Chapter 204

A banging at the door brought Kit out of a deep slumber. For a moment, she wasn’t sure if what she was hearing was real or part of a dream, though it didn’t quite go with what she remembered of her dream—a peaceful meadow and all of her men. When the rapping sounded again, her eyes fully open this time, Kit knew it was part of the real world. Jate was pulling on his breeches and tossed Kit her nightgown, which she slid on over her head before her beau opened the door a crack.

“Is the princess awake?” Avinia’s voice sounded slightly frantic, which for her cousin was a sign something was terribly wrong.

Kit slid her feet over the edge of the bed and shot to the door. “I am now. What’s happening?”

“I’m not certain, but I think it might be something.”

It wasn’t the sort of answer Kit was expecting. “Whatever do you mean?”

Avinia looked back toward the door to the hallway, which was closed. “It is difficult to explain. I went to speak to your father, as you said, and to my surprise, he agreed to leave.” Kit’s heart caught in her throat as she was afraid Avinia might say something had befallen her father. “On our way to the stable, I saw some soldiers returning to the castle, Queen’s Guard. I have no idea what they were up to.”

Puzzled, Kit said, “Go on,” thinking there had to be more. It shouldn’t be a surprise to see her mother’s minions out and about at night.

“I decided to speak to Eli about it.” Avinia shook her head slowly, her eyes not focused on anything, certainly not Kit’s face. “But he wasn’t in his room.”

“Which room?” Kit asked.

“Any of them.”

The princess looked at Jate, whose forehead was crinkled with concern. “You checked his new one?”

“Yes.”

“And his old one?”

“Yes.”

“His one in the barracks?”

“Yes! Kit, I checked them all. I know it’s not unusual for him to be out this time of night, keeping an eye on what’s happening in the castle. But... when I went to his new room, something was amiss.”

An unsettled feeling rose up in Kit’s stomach. She placed her hand there. “What do you mean?”

“I mean... the bed sheets were gone. The blanket was torn from the bed, and both sheets were missing. A few items were knocked over, off of the nightstand. The door was open slightly. It didn’t look right.”

Kit inhaled deeply through her nose as Jate offered an alternative explanation. “Perhaps he allowed one of the guards to sleep there, as he is known to do with his other rooms, and the man had a night terror of some sort.”

“Perhaps... but I’m worried.” Avinia met Kit’s eyes at last, and she could see the concern in her cousin’s disposition.

“You think these men that were returning to the castle may have done something to him?”

Her lady-in-waiting’s head bounced up and down.

Kit looked to Jate for advice, but he had nothing to say. Returning her focus to Avinia, she asked, “Who else have you spoken to?”

“Cassius was with me, so he knows.” Kit’s eyebrows shot up. “He was helping me secret your father away.”

“Of course.” Kit felt ridiculous for ever questioning why her Representative would be with her cousin. “Where is he now?”

“He’s gone to look for Galter. I wasn’t able to locate him. The other guards said he was out on patrol as well. They weren’t certain where Eli was, though. They could be together.”

“But then, that leaves the question of where is the man who was sleeping in Eli’s bed.” Kit didn’t like the idea of anyone gone missing, even if her beloved Eli was located soon.

“Precisely,” Avinia nodded. “And if he is gone, we can only assume this was another attack on Eli that was misguided.”

“Indeed,” the princess agreed. The worry in the pit of her stomach started to mingle with the flame that ebbed and flowed each time she considered her mother’s duplicity, and she wasn’t certain whether she should cry in fear that something had happened to her childhood friend, the man she loved, or throw something across the room in a rage.

“I think it would be best if Jate escorts you to your own room. You should likely get dressed and try to rest while we sort this out.”

“Rest?” Kit questioned. “While Eli and another of my guards is missing? I think not.”

“Kit, you’ll be of little good on only two hours of sleep.” Jate placed his hand softly on her arm.

Logically, their concern was valid, but Kit wasn’t ready for logic at this point. “I shall return to my chambers and get dressed, but I will not rest until the mystery is solved. Are there members of my guard exploring the area where you saw the others approaching the castle?”

“Not yet,” Avinia replied. “Cassius wanted to locate Galter first so that he could dispatch them himself, being your acting commander.”

“Let’s not tarry. Find another officer and give him good directions, but don’t accompany them, Avinia. There’s no need to put you in any more danger. It seems as if you’ve already taken significant risks this night.”

Avinia’s head rocked back and forth, but Kit could see she was disappointed in not being able to go along with the soldiers. “I will do so and rouse Isla and Seph to come prepare your hair.”

Kit hated to wake them for a task so trivial, but then, she imagined they wouldn’t want to be sleeping with something of this magnitude going on. “Also, send someone to ask Danyen if he heard anything of a struggle. He is a light sleeper, and his room is closest to Eli’s.”

“Yes, good idea,” her cousin agreed as she hurried out the door.

Kit watched her go, anxiety taking over the place of her outrage. She decided she needed to get on with it and turned to look for her robe, which Jate had already collected and was holding open for her. She slipped her arms inside and thanked him, belting it tightly.

Waiting for him to finish dressing, Kit slid on her slippers and then folded her arms, contemplating what this might mean. If her mother had intended to kidnap Eli, or worse, because Kit had Roomed him at dinner, Kit would be unable to simply let that go. She wouldn’t be able to pretend it away. She would have to say something. If it turned out it was all a false alarm, that would be for the best. But then, part of her was ready to get on with it already. If there was to be a revolt, let it come.

“Are you ready, Princess?” Jate asked, once his dress scabbard was secured at his waist. She wished he wore a more deadly weapon, but they wouldn’t go far, and as far as she knew she wasn’t in any danger at the moment. That could all change drastically if she decided to let her mother know of her outrage regarding her treatment of Eli and the entire Choosing, which the queen had manipulated from the very beginning, starting with the election in Eastbury and culminating in whatever it was that had transpired this night. While it would be easy to believe it was a simple misunderstanding, Kit did not think that was the case. That would be too easy.