A Dove's Tale

Chapter 69

I scrubbed the bucket out and climbed the hill to my house, leaving the soap and scrub brush in their place at the back and circling around the side to the dirt road. The silence lingering in the air after the chaos of the Stotts kids felt strange. Charlie was grooming his horses and avoiding eye contact with me. I paused next to him on my way to the door.

“Thank you for driving the horses faster this morning,” I said quietly, so the guards wouldn’t hear.

Charlie’s hand froze mid-stroke. “I shouldn’t have let him on the carriage,” he muttered, resuming his brushstrokes across the horse’s neck hard enough to make the horse shake its head and stamp its hoof irritably.

“I know what he’s like,” I said, putting a hand on his arm to stop him. “You did what you could, and it helped. It really did. So thank you.”

Charlie’s lips turned up into a reluctant smile as he finally met my eyes. “You’re too kind, Miss Ivetta.”

I just smiled and went back inside.

“So, what did the doctor say?” I asked Mother as I set the bucket in its place.

“The usual,” she replied dismissively.

I turned away so she wouldn’t see my smile falter while I started lunch. ‘The usual’ wasn’t good.

“Did I hear something about a toad?” she asked.

“Yes, you did. Henry tried to sneak a toad inside.”

She laughed softly. “I’m so glad you were a girl.”

“Toads never really appealed to me. The boys lost Rachel, too.”

“It’s a wonder Maria still has all six of them.”

“When do you think Mr. Stotts will start taking Jason to work with him?”

“Soon, I would think. Henry will have to learn some responsibility when that happens.”

We chatted back and forth, with her words gradually tapering off and me carrying the conversation more and more. I helped her to the table for lunch, and then I helped her back to bed and washed the dishes. A quick glance at the clock told me I had a few minutes to spare with Mrs. Stotts before I left.

“Get some rest, and we’ll talk more when I get back, okay?” I said, kissing her on the cheek.

“Don’t work too hard, Ivetta.”

She always said that. I smiled and headed for the door. “Goodbye, Mother.”

Outside, the prevailing silence continued. Mrs. Stotts was standing in her doorway with her hands on her hips and her lips pursed, her brow furrowed as her dark chocolate eyes swept the road, empty except for the carriage.

“You wanted to talk to me?” I prompted her, walking over to her side.

She gave me a tired smile. “Kids. I sent Henry off to get rid of his toad and find his sister, and he’s probably forgotten his sister because he’s playing with his toad. Are you okay, Ivetta?”

I nodded. “You’re worried about the guards, aren’t you?”

“Well, of course I am. Something’s clearly going on with you.”

“It’s…complicated, but it’s under control. Did the doctor say anything about Mother?”

Mrs. Stotts sighed. “Nothing new. Just take care of yourself, okay?”

“Okay. I’ll see you later!”

I went back to the carriage, but Prince Licht wasn’t inside. A throat cleared behind me. I looked nervously at the guards.

“He went that way,” one of them said, gesturing with his head.

“Thanks.”

I followed the guard’s direction toward the river again, upstream from where I’d been earlier. Prince Licht was sitting on the riverbank, his head of shaggy silver hair tilted down toward something in his lap. Curiosity drove me to approach without announcing myself, but he heard me coming, and he looked back at me. His normally cold, dark crimson eyes were alight with a gentle warmth. As I drew closer, I saw Rachel nestled in his arms, her face screwed up in concentration as she wove a string of wildflowers together. I smiled and squatted down beside them.

“Rachel, your mother has been looking for you.”

“Oh, hi, Ivy,” she said, beaming up at me. “I’m almost done.”

“What are you making?” I asked, studying the circle of flowers. “Is that a necklace?”

“No,” she said, returning her attention to her work. She wove the last flower into place and stood up to lay them on top of Prince Licht’s head. “Now you’re Prince Charming,” she said, smiling brightly.

“Thank you, Rachel,” he said, smiling that sweet, innocent smile I’d only seen for the first time the night before. “But I think it would look better on you.” He carefully removed the floral crown and put it on her head of long brown curls. “Now you’re a princess.”

