Page 13 of Royal Ransom (Princess Procedural #4)

Taliyah

Maverick, Astrid, and I arrived at Basil’s classroom door by midnight, as per his instructions.

The campus was bustling, even at that late hour, with night class students streaming to and from their classes. I could easily spot the occasional human on Guy Velardi’s payroll among the monsters. There was a sense of mortality that clung to them. The monsters weren’t as careful at night, with some of the incubi allowing their horns or tails to show at odd moments. With any luck, they’d put it down to an odd fashion choice. But if it kept up, I was going to have to start issuing citations. No flashing your demon bits in public.

The night was cold, but I was snugly wrapped in a beige cardigan that my mom had crocheted for me the previous Christmas. It was a few sizes too big, hanging nearly down to the backs of my knees. But it warded off the chill, and it smelled like my childhood home. I was going to need all the comfort I could get, considering where we were headed.

“I want to come with you,” Astrid said, bouncing on the balls of her feet as she walked. Some of the students raised a hand to greet her, and she smiled back, as though nothing was amiss.

“Absolutely not,” Maverick said at the same time I said, “Not a chance. Having you play bait while under heavy guard is already stretching my sanity to the breaking point.”

Astrid’s enthusiasm dimmed for a moment. She crossed her arms over her chest in the trademark move of petulant teens everywhere. She was technically closer to twenty, but thanks to a predatory teacher, she’d always look like a teenager.

“I could go with you. There are other people who could pose as Tally. And I’m a lot better at using my powers now.”

“And they’d be a dead giveaway in winter,” I said. “I’m glad you want to help. Maybe another time you can. But if we go at Janara directly, she’s going to mow us down. I’m not putting you in danger, Astrid.”

“But I could help!”

Mav rounded on his sister, fixing her with an absolutely chilling stare. Astrid stuttered to a stop, shocked out of her easy gait by the intensity of his displeasure.

“You are done putting yourself in any more danger, Astrid. Twice was too many.”

“You’re not my dad,” she shot back angrily, redoubling her pace in a fit of pique. Mav and I had to jog to catch up, despite having several inches on her. Vampire speed was a hell of a thing.

The campus Scarlett had constructed on short notice looked nothing like the dreary stone castle I’d visited before. Blood Rose had been dragged into the twenty-first century kicking and screaming, but here it would remain. The halls were made of black and white tile instead of cold stone. Some of the milder statues of angels and striking succubi in their half-dressed human forms had been transplanted, but most of the old-world mystique was absent, which suited me fine. I hated pretentious people and places.

When we finally turned the corner into Basil’s classroom, I burst out laughing. Basil wore a pair of billowy silver pants paired with a vest only a shade or two lighter—he looked like a genie. Most of his chest was visible, and I had to admit it was a nice chest. His hair had faded from dark brown to just a few shades off white. Maverick’s dark hair had resisted the spells and potions, ending up a slate gray instead.

Astrid’s face turned an interesting shade of pink when she spotted her teacher dressed like a risqué version of Aladdin’s genie. She turned around hastily to avoid staring. If I’d been younger or single, the sight might have flustered me too.

“Did you forget to tell us you were auditioning for Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream later?” Mav asked.

Basil fiddled with the golden buttons on the vest, wearing a wry smile. The gold was the only color in the otherwise monochrome ensemble.

“It is rather silly-looking, isn’t it? But Janara is one for tradition.”

“Tradition?” I repeated.

He nodded. “This is the uniform of a male servant in the Winter Court of the Sidhe. It has been for close to fifty years now. I get updates about court politics from time to time.”

A squirming sense of guilt settled in my stomach. It wasn’t my fault. No matter what my head said, what happened to the people of Winter when I’d been human wasn’t my fault.

You could say the same about hitting someone with your car by accident. It doesn’t matter what anyone intended. Harm was done. You have to make it right.

But how did I do that? No matter what lens I looked through, I was ruining someone’s life. I couldn’t take the boys into Winter in good conscience, but allowing someone else to care for them seemed impossible. I couldn’t abandon my boys to be a queen. How did I reconcile Olwen with Taliyah? The answer was simple: I couldn’t. I’d have to make a choice. In essence, I was doing that right now. And it scared the hell out of me.

“I have a uniform for Maverick as well,” Basil said.

I heard a distinct giggle from the hallway and had to bite the inside of my cheek to stop myself from echoing it. The look of horror on Maverick’s face was priceless. I had no doubt Astrid would find a way to get a picture before we left.

“I’m afraid I don’t have a template for a female uniform,” Basil continued, ignoring the muffled laughs from the hall. Maverick was glowering at the door. If he’d had a clear line of sight, I think he might have thrown a hex. “You’ll need to have one altered when we arrive at our final destination.”

“Which is where?” Astrid asked, finally poking her head around the door frame. “You know I need a good idea of where I’m going before I make the jump.”

“You’re not accompanying us beyond Blood Rose,” Basil said in the same no-nonsense tone Maverick and I had taken with her. “And I won’t give any pertinent details until we are away from all these prying ears. Take a seat, and we’ll let Mr. Depraysie change and return.”

Basil offered Maverick a silver bundle of fabric, which he took with clear reluctance. I was pretty sure he would have handled nuclear waste with less disgust than what he aimed at the ridiculous uniform. Basil watched him retreat into the adjoining bathroom with an amused smile.

