Princess of Silence, page 21
part #1 of When Kings Collide Series
A few moments later, Kenneth walked into the room, disheveled and half-asleep. He came to her at once, and she embraced him, thankful for his support even if he was too tired to speak. Footsteps in the hall had her rushing to the door. She reached out and snatched the letter off of the tray before the servant’s fist could even meet the door to knock.
The letter was simple, but as she read the words, a wave of relief washed over her, and she sank back against Kenneth’s chest.
I have your sister, Princess Katherine. Let us arrange a meeting place, and I will deliver her to you.
Caleb
“Thank the Lord,” she whispered, holding the letter to her forehead. Katherine was safe, and Caleb was intelligent enough to hand her back over to Nadoria directly.
“All is well,” Kenneth whispered, the relief evident in his voice as well.
Eleanora nodded, but until Katherine was safely back at Castle Meadington, she would not allow herself to relax. Opening the door to find another servant, she ordered, “Send in Prince James.” The servant standing across the hall from the door nodded and rushed off to find her brother. For something this delicate, Eleanora needed her most trusted associate. She would never delegate a task of this importance to anyone else. He’d wanted to go collect his sister, and now he’d have the opportunity to do so. Thank God it was from Arteria and not Gradenia.
Clearing the rubble at the opening of the tunnel had served to be futile. The entire stairwell was filled with stone slabs, and while David had left a detail at Blackthorn to continue to work on removing the debris, each time a large rock was removed, the floor above would give way, causing even more of a roadblock, so he’d been forced to move on. Using a few of the locals who’d not been carted off, he had attempted to locate the exit to the tunnel, but so far, the search had been fruitless, and he was beginning to grow impatient.
Multiple tunnels ran beneath Blackthorn, and while they were able to locate the exit points of some of them, none of the ones they found seemed to have been recently disturbed. Some of the grates wouldn’t even budge without force. It seemed evident Matthew had not gotten out of the castle using any of the exits they’d located. His men had even found the hidden gates Philip had ridden out of, their location obscured in the hills miles from Blackthorn. A brush with the Gradenian cavalry had deterred them from attempting to enter the tunnels that way, but David would try again in a day or two if nothing else was successful.
Searching at night was far less productive than doing so during the day, yet he still had details wandering about through the forest by torch light at all hours, searching for the grate, searching for the lost king.
Leopold’s forces seemed just as reluctant to engage as his own, and while they’d nearly collided a few times, the Gradenians generally fell back. It irked him to know why they were in these same woods, that they were looking for the same soul he searched for, but he could hardly focus on finding Matthew and hunting down retreating men on horseback at the same time. His men had managed to pick a few of them off but not enough.
David shook his head, watching his men stumble around in the darkness, finding nothing. They could be miles off, or, for all he knew, Matthew could still be trapped in the labyrinth below the castle. The night before, he’d sent a dispatch to the king, letting him know the new efforts they were employing. That afternoon, he’d received a short response. It simply read: “Find him!”
“I’m trying, dammit,” David muttered, peering at the trees before him as if he could somehow conjure King Matthew. “I’m trying.”
Katherine walked down the hall toward the library, her slippers light on the stone floor, her hands folded in front of her as she tried not to fidget. She had been summoned to meet with the king, and after their encounter the day before, she wasn’t sure what to expect. Caroline had insisted all was well, but butterflies danced in Katherine’s stomach as she imagined what might happen if he became angry at her again. Hopefully, she would find a way to communicate with him so he could keep his temper in check.
Caroline suggested she wear “her” dress, the one she had arrived in the castle wearing. The cook had sent for it to be cleaned while Katherine was in the kitchen the night before, and while it looked good as new, Katherine was still uncomfortable wearing it. Though the dress was nice for someone of Rose’s station, the collar was a little low-cut for daily wear in Katherine’s opinion. Considering what Rose had been before she became a princess, it wasn’t surprising. Nevertheless, she knew the pink in the gown made her cheeks rosy, and the lace trim was a nice touch. She longed to be back in her own clothing but imagined she’d never see the gowns she’d brought with her to Clovington again.
At precisely 8:00 sharp, there had been a light rapping on the bedchamber door. The other servant girls were in the kitchen, preparing the morning meal and readying the rest of the food for the day. Katherine planned to join them as soon as possible. For now, she followed a servant down the hall, wanting to get the encounter over with so she could return to Caroline in the kitchen.
Surprisingly, it was Gordon who stood waiting for her outside of the library door. The servant left them, and the officer greeted her by saying, “Good morning, miss.” She nodded in return and put on a brave face. “The king is waiting for you. I only wanted to say... I believe this conversation will be less pressing. I hope you’ll find the king to be in a more amicable mood this morning.”
Katherine smiled at him, hoping the same and wondering if Caleb knew Gordon had intercepted her. Since he offered her his arm and opened the door for her, she thought he must. She wrapped her hand around his forearm, allowing him to escort her into the library.
As Katherine entered the room, her eyes wandered past rows and rows of books, and her heart thumped in her chest as she imagined plucking each and every one off of the shelf and curling up by the fireplace. Her attention was averted, however, when she spotted Caleb standing in front of a massive window at the back of the room. He was peering out at the garden, apparently deep in thought.
