Princess in Disguise (18 page)

As they started on the road that led north to the castle, Liam turned to Annie, saying, “You said you had to talk to someone in the castle. Who do you mean?”

“A friend of mine,” said Annie. “We've been calling her Lilah, but that isn't her real name. She has a lot of secrets and I'm hoping one of them can help us.”

“Isn't that the girl who used to wear those ratty furs?”

Annie laughed. “They were mice and squirrel, actually, but yes, that's her. I hope everyone at home is all right. We've been gone way too long and who knows what King Dormander has done. I've been so worried about them and now that we're going home, I'm afraid of what we'll find.”

“They'll be all right,” said Liam. “I'm sure of it. Your father is a wise man, and your uncle is there, and Beldegard and Maitland and—”

“I know, they're all strong men who will make sure everyone is well, but I won't stop worrying until I see them all again.”

“What do you think your family will do when the fairies and witches show up?”

“They'll be fine as long as Moonbeam gets there first to explain it all,” Annie said. “My parents are hoping to see her, but they might not know what to do if the others arrive before her.”

“I've been thinking,” Liam began. “If the fairies are able to set things straight, and we get King Dormander to leave, I think we should get married as soon as possible.”

Annie smiled at him. “I've been thinking the same thing! I know I got upset this morning when we were
with the fairies, but honestly, this time I don't care what my gown looks like or if my attendants have purple spots and green stripes. I want to marry you no matter what as soon as possible.”

“There's something else,” Liam told her. “I know we had been planning to go on a grand tour, but we've been traveling a lot lately. Are you tired of traveling? Because if you are, we can stay home now and go in a few years.”

“I want to go now! I would like to visit somewhere new, though. Do you have any place in mind?”

“No, but I'm sure we can come up with something. Why don't we both think about it and talk again later.”

“All right, but I want it to be somewhere exotic and very different from Treecrest or Dorinocco.”

“Sounds ideal,” Liam said, giving her a warm smile.

They talked of the wedding then and how they would make do with what they had, but as they drew closer to the castle, their conversation waned as Annie became lost in thought and Liam became ever more wary. Soon after that, Liam made them leave the road and wend their way through the trees. Even without the road to guide them, he knew which way to go. Once they reached the part of the forest that Annie recognized, she knew how close they had come.

They were beside a small stream, in the deep shade of the forest, when Liam reined his horse in. “We'll leave the horses here. We can't take them any closer
without the risk that they'll give us away. Don't worry,” he said when he saw Annie's face. “We'll come back for them when it's over.”

Instead of tying the horses to a branch, he hobbled them so they couldn't wander far. “We have to be very quiet now,” he told Annie. “King Dormander could have men anywhere in these woods.”

“There's a tunnel into the castle. It's right over there,” Annie whispered, pointing deeper into the woods. “Wait! I hear magic. It's just up ahead. Slow down. I don't want to walk into it blindly. We should—”

Liam pulled Annie to a halt and put his finger to his lips. “Listen!” he breathed.

Someone was coming through the woods, not making any effort to be quiet. The sounds were faint, but definitely headed their way.

“In here,” Liam said, moving toward a clump of ancient rhododendrons whose leaves promised some cover.

Annie and Liam worked their way between the bushes, crouching low to the ground. It wasn't long before a group of soldiers rode past close enough that Annie could hear the creaking of leather. She held her breath and willed them not to look her way. The cover that the shrubs provided was spotty at best, and she was afraid that one of the men might be able to see the two figures hiding behind the leaves.

The men had scarcely gone by when a doe walked past, heading in the direction of the castle. Annie
squeezed Liam's hand and pointed. Liam nodded, and they watched in silence as the doe approached a gap between the trees. The animal had just set her foot on a pile of dead leaves when fire flared up under her hooves. Startled, the animal reared, nearly falling over. Scrambling backward, she turned and ran, crashing through the forest.

Annie had heard the magic grow louder just before the fire flared. The moment the deer moved away, the sound became faint again. When nothing else happened, Annie slipped out of the cover of the bushes and hurried to the place where she'd seen the fire. Liam was at her side when she bent down to inspect the ground. There were reddish patches that seemed to move, and they …

“They're fire ants. There's a line of them going off in both directions. Look, they're already moving away from me. I bet the line forms a loop around the castle, starting at the river's edge on both sides. Anyone who steps on the ants will make them burst into flame.”

“Anyone but you, that is,” said Liam.

“And you, if you hold my hand. Keep your eyes open. I doubt this is the only barrier the wizard set.”

Annie took Liam's hand and together they walked across the line of ants. It was more than two yards wide and extended as far as she could see. Each time Annie or Liam took a step, the ants skittered away, maintaining a clear space around them. It took only a few steps to get to the other side, and when they stopped to look
back, they could see the ants filling in the spots they had vacated.

“That wasn't so bad,” Liam said as they started to walk again.

But Annie wasn't really listening. She had heard something, but it was too faint to tell if it was magic or someone humming a tune. Another step and it was louder. Two more and she knew for sure. “There's more magic right in front of us,” she told Liam. “I think it's that patch of grass. See, there's another one, and another. They're spaced so if you miss one, you'll step on the next.”

Although Annie was anxious to get back into the castle to see her family, she knew better than to rush into unknown magic. The sound she heard was faint, but frantic.

“What does it do?” Liam asked, bending down for a closer look.

“I don't know. I … What are you doing? Don't go that close!”

Liam had picked up a twig and was about to poke the grass with it. Hearing Annie, he shrugged and tossed the stick so that it landed on the grass. The blades of grass twitched, and suddenly they were whacking at the twig like a chef slicing a carrot, chopping it ever smaller and finer. Within moments the twig was reduced to a sawdust outline of itself. Annie watched as the grass shivered and the sawdust fell to the ground
between the blades. When the grass moved back in place, the sawdust was hidden from view.

