Page 18 of Enchanted in Time
Hannah laughed uncertainly. “Of course, but... I mean, the king...” She laughed again. The stranger’s penetrating gaze was making her knees go weak as she searched for the words. “Let’s just say that I’ve never heard of a King Gustav von Lichtenberg before. And I’m afraid I haven’t seen him either. I’d love to see a real king someday—and the prince as well, of course.”She giggled inanely. Since when did she chatter so much? And without even thinking about what she was saying!
“You would love to see the prince someday?” He laughed in disbelief.
Was he making fun of her for wanting to meet a prince? Well, why else would a young woman go to a ball? Or did it have to do with her age? Did he think she was no longer young enough? He also appeared to be in his mid- to late thirties, and he was at the ball.
“Who are you?” he asked, interrupting her thoughts.
“My name is Hannah Meyer. I’m from the city. And I’m totally surprised at how this ruin looks. I mean, the last time I went hiking here with my children was this past fall, and we saw nothing but overgrown walls and fragments. And now? Just look at this magnificent building! I mean, there wasn’t any construction going on in the winter. And now it’s summer. There’s no way all this could have been done in the spring...”
Ignoring her ongoing monologue, he bowed gallantly and took her hand and kissed it. “It is my extraordinary pleasure to meet you, Hannah Meyer. And I’m relieved to finally see you here. There were days when I feared you would never come. Tell me, who brought you here?”
Hannah’s cheeks flushed. “The mailman brought me the invitation, and?—”
“The letter carrier? But that can’t be true. She must have handed you the invitation herself, and...”
The stranger frowned and studied her with his blue-green eyes. Hannah blushed even more and, somewhat embarrassed, looked down at her ball gown, her hands, and her bag until she looked up again and was once more lost in the stranger’s eyes. What was the matter with her?
“How did you come here?”
“A coach came to pick me up. Just like it says on the invitation. Can you believe it? But then, with all the coaches I saw in the castle courtyard, it must not have been as special as I’d thought. For me, though, it was my first coach ride ever—and with six white horses, too. It’s just like a fairy tale. Anyway, I have to find out who plays the king so I can thank him.”
“Who plays the king?” The stranger stroked his clean-shaven chin with his gloved hand. “What sort of absurd questions are these? Does that mean you don’t know...” He shook his head as if he needed to collect his thoughts and then turned and looked once more at the setting sun.
Hannah could clearly see the longing in his eyes. And she saw something more. Grief? Melancholy? His gaze was hard to decipher but was of a depth that revealed that he was plagued by heavy thoughts. “Why are you here when you obviously want to be somewhere else?” she asked.
“As you know, I have no choice.”
“There’s always a choice. Life is short. It’s up to us what we do with it. Sure, sometimes life decides for us and denies us a say, but again and again we find ourselves in a place where we can change something. Nothing is forever—you have to take your chances!”
Who was she to advise a stranger on how to live his life? Her own life was anything but self-determined and perfect. She herself had a hard time keeping up with life, with no time for anything except her children and work. When in the past few years had she even once decided to make a change and actually done it? She couldn’t remember. Since her husband’s death, she had only been going through the motions.
The stranger eyed her as though he sensed that she was touting something that she herself had not mastered, like a charlatan. “You’ve never been here before—I am sure of it. Shemust have sent you, and yet you ask such strange questions. Do you not know why you’re here?”
Hannah looked at him in astonishment. What sort of question was that? “No. So, as I said, I’ve never been to this castle before. You’re right, I would have remembered it! I’ve never been here before except when I went hiking with my three children. Last fall, the last time?—”
“Three children?” He glanced at her hand, which had no ring on it.
Hannah refused to blush again. She straightened up and made herself as tall as possible. “I’m a single mother.”
He shook his head in confusion and looked once more toward the setting sun. “That makes no sense at all.”
Hannah looked at him, startled. What was going on with this stranger? He was acting as if she were the great mystery, when what was really strange was the castle and this society. But maybe it was all part of this movie they were shooting. Who knew, perhaps there were even cameras all over the grounds and in the ballroom!
All of a sudden, the stranger went down on his knee and grasped her hands fervently. He looked at her with such intensity that she went weak in the knees again. “Please tell me that you know what to do. I’ve waited so long for you. You’re here to save me, are you not?”
“Save you? What do you mean?”
The sound of horrified screams was coming from the ballroom. The music stopped.
“For heaven’s sake, the king!” a shrill female voice cried out. “The king! Help!”
The stranger turned one last time toward the setting sun, and there was a sadness in his gaze that broke Hannah’s heart. “It’s time.”
Had he actually just said that, or had she simply imagined it? But before she could ask him what he meant, he had already run inside. Without a moment’s hesitation, she hurried after him. The crowd immediately made way for the stranger as the two of them pushed their way to the front, where the dancers had formed a large circle.
Hannah arrived at the scene a few seconds after the stranger to find an old man with a white beard sprawled on the floor. His gold-embroidered red mantle was spread out beneath him like a blanket, and his arms and legs extended limply to the side. A magnificent crown was lying carelessly on the floor a good three feet from his head, and the man was gasping for air.
The king?
