The color returned to Margaret’s cheeks a bit more each day. Her voice was stronger, and she was able to sit up on her own now, without the use of pillows to prop her up. In just a few short days, Caleb had seen immense improvement, and while he loved visiting with his sister-in-law, it was never easy to answer her questions.
He sat on a chair next to her bed, her cold palm on his hand, her green eyes wider than they had been the last time he visited. Her first question had been the same one she always asked—had Matthew been found. He’d shook his head. Not yet. Margaret had nodded, knowing she would’ve been told immediately if that were the case. “He will be. He’ll return to me. I know he will.”
She’d said the same thing the last time he’d sat with her, and the time before that. But Caleb believed Matthew would be found, too. He had to believe it.
“Where are you searching now?” she asked, no accusations in her voice, only curiosity.
“We’ve widened the search to the north and south,” he explained. “It makes little sense that we haven’t located him, unless he became disoriented and walked the wrong direction. Hopefully, today will be the day.”
Margaret pursed her lips together and nodded. “I wish I could do more.”
“I am certain his resolve to get back to you gives him strength.”
Again, her head rocked slightly. “I am uncertain as to whether or not he knows I am alive,” she said, not for the first time. “I am sure he must’ve thought the worst. When he was taken away, I was in such a state....”
“I believe he can feel it in his heart, Margaret,” Caleb said, thinking of how he could sense Rose’s life force even though she wasn’t in the room.
Margaret raised an eyebrow at him. “Perhaps.” She studied Caleb’s face for a moment. “Is there something you’re not telling me, brother? It seems you have a bit of radiance about you today I have not seen before.”
Caleb looked away, surprised at the comment, but unable to hide his smile. “Possibly,” he admitted.
Margaret giggled, a sound he knew Matthew had always been so fond of. “Who is she?”
“Who said it’s a woman?” he asked, looking back at her.
“Come now,” Margaret replied, patting his hand. “Surely you don’t think I am without any intuition because I’ve been slumbering these past months. I can tell, dear brother. I can tell. Is it one of the noblewomen? Not the Princess of Nadoria?”
Caleb made a face. “No, we sent her home as quickly as we could.”
“Yes, I know, but nothing transpired between the two of you before she took her leave?”
He shook his head no. “It’s nothing like that, Margaret, and if I’m honest, I’m not exactly sure what to make of it myself.” Voicing what was in his heart, how he felt about Rose, along with his concerns about her station, seemed impossible. Margaret’s green eyes warmed, and he knew if anyone other than Caroline could help him make sense of it all, it was Matthew’s wife.
“Who is she? Someone I know?”
“In a sense....” Margaret’s eyebrows arched. “It’s the girl I told you about before, the one who helped Matthew escape. He had called her Angel, but her name is Rose.”
A small smile played at Margaret’s lips. “Isn’t she a servant girl? I believe she’s brought me my dinner at least once. Pretty thing. Beautiful red hair and such lovely eyes.”
“Yes, she is a servant.” He held back telling her what Katherine had stated because he no longer thought that was the case after the night he’d shared with Rose. “It seems ridiculous to have feelings for her, considering the situation... but they’re there nonetheless.”
“Nonsense,” Margaret said with a wave of her hand. “It isn’t as if you have anyone to tell you what you must do. Council members hardly advise you on any other matters. Why would they bother to tell you who you should love?”
She had a point. He was used to members of the council attempting to play a role in whom he should marry when he was younger, but once the wars began, and he’d demonstrated he had more important matters to attend to, they’d let off. Who it was he was worried about pleasing, he wasn’t sure, though the nagging lingered in the back of his mind just the same.
“Would you bring her to see me?” Margaret asked, leaning forward a bit. “I’d like to speak with her about Matthew, now that I am stronger.”
“She doesn’t speak,” Caleb reminded her, a bit worried that Margaret would ask Rose about him as well.
“Yes, that’s right,” she said as if she’d forgotten. “No matter. We shall find a way to communicate. Please, Caleb?”
Unable to refuse his sister-in-law, Caleb stood and headed out the door, leaving Margaret in the care of her ladies-in-waiting who’d made the journey from Zurconia with her and cared for her all these months.
