The Rebel's Crown - Chapter 47 - Premeditated

╚╩╩╩╝ Hamil ╚╩╩╩╝

The sun was bright and cheery in the morning, but Jaime wasn't. The summer heat was arriving just on time this year, yet she didn't leave our home most days. She never complained about it, but she very obviously hated the cold. Despite that, she stayed in her room, window closed and staring down at a blank canvas. The curious and dedicated expression she held before was now a blank frown. She didn't respond to anything while the canvas was in front of her, almost like she was in some kind of trance.

Knocking on her door, I waited until I heard a quiet voice that gave me permission to enter. Slowly, I pushed the door open to see Jaime sitting up in bed. Her blue eyes were sunken and baggy, like she hadn't slept and her snow white hair looked like a rodent had nested inside it. She stared down at the foot of her bed, frowning.

"Breakfast is ready." I said softly.

Nodding slowly, Jaime started out of bed just as I closed the door.

I didn't know what was going on with her, but I wanted to help, though she never answered me when I asked what was wrong. My power didn't help, either. She felt similar to how Charlotte did when she was suffering. I was able to help Charlotte, but that was by talking, and Jaime was not talking.

In the dining room, after a couple of minutes, Jaime came through the door and took a seat at the table. Almost immediately as she sat down, did she start eating. Her appetite was more than healthy. Though she didn't look like it, she ate more than the brutes that worked with my father.

After eating enough for three people, Jaime excused herself from the table and left.

Watching her leave, I shot a glance at Pert and Licilia who watched her as well. They were just as worried as I was, though they were struggling, themselves. Licilia believed that the reason she was acting this way was because of what happened with the girl who was injured at the party, and she had told Pert that she wanted to be the one to talk to Jaime, though she had yet to do anything.

Finishing, I excused myself from the table and returned to my room. Charlotte was going to be here soon. She and her friends were going on a stroll through the city, and I was invited. Normally, I'd go along. This time, however, I had different plans.

After a few minutes, one of the house servants knocked on my door and announced that I had guests.

Standing in front of my mirror, I breathed in a shaky breathe and patted myself on the face a few times. I needed to psyche myself up for what was going to happen today. If everything goes as planned, then we'll have fewer problems to deal with in the future.

Determined, I shook my head and left my room.

Charlotte and her friends were chatting in the parlor, though they all stopped when I entered the room. Instead, they all started whispering in hushed tones, shooting sly glances my way.

Stepping over to Charlotte's seat, I bent down and whispered in her ear. "I wanted to ask if we could invite Jaime as well."

Her cheeks turning a light shade of pink, she nodded her head and whispered back. "That would be nice."

Standing straight, I said. "Excuse me, ladies, but I have to go and get someone."

I left the room and hurried to the corner where Jaime usually painted to find her there. Thankfully, she looked ready to go out, though she would have to leave her smock behind. Walking up to her, I frowned when I saw her slack jaw and glossy eyes. I tried to get her attention, but nothing seemed to work. Finally, I grabbed the blank canvas and moved it aside.

Almost startled, Jaime blinked rapidly and looked up at me, confused. "Yes?" She asked.

"Charlotte asked if you could come out with us." I lied, hoping she would accept.

After a short pause, Jaime nodded and stood up from her seat. "I'll be there in a minute."

Watching her leave me with the canvas, I sighed with relief and returned to the parlor.

The girls in the parlor all froze when they saw me. I'd heard them giggling through the door. A part of me wanted to know what they were talking about, but I knew that I would never get an answer, so I just ignored them and sat down beside Charlotte.

After a short minute, Jaime opened the door. I was glad to see her here, but I felt something from one of the girls in the room that concerned me. It was for less than a moment, but one of the girls, Clementine Evane if I remember correctly, was feeling something dark. It didn't last long enough for me determine what, but it was definitely there.

After a pause, I brushed it off. Something similar has happened a few times, though they all turned out to simply be jealousy, which I could sort of understand. Anyone could see that Jaime would grow up to be more than beautiful.

With everyone here, Charlotte stood up and called for us to leave.

A carriage was waiting outside for us to take into town. Dame Austen sat in the driver's seat and gave me a short wave as we approached. The carriage itself was special made for the Renae family. It was almost twice as long as a normal one and was pulled by a team of three horses.

Climbing into the carriage, the group of girls began to speak excitedly, often including Jaime in their conversation, asking her a variety of questions. Though she usually answered with few words, it was nice to see her actually talk to people.

Arriving in the center of the city, Dame Austen stopped the carriage and let us all off. She now had to find a place to leave the vehicle. This was hard with a normal carriage, so she often spent at least an hour away with this one.

Watching her leave, I swallowed hard.

Turning to Charlotte, I said. "I've got something to do. I don't know when I'll be back."

Frowning, she asked. "Are you we can't all go together?"

"I'll be fine on my own. Take care of Jaime while I'm gone." I said before turning and hurrying away.