“Wow! Did you see that?” said Liam. “I pity the poor creature that steps on that grass.”

“Hold on tight,” Annie said, taking his hand again. “We don't have far to go.”

Gripping Liam's hand so hard her knuckles were white, Annie stepped to the edge of the grass and looked down. The blades closest to the edge curled away from her feet and lay flat to the ground as if a stream of water were passing over them.

“Now!” she said, and they ran across the patch together, laughing in relief when they reached the other side.

“There may be more barriers,” said Annie, “but the opening to the tunnel is in those rocks right there. Let me go first to make sure that there's no new magic around them or that the magic inside hasn't changed since I was here last.”

Letting go of Liam's hand, she walked slowly toward the rocks, straining her ears for any little sound. When she didn't hear anything unexpected, she turned and gestured to Liam.

“At least this tunnel is dry, unlike the last one,” Liam said as he peered inside.

“Thank goodness,” Annie replied.

Holding the petals in front of her, she began to walk as fast as she could. Roots dangled from the ceiling,
brushing their hair and making her jump the first time she felt one. She ducked then, trying to avoid the roots and remember if they had hung so low the last time she had gone this way. When she finally reached the bottom of the stairs, she didn't pause, but started up them at a near run. She was about to see her family and find out if they were all right.

Reaching the top of the stairs, Annie searched for the latch that held the secret door closed. It took her a moment to open it and push aside the tapestry that hid the door from curious eyes. There was a rustling sound in the chamber on the other side of the tapestry, and when she peeked out from behind it, she gasped. The room seemed to be full of soldiers and all of them were pointing their swords at her. At first she thought that King Dormander had taken over the castle, but then she recognized the men and her father stepped forward.

“Annie, my dear! You're back!” he said as the soldiers lowered their swords. “We heard you on the stairs and thought one of Dormander's men had found the tunnel. We didn't block this one or the one you used to get out so you could have a way back in. You can't know how relieved I am that you're here. Ah, Liam, it's good to see you, my boy. How was your trip? No need to tell me that it was a success. Moonbeam arrived a few hours ago and told us that you had sent her. Come and sit down. I want to hear about everything.”

“I'm sorry, Father, but I have to go talk to someone first. It's urgent. I may know of a way to end the siege. Liam can stay and answer all of your questions. Do you mind, Liam?”

“Not at all,” he said, and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

Annie wasn't sure where she would find Lilah, but she had a few ideas. She would check the kitchen first, and then the garden, and perhaps the … The moment she stepped out of her father's meeting chamber, she was surrounded. Everyone wanted to talk to her and they all had questions to ask. She put them off, one after another, saying that she would answer their questions soon. A crowd trailed behind her as she walked, but she refused to stop and talk to anyone. Time and again she explained that she had something important to do and that there would be plenty of time to talk later.

She was on her way through the great hall when Gwendolyn waylaid her, standing directly in her path and moving in front of her every time she tried to go past. The crowd that had been following Annie gathered around them, their numbers swelling as people learned that she was there.

“You're going to talk to me and you're not getting out of it,” her sister told her. “Is anyone coming to help us—aside from the fairies, I mean?”

“No one else is coming,” said Annie. “The fairies have already done a lot, from what I can see.”

As she'd walked through the corridors, people had told her that her bridesmaids no longer had rashes, and that the fairies had fixed the roofs and floors, replaced the stones in the damaged walls, and rid the castle of all the animals that weren't supposed to be there. She had seen evidence of some of this and was pleased that they had been able to accomplish so much in so little time.

“But Father says they refuse to do anything about the wizard!” said Gwendolyn. “Couldn't you have found someone who would actually help us?”

Annie glanced at the avid faces surrounding her. Instead of thinking of them as a hindrance, perhaps she could enlist their help. “There is someone who might be able to help, but she's already here. I was on my way to find her. Does anyone know where Lilah is now?”

“Who is Lilah?” people asked one another.

“Doesn't she work in the kitchen?” a voice piped up.

“I think I saw her by the dovecote,” said another.

“You stay here. We'll go find her!” called a third, and half the people in the crowd ran off in different directions.

“Good,” said Gwendolyn. “Now you can talk to me. Where have you been exactly, and what have you been doing?”

“I've been all over, looking for Moonbeam. I'm sure Father told you that,” Annie said.

“Yes, but you were gone for days! Did it really take that long to find one fairy?”

Annie didn't think she should tell her sister everything before she talked to the king, but once Gwendolyn got an idea in her head, it was hard to distract her. However, if there was one thing that her sister liked more than getting people to tell her things, it was being the center of attention.

“She wasn't easy to find,” Annie replied. “Now it's your turn. What have you been doing while I was away? Has King Dormander's wizard tried any more magic?”

“As a matter of fact,” Gwendolyn began, “the other morning he sent pigeons to spy on us, but it was my idea to—”

“We found her! She was in the buttery,” a kitchen maid said, dragging a reluctant-looking Lilah by the hand.

“What do you want?” Lilah asked, shaking off the girl's grip.

“Just to talk to you,” said Annie. Hearing the shuffle of feet, she looked around to see that everyone had moved closer to listen. “In private,” she added, and led Lilah from the hall.

Grumbles of disappointment followed them as Annie took Lilah to a small room off the main corridor and shut the door.

“There's something you need to tell me,” Annie said, turning to her friend. “Is King Dormander your father?”

Lilah looked away, letting her long hair cover her face. She nodded, an almost imperceptible movement that spoke volumes. “I should have told you sooner, but
I couldn't at first, and then when I wanted to, you were gone.”

“Why couldn't you tell me when he first arrived? Are you that afraid of him?”