The Carnelian Legacy (37 page)

She lowered her voice. “C’mon, Arrie, I’m not stupid. I can see what’s going on here.”

“What are you talking about?”

“If you don’t tell me right now what’s going on, I’m gonna go to Darian and ask him.”

He glanced around nervously. “Please, Marisa—I’m not supposed to talk about this. You don’t understand what’s at stake.”

“You’re right, I don’t, but I’d sure like to.”

“I can’t explain it right now. Trust me—I want to, but I can’t.”

Her shoulders sank. “All right, I won’t make you break your promise. You’ve been such a good friend to me.”

He stopped. “Wait a minute. What promise?”

“Arrie, I know everything. I heard you and Darian discussing the engagement that night after I fell in the ice caves. I was in my tent, and you were lying next to the fire. He made you promise not to say anything.”

A look of realization came over him. “Oh, that. Wait a minute—you heard
that
?”

She nodded at him knowingly.

He sighed. “How much did you hear?”

“Enough to know that Darian is secretly engaged to Matilda.”

Arrie rubbed his beard, eyeing her thoughtfully. His expression turned serious. “Marisa, you must promise to keep silent about all of this. Savino must not discover this or there will be extremely serious consequences for Darian.”

Just then, Savino ascended the steps and approached them. Right before he came within earshot, she whispered, “I promise.”

“Well, it appears that I’ve interrupted something here,” Savino said suspiciously as his gaze shifted between their faces.

She gasped at the sharp tug on her fishing pole. If she hadn’t been holding it so tightly in her hands, it would have been ripped right out of them.

“Marisa, you’ve got something on your hook!” Arrie cried.

He grabbed the pole to help her steady it. Her rod bent over into a C as the fishing line disappeared down deep under the boat. They struggled to hold on as the others ran over to their side of the boat.

“Let go of the pole!” Arrie yelled.

Marisa let it go. Arrie was yanked up and over the side of the ship just as an enormous fish with webbed wings burst out of the water and took flight. The gigantic, blue-green sparkling fish whipped its wings furiously as it tried to escape its captor. Arrie laughed and whooped as he was pulled through the air behind the monstrous fish. He screamed at the horrified spectators below.

“Look at me!
I’m flying!”

All of a sudden, the fish dove down into the water, pulling Arrie along with it. For a moment, there was no sign of either fish or man. The people on the boat scanned the water’s surface for any sign of Arrie, but it was calm.

Without warning, the fish burst up out of the water. Marisa was relieved to see Arrie still clutching the pole as he gasped for air. He coughed and sputtered, shaking the water from his head. The fish shot upwards and Arrie was dragged once more up into the sky.

Darian spun around and ran down into the ship. He reappeared seconds later with a long bow in one hand and six arrows in the other. He drew the bow and aimed it carefully, letting the first arrow fly. It missed the fish, shooting past it, and Darian quickly reloaded.

Shooting once again, the second arrow pierced the fish near the tail, but it didn’t wound it enough to bring it down. The third arrow struck the fish just under the wing, and the mighty creature fell down to the water.

Both the fish and Arrie hit the surface with a gigantic splash. The large beast began to sink beneath the waves, but Arrie was nowhere in sight. Cinzia and Marisa stood helplessly at the ship’s railing as they leaned over and scanned the water in search of the redheaded young man.

Finally, Arrie broke the surface and inhaled a gulp of air. Darian tossed him a rope which he quickly tied around his waist. Several members of the crew pulled him back onboard. He collapsed onto the deck, drenched and exhausted.

Taking deep breaths, Arrie slowly rose to his feet and strutted across the deck toward Marisa. He grinned triumphantly at her and handed Darian the fishing rod, which was still intact.

“Milady, I have risked life and limb to catch for you a choice delicacy to be served to your birthday guests this evening. Are you not pleased with my efforts?” He bowed proudly to Marisa, grinning at her and dripping wet.

She laughed and hugged him, shaking her head.

Arrie saluted Darian and dismissed himself to go change his clothes below decks. The captain collected everyone’s fishing gear in preparation to return to the docks. Everyone watched as the crew drug the giant dead fish out of the water and heaved it into the boat.

Gazing out over the water, Marisa hated to admit it, but she was going to miss the outings, carriage rides, beautiful dresses, lavish dinners, enchanting balls, plus all the other amazing perks that came with royal life. It certainly had its charms.

Without warning, the sounds of someone retching filled the air and everyone turned to look. Matilda was buckled over the railing and vomiting heavily over the side. Darian hurried to her side and offered her his handkerchief. “Mattie, are you all right? Are you seasick?”

When she turned to him, her face was as white as a sheet. “Why yes, I am a little queasy, I must be—” Unable to finish her sentence, she threw up over the side again and again. All of a sudden, she sank to the deck.

Darian moved to catch her and he carried her down into the captain’s stateroom. The guests huddled together as they exchanged concerned glances. A few minutes later, Darian emerged.

“Matilda is seriously ill and in need of a physician’s attention. I’m afraid we must cut our trip short and return immediately.”

A somber mood fell over the ship as they moved full speed ahead back toward the dock. Within minutes, the ship had returned to their starting point. As soon as the ship had berthed and the lines had been secured to the dock, Darian quickly carried Matilda ashore. The waiting carriage sped off the moment the door closed behind them.

While everyone quietly and calmly disembarked the ship to return to their carriages, Marisa was troubled by Matilda’s sudden illness. Not a word was spoken as the carriage sped back to Crocetta.

When it came to a stop inside the stables, Savino hopped out and extended his hand to Marisa. “I shall see you again this evening, but for now I must go tend to my sister,” he said, hastily kissing her hand.

