Flutter (The Discover Series) (64 page)

             
“Yes.”

             
“When?” I whispered.

             
“We have some time. A few weeks to let you get used to the idea.”

             
“
A few weeks to get used to the idea?
I don’t think that is humanly possible.”

             
“I know it’s going to be an adjustment, but-”

             
“An adjustment?!” I turned on him. “Are you serious?”

             
He held up his hands. “Okay, I’m sorry.”

             
I could feel the early stages of hyper venting sneaking up on me. “I don’t think I can do this Andres. I don’t know the first thing about ruling a kingdom.”

             
“Just breathe, Sara. Sit down.” He helped me back into my chair. “It’s in your blood. Your parents were amazing rulers, you will be too. It’ll be hard, but I’ll be there to help guide you.”

             
I looked up at him. “Are you really my uncle?”

             
He let out a slow breath. “No.” he looked sad about that. “I’m your Watcher.”

             
I felt my heart break a little. “My Watcher?”

             
“My job is to watch over you.”

             
I snickered. “Oh, so it’s figuratively speaking.”

             
“I’m sorry that I’ve had to keep all of this from you Sara, but I really wanted you to be safe.”

             
“Keep me safe from what?” He seemed reluctant to tell me. “I’m okay, really.”

             
“Your parents… were killed trying to protect you from your father’s brother.” He said sadly.

             
I swallowed hard. “He killed them because of me?”

             
“No!” He said quickly. “Not because of
you.
He wanted your kingdom.
Wants
your kingdom.” He corrected. “He was very upset after your mother chose your father over him and he was set on making her regret her decision. You were born to save your kingdom… to stop your uncle.”

             
“Stop him? How exactly am I suppose to do that?”

             
“You destroy him.”

             
I gaped at him, I felt like my eyes were exploding from my face. “You mean
kill
him?”

             
“Yes.”

             
The simple answer sounded so final. “How am I supposed to kill him? My parents couldn’t kill him.
I’m assuming there was an army, s
ome kind of reinforcements that was supposed to protect us right? If none of them could kill him… how am I supposed too?”

             
“Because it’s your fate. What you were born to do.”

             
I shook my head, I couldn’t shake the feeling of being betrayed. “Are you saying my parents only had me-“

             
“No.” He cut me off before I could finish. “You’re parents did know what they would be leaving you to face until it was too late. The second your father decided to leave behind his kingdom to be with your mother, your fate was written Sara.”

             
I didn’t know how to ask my next question without hurting his feelings. I took a deep breath. “Not that I’m not happy you’re here, but-”

             
“Why did they escape with you themselves?” He finished for me. Looking down at my hand, I picked at my nail and nodded. “They wanted too, but they knew the
Dark Ones
would find all three of you and kill you.”

             
“So waking up in the ice…”

             
“
It’s called Freezing. I had to do it because you were starting to use your influences and I knew if you continued to become stronger. I couldn’t let them find you. So every year, since you turned five, I froze us. I knew they wouldn’t be able to find us, and even if they did, they wouldn’t be able to defrost us.”

             
It was
getting harder to breathe again, and I couldn’t even find it in myself not to be angry at him for lying.
“Why wouldn’t they be able to defrost us?”

             
“Because he time I would freeze us, the sun would disappear.”

             
I frowned. “What? How?”

             
“I told you, you’re connected to the sun.” He said it as if it was a simple explanation.

             
“This is a lot to take in.” A feeling of overwhelming pressure crept up on me; the urge to put my head between my knees grew with each second that passed.

             
“I’m sorry. There is plenty of time to fill in all of the details.” He paused looking uncomfortable.

             
“What?” I asked, but I felt like I was opening Pandora’s Box with that question.

“There is just one other thing about yourself that you should probably know.”

             
“You mean there is something bigger then being a Spanish Princess with abilities? I still don’t know exactly what they are and yet I’m expected to save a kingdom from a
disgruntled
family member? Yippee!”

             
He nodded and I could see him swallow hard. “The reason why you can be frozen and live, the reason you have these certain abilities, influences actually, is because
of
what
you are.”

             
“And what am I?”

             
He inhaled deeply.

             
“You’re a Dragonfly, Sara.”

It had been days since I felt the familiar tingle from my wolf.

             
I stood inside my bedroom, staring into the woods looking for him, but found nothing, but darkness. The woods seemed a lot less scary when he was hidden behind the trees. I felt guilty for my lack of notice of his appearance lately, but I felt better knowing he was there now, watching over me.

             
I literally fell into bed, my hair fanning the pillow.

             
Andres’ words kept screaming through my head, over and over.

             
Dragonfly.

             
I was a dragonfly?

             
After I stopped gasping for air, he helped me back to my room. He felt that it would be better to wait to explain the details of what that exactly meant. Even though I was dying of curiosity, I just didn’t know if I could handle what he meant when he said I was a dragonfly.

             
I flipped on my side, squeezing my eyes shut, trying to get rid of the image of wings spouting from my back and huge round eyes bulging from my face.

