by Carli Castle
“You’re far from stuffy,” he said watching her put her feet into the pool. She smiled, and it had the same effect in the pit of his stomach as her laughter did.
“I worry about that, you know,” she informed him in a serious tone, lifting one of her feet up in the air, her skirt falling back and revealing her calf. She had a thin, silver chain with a dangling crescent around her ankle, which she took off before putting her foot back in. He didn’t know why, but he found the movement incredibly sexy.
“If I may ask you, why are you here?”
“I could ask you the same thing,” she countered, looking straight at him as if waiting for an answer.
He shook his head. “I asked first.”
“Should I start throwing my title around to get an answer?”
“No way, you can’t tell me not to call you by it and then use it to get your way. This friendship is going to be as un-royal as it can possibly be.”
She peered at him through narrowed eyes.
“You promise?”
He stuck out his pinky. She looked at it, puzzled, and he had to laugh again. He often forgot not everyone knew those little things he found so amusing about the sleeper realm.
“Is that some kind of profane sign,” she asked, still looking at his pinky with interest.
“No, it’s the way some people make promises.”
“Oh, yes, I forgot!” The sarcasm wasn’t lost in him, as her eyes opened wide before she stuck her little finger out as well. He entwined his with it, holding it there for a split second.
“Pinky promise.”
“Pinky promise,” she repeated, obviously holding back a smile. “Is that from the other realm?”
“It is. I find myself being fascinated by it.”
“Can’t say I blame you,” she said. “So, what were you doing before I got here?”
“Drawing,” he said without thinking and then realized she’d totally played him. “Damn. You win this time, but don’t think it will become a habit.”
“Lucas, dear,” she started, putting a hand on his shoulder. The spot she touched felt as if it was burning. “Now that I’m in your life, you don’t get to win. Ever again.”
“We’ll just have to see about that.”
She lifted her brows.
“Oh, you will,” she muttered. “What were you drawing?”
His heart leaped. “Random stuff.”
“Show me,” she commanded, sitting up and shooting her hands forward.
He grabbed the book from the spot between them, hoping she wouldn’t just grab it and see what he’d been drawing when she interrupted him. The last thing he wanted was for her to think he was some kind of massive creep. He opened it to the first page where he had a sketch of the sun setting onto the horizon, hoping she wouldn’t thumb through it any more than that. The picture was black and white, as he didn’t often add color to his drawings, but there was still something about it that made it look alive.
“This is amazing,” she whispered, staring at it. She started to turn the page, but stopped and looked at him. “May I?”
He took a deep breath to calm his galloping heart and nodded. There was no going back now. How did you tell a princess that she couldn’t do something she wanted to do?
She flipped to the next page where he had a sketch of his house up on the cliff as seen from the valley.
“What is this place,” she asked. “I see it from my balcony and have wondered who lives there.”
“That’s my house,” he said, his insides dancing at knowing she’d seen his home. It seemed insignificant, but somehow, it mattered.
“It’s lovely,” she whispered and glanced up at him. “Does it ever get lonely?”
“Sometimes, but I like being alone most of the time,” he admitted.
She smiled and continued to go through the drawings—the lighthouse he could see from the cliff; the bird he’d found perched on a branch on the tree right outside his house one morning; the snowy edge of the forest with its tall, thin trees; the council building. Finally, she landed on a picture of his mother sitting at the dining table. She was writing in a notebook, her face serene. Her hand was under her chin and her eyes looked dreamy. It was his most recent drawing of her.
Elle gasped.
“She’s beautiful.” Her whisper was full of wonder and she looked back at him with sparkling eyes. “Your mother?”
He nodded, hoping she wouldn’t turn the page and discover the half-finished drawing of her he’d just done.
“She was writing down recipes for her potions,” he offered, somehow knowing she would like to have the background information.
“Is that her talent,” she asked, closing the book and handing it back to him. He breathed a sigh of relief as he took it from her and tucked it at his side.
“And what a talent it is,” he replied, filled with pride. “She makes all kinds of potions, from household to medicinal. She sells them to healing houses in all surrounding islands. She also has an apothecary in town.”
“That’s impressive.”
“It is. She grows all her herbs too. She has quite a talent for making things grow,” he offered, but leaving out the fact that he could do it too. She would probably think he was a little weird. Who wouldn’t? “But how about you, Elle? What brought you here tonight?”
She took a deep breath, her smile slipping away. “I just love this place.” She looked down briefly as she said it and he knew she wasn’t telling him everything.
Now he was intrigued. He wanted to know what could take that beautiful smile away from her face.
“I’m sure you do. It’s beautiful and peaceful,” he said, then waited for her to tell him what was bothering her. She remained silent for a long time. So long, he thought she wouldn’t talk anymore.
“I’m not sure I want to talk about it right this moment.” She shrugged one shoulder, looking down into the luminous water.
He imagined part of that was because of her training. Or maybe she was just like Caleb, who hated talking about feelings.
