by Sarah Noffke
Evan strode down the corridor on the second floor. It was unrecognizable from any other hallway he’d seen in the Castle. That wasn’t unusual. After a hundred years, the Castle didn’t really look the same from day to day. However, this time, Evan didn’t recognize any part of it. There wasn’t the usual suit of armor in what he guessed was the eastern hallway that led to the great staircase.
“Have you had a nap?” Evan asked the Castle, sensing that it had some pent-up energy after taking a snooze. It was such a strange beast and not totally the groundskeeper. Ainsley had tried to explain it to him once, and it made his head hurt. The Castle was apparently part of the gnome. It was like his heart or head or something. All Evan knew was that it was whacked-out crazy at the moment.
He strode down the hallway, blinking at the far end. It seemed to go on for miles.
“Stupid deceptive visuals,” Evan muttered to himself. The Castle either did change, or it appeared it had changed, but for Evan’s mind, it was two of the same.
He felt the entryway draft, with the fresh scent of the mountains wafting in from the Expanse. That meant the great staircase would be up ahead.
“Ha-ha,” he triumphantly called to the Castle. “You can make it look like one thing, but you can’t erase what’s there.”
Evan turned abruptly and put his hand to a seemingly solid wall and found that his hand went through it like it was indeed an illusion.
“Bam!” Evan exclaimed. “Found the great staircase even with your tricks. You’re losing your edge, old shorty!”
Evan was about to feel around for the banister so he could safely step onto the great staircase and through the faux wall. However, he caught a strange statue in his peripheral vision that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.
Turning to face it directly, Evan tilted his head, finding it incredibly curious. “What are you and where did you come from?”
The statue was an angel that matched his height. It was made of gray stone and wore a long flowing gown tied at the waist, and its wings spread behind it. It was unclear whether the angel was female or male because it had its face covered with both hands. Evan got the strange impression that it was weeping.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
How was she supposed to find something when she didn’t know what she was looking for? Sophia wondered while striding through the Castle. She searched everywhere for the pouch that Hiker described, half-expecting to find it lying on the floor when she turned various corners.
It was strange that whatever the object was had belonged to Oscar Beaufont. Why had Oscar given it to Hiker? And right before the Great War? The timing was odd. Sophia hadn’t given much thought to her ancestor, who had been a dragonrider. Now she’d learned that Hiker knew him. She guessed that she would have assumed that since she found her ancestor’s picture in Adam Rivalry’s room with many other dragonriders.
Oscar had been alive right before the Great War. Sophia guessed that he became a war casualty like so many Dragon Elite when they faced Thad Reinhart’s army.
The Castle was so overwhelmingly large that it could take some time to find the pouch. There were at least five stories and a basement and possibly more stories, depending on the Castle’s mood and whether it had napped lately, which usually meant additions and renovations.
Before, when Quiet had required that Sophia find various parts of a key to “unlock” Lunis’ Pad, she had enlisted Trin’s help, knowing that the housekeeper got around the Castle more than anyone else. However, Sophia knew she couldn’t do that this time. Hiker had asked her to keep things private on this matter, and she respected that. He trusted her not to look in the pouch, and she couldn’t require that of Trin. Also, Sophia suspected that she needed to search for and find the bag. If it was easier for residents of the Castle to find something if it belonged to their family, that meant she was the one who had to look for it.
The possibilities of where it could be were overwhelming. Sophia found herself in a study of sorts, but it wasn’t Hiker’s. She didn’t think there was another one in the Castle since she hadn’t run across this particular room yet. That spoke to the reality of how hard it would be to find this mystery object.
Sophia opened the top drawer of the desk in the middle of the dusty room, finding various objects within like quills and ink wells and papers. No velvet pouch.
She sighed and closed the drawer. A poof of dust sprang into the air and made her cough. She covered her mouth and coughed again.
