CHAPTER 15 #2
Arabella’s guard stepped forward. “If I can be of any assistance, Prince Axel, I would be glad to provide it.”
“Thank you for the offer, but if Helena has enough things to warrant help, I’m sure one of the footmen will carry things for us.
” Axel’s voice hardened, and as he turned his eyes on his sister, he let all his tumultuous emotions add steel to his voice.
“Should I find myself in need of the services of a guard, one of my own is outside, and more will be arriving with the carriage.”
Helena scowled at him, clearly recognizing his threat.
He would have no qualms about ordering Bertram to load her into the carriage by force if she made it necessary.
If she decided to be difficult, he wouldn’t hesitate to put one of the guards in the carriage with her.
Her behavior had been inexcusable, and he did not have the patience to deal with it at the moment.
Helena stormed off. Axel stayed a few moments longer to shake his head at Michael and give an apologetic grimace to Arabella. “Sorry, Arabella. We’ll be gone as soon as the carriage arrives.”
She gave him a tremulous smile in return. “Thank you, Axel.”
After locating Bertram and giving him strict instructions to keep Helena away from the Daric royalty, Axel wandered out into the gardens.
Memories of exploring it and playing with his sister and Michael filled his mind as he wandered the overgrown trails.
Twelve years of neglect had taken their toll on the grounds; everything was covered in a blanket of snow that smoothed the hard edges, but even the snow couldn’t hide just how wild the gardens had become.
The piled snow crunched under his boots as he walked the once-familiar trails. His conscience pricked, telling him he should be with his sister. But he was still too tightly wound from the day’s stress to simply absorb his anger and move along like usual.
Clenching a fist, he pounded his way down the trail, the cold breeze playing with his hair. How long would it take that carriage to arrive?
The snow on the path dropped away as he reached a more sheltered area. The air was quiet, and he slowed and tilted his head back, soaking in the stillness that he sorely needed.
As he turned a corner, he saw Michael’s head guard standing in the center of the path. Axel opened his mouth to offer a friendly greeting, but the words caught in his throat when the rounded top of Oliver’s ear changed shape, lengthening and thinning until it formed a distinct point.
Axel fell back a step, the ring of his sword loud in the silent space. Oliver was the superior swordsman, but Axel wouldn’t go down without a fight.
Unless Oliver’s magic – whatever it was – took Axel out before he could get a swing in.
The guard started at the sound. His own hand flew to his sword hilt as he spun, but when he saw Axel, he slowly lifted his empty hands. “Your Highness. I did not expect anyone this far from the castle this afternoon.”
Raising his sword a little higher, Axel edged back another step. “I’m not sure that’s comforting. Does Michael know you can use magic?” he challenged.
Oliver’s eyes remained steady. “What makes you think I’m a magic-user?” he said calmly.
“You mean besides the fact that your ears are pointed? And that I watched them change shape?” Axel replied with a short laugh.
“Magic can be imbued into an object so that anyone can use it.”
“So I’ve heard.” Axel’s fingers flexed on the hilt of his sword. “Do you honestly expect me to believe that you added a taper to your ears for fun?”
Oliver examined him for a few moments. “No,” he quietly admitted. “This is their natural shape.”
If Axel’s heart beat any louder, Oliver might hear it.
“Then you are a magic-user. Don’t try to deny it; Katy has been researching magic.
I thought she was crazy with her talk of fae and the stories north of the Rio Azul, but it’s all true, isn’t it?
Magic—” He squeezed his eyes shut against the cracking sensation in his mind. “It can’t be—but it is—”
“Your Highness?” There was a note of concern in the guard’s voice. “Are you all right?”
Axel pressed his left hand to his forehead. He heard footsteps approaching and held his sword out, forcing one eye open. “Stay back!”
Oliver stopped with his hands still raised. “I won’t hurt you. You’ve known me most of your life; you can trust me.”
“When you’ve been hiding the truth that whole time?” Axel challenged.
The guard’s stoic face didn’t change. “I understand your hesitance. But it was magic-users that amended your sister’s curse and helped Princess Arabella attend the ball.”
“Arabella? I thought her neighbor—”
“The one who accepted her guardianship, yes,” Oliver added. “His magic is of plants, so he was able to adjust the plant fibers in her clothing. But that is why his ears are always covered: his magic doesn’t let him disguise them the way I can.”