She nodded at him. Savino and Gaspar hurried out of the stables and up toward the citadel. Marisa just stood there quietly, still trying to decide what to make of it all.

Arrie’s face was puzzled. “What was all that about?” he asked.

“I don’t know—but he was sure acting strange.”

“You mean more than usual?”

She stopped, bothered. “You don’t think he would poison Matilda intentionally, do you?”

“What? Poison his sister? Don’t be ridiculous.”

“I’m just sayin…”

“To be certain, the man cannot be trusted, but I do not believe he would try to kill his own flesh and blood.”

She shook her head. “I’ve been deep-sea fishing enough to know that she wasn’t seasick.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Seasickness comes on more gradual than that. Matilda was chatting and laughing one minute, and then, bam! The next minute she’s losing her lunch over the side.”

“Hmm, perhaps…”

“Did you see that pastiness in her face? When someone is seasick, they have that nasty yellow or green tinge, but never that pale color.”

“But what could his motivation possibly be?” Arrie asked.

“Maybe he’d rather see Matilda dead than married to Darian.”

“Savino cares too much about his sister to kill her.”

Marisa shook her head. “In any case, we’ve got to let Darian know. He could still be in danger. I just hope it’s not too late for Matilda.”

“She’ll recover. If he had actually intended to poison her, she would have been dead on the boat.”

“Not necessarily…”

“I still think it was seasickness.”

“Not me. I’m not convinced.”

“Marisa, it’s getting late now. I think you should go get ready for the ball while I find out what’s going on.”

“Okay. Wait—do you think the ball is even still happening with her being sick and all?”

“I’m certain it would not be cancelled on such short notice.”

“Why not?”

“There are far too many people who have traveled from considerable distances. Now please don’t worry about a thing. I shall meet you at the main staircase at half past six.”

CHAPTER 28

MASQUERADE

WHEN
SHE
RETURNED
TO
her chambers, Marisa saw that Anna had cleaned the room and there was a pleasant smell. She was feeling sleepy and the fresh linens on the bed were beckoning to her, but there was no way she could get out of going to the ball.

She collapsed on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. The lavishly furnished suite was decidedly different from her room back home. Thoughts of Jacksonville drifted into her mind as pangs of homesickness hit her once again. She wondered what her best friend Danielle would say if she knew she was the guest of honor at a masquerade ball thrown by a rich prince. Marisa smiled to herself. No one back home would ever believe her in a million years.

Motioning to Anna to draw her bathwater, she stepped out onto the balcony for some fresh air. She wasn’t thinking about Darian or Savino or about Matilda getting sick but about what her life would be like the next day.

As she spotted a full moon on the rise, somehow she knew she’d always look back on this birthday as being the key turning point in her life. Although there were hundreds of question marks still hanging in the air all around her, only one seemed important at the moment.

She took a deep breath and bowed her head in prayer.

Garon, I don’t know where my life is going, but one thing I do know is that I need purpose. I want my life to matter. I’m afraid of what will happen tomorrow. I’m afraid of being on my own. Please give me courage to stop doubting myself and give me wisdom to recognize the truth. Point me in the way I need to go. Amen.

Marisa exhaled deeply and opened her eyes. She heard a commotion down in the courtyard and leaned over to take a look. Far below her, Darian was stepping into a carriage. Even from where she stood high above him, she could still recognize his tall frame as he ducked his head. The carriage rolled down toward the gate. A wooden wagon followed it across the courtyard.

When the carriage and wagon had disappeared under the ramparts, she went inside to take her bath, wondering where Darian could be going so late in the day. Hopefully he wouldn’t arrive too late at the ball he was hosting.

As she sat in the tub and reflected on all that had happened since she’d landed in Carnelia, time seemed to stand still. She thought about meeting Darian and Arrie on the path, their night in Andresis and when they were chased through the forest by the rijgen. She remembered how shocked she was by the size of the warriors and how the incredible landscape of the country had stunned her. There was the hike to the waterfall, the bizarre negotiations at the dinner table, and the ball at Abbadon where Darian kissed her. And then on the trip back to Crocetta, who could forget their stop by the lake and her brush with death in the ice caves?

After she had retraced their entire journey from start to finish, she was feeling nostalgic but her bathwater was cold. She washed and rinsed her hair until it shone. It was important she look special on the night she would say farewell to them all. She stepped out and dried off.

Anna fastened her into the corset and pulled the strings so tightly that she almost couldn’t breathe.

“It must be tight for the gown to fit correctly,” Anna said.

Marisa wondered how she was supposed to eat, drink, and breathe wearing such a constrictive undergarment. Anna gently lowered the ball gown over her head and Marisa marveled at the most exquisite dress she’d ever worn. Tailored to fit the slender curves of her body perfectly, the purple, lavender, and ivory colors complemented her reddish-brown hair, hazel eyes, and fair skin. She slipped into a pair of matching shoes encrusted with purple beads and she was relieved to discover that they fit her size-ten feet perfectly.

On the dressing table lay the wooden box from Darian containing the beautiful necklace, earrings, and bracelet set. She fastened the solid gold choker at the nape of her neck and gasped at its beauty. Anna worked on her hair, twisting several pieces into a flowing style and fastening them on the top of her head. Marisa struggled to fasten the bracelet using just one hand and inserted the dangling earrings.

Anna eyed her from top to bottom. “Now remember, don’t put on your gloves until right before you go down,” she said. “You look so pretty in that dress, milady. Enjoy yourself this evening.”

“Thank you, Anna.” The young woman smiled at her before leaving the room with a small curtsey.

Marisa inhaled deeply and strode over to the full-length mirror. She was a tight bundle of nerves and her palms were sweating again. Unsure of whether she could make it through the entire evening, Marisa secretly hoped it would pass quickly. Then she remembered Savino.