Page 35 of Slippers and Thorns
“Of course,” Ella quickly agreed.
He nodded slowly. “Then if your proposal is accepted, you have my permission to help.”
While Ella was relieved to be past the ordeal of proposing her idea – and pleased to have accomplished as much as she had – she still felt jittery after breakfast. Movement appealed to her, so she headed to her room to change for a ride on Shadow.
Before stripping off her dress, she peered out the window to check the sky. They had had rough weather lately, and she didn’t want to be caught out in a thunderstorm.
Only a few fluffy white clouds dotted the northern horizon, so she proceeded with her preparations. She grabbed an outfit at random from her wardrobe, more interested in a quick escape than her appearance.
After pulling on her boots, Ella strode quickly to her door. Throwing it open, she leaned out to address the guard outside. “Jake? Could you do me a favor?”
The teenage guard turned his green eyes to her. “Yes, Princess?”
“I would like to ride Shadow,” Ella told him, kneeling down to tie her boots. “But it’s last-minute. Could you please find Elizabeth and Charlie and ask them to meet me at the stable?”
Jake frowned. “I’m not supposed to leave your door, Your Highness. Not while you’re still in your quarters and another guard has not relieved me.”
“I promise I’m not going to run, Jake,” Ella sighed as she switched knees so she could tie the laces on the other boot. “You can surely find some servants to run the messages for you if you go to the end of the hallway.”
“I’m supposed to be closer than that, Your Highness,” he protested, looking down the long hallway. “If something happened, I wouldn’t be near enough to protect you.”
Ella dropped her head onto her raised knee. “We’re in the middle of Hartford Castle, Jake, on the wing where the royal family lives,” she calmly stated, restraining her exasperation. “Nothing is going to happen to me while you are at the end of the hallway calling to the nearest servant.”
“I’m not supposed to leave your side or the room in which you are,” Jake stubbornly argued. “I’ll walk to the end of the hallway when you do.”
Even when he was being pig-headed about his duty, his face bore the marks of his youthful enthusiasm. It was impossible to actually be angry with him, whether or not he was being impossible.
“Fine,” Ella groaned. “Let me grab a ribbon, and I’ll braid my hair while we walk.”
They were almost to the end of the hallway when the light suddenly diminished to almost nothing. A low rumble slowly grew in force until the ornamental vase sitting in a nearby alcove rattled. Shortly after, driving rain began pelting the windows.
“What?” Ella exclaimed, rushing to the nearest window to peer out at the dark, heavy clouds covering the sky. “No! It was clear – I checked!”
Despite her protests, the proof of the late-summer storm was undeniable. The view out the window was dark and distorted by the heavy downpour. A few unfortunates who had been in the garden working or wandering were racing to the castle, their hands over their heads in a futile attempt to ward off the pounding raindrops.
“No,” Ella whispered, slowly lowering herself to the floor. Leaning against the wall, she rested her head in her hands as the jittery feeling, compressed by the hammering rain and the knowledge there would be no escape, threatened to overwhelm her. She could feel her hands beginning to shake as the tumult built within her.
Standing abruptly, she began to walk quickly back the way she had come. When she reached the end of the corridor, she spun on her heel and strode towards the other end again. As she turned once more at the end of the hall, she caught a glimpse of the confused look on Jake’s face as he halted before turning to follow her again, but she didn’t try to explain it to him. There was really nothing to explain. She wasn’t going anywhere; she just needed to move before the nervous energy turned her inside out.
If it were up to her, she would be cleaning since going outside wasn’t an option. Scrubbing a muddy floor would be a splendid release right now. But she didn’t have to ask to know that would be forbidden.
Reineggburg was in the process of being renovated. Maybe she could push for being allowed to travel there and assist with the cleanup. Not that that would help at the moment, but it would ensure her a few months of useful activity in the future.
No, she had just presented her idea for food distribution to the king, and he had even agreed to let her be part of it. If it was approved. Which very likely might not happen.
No, she couldn’t leave now. If it wasn’t approved, she could ask to go.
But what if Michael decided he was too busy to come? Would it be worth it to go if he stayed behind?
She slowed her forward momentum. In a sense, it wouldn’t be that different from them both being in Hartford. She might see him from time to time right now, but it wasn’t like they actually spent any time together.
The last time Michael ignored Ella for another woman, their trip to the mysterious castle had brought them back together. Ella’s pace dropped to a crawl as she recalled wandering through the passages of the old stone building arm-in-arm with her husband, exchanging fond glances as she enjoyed the solid feel of his muscles under her hands. Could they truly recapture that magic if they returned?
Thinking of magic brought to mind the oppressive feeling to the air on the approach to the castle and the strange mood of their traveling party upon their arrival. She shivered at the memory. Katy claimed the creepy atmosphere was caused by magic. But there was no such thing as magic, no matter what Katy said. No matter how convinced the hot-headed but practical miller’s-daughter-turned-princess was that it existed.
The image of dark, thorny vines completely surrounding a single tower – even inside the building – danced through her mind.
Nope, definitely no such thing as magic.
