CHAPTER 10
A s Ava and Justin searched the Grand Hall looking for Stormy, she was trying not to panic.
“He’s not in this room either,” Ava said with a sigh.
Justin shook his head, frowning. “He’s obviously upset.”
“You blame me for this, don’t you?” Ava asked. “You think this is all my fault?”
“Dogs are highly empathetic. They’re impacted by the energy in the room.”
Ava lifted her head high. “I have great energy.”
Justin gave her a skeptical look.
“I do,” Ava insisted.
“I warned you not to talk to him like that,” Justin said as he headed for the door.
“Now where are you going?” Ava called out after him, but this time Justin didn’t answer back.
? ? ?
In the grand entryway of the castle, delivery men were bringing in life-size nutcrackers for the Christmas party. Ava greeted them as she continued to look around for Stormy.
“Can you please put all the nutcrackers in the Grand Hall with everything else?” Ava told the men. “Thank you, and did any of you see a black-and-white dog running around outside?”
They all shook their heads as they passed her.
“It was a friend’s dog,” Ava quickly added. She knew she had to be very careful to make sure no one knew there was a new royal dog, and that at the moment, that dog was missing.
“If anyone sees him, please let me know,” she added.
Behind the last nutcracker coming through the door was Justin.
Ava looked behind him. “Did you find him?”
“No,” Justin said, looking just as stressed as she felt.
“I haven’t had any luck either,” Ava said.
“I’ve been asking all the delivery people and decorators that have been coming and going, getting ready for the party, and they haven’t seen him, either.
I’m telling everyone he’s a friend’s dog, because no one can know we have a dog until my mother makes the official announcement.
“I know. I get it,” Justin said. “You’ve said that several times.”
“Because it’s important.”
Edgar and Lydia walked in and joined them. They looked equally concerned.
“The staff has looked everywhere. Stormy’s not in the castle,” Lydia said.
“I need to call the queen,” Edgar added.
Ava panicked and grabbed Edgar’s arm. “Edgar, wait! Please don’t call her yet.
We’re going to find him. You know how upset she’d be.
There’s no reason to worry her. He couldn’t have just disappeared.
He has to be somewhere. He’s probably just in here hiding, destroying more decorations. We just need to keep looking—”
Justin pointed to the open door. “I think this is our problem. You said people have been coming in and out all day. He could have easily slipped outside. Dogs love being outside. That makes a lot more sense than him hiding out somewhere here. He’s not the kind of dog who hides. He’s the kind of dog who runs.”
Ava’s frown deepened. “Well, that makes me feel much better, thanks.”
“I’m just telling it like it is,” Justin said.
When Edgar looked even more worried, Ava took his hand. “Please, Edgar, just give me a little more time to find him. I will find him. We have to find him…”
Edgar looked at Lydia. “What do you think?”
Lydia hesitated. She looked at Ava and then back at Edgar. “I think we can wait a little while longer, but if we don’t find him in the next hour or so, the queen will need to know.”
“And I’ll tell her myself,” Ava said. “I promise.”
Edgar and Lydia exchanged a look and nodded.
“Okay,” Edgar said.
Relieved, Ava hugged him and then hugged Lydia. “Thank you, Edgar, thank you, Lydia.”
“What about me?” Justin asked with a teasing smile. He held out his arms for a hug.
When Ava ignored him, Edgar, Lydia, and Justin all laughed.
“But seriously, we need to find Stormy fast,” Justin said. “The longer he’s gone, the less chance we have of getting him back. He hasn’t been chipped and doesn’t have any dog tags yet. I was going to do all that today.”
“So, what do you suggest?” Ava asked as they all turned their attention to Justin. “You’re the dog expert. How do we find him?”
“We could post some flyers online and in the village with his picture,” Justin said.
“But remember, we can’t tell anyone he’s ours,” Ava jumped in. “Can you see the headlines? ‘Princess loses the first royal pet.’ The press would have a field day with that.”
Lydia stepped forward. “I can say that Stormy is mine and give out my information for people to contact. That way, no one will find out anything.”
“That’s a great idea, Lydia. Thank you,” Ava said, relieved.
“I’ll go make the flyer right now,” Lydia said.
“I’ll help,” Edgar added, as they left together.
Ava turned to Justin. “And you’ll keep looking outside?”
“Yes, as soon as you’re ready,” Justin replied. “It’s supposed to snow. You won’t get very far in those shoes.”
They both stared down at Ava’s designer heels.
“Me? No.” Ava laughed. “I’m not going anywhere. I have a Christmas party to plan, and I’m already so far behind now.”
Justin gave her a blank stare.
She rushed to continue. “It’s our annual Christmas party we host ever year. It’s the event of the season, to raise money for charity. I’m sure you’ve heard of it—”
“No.”
“Well, it’s what we’re known for. Everyone looks forward to it all year.
My father started overseeing all the planning when he married my mother.
He enjoyed working closely with the decorators and the caterers to create something unique and special.
Year after year, people would wait with anticipation to see what he would do next.
He always said our Christmas party reflected who we were as a royal family and set the tone of the new year.
” Ava paused when she noticed Justin didn’t look impressed.
“Trust me. It’s a big deal, and this is my first year taking over. Everyone’s counting on me, so—”
“So, you think you’re too busy,” Justin finished for her.
Ava smiled and breathed a huge sigh of relief that he finally understood. “Yes, so busy.”
Justin nodded. “Then I’ll just call your mother.”
Ava’s smile disappeared. Her eyes narrowed. “You wouldn’t.”
The charming smile Justin flashed her assured Ava that he most certainly would.
Ava shook her head in disbelief as they stared each other down.
She knew she was trapped.
She took a deep breath. “Fine,” she said through gritted teeth. “What do you want me to do?”