“I respect that,” he said looking at her. “But I will also offer a good listening ear in case you ever need it. Talking helps.”
It made her smile again, and it reached all the way to her eyes. He suddenly had the feeling that it wasn’t often someone offered a listening ear to her. People respected her because of her position, because of the title she seemed to hate. However, because of that same respect, no one ever thought that maybe what she needed was someone to spend time with her, one human to another. No titles, no fluff, no nonsense.
“Thank you, that is greatly appreciated, Lucas.”
“You’re welcome,” he said. “So what’s your talent, Elle?”
She looked taken aback by his question. Her smile wiped away and she regarded him for a moment before she shook her head once, as if to clear it. How he wanted to know what she was thinking at that exact moment.
Healing.
The word appeared in his head. It wasn’t a voice, it was more of a visual, and it just happened like it had several times before. It came, and he almost knew what she was going to say before she said it.
“Uh…” She stopped and smiled again. “I like healing.” Her voice was tentative, like she was expecting for him to be disappointed by it.
“That’s nice. My father’s a healer.”
“Oh I know, he’s brilliant,” she said and blushed to the roots of her hair.
Finding it utterly charming, since she seemed like the kind of girl that didn’t blush often, he held back a smile.
“Are you stalking me, by any chance,” he joked, then laughed when her blush deepened. “I’m kidding.”
“I know that,” she mumbled.
“I am aware of how well-known my father is.”
“He’s amazing!”
“Now you’ll make me blush.”
“Why? You’re not him,” she countered, and he barked out a surprised laugh.
“Definitely no
t,” he said. “But still, thank you, on behalf of my father.”
“I just speak the truth.”
“Right,” he said. “Healing is a noble career, it’s nice you’re interested in doing it.”
“Tell that to my parents,” she muttered.
“They don’t want you to pursue your talent?”
“I’m a huge disappointment to them,” she said then closed her eyes and sighed. “That’s not fair. I’m just different than my sisters. I want different things. Things that aren’t appropriate for me, because I am a princess and there are certain expectations that come with that.”
“It’s okay to want things that are different than those destined for you.”
“It should be.”
“My dad always says things have a way of working out, so don’t worry about it too much.”
“Your dad is a sensible man.”
“That he is.”
A comfortable stretch of silence followed. He studied her features, realizing the silence was not awkward at all, like it tended to be with other girls. It was amiable, and calm, and he could feel the companionship of her presence wash over him. He hadn’t had a pleasant time like that with a girl in… well, since the last time he’d talked to her.
She looked at the watch he hadn’t noticed she had on her wrist.
“I better go.” She stood. “I have somewhere to be.”
He didn’t ask what places she had to be at that hour, even though he was infinitely curious about it. He stood as well, and walked out of the nook with her, not even thinking of his bag, which lay discarded on the rock back in the nook. He was almost hypnotized by her perfume. He wanted to spend more time with her, regretting that she had to leave.
“Lucas, you don’t have to take me home,” she said, turning to look up at him, a small smile playing around her mouth.
“You’re a lady. I have a deep set need to be a gentleman,” he told her. “Also, my mom would box my ears if she got wind of me not doing so.”
“Who would tell her about it,” she asked. “Seriously, I can teleport to right under my window, so nothing can happen to me.”
“And I am sure you’re brilliant at teleporting, but I will have to insist. Let me see you home, please.”
She sighed and cocked her hip, as if considering it. She nodded once. “Fine, but you cannot make a habit out of it.”
“Sorry, it will probably happen again, if I’m completely honest with you.”
She chuckled and he almost wanted to high-five himself. He was such a dork.
They teleported together to palace grounds, under a big balcony. They were in complete shadow, moonlight casting a silvery glow on the rest of the grounds around them.
“This is my stop,” she said, pointing up at the balcony.
He looked up, then back at her. “Wait, you mean you’re going to climb up to the balcony,” he asked her, a little astonished.
“Yeah, it’s not very princess-like to be roaming around the forest at night,” she said. “Least of all with a male companion.”
“But…”
“Don’t worry, you won’t get in trouble. Neither will I. Not much at least,” she sighed again. “Thanks for accompanying me here, even though it was unnecessary. And thank you for talking.”
“You’re welcome.” He stepped back, waiting for her to go on up, hoping she wouldn’t start climbing, get her foot caught, and fall and break something. He really did have a grim outlook on things, but he wanted to make sure anyway.
She just stood there for a moment, looking at him with wide eyes. He gestured at the balcony, and she leaned her head sideways.
“Are you seriously going to wait until I’m up on the balcony?”
“Well, yes,” he said. “You’re about to climb up, what if you fall?”
“I’m not climbing up.” She chuckled at little. “I can glide.”
“Of course you can,” he said under his breath. “Still, this is more of a compulsion for me. I was taught you wait until the lady is safely in her home before you turn around and leave.”
She lifted her brows in that way she did, like strings were holding them up by the arches, and a wicked gleam slipped into her green eyes. “So, are you going to give me a farewell kiss as well? I mean, you are doing everything a man does after a romantic date,” she said with a small smile, cocking her head.
