Chapter 3 - The Clock
The metal hatch behind me slammed shut as if by itself.
I shot the door a narrow-eyed look before spotting the purple-striped cat meander across the floor.
His blue swirly gaze met mine. “My, my, what’s going on here? Trouble in paradise?”
He was clearly amused.
I strolled toward my desk. “What the hell are you doing here again, cat?”
“My mistress sends me again as usual.” Padded feet barely making a sound, the cat hopped up onto my table, right by my spilled snifter of brandy that had soaked through things.
I peeled up the wet scrolls before instantly dropping them in distaste. “Does the Duchess have nothing better to do than to snoop on my personal affairs?”
“You know she will keep sending me until you give her what she wants.”
“That’s out of the question.” I slumped back into my seat, rubbing my temples.
“So you say.”
I shot the cat another dagger look and he merely chuckled, dropping the subject.
“Did your little pet escape the tower?”
“Don’t even start with me, Chez.”
“Rabb, it’s been three weeks,” the cat pointed out. “Don’t you think your ‘let’s wait until she gets her memory back’ plan needs a little adjusting by now? I told you, you should have turned her over to the Queen from the get-go.”
I checked the time on my pocket watch. “The other day you said she was growing on you,” I reminded him as I was fully aware that the cat had frequently been downstairs to visit with the girl. Just curious, Chez had said.
“What can I say, she gives good belly rubs. Still, I don’t want my head cut off when the Queen finds out.” Chez gave me his trademark grin. “Who else is going to put up with your surly ass—who has already put up with your surly ass for the better part of a hundred years, hey, Rabb? I mean, I’m practically your best friend.” He paused to consider. “Heck, I’m your only friend.”
I shot the cat a glare.
I didn’t need friends. I didn’t need anyone.
I frowned. My chest felt tight just then, and to my absolute consternation, hot tears began to well up in my eyes.
I blinked back the wretched stinging. “Oh dammit, she’s crying.” Reaching over to the nearest pipe, I pounded my fist on it several times, the dull banging echoing throughout the clock tower structure. “Oi, down there!” I yelled out. “Stop crying!”
Chez’s eyes were as wide as two yellow moons. “How could you possibly know that? What is going on? Are you feeling what she’s feeling?” He stopped, jaw dropping. “More to the point, are you actually feeling?”
I lowered my head. I supposed my secret was bound to come out sooner or later. In fact, it was a wonder that Chez hadn’t already caught on to it earlier, given he was always here. I let out a sigh. “I think so. Because I carry her heart.” I shook my head briskly. “This has never happened before.”
“I knew you’d been getting more testy lately,” the cat mused. “How long has this been going on?”
“Three weeks.”
Chez’s jaw dropped again. “And you didn’t tell me?”
I dismissed him with a wave. “It seems one-sided. I thought it would go away,” I relayed. “I thought it could have been a temporary side effect from taking in her heart. It might still be a temporary side effect. Why do you think I’m working so hard to figure out how to get rid of it?” I gestured my arm across the piles of books and papers all over the room.
Chez licked a paw. “Hearts can’t exist outside a body for too long.”
Already knowing that, I nodded. “I’ll need a new Heartlamp.”
“Without the Queen’s command, that will be tricky,” Chez relayed.
“Still, I need to do something. Since you already know what’s going on, why can’t you ask the Duchess for me?” I pressed.
Chez gave me a pointed look. “You know she’ll say no if I ask. She’ll want you to ask.”
“I figured as much.” I rubbed the bridge of my nose with my fingers. “I need to make sure that girl stays out of trouble in the meanwhile.”
“Good luck with that. She seems to be a feisty one.” Chez grinned. “Remind me again why you can’t just kill her?”
I tried not to pause too long before responding. “I need her alive.”
Chez blew out a breath. “I think you have finally gone mad, my friend,” he remarked. “I don’t even know what in Wünder possessed you to take in that dubious empty heart—like—like you had nothing left to lose…” The cat trailed off, tilting its head. “Wait a minute. Is it…happening?”
Pursing my lips, I looked out the window. This clock tower was not only my home. My existence was bound to it, and each ticking of the clock was a guarantee of my continued survival. But lately…
“The clock has…been slowing of late. I’ve noticed.”
Chez frowned in concern. “Your life clock? The countdown has begun? Isn’t it a few centuries too early? Has time gone by so fast?”
I shook my head. “I’m not sure what’s going on. I was assured the clock shouldn’t slow for at least another six decades.” I stood up in a huff. “This is why I needed her heart. I had no choice.”
Chez nodded. “I wondered why you were so reckless, taking in that strange heart.”
I fiddled with the ink pot on my desk. “That cave where I found her… I detected a faint mystical energy, the nature of which I hadn’t encountered in a long, long time. And when I extricated her heart from her chest, there was a brief spark of power, and despite its inert appearance, I could tell it contains significantly powerful magic.”
I gave Chez a meaningful look. “This girl... I think her heart is a coeur.”
The cat’s eyes widened again. “It’s a what? No way! Those were just old wives’ tales. Are you talking about the legendary Heartfire ember of perpetual energy? I’ve never seen one before.”
I dropped my gaze. “It could be a coeur.”
Chez couldn’t resist a quip, “Or it’s just a useless lump of rock.”
I clicked my tongue. “Perhaps it was not the best decision I’ve ever made in my life but if I’m right, I can’t risk losing all that power. Especially now. My powers are deteriorating. I need hers. I only need to know how to unlock it.”
“And the Queen?” Chez prompted.
“The Queen will definitely want her heart.” I couldn’t keep the gravity out of my tone. “She will know for sure it’s not empty. She will know it’s special. We’re just lucky the Queen can’t sense its power yet. But when that time comes, the Queen will definitely take it, and whatever chance I have of obtaining that power will be gone.”
Chez stretched out on the desk. “Perhaps this is a too-obvious question but…have you tried asking the girl? Just seduce her. Make her fall in love with you already. She might be able to give you all the answers you seek.”
I groaned again. “Don’t you think I’ve thought of that? It’s not that easy.”
Chez’s head quirked. “You’ve never had any problems before.”
Frustrated, I waved his doubt away. “Well, this girl is...weird. For starters, she would rather stay downstairs than even so much as look at me. She talks of other worlds. Her heart is odd enough.” Almost in derisive exasperation, I paused. “But I suppose I could try one last time.”
“Either way,” Chez rationalized, “if anyone detects that you’re carrying around a rogue heart or hiding a captive girl who may or may not be from around here, there will be hell to pay.”
I waved him away again. “I just need to think of another way to figure it all out.”
Surely, I would be able to figure it all out.
My task was clear.
I needed to extract the mystical power from the coeur. And then once I stopped the countdown, I could dispose of the girl.
I wouldn’t stop until I ensured my survival.
No matter the cost.