He tried the kitchen first, but Caroline said she’d sent Rose out an hour or so earlier, thinking she’d need to rest her hand. The cook smiled at him knowingly, so Caleb continued his search.
The small room the kitchen girls shared was empty, as were his own chambers, including the room she’d stayed in while she recovered. Caleb was at a loss until he passed by the library and saw a familiar form in front of one of the bookcases.
The sun broke through the window behind her, casting a golden-red hue around her hair. She still wore her kitchen dress, but it didn’t matter. Standing with her nose in a book, her feet crossed and her teeth encircling her bottom lip, Rose was as beautiful as anyone he’d ever seen.
At the sound of his footsteps, she closed the book and looked up, alarm fading into a smile. He grinned back, glad to finally get a moment with her. His arms went around her instantaneously, as if that’s where they belonged. “I missed you.”
Rose nodded, smiling up with him, and he knew she was saying she’d missed him, too. She set the book back on the shelf and placed her hands on his chest.
Looking down at the bandage, a wave of guilt came over him. He pushed it aside, hoping she wasn’t still thinking about his terrible treatment of her. Gently, he placed one hand on top of hers. “How is your hand today? Any better?”
She shrugged, nodding slightly. He smiled at her, realizing he was beginning to know what she was saying even without words. “A little better then.” The nodding increased.
Caleb put his hand back on her hip, trying to stay focused on why he’d come to find her and not the soft flesh beneath the layers. “There’s someone I would like for you to meet.” Her eyebrows arched in alarm. “Don’t worry. You’ll love her. And she already loves you.” He felt confident in his words, knowing how Margaret appreciated her help in caring for Matthew. “Will you come?”
Rose inhaled deeply and then nodded. With an encouraging smile, he took her good hand and led her through the halls, not caring who may notice, to the staircase at the back of the castle. She paused at the foot of the stairs, and he realized she knew where they were going. Whether she was apprehensive or nervous, he couldn’t say, but he continued to encourage her as they made their way up the stairs.
At the door, her grip on his hand became tighter. With no way of knowing what she was thinking, he glanced at her reassuringly, and before he pushed the door open, Caleb raised her hand to his lips.
Margaret pulled herself up to a sitting position as they approached. With a warm smile, she said, “Good evening, Rose. It’s so nice to formally meet you.” Rose curtseyed, and Caleb couldn’t help but smile at her graciousness.
Margaret’s voice was raspy and quiet since she had been unconscious and near death for so long, but as she began to speak to Rose, the girl didn’t have any trouble understanding. “Tell me, Rose, what did you think of my husband?”
Caleb watched in silence as Rose pondered how to answer the question, not sure if it was the fact that the question wasn’t definitive that had her puzzled or if she just didn’t know how she’d felt about Matthew. He let go of her hand so she could use it and she began to signal. With her left hand, she made a “c” shape and with her right hand, she made a backward “c.” She pressed them together to form a heart.
Margaret smiled. “Me, too,” she said. “I love him, too.” Then she added, “You’re very clever.”
Caleb kissed the top of her head. He agreed. Rose was very clever. It didn’t bother him in the least that Rose loved his brother as he assumed she meant she held a fondness for him, which was understandable. Matthew was the sort of person one instantly liked. Though he’d had his moments when he was younger, leaping in love from one girl to the next, Caleb doubted there were any sort of romantic feelings between Matthew and Rose. He was married to Margaret now, after all, and he was confident in Rose’s feelings for him.
“Sit down, Rose,” Margaret said, gesturing to the chair Caleb had been sitting in earlier. “Let’s chat some more, shall we?”
Caleb was about to excuse himself anyway to give them some privacy when a knock on the door made his breath catch in his throat. Perhaps they’d found Matthew at last. “Excuse me,” he said and stepped over to find a uniformed guard.
“Pardon the interruption, Your Highness, but you’re needed downstairs at once.”
“What is it?” Caleb asked, praying it was Matthew.
The soldier shook his head. “I’m unsure, Sir, but I do know that it is not related to the Zurconian King.”
Trying not to show his disappointment, Caleb turned back to the women, noting Margaret had Rose’s hand in hers. “I’ll be back.”
He could tell Margaret understood it wasn’t news of Matthew, though she had to have been hoping the same. “We’ll just be visiting,” she called, and Caleb left, hoping Margaret behaved herself.
