Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
JAX
“I certainly hope Drosselmeyer was right, or I’m going to look like a fool,” Jax muttered to himself as he walked around the perimeter of assembled nobles and royalty. “And not just a fool, but a fool with a broken heart, which is even more pathetic.”
The Menagerie had been transformed, with delicate lanterns hanging from the trees that lined the wide paths, twinkling and flickering and casting a delicate, magical glow over the guests.
Dmitri had chosen the center of the Menagerie for his soiree, where the paths converged in a large circular courtyard with a tall fountain as the central focus.
Tables with food and drink were strategically placed along the edges, and a quartet of musicians was stationed under a large willow tree beside the path that led to the large cat enclosures.
Their soft music mingled with the chatter and laughter of the guests, adding to the festive atmosphere.
He stopped by a table of artfully arranged fruits and cheeses when the light from the lanterns glinted off a pair of large, sapphire eyes hidden in a cluster of tall shrubs.
Jax quickly scanned his surroundings to ensure that no one was within hearing distance before whispering harshly, “Bean! What are you doing? You’re not supposed to be here. ”
“I wanted to see Mother. You didn’t tell me there was food here.” With his dark scales, Bean was almost invisible in the shadows, but his sapphire eyes glowed faintly at the mention of food. “They have strawberries.”
A flash of panic darted through his chest.
He’s a month old. It’s about the right time developmentally, but it really couldn’t be a worse time logistically.
He threw his head back with a groan. “Please don’t tell me you’re going to choose tonight of all nights to claim a hoard. And strawberries?”
“I love strawberries.”
“Right, but they don’t exactly keep very well, do they? Maybe it would be better to hold off on claiming until you find something that will last for longer than a few days.”
Bean huffed, filling the air around them with the scent of smoke and fire, but his eyes returned to normal. “Mother would let me.”
“Don’t try playing us against each other like that. You know she would tell you the same thing I am. Where is she, by the way?”
“I thought she was with you.”
A sense of unease began creeping up his neck, but he brushed it off.
“I’m sure she’s somewhere around here, but you need to leave before someone sees you.
” Jax smiled and gave a casual wave to a pair of guests who had wandered closer to peruse the refreshments.
He waited until they were gone before continuing, “I don’t think Dmitri will be very happy if his party is interrupted by mass pandemonium when someone spies a dragon lurking in the shadows. ”
“Maybe that would be a good thing.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
The dragon was suspiciously silent.
“Bean? What do you mean? Why would it be a good thing?”
“You’re here to find someone to break Mother’s curse,” he finally grumbled.
Jax’s eyes widened in surprise. “Of course I am. You might be happy to remain a swan, but I don’t think she is.”
“You want us to leave her.”
“What? No! I—”
He was forced to cut his words short as another group of party-goers approached the table. He smiled and nodded, tapping his foot impatiently as they dallied over the selections. When they finally retreated, he turned back to the shrubbery. “I don’t want to leave her any more than you do.”
The shrubs were empty.
It’s probably for the best. The last thing we need to add to the atmosphere is an emotional dragon, and I don’t have time to sift through whatever his problem is tonight.
Jax crossed his arms and craned his neck, searching for a glimpse of silver blonde hair and the dazzling smile that was ever-present in his dreams. He blew out an impatient breath. “Swangelina, where are you?”
He caught sight of Dmitri, who was deep in conversation with two of his guests—a large, blonde-haired man with shoulders broad enough that Jax wondered if he could fit through doorways properly and a small, mousy woman with brown hair pulled back into a neat bun at the nape of her neck.
The prince looked up as Jax passed and, catching his eye, waved him over.
“Jax! Let me introduce you to some friends of mine—Prince Herrick of Helyos and his secretary, Iona Gemara.”
“She’s not my secretary at the moment, though,” Herrick muttered. “Seeing as this is a social gathering, and not a work event.”
Iona produced a pen and a miniature notebook from somewhere in her skirt and held them up. “I’m taking notes, which I believe counts as work.”
