diversion?" repeated the captain.
"Yes! Have we not all chased these beasts here? Now, right now, are we not all staring at these corpses while . . . " I turned to the castle. "While Lord knows what is going on inside."
"The king!" exclaimed the captain.
Without further discussion, the entire group dashed back to the castle. Once inside its walls, we followed a bloody trail of corpses leading back to the royal wing's entrance.
"These four men were the first to die," I said. "Look, no vapor is escaping their torn bellies." I stopped to study a paw print beside one of the bloody corpses. Too big to belong to a hound, or a wolf for that matter . The print resembled the one Milo and I had discovered in the conservatory. Could it belong to the same creature? What is this beast?
As I rose to ask one of the guards if he could identify the print, I saw that they had moved further down the corridor. They were not going any further though. The guards just stood there as if they had reached the end of the trail.
I hurried to join the group.
"The king is safe," whispered one of the guards when I pulled beside him. "He's over there."
Rising on tiptoes, I caught a glimpse of the king. The man looked as though he had just seen a ghost. His face was beyond pale, his eyes wide with terror. I stretched some more and saw Eva clutching a bawling Thalia in her arms. I was so relieved I nearly melted to the floor.
"All is well, she's safe."
The guard frowned at me. "Your Highness, nothing is well."
"But, she's safe. The princesses are safe."
"No. They're missing."
"Who?"
"The princesses."
I looked at Eva and her sister.
"Not them, Your Highness. The twins, they're both gone, missing. You were right, this was a diversion. Now two more princesses have been kidnapped."
Chapter Seven
After a waiting period, which felt like an eternity to me, the corridor finally emptied itself of guards, and I was able to enter the princesses' room. As I crossed the threshold, violent shudders shook my entire body. This feeling of being cold was so intense that I had to fold my arms tightly around myself to stop my shivering. A draft perhaps. No, that wasn't it. The windows were closed. I scanned the room; it had been ransacked. The damage was so thorough one could believe a battle had been waged here. Most everything in the room—beds included—had been broken. The only exception was the small vanity in the far corner. Miraculously this dainty-legged, fragile-looking piece of furniture, with that pitcher of water resting on top of it, had managed to escape destruction.
A piece of pink fabric lying on the floor caught my eye. I picked it up and saw that it was a torn piece of nightgown.
"Poor little girls. What monster would do such a thing?" I consoled myself with the fact that there was no trace of blood on the fabric, or anywhere in this room for that matter. Directing my attention to the bedroom door, I inspected the damage done to it.
Half-broken down, the sturdy slab of oak hung precariously by its last hinges. Something was wrong with that picture. After a thorough examination of the broken door, I came to the conclusion that it had been broken from the inside out. The claw marks scarring the inside of the door proved it. So they entered the room, took the princesses, and unleashed the beast from here.
"Hmm, doesn't make any sense." I bent over the broken door and placed my fingers inside the claw marks. A cold jolt of energy shot up from my fingers to the rest of my body, knocking me down on my butt.
"What was that?" I breathed, even though I knew all too well what that was. Why couldn't I say it aloud then? Why? No! It can't be. Not here. Not again—NOT AGAIN! Visions of my dead brothers flooded my mind. I had been helpless to save them against the efreet. That evil creature had killed them all. I couldn't stop it. I failed. I failed them all. Would the same thing happen here too? I couldn't risk failing again. I couldn't fight
"Yes! Have we not all chased these beasts here? Now, right now, are we not all staring at these corpses while . . . " I turned to the castle. "While Lord knows what is going on inside."
"The king!" exclaimed the captain.
Without further discussion, the entire group dashed back to the castle. Once inside its walls, we followed a bloody trail of corpses leading back to the royal wing's entrance.
"These four men were the first to die," I said. "Look, no vapor is escaping their torn bellies." I stopped to study a paw print beside one of the bloody corpses. Too big to belong to a hound, or a wolf for that matter . The print resembled the one Milo and I had discovered in the conservatory. Could it belong to the same creature? What is this beast?
As I rose to ask one of the guards if he could identify the print, I saw that they had moved further down the corridor. They were not going any further though. The guards just stood there as if they had reached the end of the trail.
I hurried to join the group.
"The king is safe," whispered one of the guards when I pulled beside him. "He's over there."
Rising on tiptoes, I caught a glimpse of the king. The man looked as though he had just seen a ghost. His face was beyond pale, his eyes wide with terror. I stretched some more and saw Eva clutching a bawling Thalia in her arms. I was so relieved I nearly melted to the floor.
"All is well, she's safe."
The guard frowned at me. "Your Highness, nothing is well."
"But, she's safe. The princesses are safe."
"No. They're missing."
"Who?"
"The princesses."
I looked at Eva and her sister.
"Not them, Your Highness. The twins, they're both gone, missing. You were right, this was a diversion. Now two more princesses have been kidnapped."
Chapter Seven
After a waiting period, which felt like an eternity to me, the corridor finally emptied itself of guards, and I was able to enter the princesses' room. As I crossed the threshold, violent shudders shook my entire body. This feeling of being cold was so intense that I had to fold my arms tightly around myself to stop my shivering. A draft perhaps. No, that wasn't it. The windows were closed. I scanned the room; it had been ransacked. The damage was so thorough one could believe a battle had been waged here. Most everything in the room—beds included—had been broken. The only exception was the small vanity in the far corner. Miraculously this dainty-legged, fragile-looking piece of furniture, with that pitcher of water resting on top of it, had managed to escape destruction.
A piece of pink fabric lying on the floor caught my eye. I picked it up and saw that it was a torn piece of nightgown.
"Poor little girls. What monster would do such a thing?" I consoled myself with the fact that there was no trace of blood on the fabric, or anywhere in this room for that matter. Directing my attention to the bedroom door, I inspected the damage done to it.
Half-broken down, the sturdy slab of oak hung precariously by its last hinges. Something was wrong with that picture. After a thorough examination of the broken door, I came to the conclusion that it had been broken from the inside out. The claw marks scarring the inside of the door proved it. So they entered the room, took the princesses, and unleashed the beast from here.
"Hmm, doesn't make any sense." I bent over the broken door and placed my fingers inside the claw marks. A cold jolt of energy shot up from my fingers to the rest of my body, knocking me down on my butt.
"What was that?" I breathed, even though I knew all too well what that was. Why couldn't I say it aloud then? Why? No! It can't be. Not here. Not again—NOT AGAIN! Visions of my dead brothers flooded my mind. I had been helpless to save them against the efreet. That evil creature had killed them all. I couldn't stop it. I failed. I failed them all. Would the same thing happen here too? I couldn't risk failing again. I couldn't fight
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