It was a little rude of me to just leave right there, but I knew that she wouldn't let me go alone if we kept talking. I was going to do something that I didn't want her to know just yet.

After pushing into the crowd a short distance, I ducked into a small alley between two stores. Turning behind one of them, I reached into a pocket and pulled out a small piece of folded paper. I memorized the map and the path that I needed to take, but a map was always helpful.

I needed to take the most inconspicuous route possible, or else others may find out that I was here.

Gritting my teeth, I couldn't help but feel a little mad that I was using a skill that my father taught me.

Taking back roads and crossing parks that often had children on them, especially with the rising temperature, I arrived at my destination. I'd spent as much time as I could scouting out the area and planning for this day.

In front of me, behind a wall of iron bars, twice my height and topped with sharp spearheads, was a home. A two-story manor made from scorched stones and a dark brown wood, it stood menacingly over the nearby homes of the common folk. This was the Gelling's Renae estate.

Today would be the last day that Lord Gelling's two hellspawn would walk this world. And, if everything goes as planned, nobody would be able to point a finger at me or the Renae family. They would be free. Charlotte would be free.

Breathing deeply, shoving all the anxiety and worry I'd been building up to this point as far down as I could, I reached into my pocket and pulled out a thick square of cloth. This was something I'd bought with the money I earned through the couple of Freelancer jobs I did while planning my route.

The black cloth unfolded into a large cloak and a mask. They were extremely thin, but would be enough to conceal my identity, should I be seen.

Obscured from the view of others, I checked my surroundings. The path around the estate's fence bordered the back of the common people's homes, so almost nobody used it.

Sure that nobody would see, I summoned my wings. The two appendages burst out from my back, throwing the cloak out. I wrapped them around my chest and looked up at the fence. Their estate had very few guards, being the ones forced on them by the kingdom, but these guards were tasked with guarding the entrance. What made them so sure that nobody would break in a different way?

Reaching out a wing, I willed it to transform and watched it quickly become metallic. Slowly, I used it to cut through the fencing and was surprised by how easily it did. After removing three of them, I carefully laid the bars on the ground and slipped through the gap.

The courtyard was small, with the manor taking up most of the estate. It looked like someone had once tried to fill the area with grass and other kinds of foliage, but years of neglect had left it barren with only a couple trees left alive.

Sneaking around to the back of the estate, I found that one of these trees was rather close to the manor and that a window was open on the second story, right beside the tree.

Frowning, I couldn't help but think that this was too easy. With lots of low-hanging branches, I managed to easily climb the tree and, with a little more effort, get in through the open window.

The inside of the room was clean. Far too clean for those two.

Suddenly, the door to the room I was in swung open and a stocky woman looked in, saw me, then shut the door, rushed footsteps carrying her away.

Immediately, I rushed after her, though she hadn't gotten very far before tripping and falling to the ground.

"Please don't hurt me! Take whatever you want!" She cried out.

Oddly enough, her shouting didn't attract a rumble of footsteps.

"You're not the one I want to hurt." I said, trying to alter my voice to sound less childlike.

"I'm… not…" She muttered, then her eyes went wide. "The masters of this home are not here."

"They aren't?" I asked, stepping over her.

"No, they haven't for several days." She explained.

"Do you know when they'll be back?"

"No, but my husband might." She nodded her head, then rose to her bottom. "They locked him away before they left."

"Bring me there." I ordered her.

She nodded her head and then stood up and hurried in one direction.

One the ground floor, in the back of the building was a room with a thick, wooden door that stood out from the others, mainly because of the heavy lock that held it shut.

"I don't know where the key is, but you can talk to him through the door." The woman explained.

As she spoke, I walked up to the door and swiped at the lock with a wing, cutting it clean in half. Opening the door, I noticed a man sitting right in front of it. He looked malnourished, but was alive.

"Where are the masters of this house?" I asked the man.

"They returned to their father's estate." He explained, his voice rough. "They… they threw me in here… they're planning…"

"What? Just spit it out!" I shouted.

"The Renae girl. They went to their father to bring back men. They're going to kidnap her." He explained.

Hearing this, I froze. I left all of them alone. Dame Austen left because she trusted me enough to protect them, and I left them alone. I had to get back now!

Without another word, I rushed to the nearest room and climbed out a window. After getting out through the hole I made in the fence, I left behind my cloak and mask and ran as fast as I could to where I had left the group.

A muttering crowd was gathering on the street where we had separated. Unable to push through, I asked the nearest person what was happening.

"A group of girls was taken in broad daylight." They answered. "Darn shame."

Seeing Dame Austen a short distance away, trying to push through, herself, I rushed to her side.

Seeing me, the knight grabbed me by the collar and lifted me to her face and asked. "What's going on?" Her face was a mix of anger and worry, matching what I felt from her.

"They've all been taken. The Gellings. We need to get moving now!" I hurried to explain.