Chapter 24
“Please do.” I held onto Jayne’s hand. It was like holding onto ice. The temperature in the room had dropped by at least ten degrees, and I expected snow to start falling any moment.
Elmira set the tray on the coffee table and started pouring cocoa. Joshua put the plate of cookies beside it and sat.
She took a breath, focused on the pouring, and began to explain.
“The short of it is, he’s fallen in with a questionable crowd.
” She finished filling the last cup and sat but had yet to look at us.
“Percy is a good boy. At least he was. Now every conversation I have with him seems to turn into an argument.”
She sniffed. “This was not a good time for him to lose his father.”
“What bad crowd are you talking about?” I asked. Jayne seemed to have calmed somewhat, so I picked up one of the cups of cocoa, put three cookies on the saucer and handed it to her.
Elmira sighed, glanced at me, then took a cup of cocoa for herself.
“They call themselves True North. That’s where he was going, I’m sure of it.
He says it’s a workshop, but I don’t think it is.
He never seems to learn any new skills. They meet out in Little Reykjavik, which is where a lot of them are from. ”
I shook my head. “Where is that?”
Jayne answered. “On the outskirts of town, closer to the forest than to the center of things. Very rural.”
Elmira nodded. “A few winter elves live out there, but it’s mostly a mix of transplants. Ice trolls, frost folk, some Slavic snowwalkers, Nordic gnomes. People from all over, really.”
“Most of the reindeer farms are out that way,” Jayne said.
I just listened. Ezreal was an ice troll, but the rest of them were new to me. I had a lot to learn about my future homeland.
“Yes, that’s right,” Elmira confirmed.
Jayne looked befuddled. “Those are good people. Hard workers. How on earth is there a bad crowd out there?”
Elmira shrugged. “Some of the new people have radical ideas, I guess.”
Now I had a question. “Ideas about how the Winter Princess shouldn’t haven’t married a commoner? Or how only winter elves should sit on the throne? You’d think newcomers would be all for other races blending in.”
Elmira sipped her cocoa. “They believe, as many do, that without a strong winter elf on the throne, trouble will come to the North Pole. I’ve heard anything from the magic leaving to the ice melting away.
There’s a strong sentiment among them that things must remain the same or it will be the end of this place. ”
She reached for a cookie. “There’s even a woman who’s predicted that if the heir is too weak, it will mean the end of the Frost line. I only know that because I overheard a conversation Percy had with his sister a while back.”
Jayne was in the midst of drinking her cocoa. There was something in her eyes. Something I couldn’t quite read. She set the cup down. “And what did Delton think of all this?”
“Delton thought what the royals did ought to remain their business. That those in charge knew what needed to be done and would do it. He didn’t think it was our place to interfere. That if the Prince Consort met your family’s approval, that was the end of the subject.”
“Delton was a smart man,” Jayne said. “But I can see why that might have made him some enemies.”
“Oh, no,” Elmira said. “He wasn’t standing on the street corner and shouting that for all the town to hear. Those were his beliefs, and he wasn’t ashamed of them, but he didn’t broadcast them either.”
“But Percy knew.” Jayne’s stare intensified. She was watching Elmira closely. “And if Percy knew, he might have told his new friends about his father’s way of thinking.”
Elmira stared back, eyes a little wider than they’d been a few seconds ago. “You don’t think …” She swallowed. “Please tell me Percy didn’t have something to do with his father’s death.”
“I can’t. Not yet,” Jayne said. “I hope he didn’t, but from what you’ve told us, it’s something we need to look into. Can you tell me anything more about the people he hangs out with? Do you have any names?”
“I …” Her eyes narrowed, and she looked at the plate of cookies. “I think the woman’s name is Sonja? Or something like that. Sonja Winter? I don’t know. I only overheard part of the conversation. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” Jayne said, her tone softer. “We’ll see what we can find out. In the meantime, don’t say a word to Percy about any of this. If he asks what we were here for, you tell him just to extend the Crown’s sympathies.”
Elmira quickly nodded. “I will.”
“Is there anything else you can think of that might help us?”
