A Song for Summer (40 page)

But of course he meant none of those things. He meant home to the light-filled house on Vancouver Island with its big windows overlooking the Pacific. He meant home to his Newfoundland puppy and his sailing dinghy and his young sister who was frequently a nuisance but had many uses. For to Lucas, the castle and its storks, the lost domain in the forest of Bohemia, the palace they had shown him in London where lived a king and queen, belonged to the stuff of fairy tales. He liked the stories but what he yearned for now was his real and proper life.

"Maybe even tomorrow?"' he suggested, his head on one side.

Marek and Ellen looked at each other. Then: "I don't see why not," said Marek, and the three of them linked hands and went to find the boat.