Chapter 7

“I could,” he answered agreeably. He looked amused. “Though I couldn’t guarantee your bed would be solitary.”

She glared at him. “Fine.” He raised an intrigued eyebrow. “This is fine,” she clarified.

He shrugged. “As you wish. If you need anything, something to eat, for instance, just raise your voice slightly and call for service.”

Jasmine waited a moment after he’d left and then quickly opened the door. Two wolf guards looked down at her inquiringly. She growled in frustration and shut the door, locking it for good measure. Then she slumped against it, done in. Lemming had stayed with Wiley, so nothing disturbed the silence in the room, or her thoughts, such as they were. Her brain felt numb—temporarily shocked into immobility by the events of the evening. Her body ached from her climb up and down the Alaskan hills, and her feet throbbed and sweated unmercifully in her double layer of socks.

A click caused her to roll her head towards the tub. The water had stopped pouring. After a moment of contemplation she gave a fatalistic shrug. Ah, well. What else did she have to do?

***

Jasmine sighed and stretched luxuriously against the silky sheets, then forced herself to roll over. It took a bit more effort to pry her eyes open long enough to actually see and process her surroundings. She sat up with a start.

“Jas...are you awake yet?” Wiley’s voice sounded from a hidden intercom near the door.

Jasmine groaned and brushed the sleep from her eyes, not certain she was ready to face the day. Remnants of her dreams, something involving mirrors and a dark haired lover, still haunted her mind. Well, she’d known this tacky bed was going to give her nightmares.

“Jasmine!” Wiley sounded impatient.

“Come in.”

“I can’t; it’s locked.”

“Ah, nuts.” Surrendering to the inevitable, she crawled out of bed and covered herself with a soft robe she’d found in the armoire before going to unlock the door.

“About time,” Wiley grouched. Lemming was at her heels. “I was beginning to fear they’d done away with you, even though Jayems insisted you were still in here.” She gestured for the servants behind her to enter while Jasmine stifled a yawn. “I brought breakfast.” She crossed to the wardrobe and set a bundle of folded clothes inside. “You can see if these fit you after we eat, if you want.”

“Great.” Jasmine pushed her shoulder length hair out of her face. A servant in a white and gold tunic and loose trousers set a large covered tray on the dining table and took off the lid. He set the table for two.

“Shutters,” Wiley called out, and the wall directly opposite the door slid open like elevator doors, revealing a wall of clear glass with a breathtaking view.

Jasmine drew in a breath, distracted from the delicious smells of breakfast, and moved closer to stare in awe at the sheer drop below her window.

It was misty outside, the kind of thick fog that was almost rain, but even so she could make out the cove five stories below her room. Towering redwoods rose on every side, to the edges of the shore, though they were half hidden in the haze. Farther out, gray sea met smoky sky in a seamless melding that might have stretched forever, off unto the edge of the world. Or perhaps it was merely the hazy glass curve of the magician’s crystal that held this strange dream world.

“It’s an inlet of the sea; I forget what it’s called. On a clear day you can see the mountains on the other side,” Wiley said. Today she wore a sky blue robe with a long sapphire tunic trimmed in silver embroidery. She stroked a sleeve absently, in a faintly troubled way.

Jasmine shook her head, breaking the spell of the sea. “Beautiful,” she said to Wiley, suitably awed. Then she grinned. “Let’s eat.”

Wiley laughed and moved towards the table. The male servant stood discreetly against the wall while the other made up the bed and collected Jasmine’s clothes, depositing them in a machine hidden behind a wall panel. Jasmine observed that her white uniform didn’t appear to be the best color for a maid as the woman began to clean the tub, and then dismissed the matter. Maybe they had superior methods of stain removal here. At any rate, she had more important things to worry about.

She spread a napkin on her lap and had just opened her mouth to broach those matters when Wiley gasped and began to giggle. “What?”

“You had to sleep there?” Wiley pointed an unsteady finger at the bed.

She glanced at it, and the mirror on the ceiling, annoyed all over again. “Your sweet cousin seemed to think it was funny.” She surveyed the silver chopsticks and wide spoon beside her plate with consternation. Perhaps she should have tried harder to master the wooden ones in the Chinese restaurants back home. Picking up her spoon, she scooped a small taste of what appeared to be a sausage pilaf and nibbled on it experimentally. Satisfied, she took the serving scoop and piled a small mountain onto her china plate. “I won’t be sorry to see the end of him.”

“Here, have some almond milk.” Wiley smiled almost nervously and handed her an insulated silver ewer.

“Almond milk?” She made a face as she accepted it and poured a little in a tall crystal glass. “What is this, planet of the health food junkies?”

Wiley shrugged in apology. “No dairy animals.”

Jasmine’s brows shot up. “What? No whipped cream, no butter?” Frowning, she took a cautious sip from her cup. “Ok, it’s not bad, but if someone whips out a brick of tofu, I’m leaving.”

Wiley toyed with her spoon. Addressing it, she said, “You can’t.” At Jasmine’s puzzled expression, she clarified, “They won’t let you leave. They think you’re planning to cause trouble if they let you go.”