Katherine stared into the green eyes Matthew had described to her, not sure what to think of his wife. While she was kind and graceful, if she suspected that Katherine had once harbored feelings for Matthew, she might think differently of her. She’d been honest when she said she loved him. Love could come in several forms after all, and while she now realized that what she’d felt for him was more of an affection than anything romantic, the thoughts had been there just the same. Now that she had been with Caleb, her emotions had reached a deeper level she hadn’t imagined possible. There was no question in her mind that she loved the King of Arteria.
“My understanding is that you don’t speak. At all. Is that correct?”
Katherine nodded, glad to hear the question asked in kindness.
“When I first awoke from my illness, I couldn’t speak either. It took many days and a wealth of patience. Do you know, when I finally spoke, what my first words were?” Katherine shook her head, noting the grin on Margaret’s face. “Horse shite!” she said laughing.
Raising her eyebrows, Katherine let that sink in for a moment, and then she laughed as well. It was hard to imagine the delicate woman before her using such language.
“Do you know why? Because I was angry. Sometimes, that’s all it takes. One strong emotion. But then... I wanted to speak.” Her face softened again. “If you’d rather not, that’s just as well. You’re a clever girl, and you find a way to get your point across.” Katherine felt her cheeks redden at the compliment. “I see so much behind your eyes. Don’t sell yourself short, Rose. Regardless of your past, you have a fresh start here. You can be whoever you want to be.”
Katherine listened intently. Margaret had been so near death, and yet here she was alive and well. Her perspective was one worth listening to. She had no idea if Caleb had told her about her alleged past or if the queen was simply making a statement, but it was true just the same.
Katherine was curious to know how Margaret had survived, but she didn’t know how to ask the question. Normally, in such a situation, she wouldn’t have bothered to try. Margaret’s friendliness inspired her to want to carry on a conversation with her, something she hadn’t wanted with most people.
She thought for a moment, tapping her chin, Margaret’s full attention focused on her face. Katherine pointed at Margaret, and the queen nodded, cocking her head to the side as if to say she was following. Next, Katherine made a gesture like someone falling asleep, hands folded and her head resting on them. Then, she pretended to wake up. Margaret nodded along, showing her understanding. “You want to know what happened to cause me to fall asleep? Or how I woke up?”
Katherine shook her head vigorously at the second question. She knew about Berkley’s deception already because Matthew had told her. Since he didn’t know his wife was alive, he couldn’t tell her the rest.
Margaret took a deep breath. “You may know I was poisoned.” Her face took on a dark tone as she spoke of unpleasant memories. “It was mandrake. Are you familiar?” Katherine nodded, and she continued. “I had only ingested a small bit, but it was enough to cause severe vomiting. I lost consciousness. Russell, however, the royal physician, had been experimenting with different levels of mandrake poisoning and various anecdotes. He had discovered a way to treat small doses of mandrake poisoning, but it involved placing the patient in a sleep-like state while the body healed. He was able to administer the proper dosage in time, and when he believed I had recovered from the mandrake poisoning, he began to bring me out of the sleep state.”
Her eyes wide, Katherine took in the information. It sounded like something out of a storybook. She’d assumed Russell had been part of the staff of Castle Caine, but it was interesting to know he’d come from Zurconia.
Margaret continued. “Unfortunately, it took much longer than he had anticipated for me to fully awaken. None of that matters now. I am alive and well and ready to go on with my life. There’s just one thing missing,” she said, glancing down at the ring she wore on her fourth finger and pressed her other hand on top of it.
Katherine reached out and squeezed her hand trying to be of some comfort. Margaret met her eyes, tears in the corners, and Katherine felt herself growing emotional as well. As much as she wanted Matthew to be found unharmed, she could only imagine how desperately his queen wished to get him back. She prayed it would be soon.
At the bottom of the stairs, Dale was waiting, shifting his weight impatiently. Caleb’s brow furrowed. “What is it?”
“James of Nadoria has just arrived at the castle.” Dale shook his head, his lips tight.
“What?” That made little sense to him. By now, Katherine should’ve been handed off and they should both be nearly back to Nadoria. “Why is he here?”
