Joel watched Brom take a seat by the table and pull a pipe from his pocket. He lit it, using a hot twig that had been poked into the fire, and took a deep drag before tossing the stick into the flames.
Master Pippery rummaged through a chest, tossing out garments, a storm of fabric flying behind his back. Joel waited, Constance's stare burning his back.
If I turn, will our eyes lock? His hands were sweating at the idea as his skin pricked.
"Aha! Here you go." Master Pippery handed Joel a beige tunic and green leggings. "They used to be Brom's before he got so big that he was recruited by the lord's guard. Now, the lord provides his dress, which I make, of course." Master Pippery ushered Joel behind a screen. "Change here. Toss your other garments over the top when you're done."
Joel stepped behind the screen, undressed, and hung his own clothes over it before struggling with the leggings. The sensation of tight wool around his legs was uncomfortable. Nonetheless, he pulled them up around his waist, tying the string tight, and then he threw the baggy tunic over his head, thinking it looked very much like a potato sack.
Glancing up, he noticed his jeans and T-shirt were gone. Joel laughed under his breath. He had no doubt that Master Pippery had them in his hands, turned inside out, to examine the stitching.
When Joel stepped out from behind the screen, the family was gathered around a candlelit table, the girls hunched over books and Brom still relaxed in a chair with the pipe in his hand. As expected, Master Pippery had the jeans in his lap and one of Joel's sneakers on the table.
Only Constance looked up when Joel approached. He wanted to pull out a chair and sit, but his muscles froze, everything in his body focused on her. She terrified him, a girl who shouldn't exist, yet he thanked God for her presence. He'd never known anyone so beautiful.
"Take a seat, Joel." Constance's voice broke him out of her spell.
He tapped Master Pippery on the shoulder. The tailor, presumably thinking the touch had come from a fly, swatted Joel away without looking up.
"Master Pippery?" Joel got no answer, so he asked louder, "Master Pippery?"
The tailor peered up from his work, wide-eyed, his hands still fiddling with the jeans. He smiled briefly, giving Joel a quick glance up and down. Looking back at his lap, Master Pippery uttered, "Why, yes, you look great, son. We'll have to get you a belt though, won't we?"
Joel chewed his lip, his fingernails biting into his palms. In the silence of the cottage, he took a deep breath, gathering all the courage he could muster. "What happened to the old lord? And how did Lord Axeforth come to take his place?"
The question struck like a dagger. Everyone stopped what they were doing, gazes darting like a flock of swallows.
Brom pulled the pipe from his mouth, motioning toward Master Pippery. "Hell with it, Pop. You can tell him. He should know, shouldn't he? You don't want him going around and asking questions where he shouldn't."
Constance placed her book upon the table. "Brom, you know it's against the lord's law to talk about the transition. If anyone knew, think of what would happen." Her words were stern.
"You mean, the highjack," Master Pippery mumbled.
"Papa!" Constance fixated her stare on the door, as though fearful someone would walk in at that exact moment.
Brom put both hands into the air. "Everyone, calm down." Then, he studied Joel as the rest of the family sat in silence, anxious. "What you're about to hear, Joel, doesn't get repeated to a single soul. Any mention of Lord Axeforth's mysterious takeover will land you in a cell."
Joel nodded, his mouth sewn shut.
Brom took one long puff from his pipe and placed it in his lap. "Lord Axeforth has been our lord for nearly twenty years. He came to our province before any of us were born." He motioned to his sisters and smiled at Master Pippery. "When Pop was a boy, people were happy. He can't remember anyone suffering from hunger or cold. Lord George Tanglewood II, the lord at the time, was kind and generous, and he made certain his people were well cared for. He'd even gone as far as opening the castle doors for anyone who needed shelter. Isn't that right, Pop?"
"Life was good under Lord Tanglewood," Master Pippery agreed. "Our gardens were plentiful, fresh meat hung in every home, and warm hides covered every body. My father was Lord Tanglewood's tailor, so we were particularly well off." He looked at his youngest daughter and lifted her chin, delivering a kiss upon her forehead.
Brom put the pipe back to his lips, inhaling deeply. Smoke rings floated from his mouth, spreading and dissolving as they drifted. "Yes, Lord Tanglewood was generous, and so was his sister, Adelina."
Joel gulped, trying to steady his nerves. "He had a sister?"
"Yes. They ruled the province together, inviting travelers for supper and providing beds for those in need." Brom shook his head. "But it seems their generosity was also their undoing the day Lord Axeforth came to the castle."