Ignoring the rows of bookshelves, she took him in, noticing how the morning light gave a soft glow to his hair, how he held his mouth as he concentrated, the angle of his jaw, set in contemplation. Now that she had an opportunity to truly study him without those icy eyes penetrating her, she realized she’d been mistaken before when she’d noted how handsome he was. The word couldn’t even do him justice. She couldn’t imagine a more striking man had ever walked the earth.
Gordon cleared his throat, and Katherine realized he had to have noticed her longing stare. He said only, “Best of luck, Rose,” and then released her, leaving her alone with the king who was now aware of her presence.
As she crossed the room, Caleb gestured for her to take a seat on the settee in the middle of the room. He met her there, and as she settled on the far side, he sat down on the other, leaving a polite amount of space between them.
A moment passed before he spoke at all. He seemed distracted, even more so than he had been when he was looking out the window. She straightened her gown, keeping her eyes down while he contemplated how to begin. When he finally spoke, his tone was much softer than it had been the day before.
“Rose, I want to thank you for agreeing to meet with me this morning. I know I wasn’t particularly polite yesterday, and for that, I sincerely apologize.”
Still not looking at him, she nodded slowly. Realizing he was unsure if she was agreeing that he was rude or accepting his apology, he raised an eyebrow at her, but since she couldn’t explain, he continued.
“My men have been searching the area around Blackthorn, but they have not been able to find a trace of Matthew. This concerns me because I know that Leopold has sent his cavalry out to look for him as well. If they find him, well, we are back to the same position we were in six months ago.”
Katherine looked up at him for a moment, the bleakness of his statement setting in. The thought of Matthew becoming a prisoner again was horrifying, and as awful as being Philip’s prisoner had been, she could only imagine that being a prisoner in Leopold’s castle must be far worse. She had heard stories of nobles in oubliettes, crying out in agony as their flesh rotted from their bodies, Leopold gazing down at them through a hole in the floor, spitting in their wretched, dying faces. While she had no idea if the stories were true, she hated to consider Matthew might find out soon enough.
Caleb’s voice brought her back to the conversation. “Are you aware of the events of these past few years, the ones leading up to Matthew’s imprisonment and our quest to free him from Philip’s clutches?”
If he had been aware of her true station, he wouldn’t have asked such a question because he would’ve known Princess Katherine would be well-informed. However, he still thought she was Rose, a servant girl, in one respect or another, so she couldn’t fault him for asking. Perhaps he thought Matthew may have relayed information to her since he’d already deduced that she was the one helping him. What he didn’t know was that she probably knew more detail than Caleb did, at least from Matthew’s perspective. She doubted he’d have any way of knowing precisely what his brother had endured. She nodded her head, indicating that she was aware of what had transpired.
“You know that Matthew was kidnapped just a few months after his marriage to Queen Margaret of Zurconia? That she was nearly killed in the attack by one of her most trusted servants, that her mother was murdered, and that Matthew served six months in that tower simply because Philip sought vengeance on behalf of his dead uncle?”
Again, Katherine nodded vehemently. Yes, she knew all of that. She also knew exactly how Margaret had writhed in Matthew’s arms, how he still thought she was dead, how he had stabbed Berkley in the name of his wife, the queen. She knew how he had gone days with no water and very little food. She knew that he dreamt of his friends and family back in Arteria and wanted nothing more than to be reunited with them. She knew all of those things and more. But she did not know anything that could possibly be of value to Caleb in locating his brother, and she had no way of making him see that.
The king pressed his lips together and breathed in deeply through his nose, an indication that he was growing frustrated again. “I was wondering if Matthew may have disclosed anything at all during the course of your conversations that might’ve been useful. Even if his words seemed trivial to you, if there was a way you could let me know what you talked about, perhaps it would have a deeper meaning to me.” He leaned back against the cushions, clearly trying to stay calm.
Katherine shrugged, wishing there was a way she could tell him what they’d talked about, though she didn’t think there were any hidden clues. As far as she could guess, Matthew didn’t even know where Matthew was—so how could he have left any evidence in their conversations? Still, she would tell Caleb everything she knew if she were capable of doing so.
After a few moments of silence, Caleb seemed to be taking a different route. “Have you always been mute?” he asked, his tone as gentle as she’d ever heard it.
Though she had been asked that question more times than she cared to count, it still surprised her when she heard it. To Katherine, it was akin to asking, “Have you always been a girl?” or “Have you always been able to breathe?” Even though she had spoken earlier in her life, for the most part, yes, she had always been mute. So, generally speaking, whenever she was asked that question, she always said yes.
But today, for some reason, she didn’t. Perhaps it was because she thought Caleb could identify with her. He knew the type of tragedy she had gone through. He knew what it was like to have someone you love ripped away from you and to feel at least partially responsible. Before she answered, she glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. Those piercing blue eyes were looking straight through her, into her very soul, and even if she had wanted to choose the easy answer and simply nod, she felt he would see the truth. She looked away, biting her bottom lip. Taking a deep breath, she slowly shook her head, “No.” No, she had not always been mute. But she wished she had always been.