Jax let out a puff of air in amusement.
Huh. I wouldn’t have pegged either of them for royalty. The Helyan prince looks more like a mercenary. I certainly wouldn’t want to get on his bad side.
He started to bow, then straightened as his magical senses picked out a soft, shimmering sound that seemed to come from the prince. “You have magic,” he stated bluntly.
“He’s Fairy-Blessed,” Dmitri explained. He looked to Herrick for confirmation. “From birth, right?”
Herrick nodded. “Though it’s not something I usually go around announcing at social gatherings. How did you know?” He eyed Jax suspiciously.
“I heard it,” Jax answered absently, still distracted by the strange timbre of Herrick’s magic.
He stuck out his hand. “Jax Papageno, Bird Catcher and Dragon Charmer and, most recently, Assistant to the Assistant Keeper of the Menagerie. Also from the Faerie realm, though I think you and I are using the same word to describe two different places.” He blinked, coming back to the moment.
“What exactly does your Fairy blessing do?”
“Strength,” Herrick answered, looking slightly bewildered.
“Inhuman strength,” Dmitri corrected. He turned to Jax. “Herrick and Iona traveled through here a few months ago, and on their way, he ended up singlehandedly fighting a wild boar that had been wreaking havoc on the roads.”
Herrick shrugged. “It wasn’t that impressive. I didn’t even have to do much, especially after that silver deer appeared. Wasn’t that one of yours? I remember delivering them both to Boris.”
Dmitri’s face paled. “It–it was. Thank you.” His eyes darted to Jax for a moment. “And thank you once again for dealing gently with them. It would have been a real tragedy if something had happened to them. If you’ll excuse me for a moment.”
He grabbed Jax’s arm and pulled him a few steps away before speaking in a low hiss. “It was Sonya. And Katrin. He could have killed them both, and no one would have known a thing.”
“But he didn’t. They were returned safe and sound.”
Dmitri laughed hollowly. “Which is even more twisted, when you think about it. They both managed to escape Boris, and I delivered them right back into the hand of the man who cursed them.”
Jax grabbed his shoulders. “Breathe, Dmitri. It’s going to be alright. We’re going to fix this, remember? Speaking of, have you seen Odessa?”
“Not since the day before yesterday.”
He released Dmitri and turned in a tight circle, casting his eyes over the assembly again. The guests were beginning to move in pairs to where a dance floor had been cleared, as the musicians struck up a livelier tune.
“There.” Dmitri grabbed his arm and pointed across the courtyard to the darkened path that led to Katrin and Sonya’s enclosure.
Boris, dressed in a suit as fine and expensive as Dmitri’s own, was walking into the courtyard as if he owned the place—which, Jax supposed, was partly true.
He smiled and laughed as he greeted the people around him, somehow walking a line between charismatic and intimidating with more finesse than a circus performer.
It was easy to see, in that moment, how he could have fooled everyone for so long.
But the Keeper of the Menagerie was quickly forgotten once Jax caught sight of the woman at his side, the one he was presenting to everyone as if she were his most cherished possession.
He had never seen Odessa in any color other than white, but she had chosen a black gown that sparkled as she moved, reminding him of Bean’s iridescent scales.
The contrast with her pale skin and platinum hair was stunning, and he soon realized his were not the only eyes drawn her way.
He started toward her, leaving Dmitri behind without another word.
“Bart!” he called out cheerfully as soon as he was within earshot. “It’s wonderful to see you again.”
To his dismay, Odessa refused to meet his eyes as he approached.
The corner of Boris’s smile twitched, and he spoke through clenched teeth. “It’s Boris.”
“Right, Boris.” Jax smacked the heel of his hand to his forehead. “Sorry, my memory is horrible.” He made a show of looking around. “Your domain has never looked better.”
“Thank you. I take it you’ve met my daughter, Odessa?” Boris placed a hand on the small of Odessa’s back and nudged her forward. She finally looked up, giving him a polite smile that looked as if it required more effort than convincing Bean he wasn’t actually a swan.
