Shattered Truth

I lead Bandit, Bruce, and Kingsley out of the tavern. The crowd from before has mostly disappeared, but a few people still throw me worried looks. No one walks close to us.

"What's wrong with everyone?" Bandit asks me, her green eyes showing a combination of confusion and irritability.

"Um, well, like Kingsley said, I was attacked," I say evasively.

"Yeah, but why are they scared of you then? And where is this infamous thug?"

"Picked up by a boat in the middle of the ocean, if he's lucky. I sort of...made the ocean take him away." Three pairs of eyes stare at me incredulously.

"What?" I say defensively. "What did you expect me to do, lie in the street and be beaten to death? Or worse?" I shudder, remembering that licentious look in his eyes when he realized I was a girl. "I'm a Water Elemental; it stands to reason that water is going to come to my rescue when I'm in a jam."

"You control water?" Bandit sounds mildly impressed. I nod. "Well, yeah. I thought that was obvious? I mean, my marks are pretty clearly water." I gesture to my face. Bandit tenses slightly.

"So, those marks on everybody's faces...they represent an element that a person controls?"

"Mhm. You can always tell and Elemental by the marks, and what element they use by what the marks look like. Take Kingsley here, for instance. Those pretty gold lightning bolts aren't just there to make him look more like a bounty hunter." I smirk as Kingsley rolls his eyes. I reach up and touch my cheeks, almost certain for a moment that I can feel the dark lines moving like liquid under my fingers.

"So, if you don't mind my asking, why is a wealthy lady like yourself wandering the docks in tht part of town?" Bruce asks me.

"Why does a foreigner seeking a husband for his teenage daughter keeping company with a bounty hunter?" I retort.

"They hired me to be their guard," Kingsley says. I let the matter drop.

"I must warn you, my mother is a bit...overbearing. And my younger sister is...obnoxious. And my older brother....well, he's just rather horrid. My father should be tolerable though. He's much more laid-back than the rest of my insane family. He's also well traveled and fascinated by history and other cultures; I'm sure he'll adore all of you. Try not to talk to Mother unless she speaks to you first. Don't talk to Cecily or Charles at all, if you can avoid it. Especially you, Bandit. He thinks he has a way with women. I assure you, he's wrong. Never get caught in a room alone with him."

"Duly noted."

We continue along the cobbled streets until we reach the nicer part of town again, and soon the Daggyrmir Manor is visible.

"Let me do the talking," I advise. I lead them inside and up the stairs, hoping Father is in his study. He is, and thankfully, he's alone. He raises his head from whatever new map he's been poring over, and smiles at me.

"Giselle, darling, there you are. Who do we have here? My name is Isaac Daggyrmir."

"Erik Chevalier," Kingsley says, smiling broadly and extending a hand for my father to shake. "And these are some old family friends of mine; Demetrius Leventhall and his daughter, Isabella. We're very pleased to make your acquaintance, sir."

"Chevalier," Father says, after shaking Bruce's hand and bowing to Bandit. "That's a very old line of Elementals."

"Yes." Kingsley nods. "Our House doesn't typically live around here anymore; but I decided to accompany my good friends here on their quest to find Isabella a husband."

"Ah. You should get along well with my youngest daughter then," Father tells Bandit, his eyes twinkling. "She just turned sixteen and had been rather intent on preparing herself for marriage."

I snort. "A complete waste of youth, if you ask me. Anyway. Father, I encountered a bit of trouble on the docks; nothing serious!" I add hastily as a look of concern comes over his face. "But these three were kind enough to help me. I was wondering if perhaps they could stay here for their duration on the island, instead of having to stay in an inn in town?" I give him my best pleading look, widening my eyes and making my lips curl into a slight pout. Father caves immediately.

"Any friend of Giselle's is welcome in my home," Father says. "Please, Mr. Leventhall, feel free to stay here. We have plenty of room and an excellent cook."

"Thank you, sir," Bruce says. I bite back a giggle; all this formality seems to be foreign to him. "We would be honored to stay here."

"I"ll show them to their rooms," I pipe up, already herding them out of the study. Father laughs quietly.