Her head came up, and she looked to the side of the house, where a narrow hall led past the stairs. “My husband spent a lot of time in his office. Maybe there’s something in there? I wouldn’t know what, though. It was his domain, and I never bothered him when he was in there.”
JJ let out a little angry noise and shakily raised his fists. I had no doubt he was getting hungry, which meant the timer on a full-blown meltdown had just begun.
“I think we’ve been here long enough,” Jayne said. “But do all of us a favor and keep his office secure. We’ll make sure Constable Larsen sends someone tomorrow to do a thorough inventory.”
“I can do that,” Elmira said. “Please let me know if you find anything. If Percy is in any way responsible …” A sob choked off her words.
I gave Joshua a look. “Get the crawler ready.”
He got to his feet. “Good seeing you, Mrs.—I mean, Elmira. You need anything, you just call. I’m in the book.” He grabbed the remaining cookie on his saucer and went outside.
Elmira watched us, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears.
Jayne smiled at her. “Thank you for your hospitality. Again, we are deeply sorry about your husband. He was a servant to the crown and a man to be proud of.”
“Thank you,” Elmira whispered.
Jayne took hold of JJ’s carrier. His whimpers were increasing in volume.
I grabbed my crutches and got myself up. “We can see ourselves out.”
I got the door for Jayne. She carried JJ out, and I followed. Joshua had the crawler open and waiting. We loaded up, and he took off as soon as he was back behind the wheel.
He glanced up. “You really think her son was involved?”
“We can’t really comment on an ongoing investigation,” Jayne said. She had JJ in her arms and was giving him a bottle of sugar formula from the diaper bag. “But if you know something about Percy that you think might be useful, we’d very much like to hear it.”
“Or about anything that goes on in Little Reykjavik,” I added.
“I don’t know much about Percy,” Joshua said. “But I’ve heard rumors about that group she mentioned, True North. I’m not so sure they’re all transplants like she said, though. Not that I think she’s lying. More like I don’t think she knows the whole story.”
“Then what is the whole story? And if they aren’t transplants, what are they?”
He shrugged. “The way I hear it, they’re hardliners. Royalists who want to be sure the Frost line continues. No matter what.”
“That doesn’t explain why someone would kill Delton,” Jayne said. “He was an archivist. He wasn’t holding political rallies in favor of putting fresh blood on the throne. He believed in the way things are. This makes no sense.”
“Or,” I said, “it’s all a front for something else.
Maybe Delton found something in the archives.
Something more than what was in that book.
” I wasn’t about to mention Janvier Frost’s name.
Not in front of Joshua. There were already enough rumors swirling through this town without me starting another one.
“Something about snowflakes?” Jayne asked.
“Yes.”
Jayne pursed her lips. “I’m starting to think we should have looked through Delton’s office ourselves.”
“You want me to turn around?” Joshua asked.
“No,” Jayne and I said at the same time.
“We need to get back,” I added. Then I looked at her. “I could go with Constable Larsen tomorrow.”
“Except I need you to watch JJ.”
“No problem. We just won’t go until you get back.”
She frowned. “I don’t know. She might not wait. I could just take JJ with me. After all, there will be plenty of women there to look after him.”
“Only if you take some additional security.”
Joshua cleared his throat. “Ma’am, if you need help with something …”
I answered. “She’s going for a dress fitting tomorrow at the royal couturiers. I’d like to have someone at the front and back doors to make sure no one—press or otherwise—bothers her while she’s there.”
Joshua smiled. “Be happy to help. I’m not afraid to be mean if necessary.
Did some boxing in my time. Know how to throw a punch if the need arises.
I could bring my son, Leif, too. He’s bigger than me and plenty fit.
He’s a lumberjack in the polar forest and climbs glaciers for fun in his free time. ”
Joshua and his son sounded capable, and they’d be less conspicuous than royal guards. “Do either of you have any magic?”
“Enough to throw ice blades or blind someone with snow,” Joshua answered. “Nothing like what the princess can do, but we can hold our own.”
I nodded. “You’re hired.”