He hid his confusion and disappointment with a bright grin. “I have. We’ve worked together quite a bit the last few weeks to prepare for this party.”
I thought Odessa said he didn’t want her to come. He must have changed his mind and is really trying to sell the whole ‘doting father’ thing.
“So I guessed.” Boris murmured the words quietly, as if they were meant more for himself. He cleared his throat. “Well, I see some old friends that I would like to greet. Odessa, perhaps you would prefer to keep Jax company?”
Suspicion prickled down Jax’s spine.
For someone who knows that her curse can be broken by a declaration of love, he seems oddly comfortable leaving her alone with me, especially after having admitted that we’ve already spent time with one another. He’s been far too careful for this to be a mistake. Something is off here.
He opened his magical senses, sorting through the cacophony of sound until he focused on the strain of music coming from Odessa.
It wasn’t hers.
Jax managed to keep his smile in place as he held out his hand. “Would you like to dance?”
Panic and uncertainty flashed in her eyes as she tentatively placed her hand in his, and he gave her fingers what he hoped was a reassuring squeeze as he led her away from Boris and to the dance floor.
“I should warn you that I’m absolutely terrible at dancing, and I apologize in advance for any injury your toes may sustain.”
A brief smile flashed across her face before it was replaced by barely concealed terror.
Had he not known she wasn’t Odessa, it might have offended him, but as it was, he set his hand on her back and gently guided her to an opening in the middle of the dancers where their conversation couldn’t be overheard by villainous Menagerie Keepers.
“Katrin, where is Odessa?”
Katrin’s gaze snapped to his, her eyes almost comically wide. “How did you know?”
“I can hear magic, remember? You might be wearing Odessa’s face and speaking with her voice, but you don’t sound like her at all. Where is she?”
“I don’t know,” Katrin whispered brokenly, her eyes darting across the courtyard to where Boris was standing with a fellow member of the court, a drink in his hand and his head thrown back in a laugh.
“He just told me that I needed to come tonight and pretend to be Odessa or he was going to feed Sonya to the lions.”
Jax’s jaw tensed in anger. “The man needs to find some new threats. Did he say why?”
“He wants you to propose to me.”
His anger turned to confusion. “Won’t that break your curse?”
Katrin said nothing, her lips pressed together into a thin line.
Jax blew out a long breath before remembering that they were supposed to be dancing.
He carefully started guiding Katrin through the steps before realizing that she knew even less about dancing than Odessa had.
He took pity on both their feet and gestured toward one of the tables of refreshments. “Would you like a drink?”
“Not really.”
Her blunt answer drew a chuckle, and he answered in a stage whisper as he escorted her to a quiet corner of the courtyard, “That was supposed to be a discreet way of saving us both from becoming casualties on the dance floor.”
“Oh.” She laughed nervously.
He filled a glass with some kind of pink, sparkling juice and took one himself. “You don’t have any idea where Boris might have put her, or why he would want your curse to be broken, but not hers?”
She shook her head. “But he spends most of his time in his library, and Odessa says he takes meticulous notes for all his records. That’s how she knew about our curse in the first place—she read one of his notebooks.”
Jax nodded slowly. “How long do you think Boris is planning to stay tonight?”
“I don’t know. At least as long as I’m here, I suppose.” Her focus was drawn away for a moment as Dmitri laughed nearby. When she looked back at Jax, there was a sad hopelessness in her eyes that tugged on his heartstring. “He wants to make sure that I leave an engaged woman.”
“I suppose it’s time for the two of us to sneak away, then.” Jax winked.
Katrin looked at him warily. “Why?”
“Because if he thinks we’re off having a romantic rendezvous, he’ll be here waiting anxiously for the announcement of your upcoming nuptials and not in his library where Dmitri and I will be.”
“This is Dmitri’s party. How do you plan on getting his attention without anyone noticing?”
Jax reached into his satchel and pulled out his panpipes and the key that Odessa had given him. He grinned impishly. “We’re going to send the emus into battle.”