were speaking to me, he'd think I was crazy. And with the best of intentions, I was sure, he'd go to my mother if he was worried about my mental health. She’d have the best of intentions too, but she’d lock me up and throw away the key.
"I can't tell you that,” I said. I splayed my hands and fingers in front of me and shrugged helplessly. “Can you just… trust me on this?”
“Well, of course, I trust you. I have a lot of questions, right now, Lia, but trusting you was never in question.” A corner of his lip lifted in a warm half-smile. He was still clearly preoccupied by the matter at hand, though. “Is there anything else that you can tell me?” he asked.
I thought about it. So far, I hadn’t told him more than Mother, or Mr. Swink, really. But this was Jay for crying out loud. He had so much faith in me. He had earned a little faith in him in return. “I can tell you this much,” I said. “Whoever it was who trapped the unicorns was singing as they laid the traps. And the song had just one word to it. It was Rumpelstiltskin."
He leaned back, clearly rocked to his core. His mouth opened and closed as what was probably a thousand and one questions leaped to his mind. But I’d told him that that was all I could tell him and he took me at my word. "I'll ask around,” he finally said.
A wave of relief washed over me. It was amazing just to know that one of my burdens didn't have to be carried alone. It may not seem like a lot for Jay to start asking around about Rumpelstiltskin, but to me, it was huge. It meant a great deal.
"Thank you," I said. I felt so light suddenly. It was incredible.
"Not a problem. Anytime," he replied. A funny little smile played about his lips. "You know I'm always happy to help you however I can."
I smiled back. "I do know that," I said softly. "I can always count on you, Jay."
He held eye contact with me for a few beats longer and I started to feel my pulse beat in my throat. I cleared my throat to rid myself of the sensation and looked away.
He allowed me to let the intimate moment pass us by, without comment and without deepening the moment to something else. "So, you're helping your mom party plan," he said.
Oh, thank goodness. A safe topic. We wouldn't get into any trouble talking about Fae's party, I was sure.
"That I am," I said. "Royal Party Planner, at your service." I gave him a wink.
He raised an eyebrow. “Are you having any fun with it? I know sometimes your mom can make you a little..." He trailed off to wiggle his hand back and forth in the air, then his finger gravitated up toward his head to swirl near his ear as he made a face.
I gasped and put a hand to my chest in mock outrage. "How dare you insinuate that my mother drives me crazy. We have the most functional of functional relationships. And she always listens to the boundaries I set— Okay, I can't even pretend to say that seriously. I mean, I had to bring the guards with me just to pay you a visit today. But surprisingly, it's been okay. I keep reminding myself that she means well. Having Fae has helped me be a little more understanding of her. We have our hiccups, but overall, it's gotten a lot better on both sides, I think."
"That's great.” He grinned, sincere about it. “And aside from your relationship with your mother, how goes the party planning itself?"
I brightened. It was so nice to think about something that wasn't hunted unicorns, strange abilities, my fraught relationship with my mother, my dead husband, or confusing romances for a change. Just something simple and happy. But I wouldn't explain all of that to Jay, of course. Instead, I simply said, "It's good. It's a nice distraction from the unicorns, actually."
&nb
sp; “I can believe that.” He sighed. “To be honest, I think that I could do with one of those myself, so I’m looking forward to it. It'll be a nice evening for all of us, I think. Will you save me a dance?"
"I'll save them all for you," I said without thinking.
"Does that mean..." He looked so hopeful. I cursed myself for speaking before I'd thought. I couldn't bear to see his expression fall.
Besides, if I was being honest, there was no one else I'd rather dance with.
"Yeah," I said. "Be my date?"
A smile the likes of which I'd never seen burst onto his face, and my heart did something that defied explanation. It felt amazing to have put that expression on his face. I'd do anything I could to keep it there.
"I can hardly wait.”
6
4th May
“I was wondering if you’d mind if I spent a little bit of time with Fae today?” my mother asked over breakfast. I looked up from my cereal and saw the eagerness in her eyes.
“I think she would love to spend some time with her grandmother,” I replied.