“Take a seat, you two,” he then said to Astrid and me. His eyes fluttered closed, as though he was dredging up a memory. “I’ll mark the route we’ll take on a map for you, Chief Morgan.”

I shifted uncomfortably, unsure where precisely he wanted me. As I moved to the first pillow in the row in front of him, he clicked his tongue disapprovingly. “Not there,” he said, his voice serene while his eyes remained closed. “Beside me.”

I frowned but complied, settling onto the rug next to him. If my knees had belonged to my former, human body, they would have creaked in protest. In my new fae body, it wasn’t even uncomfortable. Basil reached a hand down to me.

“There should be parchment beneath that first pillow. Lift it up for me, please.”

I reached beneath the pillow and, sure enough, found a roll of yellowed parchment. I unrolled it and held it aloft for his inspection.

Basil reached up to his desk and pulled what appeared to be a single teacup from the edge. The liquid inside was steaming, heavily aromatic with hints of vanilla and lavender. As I watched, it began to congeal, brown shifting to a black so dark it absorbed light. Basil gestured vaguely over the mixture before flicking his finger toward the parchment. Splatters of what looked like ink spread out in fine lines across the parchment. Astrid peered at it in undisguised wonder.

“Is that potion what I think it is?” she asked.

Basil smiled gently. “Most likely. You always were a bright student. I hope to see you in my classes again next term.”

“Definitely,” Astrid promised.

“What kind of potion is it?” I asked.

“Invisible ink,” Astrid said in an almost reverent tone. “Like, the real stuff—not what humans use. It conceals the picture or message on the parchment from anyone but the owner. Only the owner can show the contents of the map to someone.”

“I did not touch that piece of parchment with my bare skin,” Basil informed me. “Since you’re the first to touch it, the ink will consider you the rightful owner. Only those you choose to reveal the map to can read it. If it were to fall into enemy hands, it would appear to be just a blank piece of parchment.”

“Really?” I leaned over, eyeing the cup he’d set back on the desk. “That’s handy. Why aren’t we using this for Council meetings?”

“Because, you see, the tea is quite difficult to brew,” Basil said. “It takes a month to brew properly, and the measurements must be precise, or there could be dangerous consequences. Not even most potion scholars would dare attempt it. Additionally, very little of the key herb remains in the mundane world. However, there’s a nice little cache in the botanical department, courtesy of Professor Tranklin.”

Though we were definitely alone, he looked around as if sensing eavesdroppers. “Incidentally, I would appreciate it if you refrained from mentioning the tea to her. She will not appreciate my surreptitious pilfering.”

I raised my eyebrows. “I wouldn’t have thought of you as the type to pilfer.”

“Generally speaking, I am not. But this is one of the rare cases where the ends justify the less-than-savory means.”

Normally, I would have argued the point. I didn’t endorse the “ends justify the means” mentality. The lie of a better future was a way for people to avoid responsibility for the harm they caused in the present. And when it came to my family, I was a big ol’ hypocrite. There were very few things I wouldn’t do for those I cared about. I was about to attempt a palace coup for my dead brother. I’d move heaven and earth for those still among the living.

“I’ve imprinted the ink with my memories of my love’s secret getaway,” Basil continued. “My information on the palace is somewhat less reliable, but it’s in there too. It should provide you with detailed sketches of what you’ll be dealing with. For example...” He flicked a finger at the parchment, and fresh lines slowly crept across the page. After a moment, the picture resolved into one of the abandoned back corridors in Castle Rose. The detail was so exquisite that I was tempted to reach out and touch it. If it weren’t for the black-and-white medium, I would have sworn I was looking at a photo, not a drawing. Astrid let out a soft ‘ooh’ of appreciation, and I almost echoed her. Having Basil along was sounding like a better idea with every passing minute.

“You can also have a top-down, more schematic-like illustration if I have a memory of it.”

“It’s like Google Maps for the spooky,” I muttered, willing a spark of winter into the map. The ink shifted from black to aquamarine in response, but otherwise didn’t change. I willed it to show me a top-down view of the corridor, and it responded to my thoughts.

I gave up and oohed. I’d seen magic do some seriously cool stuff before, but this was my new threshold for amazing. I wasn’t sure how anyone was going to top this. It was like having a winter cheat code.

“We might actually make it,” I breathed. “A snowball’s chance in hell is long odds, but at least there are odds now.”

Basil shook his head grimly. “Set your expectations low. I’m still convinced this is insanity.”

So was I, honestly, but the spark of hope still wouldn’t die. I had a magic map that responded to my thoughts, an arcane faerie professor, and a moody warlock at my back. I had the element of surprise. One unguarded moment was all it took to kill a queen. And I now knew Janara’s blind spot. It was a hell of a lot better than nothing.

A shadow fell across my face, and I looked up just in time to see Maverick round the corner. I thought the silver vest worked for him, but there was no saving the pants. Those should have been banished back to the twentieth century, where they belonged.

I tried to keep a straight face. I really, really did. But Maverick’s defensive scowl broke my composure. He folded his arms across his lean and surprisingly defined chest and glowered at me.

“Go on. You look like you’re about to hurt yourself holding it in.”

I didn’t dissolve into helpless giggles. I didn’t end up on the floor tangling with a howling Astrid.

And you can’t prove otherwise.