"He wasn't lord yet," Ayleth chimed in.
"You're right, sister." Brom nodded in her direction, little puffs escaping a tender grin. "When Lord Axeforth first came to this province, he was a poor traveler in need of food and stay. Of course, Lord and Lady Tanglewood were quick to offer both. It's said, the traveler repaid them with fantastic stories and lively music from his flute. Apparently, Lord Tanglewood enjoyed the stranger's company so much that he asked the traveler to stay a few days more, to which the man agreed."
"Then, what happened?" Joel sat on the edge of the chair, his hands bracing the seat.
Brom sighed. "No one knows for sure. The next morning, Lord Tanglewood and his sister disappeared into the forest, and in their place, the traveler declared himself lord."
Joel placed both elbows on the table and grabbed his head with his hands, denying the fact that he'd read this story before. When he looked up, blood ebbing from his face, everyone was staring at him.
"And people just accepted this?" It was the only thing he could think to say.
"Well, here's the strange part of the story." Brom looked left and right and then at Joel. "The traveler had a written decree from Lord Tanglewood, granting Lord Axeforth power in his absence. The seal and the signature were accurate, and in the deep sorrow everyone felt, no one questioned him. A year quickly passed and then two, and the people eventually accepted Lord Axeforth's reign."
"Well, until the queen came to battle," Constance corrected.
"The queen?" Joel didn't recall a queen in "The Glass Coffin."
Constance wrinkled her brow. "You know, the woman who ruled the five provinces."
"Oh, yeah, of course." Joel looked down at his hands, fearful Constance would see the red in his face.
"Yes, of course he knows," Brom cut in. "Once the queen realized what an evil ruler Lord Axeforth was, she declared war on him. Our people wanted to fight with her, but anyone who tried would lose his head."
Joel grimaced, thinking of the Wanted posters at the edge of the village.
"After two years of battle and thousands dead, Lord Axeforth took drastic measures."
"What did he do?"
Master Pippery leaned in close enough to whisper, "He turned all of Bremen, the queen's home, to stone. Everyone, including the queen, has stood like statues since that day. Now, Lord Axeforth rules the entire kingdom."
"He used black magic," Ayleth added.
"Hush, child," Master Pippery scolded. "Even in the confines of our own home, we must never suggest that."
"But everyone knows that's what his flute is for." Her voice grew quiet as she slunk back in her seat.
"Well, they're dumb to talk about it," Master Pippery growled.
Joel's thoughts were stuck on the old lord. "So, no one knows where Lord Tanglewood and his sister went?"
"No sign of them," Constance sighed.
"Joel," Brom said, "Lord Axeforth is an evil man. He's quick to kill those who question him and slow to feed and shelter those in need. Our kingdom is dying because of him. A lord should possess wisdom—of which, he has none. A lord needs a warm heart. His is ice cold. And a lord needs understanding. All Lord Axeforth knows is selfishness."
"And dark magic," Ayleth added.
"Ayleth," Master Pippery snapped again.
"It's true. I know it is. How else did all of their servants disappear, too?"
Joel caught his breath as "The Glass Coffin" projected in his mind.
The maiden and the tailor returned to the cave beneath the earth. They had the vessels, which were filled with green smoke. The maiden scarcely opened the bottles when the smoke rushed out and changed itself into living men, in whom she recognized her servants and her people.
Joel looked away, pieces of the story fitting together, a puzzle nearly complete.
"Are you all right, Joel?" Constance asked.
"Uh, yes. I'm fine," he lied.
"Well, I think we've said enough," Master Pippery declared as he popped up from his chair, placing Joel's garments on the table. "It's time we all get ready for bed. Brom, thank you for the visit. It's always nice to see you." He gave his son a loving pat on the back and gestured toward the door.
"You're right. I'd better be getting back. Thanks for the smoke, Pop." He paused, eyeing his family with an unspoken understanding. Then, he walked out the door.
Joel couldn't take his mind off the story just told, and he gulped for air, struggling for it. He was swimming in a sea of absurdity, and his knees weakened.
"Let me show you to your bed." Constance's touch came as a life raft.
He inhaled deeply, the pounding in his chest slowing. He gripped the sleeve of her dress. "Thank you."
She smiled, and his heart melted. She'd never know the sincerity of his words, and for the briefest moment, he wished he could take her with him when he found his way back home.