“Castle, do you think you can point me in the direction of this pouch Hiker needs?” Sophia asked. “We can play the hot and cold game. Or you could simply put the object in front of me. I won’t tell Hiker. I’ll make it sound like it was a complicated scavenger hunt, and I only won it due to my diligent efforts.”
She waited for a response. When there wasn’t one, Sophia ducked and went back to rummaging in the desk.
“Evan?” Trin called from the hallway. “Is that you?”
Sophia tilted her head, listening as the cyborg drew closer. “It’s me, Trin.”
She lifted from behind the desk as Trin poked her head through the open door. “You looking for Evan?”
Trin nodded, looking worried and confused. “I haven’t seen this room before.”
“I know.” Sophia pushed to her feet. “I just found it myself. I guess it’s not new since there’s a fine layer of dust on everything.”
“Whose office is it?” Trin looked around at the various maps on the walls.
Sophia glanced at the papers on the desk, looking for a name. She probably shouldn’t have been surprised when she saw a familiar one at the bottom of a correspondence. It read,
Sincerely,
Oscar Beaufont
Sophia gulped, wondering what the implications of her stumbling across her ancestor’s office were. Timing had to be a factor as well.
“It’s one of my relatives’,” Sophia answered.
“Oh, wow.” Trin’s eyes widened. “That’s amazing that there have been two Beaufonts who were members of the Dragon Elite.”
“Amazing,” Sophia agreed, off in thought, trying to string together why something suddenly felt out of place. “Also perplexing.” She shook off the confusion and pulled her chin up. “You were looking for Evan. He was downstairs looking for his ax in the weapons room.”
Trin’s brow creased in a frown. “That’s the thing. I was in the weapons room organizing when I got the distinct impression that Evan is lost.”
“Lost?” Sophia asked. “How could he be lost? He knows his way around pretty easily, although…” She looked around at the new-slash-old office they’d found. “I guess that doesn’t really apply to the Castle.”
Trin nodded. “I don’t think I’ll know my way around this place even after a century. I feel bad for the new riders.”
Sophia perked up. “The new riders. When I first got to the Castle, Ainsley told me that someone should accompany me to and from my room until I got used to the place. Not only because it’s big and changes on a whim, but because the Castle likes to play tricks on new residents. Maybe that’s the feeling you had, that one of the new riders got lost in the Castle.”
“Maybe.” Trin didn’t sound convinced as she strode over to a set of drapes and pulled them back.
The afternoon light streamed through, giving the room a whole new look. It was then that Sophia realized there had been lamps on in the office, as though the Castle expected them to enter it.
Trin peered out the window, craning her head to look around. “One, two, three,” she counted and pointed out the window before turning to face Sophia. “All the new dragonriders are on the Expanse.”
“And Evan?” Sophia asked. “Maybe he already got his ax and returned to the grounds before you went into the weapons room.”
Trin looked around the grounds again and shook her head. “I don’t see him, and there’s Mahkah with the dragons and Wilder training the new riders.”
Sophia pulled her mouth
to the side, thinking. “That’s weird. Well, I’m sure he’ll show up. He probably got distracted by his reflection in a mirror and is lavishing himself with compliments.”
Trin laughed, taking notice of Sophia behind the desk. “Are you looking for something?”
“Sort of,” Sophia answered. “I mean, yes.”
“Oh, can I help?” Trin asked. “Like I did with the key pieces?”
“Thanks,” Sophia answered. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
When a look of disappointment flickered over Trin’s face, Sophia quickly added, “Well, and that’s mostly because I don’t know what I’m looking for. I have a feeling that the Castle has me on a detective mission, but I don’t have any clues at this point.”
Trin nodded, seemingly relieved. “I guess there would be all sorts of interesting things you’d find in your ancestor’s office. Maybe there’s a family secret…”
Sophia nodded. “I’m certain there are tons of family secrets.” She looked around at the many cabinets and shelves. “Unearthing them will be the fun part.”
