Chapter 36

36

Ella

The next morning, I slipped into the servants' garden as twilight inched toward dawn. The night staff was all settling in, while the gardeners and the rest of the day staff hadn't begun their shift yet. It was the perfect time to poke around—dark enough to hide me but light enough to see.

I set down the small bundle of food I'd gotten from Sylvester after a relentless round of haggling and begging. It wasn't everything the owl had asked for, but hopefully, it was enough. Cupping my hands around my mouth, I gave a soft hoot. Moments later, the owl landed on the edge of a raised bed.

He cocked his head. You do not sound like an owl at all. At least not a pretty one. Maybe the type with weird ears.

Weird ears? I reached up to touch my own self-consciously, but my fingers only found the plain scarf I'd wrapped around my hair, as was the fashion among the household girls.

You have my delicacies? He peered at my bundle.

I spread out the fare I'd brought for him and waited while he greedily consumed each bit, gobbling strips of pheasant down his gullet. It was somewhat unsettling, and I was glad I hadn't brought Pip.

A half dozen crows, noticing the feast, hopped down and began inching forward. Treat?

I tossed them some of the bread I'd brought for myself, and they fluttered about, eating almost as greedily as the owl.

As the birds feasted, I studied the northern wall. The owl had claimed that behind it lay a garden with a golden pavilion and tall tower on the far side, but that you couldn't see it from the castle grounds. Was it just a trick to get a free meal, or was there really a hidden portion of the castle?

The sky was just beginning to brighten, and I started to grow nervous. "Can you show me where I need to go to find the garden with the golden pavilion? It's almost sunrise."

Just over that wall , the owl said, swallowing a strip of meat.

Annoyance pricked at me. "I'm going to check it out. Join me when you finish."

The crows hopped around, pecking at things, and one looked straight at me. Need help?

I nodded, glad to have some allies that weren't quite so mercenary. "Can you be my sentries? Alert me if you see anyone coming into the garden or if anyone on the battlements turns toward me."

Another pecked at the first. Yes, yes! We'll chase them off. Very brave.

A laughing smile broke across my face. "Yes, you're very brave. All of you."

He pecked his friend again just to make sure I realized that he was the bravest of them all.

With a quick glance at the castle towers, I stole toward the far end of the garden, keeping to the deep shadows. The back wall was lined with low flowerbeds and covered with ornamental ivy. I quickly searched the vines for a hidden door, pushing the leaves out of the way and digging my fingers in the cracks of the wall.

Eventually, I stepped back, my hands on my hips. Nothing.

There was a soft flutter of wings, and the little owl landed on the path beside me. You're on the wrong side.

"I get that. I'm guessing you can't pick me up and fly me over."

The owl cocked its head and blinked at me like I was an idiot. Apparently, sarcasm was not a universal language.

I turned back to the wall with a sigh and tugged gently on the ivy. "I don't suppose you could help me out and grow over the top."

The vine moved in my hand, and I jumped back with a soft yelp. The dark green tendrils began snaking their way up the wall. Leaves sprouted along their lengths, and small rootlets latched onto the stone.

My skin prickled, and I gaped at the rising wave of green. It was magic— my magic . And it was getting stronger.

The implications hit me like a lightning bolt, and I spun around, scanning the courtyard. If anyone had witnessed what I'd just done, the game would be up. But no one was stirring in the courtyard or on the battlements, and my sentries were busy at work, circling the sky above.

I breathed a deep sigh of relief. Clearly, I needed to double-check my surroundings before I started asking plants for personal favors. It hadn't been anything more than a joke, but now…I tugged on the matted vines. Could I actually climb up and over? Was I mad?

It seemed likely.

The creeping ivy slowly wrapped around the iron spikes that topped the crenelated wall. The garden staff would probably begin work in half an hour. I needed to hurry.

Now or never.

I grasped a bundle of ivy strands in each hand, then heaved myself up and climbed hand over hand, using the thick vines as a makeshift rope and the stones as a ladder.

Scaling the wall was brutal work, and fear clenched my chest each time the vines strained and swayed as their rootlets tore away from the wall, but they held at the top. Finally, I pulled myself partway up so I could peek over the wall.

There was absolutely nothing on the other side—just a few trees and the steep cliff that protected the flank of the castle.

I closed my eyes for a bitter second, trying to settle my stomach.

The owl alighted on the top of the wall beside me. Almost there.

I glared at him, disappointment filling me as I avoided looking at the endless drop below. "What are you talking about? There's nothing here, and I'm completely exposed!"

He rustled his feathers. You're still on the wrong side.

I glanced back at the courtyard, and my stomach knotted. Completely exposed didn't begin to describe my situation. The tower guards had a clean line of sight on me, as did the two figures who'd just entered the far end of the gardens. If any of them looked my way…

I had two options. Give up and drop back down or flip over the other side and find my way back in through the main gate.

Hurry! the owl said. It spread its wings and hopped off the top of the wall?—

And disappeared.