Dale turned and headed toward the throne room, Caleb following. “I’ll let him tell you, Sir.” Caleb went along in silence, thinking whatever had happened, it couldn’t be good. Dale opened the door for him and then followed Caleb in.
James stood in front of the throne, two men behind him, his attendants, Caleb assumed. James was covered in sweat as if he’d run the entire distance, the scowl on his face indicating he was angry, though his eyes reflected sadness.
“Prince James.” Caleb rushed over, offering his hand. James stared at it for a moment before he took it as if he wasn’t exactly sure he wanted to. “What’s happened?” Katherine wasn’t present; a sinking feeling set in as he imagined something must’ve gone wrong.
James spoke through clenched teeth. “My sister has been abducted.”
Caleb’s eyes widened in disbelief. He turned to look at Dale, who already knew the situation. The officer nodded, still solemn, and Caleb turned back to James. “My God! What happened?”
James sighed and ran a hand through his hair, sprinkling sweat across the marble floor. He was clearly exhausted, his emotions getting the better of him. “We were at Landres Hill, had the carriage in view. They disappeared in a ravine around a bend and never reemerged. We closed in, finding only destruction. All of your guardsmen killed—arrows everywhere. A few of my men gave chase and were able to capture one of them—Gradenian Cavalry. They… they took her.”
“Son of a bitch,” Caleb muttered, unsure what else to say. Not only had he lost several of his best men, he’d have to get involved in Katherine’s rescue now, and it wasn’t a fool like Philip he’d be fighting either. This meant war. With Gradenia. How could Leopold be so brash?
James’s voice broke as he continued. “We had scoped the area; we saw nothing, no one. I don’t know how Leopold managed to do this. It was as if his men had a secret passage, some sort of hiding place. At any rate, my sister is gone, and I feel you are at least partially responsible. I am requesting your assistance in negotiating her safe return.”
Caleb listened intently. “Of course. Arteria will certainly do whatever it takes to return your sister safely to you.” James nodded, extending his hand again. “None of my men survived then?” Caleb asked, not sure he wanted to hear the answer.
James, releasing his hand, looked down at the floor. “They were annihilated. No, no survivors.”
They had been his personal members of the King’s Guard, all of them close associates, friends. His mind flickered through each of their faces, their names coming to mind as he tried not to show his emotions. Once again, he glanced back at Dale, who was solemnly staring at the floor.
Caleb took a moment, struggling to regain control before he spoke. “I know it has been a long night, and a long ride for all of you, but please, join me at my table this evening, and we will discuss precisely how we will retrieve Katherine.” The thought that the woman had cost him so many important colleagues, and would likely cost him more, was another punch in the gut. But he had to do the right thing and ensure her safe return to Nadoria.
“As long as my sister is in the clutches of Leopold of Gradenia, I don’t think I will ever rest again.” He nodded acceptance of the offer, and Caleb gestured for a servant to show James and his men to rooms where they could prepare for the evening meal.
Once they had exited the room, Caleb turned to speak to Dale. “What a catastrophe,” he muttered. “Why would Leopold insert himself into this situation now? What can he possibly want with Katherine?”
Dale shook his head. “Revenge, perhaps? Something to barter with?”
Caleb shook his head. None of it made any sense. “Surely, he wouldn’t take such a risk on Philip’s behalf.”
“I wouldn’t think so, but none of us know either of them well enough to guess.”
Dale’s words sparked an idea in Caleb’s mind. “We don’t know them. But Rose does—Philip at least. She may have information she can share with us, something of value.”
“Do you think?” Dale asked, his expression showing he didn’t completely discount the notion. “Inviting her to dinner might be odd, what with Katherine’s brother there and a discussion of her return.”
“Yes, well, it’s not as if he has to worry about her running off and telling anyone. Fetch her from the tower, won’t you?” He was certain he could trust Rose. Even if she were capable of speaking, she wouldn’t say anything to anyone about anything they discussed.
“Very well,” Dale said, though his tone conveyed he wasn’t quite sure James would agree to the girl’s presence. Caleb would worry about that later. It was his table, and he’d invite whomever he pleased. The idea of sitting with Rose, with her as his equal, was appealing, and under the circumstances, he needed as much happiness as he could dredge up. Dale hurried off, and Caleb went to make sure Caroline was aware they’d be having extra guests for the evening meal.