The tension in Axel’s head increased, but he fought through it. “Why hide? If your intentions are honorable, why not let people know?”
Oliver’s eyes darted away. “Do you think you are the only person to react with fear? It is often unsafe for magic-users to reveal themselves.”
A twinge of guilt shot through Axel’s chest. One magic-user might have cursed Helena, but another had saved her. “So you aren’t responsible for the pain in my head?”
“May I?” Oliver slowly extended a hand toward him. “My type of magic relates to living creatures, but my fae ancestry is too far removed. I might be able to help you, but I cannot do it at a distance.”
Axel’s sword wavered, but it didn’t lower. Not yet. The ache hadn’t started until they began to discuss magic, and he only had Oliver’s word that contact was necessary.
Except it wasn’t the first time the topic of magic had given him a headache. He’d had a similar experience on the trip to Reineggburg.
“All right.” He released a shaky breath and sheathed his sword. “Go ahead.”
Oliver kept his pace steady and his eyes on Axel’s as he approached.
Carefully, he set his hand on Axel’s shoulder before closing his eyes.
Axel held himself still, reminding himself that if Oliver wanted to harm him, he’d had plenty of opportunities over the last twenty-five years.
Oliver was the same person he’d been before Axel learned about his magic.
“No wonder you fear my kind,” the guard muttered with a grimace. “Cursed mind magic.”
“What do you mean?”
Oliver frowned and kept his eyes closed. “At least it’s old. That, plus your questioning, has weakened it. If I can just...”
Axel resigned himself to waiting until Oliver was finished. Curious; he never would have pegged Oliver as a mumbler.
When the hair on the back of his neck rose and he felt something slithering in his mind, Axel jerked away. Oliver opened his eyes with a mild scowl. “I cannot help you if I cannot touch you.”
“But what was—”
The guard huffed. “Your belief that magic is real conflicts with the spell placed on you that says it isn’t.
Now that you have irrefutable proof, I must remove it.
Unless you wish to suffer frequent headaches.
” The tiniest hint of impatience leaked into his voice.
“It may break on its own, but I cannot promise how soon or guess how much it will hurt in the meantime.”
That didn’t sound good. Easing forward, Axel returned himself to Oliver’s range. “Is that what I felt in my head?”
The guard gave a short nod, set his hand back on Axel’s shoulder, and closed his eyes. “Mind magic is forbidden for a reason.”
“How do—”
“This is harder than it looks,” the guard growled. “Kindly hush.”
Not wanting any mistakes where magic and his mind were concerned, Axel snapped his mouth shut.
The slithering sensation increased, and Axel winced as his head throbbed again. But then it vanished, and his head felt lighter than it had in years, a weight disappearing that he hadn’t noticed until it was gone.
Oliver stepped back. “Finished. Can you think about the existence of magic now?”
Magic is real. My sister just awoke from an enchanted sleep, magic burned down the theater five years ago, and Katy satisfied my father’s challenge by accepting help from a magic-user.
He waited for the automatic reaction, but there was nothing. No pain, no countering thoughts. “I do believe that I’m alone in my head again. You have no idea what a relief that is, even without knowing I wasn’t.” Nodding, he said seriously, “Thank you, Oliver.”
The guard acknowledged his thanks with a nod of his own. “It felt like memory suppression was worked in as well. As with your sister’s curse, you may find memories resurfacing now that it’s gone.”
Blinking, Axel said, “You could tell all that?”
“It is harder for me to work magic than it is for those with a greater percentage of fae blood. But as long as it isn’t in my own head, I am skilled in determining its purpose.
” He scowled. “I should have recognized the magic here before it went so far, but it affected me as well. It is a stain on my honor that my mother’s magic caused trouble for my prince and his wife. ”
“I’m sure Michael will get his head on straight in a few days,” Axel replied with a grimace. “In the meantime, Ralnor thanks you for returning their princess.”
The guard just shook his head.
The carriage would be arriving soon. Axel opened his mouth to make his excuses, but then he stopped.
He and Katy had a problem that she hadn’t yet figured out how to solve, and he had an unexpected resource standing in front of him.
“Oliver, if I promise to keep your secret... what can you tell me about magical bargains?”