My heart skipped a beat. There'd been a ripple in the air, and then he was gone. Had someone shot him down? Or…

Grasping the iron spikes, I quickly heaved myself over the top of the wall. My dress caught, then tore as I yanked myself free. The world around me shifted, and my skin tingled as I clung to the wall on the other side.

I glanced down, and my breath stilled. Everything had changed.

Where there'd been a cliff, there was now a pleasure garden enclosed on three sides by a colonnaded hall with a golden-roofed pavilion at its center, half covered by the shadow of a tall tower.

A tower .

Clinging to an iron spike with one hand, I glanced up, blocking out the rising sun with my free hand. Although the elegant tower soared twice as tall as the prince's own, I'd never seen it before. It was absolutely impossible. That, or magical.

Grasping the vines with both hands, I skidded down the face of the wall. The ivy stopped ten feet above the ground, so I dropped the rest of the way, landing on my backside behind a fragrant bush.

I froze and held my breath, listening. My heart felt like it was going to gallop out of my chest, but when there were no immediate shouts of alarm or ringing bells, my shoulders relaxed.

The tower and its garden had been hidden by some kind of spell—of that much I was certain. I'd felt it prickling my skin as I'd crossed over the top of the wall. But why? Could it be a prison for the mages that Belle had mentioned?

I frowned. If it was as easy to get out as it was to get in, it wouldn't make a very secure prison—at least not for someone with magic.

My surroundings further complicated the matter. The lush garden with its exotic flowers, the marble fountain, and the golden pavilion were ostentatious displays of wealth that surpassed even the excesses of the castle. If the interior of the tower matched, it would probably put the prince's residence to shame.

I craned my neck to look at the impossible tower again. Supported by graceful flying buttresses, it was far more imposing than anything in the main section of the castle. Perhaps this was the prince's secret refuge. That would explain why his chambers were always so clean.

But why keep it a secret?

Could it be because the mages were here? What if they were locked inside the tower? It would explain why the only servants allowed to enter this area were on the day shift and sworn to silence.

I was growing more and more convinced that just like the castle, the prince wasn't what he seemed to be. Perhaps he'd forced the mages to cast a spell to hide the tower and garden, concealing their own prison. The bitter irony of it knotted my fists.

There had to be a way to free them.

Unfortunately, time wasn't on my side. Golden light was already creeping into the garden.

Keeping low, I stole toward the nearest colonnade, taking cover behind a bush with bright orange flowers. I checked the walls and grounds again, and then a third time.

There were no guards posted anywhere. The only sign of life was the owl perched on the peak of a roof and my crows circling above.

It didn't feel right. There should be some kind of guard.

I surveyed the garden. The air was heavy with a floral perfume I didn't recognize, likely from one of the unfamiliar plants or diminutive fruit trees. I could make out the backs of several golden chairs beneath the pavilion and possibly the glint of gemstones.

Staying as low as I could, I darted forward through a gap in the colonnade and crouched behind the half-wall that fronted the garden. The adjoining building had large windows and several doors. Checking both directions, I scooted across the colonnade and peeked in. The windows were foggy, but I could just make out a large pool of steaming water and the shadowed forms of two young women. Naked women.

I blinked in surprise. What in the Fates?

One of the crow sentries I'd stationed cried out. Someone's coming!

I ducked back into the garden, taking refuge behind a large, woody bush with fragrant white blossoms, then peeked through the branches. Two men and a woman emerged from a door at the base of the tower and strode into the garden, heading toward the pavilion…

And toward me.

They had the timeless look of immortals about them, neither young nor old, and all three were dressed in bright robes crafted from shimmering cloth. High nobles of a sort?

I shifted position slightly as they ascended the marble dais so I could get a better view. The woman wore gold and emerald earrings and a matching necklace, while the grim man in black robes on her right was no less adorned, with a heavy pendant and rings on his fingers. He dropped down into one of the golden chairs beneath the pavilion. "Let's not make this take any longer than it needs to. I don't want to keep the girls waiting."

The woman gave him a condescending sneer as she took her seat. "So much fuss over something that will only last a minute. Your priorities are so mundane , Horace. The ritual of the tithe is the only thing worth savoring."

"Maybe you're too old to appreciate the pleasure of the flesh, Thalindra, but I'm not. The tithe makes it impossible for me to think of anything else, so get any politics out of the way first."

She leaned back, letting the rising sun illuminate her face. "You know nothing of how to pleasure a woman's flesh. Don't pretend you do."

My breath stilled. They were sitting and talking in direct sunlight as if they didn't mind it at all. Hell, she looked like she was savoring the warmth. They couldn't be immortals. They didn't even have fangs.

Could these lords be human?

Before I could sort out my thoughts, a door opened at the end of the far colonnade, and a soldier stepped in.

I ducked and pushed my back against the low wall.

The butt of a spear cracked against the stone three times. "His Royal Highness, Prince Cassius!"