Trin laughed. “I like that you use the word fun when most might be overwhelmed by such a task.”
“Well, overwhelmed fits too,” Sophia agreed, then thought of something. “Hey, Trin, I wondered if we could have a Thanksgiving dinner here. I know that most aren’t Americans, but with the holiday coming up, I hoped we could bring it to the Gullington. I mean, we have a lot to be grateful for even if there are a lot of complications for the Dragon Elite out there in the world.”
Trin thought about it for a moment. “I’m happy to do it, but it all depends on what ingredients the Castle offers me. I can’t make a turkey dinner without a turkey.”
Sophia nodded and giggled. “That’s true. Well, maybe the Castle will comply. I think it would be nice to have a celebration. Something to welcome the new riders to the Gullington and make it feel festive. Christmas is coming up after all, so getting in the holiday spirit would be fun.”
Trin returned the smile. “Okay, I’ll see what I can do. What kind of pie would you prefer?”
“Chocolate,” Sophia said at once, not having to think on it.
“Chocolate?” Trin asked. “That’s not a very traditional flavor of pie for Thanksgiving. No apple or pumpkin or sweet potato?”
Sophia grimaced. “Can we keep the fruit and vegetables out of dessert, please?”
Trin winked at her. “Fair enough. You don’t ask for much, and that seems like a reasonable request. Chocolate pie it is, then.”
“Thanks,” Sophia said as her phone rang in her pocket. She withdrew it, surprised to see who was calling her. Sophia sighed, preparing for the headache that would no doubt follow afterward. She accepted the call and put the phone to her ear.
“What’s up, King Rudolf?”
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Evan studied the angel statue for a long moment before deciding that he’d better get back to work on the Expanse training the new dragonriders. He spun to the faux wall and heard something move behind him.
Tensing, Evan turned back around to find the angel statue closer. “Did you just move?” he asked the object as if it would answer him back.
It didn’t.
Shaking his head, Evan turned back around, realizing that the Castle was attempting to play games with him. “Lame attempt, Castle. Angel statues that sneak up on me.” He waved his hands in the air. “Oh, I’m sooooo scared.”
There was more movement at Evan’s back as he neared the fake wall. Again he turned with a smirk. This time the angel statue was even closer, but now its hands weren’t obscuring its face but instead held its arms as though it was blocking out bright sunlight.
“What the hell?” Evan asked. He studied the statue, trying to see around its hands to determine what its face looked like. Deciding this wasn’t worth his time, Evan shrugged and spun back for the staircase.
There was a swooshing sound at his back and a rush of air. Evan, feeling like he was about to be run over, whipped around to find the angel almost right upon him. Now he got the glimpse he’d wanted.
The thing was scary as hell with its stone eyes wide and its teeth bared like a vampire’s. Evan nearly stumbled back, trying to gain distance from the thing that was right on top of him.
“Whoa, man!” Evan exclaimed, catching himself on the real part of the wall that was solid and didn’t lead to the edge of the stairs where he could have fallen to his death…or more likely, a really bad headache. “Dude, Castle, are you trying to make me break my neck with your creepy angel? There’s playing around, and there’s being plain mean, and I think you can guess what this is.”
He waited, expecting the Castle to make another move. Maybe have its angel statue attack him or something.
Evan shook his head and scoffed at the statue. “I guess that’s all you’ve got, Castle. You’re such a coward, having an angel fight your battles. Well, a stone statue can’t best me, and I think we both know that.”
Daring to take his eyes off the angel statue again, Evan turned for the stairs, but this time he didn’t find the faux wall. All he saw was blackness as he was transported through space and dropped into a new corridor that he recognized as belonging to the fifth floor. He landed hard on the stone floor with a little more force than he thought was necessary.
Evan stood and dusted himself off. “Seriously, now you’re moving me around this place? That’s your new game? Seems pretty dull, Castle. I guess that’s all you’ve got.”
