Page 29 of Tis The Season for Secrets
“Will? Not Will Duncan?” Lyla nearly choked on her coffee.
“You know him?”
Her new friend’s eyes widened. “Aguardianbrought you here?”
Juliet nodded, unsure of what that meant for her situation.
“It all makes sense now. You must be a legacy! Though Will should’ve explained the situation to you before giving you the bell. Legacies can return to Yule should they wish to, once they turn twenty-six,” Lyla told her, as though Juliet would understand exactly what a legacy was.
“What’s a legacy? And Will isn’t technically my guardian – he didn’t really get a chance to explain before we ended up here,” Juliet said, unsure of how to explain. Lyla was right about onething; he should have warned her about the bell when she got the chest. Even a note would have spared her the past however many hours.
“Some families or individuals decide to leave Yule, and their descendants can return to Yule should they wish. Some descendants, or as we call them, legacies, aren’t informed about their origins, so it can be a bit of a shock. Happy Christmas, your family comes from a mystical winter wonderland that’s kept secret from the rest of the world!”
Nana Rose’s letter mentioned that the Frost family had secrets, but this is far from what I could ever have imagined. The chest was delivered a month after my 26th birthday.That explained why Nana Rose had waited, at least.
“I don’t know why the age is twenty-six – I’m still learning these things,” Lyla went on, then paused, seeing that Juliet was struggling to take it all in. “Sorry, I ramble when I’m nervous. It’s nice to meet someone who’s also new to Yule. Anyway, you’re in luck, because I know where Will lives. He’s a friend of Mason’s, so I can vouch for him. His townhouse is only one alley over on Cane Lane. If he isn’t your guardian, are you together? He is such a stinker for keeping his life private. Guardians can know everything about everyone, but Rudolph forbid they let anyone in on their secrets.”
“Tell me about it,” Juliet muttered into her creamy hot chocolate, before taking another sip. “You were right when you said this is the best in the world. I love the hint of spice.”
“That would be the chilli. My personal favourite flavour – thought you could do with a kick. Will hasn’t been home in a few months, so we figured he’d met someone while working on the Outside.” Lyla frowned, picking at the rim of her mug as though the idea troubled her.
“The Outside?” Juliet asked, diverting the topic away from dating to facts about her supposed ancestral home.Dad has a serious amount of explaining to do once I get home.
“The world outside Yule. Anything beyond the mountains that our little festive world sits in.”
“I don’t mean to sound rude, but you do know this is crazy? No one lives in the North Pole. It’s uninhabitable.”
“It’s—”
“If you say magic, I might scream.” Juliet buried her head in her hands.
“Scream all you like,” Lyla chuckled, “won’t make it any less true. I had a hard time believing when I first arrived, but it’s about faith. Yule is the heart of faith and hope in this world. I think I should leave the rest to Will to explain, though. I’m sure he’s going crazy wondering where you’ve gone.”
“He was in—”
Juliet didn’t have time to finish her thought before Will himself frantically opened the door. The bell chiming over the door made her jump, afraid she’d end up in some other magical universe.
Will glared at her. His cheeks were pink from the cold, and suddenly she thought that being transported anywhere else but here sounded good.
“Juliet! You scared me! How could you run off like that? Do you know what could’ve happened to you?” His outburst caused more than a few people to stare. Ignoring Lyla, he towered over Juliet as though protecting her from the onlookers.
“Will, can I talk to you for a moment?” Lyla asked, an edge to her voice that said it was a request, not a suggestion.
Will didn’t budge, his eyes on Juliet. He clenched his jaw as Lyla rested a hand on his forearm.
“Outside, before you cause a scene,” Lyla said quietly. “Juliet, do you mind if we catch up for a moment?”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Juliet promised, mostly to reassure Will. Where was she supposed to run to? He had her necklace.
Will’s nostrils flared; he stared at the ceiling for a moment before finally looking back down at her. “Don’t move.” He leaned over her chair. “And don’t mention your last name to anyone.”
“I won’t.” She gritted her teeth, trying not to let her irritation show.
He hesitated, holding the arm of the chair. She rolled her eyes. He could doubt her all he wanted, but he’d have to take her word for it if he didn’t want to cause a bigger scene than he already had.
“Cross my heart,” she mocked, making the X on her chest.
He huffed out his frustration before following Lyla outside.