He sat forward, astonished. Clearly, that was not the answer he had been expecting. “You used to speak?”
Still not looking at him, Katherine nodded, wondering what his surprise might indicate.
He looked away, his eyes focused in the distance. “Perhaps, it’s possible, then, that you might be able to do it again. Have you tried? Recently? Have you tried to speak? Maybe, if you really wanted to, maybe you could.”
His tone conveyed that he was thinking aloud more than speaking to her, but the question was there just the same. Katherine sighed. What he didn’t understand was that, even if she could speak, she had nothing to tell him. No, she had not tried to speak. She had never tried, not once, not since she was four years old. Other than a few surprised gasps, like the one she’d uttered when she realized she was looking at Margaret, she hadn’t made a sound.
She could tell by his tone that he was desperate. And she so wanted to be able to help him. But she knew she couldn’t speak. Even if she wanted to say something, she was quite certain that she didn’t remember how. Rather than sit there on the settee, making strange gasping and wincing noises, that would only frustrated both of them, she had to try something else. An idea came to mind, one that should’ve occurred to one of them before, but since Caleb thought she was a servant, he probably hadn’t considered the fact that she was capable of writing more than a few words—like the note she’d written on the back of the map. She wished she’d thought of it the day before, but with so much tension and stress, it had escaped her.
Caleb wasn’t looking at her. She reached for his arm to get his attention before she realized what she was doing. The moment her hand touched his sleeve, her fingers began to tingle. Katherine pulled her hand away, unsure of what the sensation might be. She needed no distraction right now. Once he was looking at her, she gestured for a quill and paper.
The king’s forehead crinkled. It took him a moment to realize what she was trying to convey. “You want to write?” he asked. She nodded. “You know how?” Katherine’s face must’ve shown her disdain “Forgive me. I know you wrote on the back of the map. It’s only....” He stopped, thinking better of attempting to finish the thought without sounding rude. “I’ll be back.”
He stood and hurried across the room to a large desk, opening the drawers and rummaging around for several moments before he muttered a curse word and said, “Just a moment.” He shot out the door, and Katherine covered her mouth, not wanting to laugh at the king but finding his enthusiasm amusing.
As soon as Caleb was out the door, Katherine found herself alone in a large room, the weight of Matthew’s disappearance on her shoulders. It was clear Caleb thought she knew something that would help, and while she was certain she didn’t, for some reason, she didn’t want to disappoint the king. He was so desperate for any bit of information that might lead to Matthew’s recovery, she wanted to help him in any way that she could.
Her mind wandered back to that brief instance when she’d touched his arm. Even through the fabric of the military uniform he wore, something had sparked when her hand was on him. It was a sensation she’d never felt before, and while it had frightened her at the moment, the thought of it now was both pleasurable and enticing. She wanted more.
Despite all of her trepidations and the memory of the tragedy that had occurred the last time she’d made a sound, Katherine’s desire to do whatever she could to help find Matthew welled up inside of her. Alone, in the library, with only her friends the books as witness, she decided to do something she hadn’t dared do for over fifteen years. With a deep breath, she closed her eyes and concentrated on making a sound. She pushed the air through her throat, willing it to vibrate, for a noise, any at all, to emanate from her throat.
Although she gave it her best effort, nothing happened. When Caleb came back through the door, she gave up trying, hoping he couldn’t see the disappointment on her face. Perhaps, in time, if she continued to practice, it might be possible for her to regain her voice. For right now, however, she’d have to rely on her writing skills.
Caleb carried an inkwell, paper, and quill over to a small table next to the settee, his eyebrows knit as he took her in. Katherine looked away, realizing she was terrible at hiding her emotions. The king sat down beside her, and she dropped her eyes to the floor, wishing he’d just let her write.
He didn’t though. When his hand touched her arm, she couldn’t help but look down at it, the same tingling sensation she’d felt before igniting her entire body. “I apologize for upsetting you again.” She glanced up at him, noting the sincerity in his voice and the humbleness of his expression. “I realize none of this can be easy for you either. We’ll find a way to communicate, though.”
Katherine nodded as tears glistened in her eyes. She felt ridiculous getting emotional, but he had no way of knowing what she’d tried to do while he was away. Unless she told him.
He kept his hand on her arm a few more minutes, not moving, but not pulling away either, and Katherine wondered if he could feel the same sparks she did or if he was just attempting to calm her. Once he saw that she had nothing of importance to report, he’d likely grow angry and frustrated again. She liked him like this—the side of him the others had described—kind and gentle. Thoughts of sending him into another spiral made her reluctant to reach for the quill, but it had to be done.
“Are you ready to give it a go?” he asked, his tone as positive as she’d ever heard it. Katherine nodded, and he turned to fetch the items she’d need.
Another table sat to her right at the other end of the settee. She’d need to use it, so Katherine took the items, trying not to lose focus when her hand brushed his, and situated herself so that she could collect and record her thoughts without the distraction of Caleb’s gaze. It would be impossible so long as he was in the room.
