Thea gave a deep sigh.
“No – of course not.”
“What you have to do,” her brother went on, “is to enjoy yourself while you can. Raise the fences and ride while you still don’t have to be accompanied everywhere.”
Thea gasped.
“Do you mean – if I am married – I shall have to have some – dreary Lady-in-Waiting or aide-de-camp with me?”
Georgi did not reply and she knew the answer already.
Of course as a Queen she would be hedged around as if she was a prisoner.
They were somewhat understaffed at The Palace and she therefore had been allowed to ride alone in the Park without having a groom always in attendance.
It was understood that she did not go outside the high walls that encircled the Park. There she could be alone, she could think and she could talk to Mercury without being overhea
