Page 24 of Prince of the Northwest Forest
I spend my time watching people walk across the plaza and not-so-secretly studying Justice until he’s finished working.
An hour later, we’re again in the forest, flanked by my security. “How’s it going finding your brother?” Justice asks.
“Not well,” I admit. “I wish he’d sent a note or something. Or that someone could tell us what’s going on.” I shake my head. “I’m going to have to go back home again soon. This experiment of working at the hotel isn’t succeeding. There’s simply no trace of him, no matter what people or animals I ask.”
“Do you want me to ask around?”
“If it comes up, that would be great. But I don’t know who you would ask.”
“Me neither, but I thought I’d be polite.”
“Thanks.”
Justice and I hike for several miles, stopping to talk to Sandra, a northern spotted owl; a yellow-pine chipmunk named Lloyd; a pair of black-tailed jackrabbits; and a yellow-bellied marmot who goes by Skippy.
No trace of Mats. “It’s discouraging,” I say, after questioning a family of ground squirrels while Justice watched.
“I know what it’s like to search for something and have no leads,” he says. “Do you think we should turn back?”
“Yes. I think this is all I can do for now.” The sun is low in the sky. My stomach gurgles loudly. “Sorry. I must be getting hungry.”
Justice smiles. “I am, too. What are you doing for dinner tonight?” We take the fork in the trail back down to Princedelphia.
“I was going to eat at the hotel restaurant again.”
He scrapes a hand through his hair and stares down at his feet. “Want to have dinner with me?”
My hands fall to my sides. “In this city, I can’t really eat out anywhere that isn’t connected to the hotel, because they don’t accept our currency.”
“Oh yeah? What is your currency?”
“Truffles.”
Justice gives me a quizzical look. “You use mushrooms for money? Or chocolate?”
“Mushrooms. The kind that grow in the roots of Douglas-fir trees.”
“So that’s why you’re working at the hotel? To pay for room and board while you look for your brother?”
“No. That is, I could find a currency exchange if I wanted to. But I thought it would be an adventure if I did this.” Saying the words makes me sound … like a privileged jerk. “It’s presumptuous, isn’t it? That working is an adventure. For most of the world, it’s the way people survive.” Chastened, I look down at my feet. “I apologize.”
Justice nudges me with his shoulder. “I won’t hold it against you. But come over to my place. I’ll cook. Then we won’t have to worry about currency exchanges.”
“Then I will be in your debt.”
His grin gets even wider. “Ooh, that sounds like fun. I’ll have to think of a way to cash it in.”
For some reason, I look forward to whatever he thinks of.
Chapter Six
JUSTICE
What was I thinking, inviting a prince over to my studio apartment? It’s not fancy. In fact, that’s the whole point: I want it to be just what I need and no more.
I tug down my shirt hem and straighten my shoulders. I refuse to be embarrassed about where I live. This is who and what I am.
The bigger question is: Why did I invite him? To be friends?
