Determined to take control of their fates, Arjen and Arien escape Derolina Castle at the age of sixteen after their cruel mother dies. They adopt new names and find a home in the city of Aramore, while the Emperor of Yuriana searches for his missing...
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Marcus was absent the following day. The twins had assumed—and hoped—that he was out trying to find someone to help them return the book. But when the two of them went downstairs to open the shop, they found Luther had already unlocked the doors and he stood behind the counter stacking packages for pickup.
"Where's Marcus?" Arien asked, her eyes going to the long corridor of the shop as if expecting him to emerge.
"Grandpa started feeling sick last night, so he wanted me to work at the counter today," Luther replied.
Arjen frowned. Why did Marcus assign Luther to the counter? The twins were also trained to work the front, so they could've done it themselves. Marcus wasn't known for playing favorites, but Luther had occasionally worked in the shop since his early teens, and he was family. Still, it made little sense to Arjen. And it stung a bit. He and Arien were actual employees, not Luther.
"It should be a slow day," Luther assured them. "Grandpa said you could take the day off if you want. We might even close early."
Though normally Arien would be thrilled to have Luther in the shop, she also appeared puzzled. "Are you sure?" she asked. "We didn't work much yesterday, either."
Their friend shrugged. "He said he'd pay you regardless."
Arjen never understood why Marcus was so generous with them. Why would anyone feel so generous toward two nobodies who suddenly wandered into town two years ago? It was a question he had never found an answer to. "If that's what he wants..."
"I hope he gets better soon," said Arien, sounding worried. "It's not serious, is it?"
"I think it's just a cold," said Luther. He smiled at her gently, and Arien blushed. "I think he'll be alright."
Arjen's gaze went from Luther to Arien and back again. He pursed his lips.
A shadow blocked the morning light from the doorway, and Frieda entered, clad in a lavender dress accompanied by a matching hat. Her heeled shoes clicked on the wood floor and her dress swished as she sauntered in, and when she spotted the siblings, her gloved hand tapped her lips. "Oh, just the girl I wanted to see!" she said.
"Grandma?" said Luther, surprised. "I thought you said you were taking care of Grandpa today?"
Frieda dismissed the idea with a wave of her hand. "Oh, he's fine, he's fine. He's had much worse. Did I ever tell you about the time one of his customers was a wizard in disguise and he cursed Marcus to have the skin of a toad because my ridiculous husband spilled tea on the man's order?"
Arjen tensed. "What?! He never told us that!"
Frieda nodded enthusiastically as if she found it hilarious, a strange thing to do considering her husband had been cursed. "Oh, he was miserable the whole time, and couldn't show himself anywhere. Thankfully, we were able to undue the curse after a few weeks. He'll take a simple cold over that any day of the week."