“And grandfather. Your father has agreed to take a little time away from his duties today.”
My father was a great man, but he wasn’t the type to want to spend time with a baby. My mother must have bent his ear to get him to agree.
“I was thinking of heading out to the stables anyway,” I said. Almost as soon as the words had escaped my lips, a knowing smile appeared on her face.
“To see Jay?” she inquired, moving around the table to pick Fae up from her crib.
“To see the unicorns,” I said aloud. Among other things.
Pushing my still-full cereal bowl away, I got up from the table, eager to be away from my mother questioning me about Jay. With a kiss to both Mother and Fae, I set off for the staviary. I once again asked the guards to wait outside, and, respecting my privacy, they agreed to do so. I suspected they let me go into the staviary alone because they knew Jay would be there. It wasn’t Jay, however, that I’d made this particular visit for. Well, not only Jay. I needed to speak to someone else first.
The mother unicorn poked her head over her stall's door and fixed those intimidating golden eyes on me. They looked hopeful as she waited for my news.
"Any word?" Zacarina's voice echoed in my mind, and I shook my head in response, replying out loud.
“I wish I had better news. But we haven't seen hide or horn of any of your herd since they disappeared," I reported grimly.
She sighed, a more horse-like sound than the voice that followed. "I feared as much. Once I knew they were gone, I could feel the difference in the air. With them gone, it’s—” she trailed off, searching for the right word “—emptier, somehow. My foal and I are alone here now.”
Alone.
The word struck me. I could understand that feeling. A sinking feeling of despair—that no one would understand her grief or what she'd lost. I'd felt so alone in the days following Luka's death. Some days, I still did. But this was different--Luka had died. I'd seen his body, his soul fled from it. The life and color drained from his cheeks. And the unicorns weren't dead. I refused to believe that was the case. All hope was not lost for them.
Besides, regardless of who we had or hadn’t lost, I wasn't alone. And neither was Zacarina. There were other unicorns in the staviary, the ones that worked for the palace.
I moved in front of her to cup her long horse face between my hands and leaned my forehead toward her horn. "Now, you listen here," I demanded fiercely, meeting her gaze, golden eye to golden eye. "You are not alone. You may not have your flock right now, but you have me. I am fighting for you. For all of you. And I am going to do everything in my power to ensure that your brethren are returned to you. And I know it's not the same as having them back or having someone who can understand you, but there are other humans working to help as well. Jay's trying to help me find Rumpelstiltskin. We have men patrolling in the meadows in the hopes that the culprit will return to the scene of the crime. We'll find whoever did this, and we'll get your herd back."
Zacarina moved so that her chin rested upon my shoulder. A bolt of fierce pride and determination lanced through me. "You're right, young one. And it's time I did something to help as well."
I smiled and slipped inside the stall. “I thought you might say something like that. Why do you think I'm here?"
I twisted my hair up from its loose waves into a messy sort of bun and stripped off my overcoat--an elaborate, gaudy thing with a train that hid my choice of footwear. It had been a gift from a visiting dignitary from lands far colder than Vale. In their culture, this was a light frock. Here in Vale with our temperate climate, it had me sweating. Underneath, I wore riding breeches, boots, and a tunic.
I'd ridden a unicorn bareback before—I felt a pang in my chest when I thought of the young unicorn I'd called Misty, who had been brought to the staviary at around the same time as Zacarina and Baby. Unlike them, she'd elected not to stay very long. Misty had left and likely was wherever the rest of the unicorn flock was now.
Thank the gods Zacarina had elected to stay behind with her offspring.
I could have taken any number of the palace unicorns, the ones that delivered parcels and notes, but I didn’t have the same affinity with them as I did with Zacarina. Besides, flying terrified me. At least I’d ridden Zacarina before, and she knew about my fear of heights.
She gave me her permission to fasten a saddle and stirrups over her back.
“Not too tight. And none of that bridle and reins nonsense either,” she commanded sternly. “You can hold onto my mane.”