She hugged him tightly around the neck. “I’m glad you’re not a bad person.”

Prince Licht hugged her back, sending me a curious look. “You’d better go, Princess Rachel.”

“Goodbye, Prince Charming!” she sang out, hopping off his lap and skipping up the hillside.

I straightened up, putting a hand over my mouth to hide my wide smile as Prince Licht climbed to his feet. “Have you seen Henry?”

“The boy with the toad? He’s down that way,” Prince Licht replied, gesturing further upstream. “What was she saying about a bad person? She asked me if I was one when I found her, too.”

“Oh, Rachel,” I sighed, heading back up the hill to the carriage. “I’ll have to talk to her again about strangers. She’s too trusting.”

I didn’t say more until we boarded the carriage. Prince Licht’s gentle expression was already gone, replaced by his usual mask of impassivity.

“She was talking about Prince Gilbert,” I finally said when he closed the carriage door behind us. “He came looking for me the day of the ball, when I was working at the palace all day, and he found Rachel alone and asked her about me. She said he showed her a magic trick and gave her some candy. I told her he was a bad person and she shouldn’t talk to strangers, and I guess she thought asking a stranger if they were a bad person was good enough.”

Prince Licht’s eyes darkened even further. “Gilbert used her to get information about you?” he asked, an edge of anger in his voice.

I nodded. “Fortunately, he likes children, so she wasn’t ever in any danger, but it still worries me.”

“I can’t see him liking children.”

“Well, I couldn’t see you liking children, but I just saw you with Rachel,” I replied, a smile teasing my lips. “Children are where he draws the line. He won’t hurt them.”

“And you believe him.”

I shrugged and looked out the window, the smile fading as quickly as it came. “He hates lying.”

The village faded into grassy fields, which eventually gave way to cobblestone streets and wood and stone buildings.

“How much do you know about him?” Prince Licht asked.

“More than I want to, but nothing that’s really helpful, if that’s what you’re thinking. He’s careful about what he says.” I turned from the window to look at Prince Licht as a thought occurred to me. “Is he really Prince Yves’ cousin?”

Prince Licht grimaced. “Unfortunately. Yves’ mother was his aunt.”

I pictured them side-by-side, searching for similarities. Prince Gilbert was taller than Prince Yves, but they both had slender builds and delicate features, and their voices were a little higher than the other princes. Just based on that information, it would be easy to underestimate them. But Prince Gilbert was the general of Obsidian’s army with a reputation as terrifying as his fear-inducing presence, and Prince Yves carried a sword and had his own troop of knights to command. They were stronger than they looked.

We arrived at the palace, and Prince Licht walked with me to the library, which was empty. I picked up my cleaning supplies, hoping Prince Clavis wasn’t setting a trap for Prince Luke, and Prince Licht checked the back room. When he completed his cursory inspection, he headed for the door.

“I’ll be right back,” he said.

“I’ll be here,” I replied.

The silence and solitude of the library wrapped around me, and I wondered how long this strange situation would last. Was I to be under guard until the end of the gala? This was only its third day. I could put up with this for four more days, but if it went on longer, I wasn’t so sure. Of course, once I moved into the palace, Mrs. Stotts wouldn’t have to worry about guards next door to her house anymore.

Was that the plan now? Was I taking Mother’s advice and pursuing a relationship with Prince Chevalier? Because that’s what it felt like this morning, and that’s what moving into the palace would mean. There was no way I could pretend with him anymore. I hadn’t let him tell me he loved me yet, but his feelings came through loud and clear in his actions, and just thinking about him invited a kaleidoscope of butterflies into my stomach. He didn’t care that I was just a maid, and he didn’t care about the consequences of turning down a Benitoitian princess for me.

But I did. Now that I was more emotionally stable than I had been this morning, I wasn’t so sure I wanted to cause him any more trouble than I already had.

The library door opened before I could get too deeply entrenched in my thoughts. I turned to greet Prince Licht, but frowned when I saw he was carrying a tea tray.

“Oh, you should have told me,” I said, heading toward him. “That’s my job.”

“It’s fine,” he said, raising it up out of my reach. “I had to find Keith, anyway.”

