Part Nineteen

Devon was suddenly at his mother's side.  "What do you mean she knows?"

Agathea lifted her nose in the air like a dog who's caught a scent of something.  "I'm not sure," she replied her eyes narrowing in concentration.  "She knows... something."

"But what does she know?"

The girls stood beside each other in silence watching their newly discovered family discussed their mother...

Stepmother...

The current Queen.

"It's difficult to say," said the woman.  "I think at the moment she is merely suspicious."

"We must get the girls back," declared Devon.

"Wait," said Georgeanne.

"What?" said Blue.

"Yes," agreed Agathea.  "The girls must go back."

"But I thought you were supposed to explain things," pointed out Georgeanne.

"And teach us stuff," added Blue.

"Yes dears," said Agathea placing an arm around each of them, hugging them to her.  "But right now, we must appease the Queen."

"Why?" asked Blue.  "You made it sound like she was a bad person."

"She is," said Devon kneeling before the two princesses.

"Then why would we need to appease someone like that?" said Georgeanne.

"Because to do anything now might risk your safety," he said.

The girls looked at each other then back at their uncle.  "Our safety?" said Georgeanne.

"All in due time," assured their grandmother.  "We'll explain everything in due time.  Right now, we need to get you back."

"Back?" said Blue in a daze.  Where had they gone?

"We hadn't realized you'd been gone so long," she said.

"But when will we see you again?" asked Georgeanne.

"Soon," said Devon.  "I promise."  He took each of their hands in his and gave them an affectionate squeeze.  "Now, hold on."

"What?" said the girls.

He leaned in close and said, "And whatever you do... tell the Queen nothing."

*******

Marcella entered the library.  It was a popular place to find the princesses on any given day, but she looked around and saw neither one of them.

Since her earlier run-in with the Queen, she had felt uneasy.  As always she wanted to make Her Majesty happy, and even though she hadn't seemed to be upset with her, the woman couldn't ignore the uncomfortable knot in the pit of her stomach.

The girls must be found.

When she left the Queen, she decided that she would conduct a search all on her own.  She had already checked their rooms, the music hall, the kitchens.  She even dared a peek into the royal suites of the King and Queen, but found nothing.  No matter where she looked, the girls just weren't there.

The increasingly fretful woman had gone so far as to re-check every place her and the servants had searched before inspecting every nook and cranny - even hopelessly lifting up the rugs for any clue.

Next would be the gardens.

Marcella crossed the room to the large window and stared out at the grounds which were so vast and lush.  The gazebo, the topiaries, the flowers - all beautiful in the sunshine.  It would take most of the day to cover that landscape, and she probably wouldn't be done before nightfall.  With a heavy sigh, she turned to make her exit and found the Queen standing just inside the doorway.

Her breath caught in her throat.

"You're Majesty," she said with a curtsie.

"Marcella, my dear," said the Queen, her voice like silk.  But her eyes, thought Marcella.  "Any progress?"

"No, Your Majesty," she answered reluctantly.  "I have been going back over every inch of every room personally but have found nothing."

The Queen raised an eyebrow.  "Every room?" she asked with just a small hint of suspicion in her tone.

"Wherever I was able, Your Majesty," she replied trying the best to hide the nervousness.

Before the Queen could respond, they heard a noise in the room... like a book falling to the ground.  Her Royal Highness eyed her Lady-in-Waiting who looked just as confused.  They both followed the noise to a corner.  Behind a large sofa they found the two girls leaning against the wall - as well as each other - asleep with an array of books about them.  The Queen picked up a hefty hardbound volume from a nearby shelf and let it drop to the floor.

The loud Thud! the book made woke the girls from their slumber, causing them to jump in alarm, their movements in a daze.

"Blue," said the Queen, her voice serious and irritated.  "Georgeanne."  The girls looked up, blinking their eyes and rubbing at their faces.

"Mother?" said Georgeanne groggily.  Unable to stifle the yawn that was starting, she held the back of her hand to cover her mouth as she said, "What are you doing here?"

"What am I doing here?" she asked.  "What are the two of you doing here?"  Finished yawning, Georgeanne dropped her hand in her lap.  That was when she noticed the spill of violet fabric beside her.  When their eyes met, Blue seemed just as confused as her sister.

"Have you been here this entire time?" asked Marcella.  The girls hadn't noticed her until she had spoken.

"Obviously," said the Queen before the girls could answer.  Turning her attention back to them, she said, "Do you realize everyone has been looking for you both all day?  You've made poor Marcella sick with worry."  They didn't know what to say.  "Now I don't mind you're love for literature, but I wish you wouldn't hide in the stacks like this and cause such a panic."

Not knowing what else to say, the girls simply looked up at the Queen and said, "Sorry, Mother."

"Well then," she said, "I must be off.  There are still preparations to oversee.  In the meantime the least you two can do is clean up the mess you've made.  I think it's the least you could do for the amount of worry you've caused."

"Yes, Mother," said the girls.

"Very well."  She turned to the woman and said, "Come along, Marcella.  You can come help keep everyone in line."  The Lady-in-Waiting shot one final bewildered glance at the girls before hurrying off after the Queen.

Once alone, the girls gawked at each other in silence too confused and afraid to say anything aloud.  Instead, after a few moments, they stood up and without a single word began tending to the books on the floor, returning them to their rightful places on the shelves.