I nodded. There wouldn't have been any sense in that anyway. Bridles and reins were used to steer a mount in the direction you wished to go. My newfound abilities were certainly strange, but they did mean that I wouldn't have any trouble telling Zacarina where we were going.
I opened the stall door and motioned her out into the hall. There, we were met with a stern-looking Jay. His arms were crossed over his chest, and one eyebrow arched wryly.
"And where, exactly, do you young ladies think you are going?" he asked.
His impression of my mother was uncanny. But unlike with her, I didn't try to play him off. "We're going to try to find Zacarina's flock," I said, with one hand on her to keep her calm. "No one else has thought to try an aerial search before. I think it's worth a shot."
Zacarina pranced in place, a little worried. "He'll try to stop us."
I put the other hand on her flank as well, trying to calm her. "Shh. It's fine. Jay will help us."
She calmed under my touch.
Jay uncrossed his arms, watching us. "You have such a way with them," he said, sounding awed. "It's like they understand you."
If only you knew. My chest tightened with regret. Maybe someday, I’d be able to tell him the truth.
Jay took a deep breath and nodded once. “I think you're right," he said. "It is worth a shot. But you're not going alone."
I started to protest and he held up a hand. “Don’t even try. I don't want to hear it, Lia. We have no idea who or what is after the unicorns. It could be dangerous. If they went to the trouble to take all of the unicorns and they see you astride one they missed..." He shuddered and looked away. "I don't want to think about what might happen to you. Maybe they'd take you too. Maybe they'd cast you aside. But I don't think they’d leave you alive and well, able to tell others of their identity. With two of us, if someone takes Zacarina down, we just might stand a fighting chance."
I saw his point, but that didn't mean that I had to like it. "Fine," I acquiesced. "You can come with us. But—” I thumbed myself in the chest. “—I am in charge up there. What I say, goes."
He rolled his eyes. "Yes, General Eliana."
His brow crinkled as he surveyed Zacarina. “You forgot to dress her the rest of the way.”
“Did I?” I feigned ignorance. Zacarina had expressly forbidden a bridle, so I knew that wasn’t going to happen. “Oh, you m
ean the reins and everything? I tried. She wasn’t having it. And you know we don’t do anything to the unicorns they don’t damn well want us to. She’ll get us back safely. Her foal is here.”
“Good point.” Without any more arguments to make, he started toward the main staviary entrance, and I hastily rushed to stop him, putting my hands against his chest to halt him in his place.
"No, no. Let's... go out the back way."
He looked down at me and covered my hands with his. "Why, Miss Eliana... Am I to suppose that you didn't inform your guards or mother about this half-cocked plan of yours? Why, I am shocked! Shocked, I say!"
I swatted at him. "Yes," I hissed. "Okay? You got me. We're off on a secret mission, but she has Fae with her, so I’m hoping she won’t notice my departure."
My stomach growled, rather undercutting my stern voice.
Jay's lip twitched, and I held up a finger. "Don't," I warned with as fierce a glare as I could muster. "Don't you dare laugh at me."
He held up his hands innocently. "Laugh? I would never. But you know, I think, dear princess, that you might be hungry. Could this mission wait just a few more minutes while I grab my lunch for us to share?" His eyes flicked to Zacarina and then back to me. "I may have an extra PB and J in there for Madam Zacarina as well."
“Lunch? I’ve just come from breakfast!”
"Get the sandwich."
I whipped my head around to look at Zacarina, who only stared back at me stoically. Well, I guess that answered the question of whether or not she could understand all humans or just me.
"Yes, fine, get the food," I said, stepping to the side so he could slip past me and Zacarina. "But be quick about it!"
He winked at me, and off he went. "Back in a jiffy."
He returned with the food fairly quickly, throwing a sandwich to Zacarina and putting the rest in a saddlebag. I tried not to pay attention to the flutter that ran through me as Jay helped me up onto Zacarina’s back.
My nerves soon took over whatever I’d felt at Jay’s touch as we cantered out of the staviary and took to the skies.
Eliana: Remembering Rumpelstiltskin (Kingdom of Fairytales Boxset Book 5) Page 13