His heart jumped, but he didn’t make a move.
“Don’t look so horrified, I’m just kidding,” she laughed.
He was taken aback by her comment, but something inside him was rolling and jumping around, because even though she had been joking, he found he wanted to kiss her. He wasn’t quite sure where it came from, because he hardly knew her, and because she also was a princess, this was highly inappropriate. But his legs didn’t listen to the message his brain was sending them.
“Sure,” he mumbled, taking her hand in his and leaning in.
Her eyes were wide, her lips parted in surprise, and before he could change his mind and do the sensible thing, he slid her against him. She didn’t respond by punching his teeth straight out of his mouth, so he came even closer. Her face lifted to his, her breathing coming a little faster through her parted lips. Her eyes turned a deep shade of emerald under the moonlight, and he could have gotten lost in them. He dipped his head, and as her eyes fluttered closed, he touched his lips to hers.
Her lips were as soft as he had expected, like they were made of clouds, and when she responded by moving them against his, he moved closer still. Her arms circled his neck, while his hands gripped at her tiny waist. He could feel her rapid heartbeat against his ribcage, matching his own.
One of his hands went to hold her behind her neck, changing the angle of the kiss, sweeping her mouth with his tongue, and when he thought he must have surely died and gone to heaven, a sound around the corner had him easing back. His head was spinning, and he was not breathing right.
He cleared his throat. “You should get inside.”
She nodded, her eyes never leaving his.
He stroked his finger down her cheek, horrified at the thought that she might be offended by the way he’d ravished her mouth.
He let his hands drop away from her and watched her glide up to her balcony, light as a feather when she landed. She lifted her hand and waved lightly before she walked into what he assumed was her room. He turned around and teleported, almost blind, his mind in a complete blur. When he reappeared by the waterfall, he picked up his supplies and put them in the bag, wondering how it was one kiss from a beautiful girl could do that to a man.
He made his way out of the waterfall, his brain swimming. He began walking, though he could have just teleported home, but he needed the fresh air to clear his head. Also, he didn’t want to end up teleporting to some strange land, since he had no control over himself.
It was dark, so he couldn’t see much, and when he was finally sure he could teleport home and not another island, he went to do just that. A rustle of branches and fallen leaves stopped him in his tracks.
His heart jumped straight to his throat, because he knew something was not right. The air started to feel heavy, so heavy he realized he’d felt exactly that when he’d found Lana Juren’s body.
The scream that filled the air made his skin crawl, and as fog began creeping around his feet, he moved forward. Cold reached all the way to his bones, and he just wanted to go home. He wanted to teleport and go to bed, and sleep and dream of Elle and that kiss. But he couldn’t do that. He couldn’t ignore that scream, and he couldn’t ignore this feeling in his chest.
“Is someone out there,” he called as he walked forward.
“Please, help me,” came another terrified scream, but this one was a feminine voice, and he realized the last one had sounded masculine.
Sweat began running down his back, over his face.
He stood in between trees, the sounds of a faceless woman pleading filling his ears.
His heart dropped and every
single hair in his body stood in attention as his eyes focused on the scene beyond the trees. There was a lot of movement. There were four figures ahead. Three tall, lanky figures in black cloaks with fingers that resembled knives raised above their heads. The young woman in front of them seemed paralyzed in terror. There was blood on the ground by her feet. A lot of it.
“HEY,” he shouted. He was either really dumb or really smart, because the four of them shot their attention to him.
It was a little odd, because he had called out before, and they were unconcerned at seeing him. He ran forward, intending to do whatever he could to get the woman away from them. She was on the ground, on her knees.
He skidded to a halt and he almost fainted when he saw the creatures clearly.
They were like nothing he had ever seen. Their faces were almost human, but their skin was sallow, gray; their eyes empty, dead. On their hands, knife-like nails gleamed in the faint light.
One of those hands slashed down and the girl cowered but didn’t move.
“RUN,” he shouted at her, angry that she was just kneeling there. But she didn’t get up and run, she stayed in that same spot, fat tears leaking from her eyes and sliding down her face.
Desperately, he ran forward again, grabbing one of the creatures by the middle and tackling it to the ground. There was a crunching noise and he was sure the creature had broken something. He felt dizzy as he tried to get up, and he started to feel heat, like lava, eating up the lining of his stomach.
“I can’t,” the girl sobbed. “Please, help me.”
He wasn’t the kind of person that thrived in any kind of scary situations. In fact, he detested anything that could get his heart pumping and ready to jump out of his chest, and at that moment, he realized he had never been more scared. With his heart beating in his ears, and his breath coming in spurts, Lucas got on his knees as the other two creatures glided toward him, their knife-claws glinting as they lifted.
He was afraid he was going to die, and he hesitated, his fear turning into something akin to frustration. Was he really going to die right there, defenseless like an animal? Like Lana had died.
