Queen of Rosewood Forest (On Hold)

Chapter 36

My mind begins to spiral as I think back to the mural that I saw and now everything that I have read. Knowing that I am not going to be able to get any sleep now, I slip the letter into my pocket and quietly slip out to the back. Maybe some fresh air will help me clear my mind or at least sort my thoughts.

As I lay on the ground I start to think to myself about what this all means. If someone is meant to overthrow the government here I definitely need to tell Alun, but what if he already knows? Alun doesn't seem to follow every command, that's more Aaden, but still. This is their home and they do have a lot of respect for the Elders. How old is this letter anyway? Maybe it's like centuries old and this has already been taken care of. Maybe I should just forget the whole thing, I don't want to cause any more trouble than I already have. But still, I have a weird feeling about it. Nothing is making sense right now. I sigh and look back up at the stars to try and calm my mind just enough that maybe I can get a couple of hours of sleep.

"What's going on in that mind of yours?"

I sit up and look around shocked then sigh in relief when I see Alun leaning on the doorframe of the back door.

"How–?"

"I was reading and noticed the flowers were starting to overgrow the flowerbox in my window," he admits. "Had a feeling I would find you out here."

"Sorry," I mumble as I lay back down to look at the stars, "I'll try and stop."

He walks over and sits beside me, "I know I can be a little difficult to talk to Evie, but you can tell me anything if you want." He takes my hand and starts rubbing his thumb on me in a soothing manner.

"Evie?" I ask confused. He shrugs and I smile softly, "I like it."

"Good," he barely smirks. "Now, would you like to talk about whatever is bothering you?"

"See, I told you."

I sit back up and see Neven, Eben, and Aaden come over. I look at Alun confused and he shakes his head. "The azaleas in my window started blooming," Eben said. "I just planted them a couple of hours ago, they shouldn't be blooming yet. I got worried so I went to find them and we came here. Are you okay, Eve?"

"I don't know," I admit softly.

"Why?" Neven asks as he sits in front of me, "What's wrong?"

Eben sits behind me and pulls me back so that my head is in his lap so that I can look up at the stars again. Aaden sits beside me and places my hand on his knee. Oddly enough it felt right.

"Just talk," Eben suggests. "Say whatever is on your mind, anything, even if it doesn't make sense, just say it. We will listen and NOT interrupt," he says giving Neven a look that makes me giggle softly. "I promise it will."

I lay there for a few minutes then feeling Aaden give me a gentle squeeze, I take a deep breath. "I found the cathedral when I was at the castle," I blurt out nervously, "I saw the mural too." The look on Eben's face tells me that Neven started to say something but then shut his mouth. "When I was looking at it, I thought she kind of looked like my grandmother but I couldnt be sure since I never met her. I only saw the picture my father had and what he told me. Anyway after Eben found me and we talked I went to the bathroom to clean my face. I noticed a loose floorboard and thought it would be a perfect spot to bury my wedding ring, like the tradition Eben had told me about. I noticed a letter under the board."

I pull the letter out of my pocket and hold it up. Alun holds his hand out and I set it in his hand. "Thank you," he whispers.

"I just opened it," I admit, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you when I found it but I honestly forgot about it until tonight when I saw it in my nightstand while trying to find a new book to read." He nods and I whisper, "I don't want you mad at me. I didn't mean to keep it a secret."

"It's fine," he shakes his head, "I'm not mad at you, I promise."

I watch him open the letter and nervously bit my lip, "It talks about a council killing a king and a conspiracy to kill the royal bloodline. There's also a mention of a prophecy of an heir correcting the wrongdoings of a council," I tell them. "Alun?" he looks over at me, "Who's Queen Amalia?"

He frowns in confusion, "I don't know Evette."

Aaden takes the letter from Alun and starts to read it, "Maybe the library will have information on her and anything about this. It looks official but old. We weren't taught about a Queen Amalia or any sort of prophecy, this could possibly be about another kingdom."

"But it was in the ruined castle," Neven points out. "And it was hidden, why would anything about another kingdom be hidden in that castle? It doesn't make any sense."

"Thank you for telling us Eve," Eben says as he runs his fingers through my hair.

"I'll take her to the library tomorrow before work," Alun says taking the letter back. "We all have work and her flower shop is still being built so she can look into it while we work."

"My flower shop?" I ask sitting up confused. "But I haven't been working–"

"That was supposed to be surprise," Alun shakes his head. "Well anyway, yes your flower shop is being built. Now do you think you can get some sleep, the library is a bit of a walk and with no information it will take a lot of searching."

"Thank you," I smile as I hug him then hug the other three. "I feel a lot better," I nod, "I think I can get some sleep now."

"Good," Eben says as he helps me stand.

"Just crash here since it's so late," Alun tells them as he takes my hand in his and pulls me back to the house. They follow and he stops in front of my bedroom door. "Goodnight Evie."