"Do you get everything you want?" Bandit asks incredulously. I laugh. "Only from Father. I drive Mother crazy; she tends to favor Cecily and Charles. I'm too free-spirited for her taste. Father and I have more in common, and he feels bad that Mother is so hard on me. So he has a special soft spot for me. Bruce, er, Mr. Leventhall, here is your room, and Isabella, yours is just across the hall." I smirk as Bruce and Bandit both make faces.

"Those were the best names you could come up with?" Bandit demands of Kingsley. "What kind of stupid names are those anyway?"

"They were an elderly couple that used to live next door to me," Kingsley says. "They were half-deaf and always yelling at people." Bandit's green eyes shoot fire. Kingsley smiles innocently while I snicker.

"You guys can go in and get settled; I can send for your things later. Kings-Erik, let me show you to your room." I lead Kingsley up the hall to another room.

"Where's your room?" he asks, leaning against the door frame.

"A lady never tells a man where her room is," I tell him primly. Then I grin. "You'll just have to find it." Kingsley gives me another of his crooked smiles.

"You're something else, Giselle."

"And you'd best not forget it."

***

I'm going to strangle Cecily. She hasn't stopped giving Kingsley demure looks and peppering him with compliments all night. He deflects her flirting kindly, but she doesn't seem to get the message. Mother keeps badgering Bruce with all sorts of questions, and Charles has been alternating his time between trying to make conversation with Bandit, and interrogating Kingsley. I have to hand it to Kingsley; he really is a smooth talker, and he handles talking to people better than anyone I've ever seen. Besides maybe Father. Bandit and Bruce seem to be struggling a little more. I've almost snorted soup through my nose several times already.

"It must be so wonderful, traveling to so many exotic places," Cecily sighs, fluttering her lashes at Kingsley so fast it looks like her eyes are having seizures.

"You do find the most extraorinary beauty in the most unexpected places," Kingsley admits, catching my eye for a moment. I feel a flush creep up my neck, and I pretend to be fascinated with my dinner so no one sees the silly smile on my face.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Mother exclaims. "I have news. Sebastian Kavanagh is coming to visit us this week."

"That's news?" I scoff. "The prince and his father visit from Parthalon all the time; the king and Father went to school together."

"I want you all to be on your best behavior," Mother continues, as though I haven't spoken. She shoots me a warning look, and I return to my food, muttering a curse under my breath. After dinner, I give our guests a tour of the manor.

"If you need anything, send for Mira. I've already contacted the Barking Fish about your things; they'll be here in the morning. In the meantime, I have some clothes for you to sleep in. I don't guarantee that everything will fit, but it's better than nothing."

"I don't know about that," Kingsley says, and I swat him with a shirt.

"Goodnight, Mr. Leventhall, Isabella." I glance at Kingsley. "Erik."

"Goodnight, Lady Giselle," Kingsley says, planting a kiss on my hand. I roll my eyes and head to my room. I was furious with him earlier for dragging me into that stupid tavern, but I've found it's very hard to stay mad at Kingsley. I brush out my hair, wriggle into a pale blue nightgown, and climb into bed. In the middle of the night, I hear something tapping against my window. Groggy, I sit up and stumble to the window. I pull aside the curtains to see Kingsley leaning on the balcony rail, smiling at me. I gawk at him and open the glass door.

"What on earth are you doing here?" I whisper.

"You gave me orders to aleviate your boredom. Well, I went to the trouble of finding your room; I plan on keeping up my end of the bargain."

My eyes light up. "Be right back." I slip into my room, pulling a black cloak on over my nightdress and slipping my feet into a pair of sandals.

"What did you have in mind?" I ask excitedly.

"Ever ridden a Dragon Boat at midnight?" Kingsley grabs my hand and helps me shimmy down the rope he had used to reach my room. As soon as our feet touch the ground, we're sprinting quietly for the garden gate, where we're less likely to be seen. Only the guest bedrooms are over tht way, and I'm certain Bruce and Bandit are asleep by now. Kingsley leads me out onto the street, and we ghost through the empty streets towards the pier, laughing breathlessly.