He glanced out the window once he came to a bend in the hallway and found that the guys were still on the Expanse, training. “If I get in trouble for being late, you’re going to pay, Castle,” he threatened before turning the corner and halting at the sight of the figure at the far end of the corridor.
It was another one of those stone angel statues. This one like the other with its hands covering its weeping face.
Chapter Forty
“What’s up?” Sophia asked King Rudolf over the phone as Trin waved and trotted back down the corridor, probably continuing her search for Evan.
“4 Non Blondes,” Rudolf answered randomly. “Okay, my turn to give you a song title and you name the band. Fun and Games.”
“What? What are you talking about?”
“Nope,” Rudolf replied. “There are a few artists who have had songs with Fun and Games as the title. I would have accepted Kelsea Ballerini, The Connells, Tiahzzi Cherrelle, Chuck Mangione, Giulia, and Pennywise.”
“Are you high right now?” Sophia asked, quite seriously.
“Probably,” Rudolf replied. “Also, I don’t get why What’s Up is called that because the entire song, the 4 Non Blondes say, ‘What’s going on,’ not ‘What’s up.’”
“This seems like a really good use of my time,” Sophia testily responded. “Is this about Ramy? Is he working out okay? You haven’t ordered him to make certain life choices, have you?”
“Ramy?” Rudolf questioned. “I don’t know a Ramy.”
Sophia sighed. “The guy I hired to man Heals Pills.”
“Oh, Ramy-Cans!” Rudolf stated. “Sorry, that’s my pet name for him. I didn’t recognize the name before when you said it.”
“I’m not going to explain why that defies logic,” Sophia muttered.
“He’s fine,” Rudolf stated. “He’s great with the customers and keeps things stocked. Totally took a load off me so I could return to my kingdom business. Although Ramy-Cans does try to sell our customers books that he’s written. He likes to slip it into the conversation, seemingly casually.”
“Good.” Sophia sighed in relief. “That was the concern my fairy godmother had, as well as you having time for your project with Lee, I think.”
“Lee?” Rudolf questioned. “I don’t know a Lee.”
“The assassin baker who you’re going into business with to use her talents to fix water supplies worldwide,” Sophia supplied.
“Oh, you mean Lee-Beans. You want to know what my nick
name is for you?”
“Not really.” Sophia looked around the office that belonged to Oscar Beaufont and wondered what she was searching for.
“Sophia-Duck,” Rudolf said abruptly.
Instinctively, Sophia ducked. She spun when on the floor, looking for something that could have knocked into her. There wasn’t anything.
“Why did you tell me to duck?” she asked into the phone still pressed to the side of her head.
“I didn’t. That’s your nickname from me. Sophia-Duck.”
“That’s weird,” Sophia replied.
“Yeah, and Liv is Liv-Ace. Rory is Rory-Soary. Stefan is Stefan-the-Horrible.”
“Although this is fascinating information, can we get to the reason you called?” Sophia stood from her crouched position.
“Sure thing,” Rudolf stated casually. “Not a big deal at all, but I thought that you should know about something.”
“If it’s a weird rash you got from Serena, I don’t need to know details. Use some of the Heals Pills ointment.”
“Heavens no,” Rudolf stated. “Those rashes cleared up ages ago.”
“What a relief,” Sophia said dryly.
“Anyway, I returned to my kingdom to find some mean guys circulating in Las Vegas,” Rudolf explained.
Sophia tensed, remembering that there had been a spotting of dragons in Las Vegas. “Mean guys?”
“Yeah, and not the ones like usual who come in and question me about avoiding tax laws and ask if I’m abiding by gambling laws.”
“You mean the Feds?” Sophia questioned.
“I call them a name I can’t say,” Rudolf retorted. “But yeah, this isn’t them. They’ve been on the Strip, intimidating the tourists and roughing up the locals. I thought you might want to know about it.”
