Chapter 14 Sinclair
One thing I could say for the North Pole, it was never boring.
Watching that big sheet of ice just vanish was really something.
One moment it was there, then gone without a trace.
Not a drop of water, not even a little residual frost on the ground.
Just disappeared as though it had never even been there.
Truly impressive.
And that was from someone who grew up with the world’s premier illusionist as a father.
Granted, he could probably pull off the same thing, but this was working, functional magic.
There was no one waving their hands or whispering a special word.
It had disappeared because Jayne had written her name on it. Magic had recognized magic.
I’d be telling my dad about this. I doubted I could show it to him in person, since the vault was off-limits to anyone who wasn’t a member of the royal family, but he’d still enjoy hearing about it. Although, knowing Jayne, if my dad wanted to see it, she’d probably bring him.
We all went through into the cold storage.
Unlike the warehouse-style space we’d just been in, the cold storage vault was smaller.
The walls and ceiling were all ice. The floor looked like hard-packed snow.
I was glad for the X-shaped treads on the bottom of my crutches, but I was extra glad for the parka.
Still, I was cold. Neither Ezreal nor Jayne seemed to be feeling it, but I wouldn’t expect them to.
Personally, I’d be ready for a hot chocolate by the time we got out of here. “Where are these lists?”
“They should be in that tall wood cabinet.” Ezreal pointed toward the back wall.
A lower cabinet with doors sat in the middle of the room, but behind that, against the far wall, was the cabinet he’d indicated.
It looked like an old-fashioned wardrobe with long, double doors.
I half expected Jayne would open it and Narnia would appear.
Although we were more likely in Narnia already, so maybe there’d be some British children peering out at us. The thought made me smile.
Jayne walked over and opened the doors. No British children, but there were sheets of ice about the size of windowpanes hanging in wood frames, facing out.
Two columns in two rows. There looked to be twenty or so frames in each section.
The ice was as clear and sparkling as glass, the names etched with delicate precision.
She shook her head as she looked at them. “These aren’t all Naming Day guest lists.”
“No,” Ezreal said. “They’re lists from all official royal events. Funerals, coronations, weddings—”
“Is our wedding guest list in there?” It shouldn’t have surprised me that we’d be part of North Pole history, but of course we would be. Jayne was next in line for the throne. Everything she did would be part of North Pole history. The same went for JJ.
He nodded. “Yes. It was the most recent one added.”
She glanced over her shoulder at Ezreal. “Do you know which section the Naming Day lists will be in?”
He came closer and did a quick inspection. “Here. This seems to be the one from your Naming Day, and your father’s Naming Day is behind it. Which one do you want to start with?”
Jayne looked at me. I shrugged. I couldn’t even see the redacted name, so this was her decision.
“I guess … let’s start with my mine.”
He took the frame out and placed it on the low cabinet in the middle of the room with less care than I would have expected.
I made a face, and he saw it. He smiled. “What is it, Prince Consort?”
“Aren’t you afraid you’ll break it?”
His smile widened. “This isn’t just any ice. It’s ice formed with the magic of a winter elf. You could hit it with a hammer or even drop it on the ground and it wouldn’t crack. That same magic is used to etch the names.”
I believed him about the strength of the ice, but I didn’t want to see it tested.
Jayne leaned over the list, her eyes scanning the names.
“Need more light?” I asked.
She nodded.
I got my phone out and turned on the flashlight, holding it up to avoid as much glare as possible coming off the ice.
“That’s better.” She ran her finger down the list as she read. Near the bottom of the third column, her finger stopped. She hesitated, then looked at Ezreal. “Who’s Janvier Frost?”
He shook his head. “I can’t say.”
Her gaze shifted to me. “That’s the name that was magically redacted, I’m sure of it. Let’s look at my dad’s list.”
Ezreal got the next panel down and set it beside the first. I held up the light again. Jayne ran her finger down the names and found the one she was looking for. “There it is again. Janvier Frost.”
She looked up. “Whoever this is, someone was trying to hide that name. Why? Who is this person?”
I shrugged. “I have no idea, but wouldn’t the last name indicate this person is related to you?”
Jayne straightened and took a breath. “Yeah, I suppose it would. Ezreal, what would be the best way to research this person? Find out who they are?”
He looked slightly uncomfortable. “Since this person was invited to your father’s Naming Day and yours, I imagine you could start with him.”
A weird feeling filtered through me. Jack Sr. had never struck me as anything but forthright. Was it possible he was the one hiding this information from his daughter? If so, why? None of this made any sense.
Jayne nodded, but from the set of her mouth, I could see she was upset. No doubt she was wondering the same things I was.
I nodded toward the cabinet. “Ezreal? Whose Naming Day is before Jack Sr.’s?”
He turned to look, then shook his head. “That guest list seems to be missing.”
“Just like the missing page from the book in the archives.” Jayne tugged at a strand of hair. “This is weird.”
“Hey,” I said. “I’m sure your dad will clear this up with a simple explanation.” Not that I could imagine what that might be.
“Maybe,” she said, giving me a nod that looked more like it was out of habit than because she agreed. “But this name has potentially cost a man his life. Even a simple explanation isn’t going to bring Delton back.”
Ezreal rubbed at his chin. “I’m sure his highness can explain. He wouldn’t do something that might cause injury to another citizen.”
“No,” Jayne said. “He wouldn’t. And you’d know. You were his personal assistant for years.” She hesitated. “Are you sure that name doesn’t mean anything to you?”
“If I could explain it to you, Princess, I would.”
“I know,” Jayne said. She looked at me again. “We have to talk to my dad. And depending on what he tells us, we have to share this information with Constable Larsen. Whatever’s going on, Delton’s killer has to be brought to justice.”
“I agree.”
Ezreal moved to pick up the first panel.
“Wait,” I said. My phone was still in my hand. I turned on the camera. “Jayne, show me where the name is?”
She pointed at it. I maneuvered closer on my crutches, then zoomed in and took a picture of the name. Next I zoomed out and took a shot of the entire framed list. I did that with the second frame, too. “Okay, it’s been documented now.”
Ezreal hung the panels back up, then walked out of cold storage with us. The ice door reformed a few seconds after we were out.
“How does it do that?” I asked, figuring Ezreal would know.
“Body temperature sensor,” he answered.
“Very cool.” I smiled weakly. “No pun intended.”
Jayne didn’t smile, her mind no doubt on the conversation yet to take place with her father.
I crutched my way over and touched her hand. “You want to stop by and see JJ first?”
She shook her head. “No. I need to talk to my dad now.” She took a breath. “You’re going with me, right?”
“You want me to, don’t you?”
“Yes.” She wrapped her fingers around mine. “I don’t want to do this alone.”
“You don’t have to.” My inner desire to protect her welled up something fierce. “If you want me to, I can talk to him myself. You can go home and—”
“No, we do this together.” The tiniest of smiles bent her mouth. “But thank you for offering. My dad is intimidating at the best of times, so the fact that you’d talk to him by yourself so I wouldn’t have to is either a side-effect of the pain meds or proof you have a concussion.”
Ezreal laughed, then quickly stifled the sound.
I grinned. “I just love you.”
“I know.” She inhaled. “Let’s go see what my dad has to say.”