“I hope you don’t mind,” Prince Keith said, standing shyly in the doorway. His tall frame filled it completely, but his golden eyes were downcast, as if he expected me to tell him to leave.

“No, not at all, Prince Keith,” I said, smiling encouragingly at him. “Are you sure you don’t want me doing that, Prince Licht?”

“Yves and I pour our own tea all the time,” he said flatly, setting the tea tray on a coffee table. “I can manage. Just pretend we’re not here.”

“Unless you’d like to join us,” Prince Keith offered politely.

“No, but thank you, your highness. I just got back from my lunch break, and I need to get to work.”

“Like you stopped working at all,” Prince Licht muttered.

“I wasn’t working on the carriage,” I replied, turning back to my dusting.

“Did you even eat anything?”

I was glad he couldn’t see me biting my lip, but I knew he heard the beat of silence before I answered. “Yes.”

“Taste testing what you’re cooking doesn’t count.”

“We have scones,” Prince Keith volunteered.

I sighed and turned back to them, snatching a scone from the tray. “Thank you. Now please let me work.”

They were quieter companions than Prince Clavis and Prince Silvio. I couldn’t hear their conversation unless I was working near them, and the bits I made out were all about swordsmanship - stances, footwork, techniques, and the like. They took their training seriously. It was hard for me to picture the shy Prince Keith with a sword in his hand, but he wore one at his hip, like all the other princes except Prince Gilbert, and he was physically imposing, with his height and his broad shoulders. If he trained as much as Prince Licht did, his neat, regal attire probably hid a hard, muscled body, too.

Three o’clock came, and with it my body’s reminder that I’d gotten very little sleep the night before. I hid a yawn behind my hand and glanced out the nearest window.

“Oh, no.”

“What is it?” Prince Licht asked.

“Oh, no,” I repeated, rolling my lips inwards and biting them to keep from smiling. “Come look at this.”

Prince Licht and Prince Keith came up behind me to watch the scene unfolding down below in the gardens. Prince Clavis was sawing through a low-hanging tree branch while Prince Silvio watched a nearby path. I recognized the tree branch as one that Prince Luke liked to nap on, and I knew by Prince Licht’s groan that he recognized it, too.

“What is he doing?” Prince Keith asked.

“Just watch,” Prince Licht replied.

Prince Silvio waved frantically at Prince Clavis, who stashed the saw behind the tree and smoothed his hair as his unsuspecting victim rounded the corner. They talked briefly, and then Prince Luke deftly climbed the tree and settled on the branch like any other day, crossing his feet at the ankles and his arms over his chest. I held my breath, counting each passing second before the branch snapped and Prince Luke tumbled to the ground with it. I clapped a hand over my mouth to stifle my laughter. Prince Silvio doubled over, Prince Luke leaped to his feet, and Prince Clavis took off running.

“What’s so funny?” Prince Leon’s booming voice called over the sound of Prince Licht, Prince Keith, and me all laughing. I stepped back from the window and gestured to it. Prince Leon strode across the library, pausing briefly to tousle my hair, and then he, too, looked out the window and burst out laughing.

“Clavis isn’t fast enough,” Prince Keith commented between chuckles. “But he corners well.”

“He’s leading Luke somewhere,” Prince Licht said. “Right there. That’s a pit trap.”

I squeezed past Prince Leon just in time to see Prince Luke’s head disappear below the ground, triggering another round of laughter.

“That’s deep,” Prince Keith noted.

“Not deep enough,” Prince Licht replied. “Luke’s almost out of it already.”

“But it gave Clavis the head start he needed,” Prince Leon added, wiping his eyes as he stepped back from the window. “Wonder where he thinks he’s gonna hide from Luke?”

Prince Clavis vanished inside, and I returned to my dusting as the princes made their way back to the coffee table of refreshments. I felt a little bad for Prince Luke, but not enough to stop the giggles bursting out every time I thought I had the laughter under control. He was an easy-going guy, so he probably wouldn’t be angry at Prince Clavis for long. Still, it might be best if Prince Clavis hid in his room for a while. With less than two hours left of my workday, I didn’t expect to see him again.