             
I never noticed anything different about myself except for the odd tint to my skin, the blue hue in my hair, and the unnatural color of my eyes. However, none of that seemed to scream
dragonfly
girl. I started thinking about all the drawings I had found of dragonflies and the dreams Andres said I had when I was little. I was drawn to them, and now it made sense why.

             
As if a light had been turned on in my head, I could see the memories. They hadn’t been dreams like Andres had thought. Leaning over and pulling open the drawer to my night stand, I pulled out the pictures I had found in the closet. I flipped to the one with

me
and the three dragonflies and my eyes flew to the woods, just beyond the house. I could see them tapping on my window, they had been so beautiful, so fascinating. I would follow them into the woods and they would dance around me, creating and bathing me in kaleidoscope of shimmering colors. They had been my friends.

             
I had made the mistake of telling Andres, of showing him my pictures. He wasn’t angry, but he wasn’t happy about it either. I had been confused and sad when he asked me to stop playing with the dragonflies. He said not all dragonflies could be trusted. I was too young to understand what he meant, and when they came the next time, I didn’t follow them into the woods. Something hadn’t felt right and watching in horror as their beautiful colors melted away, turning into something dark and evil. It was after that, that I had asked Andres to switch rooms.

             
Flipping onto my back, I decided not to think about it anymore. I was only going to freak myself out. Every time I heard what Andres said echo inside my head, I couldn’t help, but imagine turning into a humongous mutant bug yet, so maybe it wasn’t as bad as I was imagining,

             
I closed my eyes, waiting for sleep to claim my restless body, but something felt wrong. I frowned, tilted my head back, and sniffed the air.

             
What was that smell?

             
All of a sudden, a light shone through my closed eye lids and I was suddenly afraid to open my eyes. Fear suffocated me, causing my heart to beat faster, the blood to roaring through my veins. It paralyzed me, causing my muscles to lock in protest.

             
I instantly knew that when I opened my eyes I was no longer going to be in my bed, in my room. I had hoped the dreams, no, they weren’t dreams; the
illusions
were going to stop after the other night since I hadn’t had one since then. I was wrong.

             
Taking a deep breath, I convinced my eyes to open.

             
I was staring up at a smooth ivory ceiling; the light in the room was a golden hue that softened the room. I was shocked at how beautiful the room was. I was also confused by it. It wasn’t starting out like any of the other illusions I had before. I shifted until I was sitting up, the sheets rustling as I repositioned myself in the four poster, king sized bed. I ran my hand over the luxurious texture of the dark ivory bedding. The fabric was so soft and fluffy, making me think that this was what it would feel like sleeping on a cloud.

             
The room was huge and decorated with several pieces of dark cherry wood furniture. Dressers, an armoire, bookshelves, and side tables were scattered around the room. There was a little sitting area with a tan couch, two chairs, and a table. Art and fancy light fixtures lined the walls, completing the décor of the room.

             
I was distracted by the smell again, but I was finally able to place the smell it. It smelled like something was burning. Throwing back the sheets, I crawled toward the end of the bed, sliding off until my feet hit the smooth surface of the wood flooring.

             
Looking down at my body, I realized I was no longer wearing the same clothes I had gone to bed in. Purple fabric draped down over my legs, covering the tops of my feet with a lacy border. Thin silk straps hung to my shoulders and lacy ruffles cascaded down the top of my night gown.

             
What was that sound?

             
I noticed there was a window in the room. Lifting the night gown so I wouldn’t trip over the long fabric, I walked over to it, pushing the long curtains aside. There was no glass to the window, it simply opened to the outside, and my eyes widened in horror.  I covered my mouth to hide the scream as I took in the scene below me.

             
Small houses scattered around the grounds below me, every one of them were ablaze. The fire was raging out of control and it was spreading in my direction, climbing the wall of the tower I was in. I choked I thick cloud of smoke swirling inside of the room. Turning on my bare feet, I bunched up the night gown in my fists and ran to the large wooden door, struggling to pull it open.
I nearly fell into the hallway in my haste to get out of the room and away from the fire that was attempting to swallow the my room. The angry flames were spreading, licking at the flammable surfaces, causing me to move faster. I stumbled into the brick wall, tripping on the runner that lined the stone floor. After looking up and down the hall, I followed along it, hoping it would lead me toward an exit.

             
The small space was lit only by the candle fixtures that were spaced several feet apart along the wall, and the further I went, the darker it got. Stopping at the last lit fixture, I pulled the waxed stick from its holder, cupping my hand around the fragile flame to make sure it didn’t go out. Continuing down the hall, I was cloaked in darkness, except for the tiny flame that kept the path in front of me gently lit.

             
I kept looking behind me, each time I was reminded that I couldn’t see anything that was not within a few inches from my face. I stayed close to the wall, using it as a guiding point down what seemed like the longest hallway known to mankind. The wall and ceiling were made of a sand-colored brick, the floor a dark wood, and I realized I was inside of a castle. I froze, my heart pounding, my pulse buzzing underneath my skin as I wondered if this was my parent’s castle.