After breakfast Lindy walked with her out to the garden to walk down the twisted paths under the tree branches. There were more flowers then Olivia could count and in colors she didn’t even know existed. She stared around in amazement and Lindy watched her awe with a smile. “My husband and I take care of this garden ourselves. We figured when the Queen of Light came she would want a spectacular vision of beauty waiting her so she would have a place to escape too. It is what the late Queen of Light loved to do with you when you were a mere babe. She would walk down these paths rocking you in her arms and singing a beautiful lullaby.” Lindy stopped and stared off smiling at the memory.
Olivia walked on in thoughtful silence. Could her mother really have been the Queen? Could she really be the baby that Lindy spoke of? She was so sure it was the truth yet she did say she thought lies didn’t exist. She really didn’t want Jake to be lying to her. That made her start thinking of Jake and what he was doing now when he went to school and she wasn’t there. Was he worried? Did he know where she was? Would he come for her? Most importantly, did she want him to?
They came to a clearing that had a willow tree and as she approached it the branches separated to let her under their canopy. She found herself under the willow tree and at the base of it’s trunk was a stone bench and under the bench was a stone chest. She went to the chest and pressed on the lid and it popped open. Inside was a painting of Olivia as a baby and the King and Queen of Light. She knew it was her as a baby because the baby had the same birthmark in the shape of a heart on her chest.
Maybe it was a strange and very unlikely miracle that she just had the same birthmark and that I meant nothing but she knew it was highly unlikely. Under the painting was a silver baby rattle and a pink baby blanket with Princess Kyrie stitched in gold. Confused she ran her hand over the name. I guess it made sense for her name to be different now but now she wasn’t as sure this was her true heritage. Under the blanket was an ornate journal with the name Princess Kyrie written in gold paint over the cover. She opened it and the first page had a painting of her as a baby glued into the front with Princess Kyrie written in gold ink underneath. The rest of the journal was pretty much all the information that had on the Princess before and after she disappeared.
Olivia put it to the side and continued to look within the chest and soon found other little treasures. She found a golden locket in the shape of half a heart that perfectly matched the one she had been wearing all her life since she was a baby. In the locket she found was a picture of her as a baby and she opened her locket and saw that the king and queen in her locket were actually the King and Queen of Light. Shocked she sank to the ground and looked between the two lockets for awhile before putting both of them on her neck.
Noticing that there was a secret bottom she opened it up to find that there was a little plain black journal. She pulled it out and opened to the first page and it read: ‘This is the journal of Elena Gold also known as the Queen of Light’. Olivia took a breath and turned the page. It was a journal her supposed mother had kept and as she skimmed through at first everything was perfect with the Queen and King and their little Princess. Then it changed when her handwriting started getting shaky and she started talking about the Dark One and shadows in the night.
Scared Olivia stopped reading and looked around but she was still alone under the tree and all she could hear was birdsong. She had no idea where Lindy had taken off too but she was glad she wasn’t here because she felt very un-queen like as she learned that the Queen of Light, her supposed mother, had been tempted by Darkness into an affair with Lord Drakon and then when she fought the Darkness and refused to further the affair Lord Drakon turned more to the Darkness. He turned his back to the Light and to his ex-lover but he still acted as one of the Light. Olivia suddenly realized she was in more danger here then she ever realized.
Hearing voices outside the branches Olivia hurriedly put the journal back into the secret bottom and replaced everything as it had been save the locket she wore on her neck next to the one she had worn all her life. She straightened out and came out after she noticed the voices were calling to her. She came through the branches and saw the back of Lindy and Lord Drakon. “Over here.” She called nervously.
Lindy and Lord Drakon spun around. “There you are Your Highness You gave me such a fright ” Lindy said running over to Olivia’s side. “Sorry about that I found a hidden place.” Olivia said simply trying to make it not sound as big as it was. Lindy smiled and nodded, “But of course you would find your mother’s old hiding spot.” then Lindy noticed the locket on her neck, “Wherever did you find that? The castle has been searching for the Queen’s lost locket for years.” Olivia fingered it, “It was in the hidden place. It has my baby portrait inside.”
“Of course it has your baby portrait inside. It was you mother’s. Just as yours has the portrait of the King and Queen inside, true?” Lord Drakon asked somewhat coldly. Shaken by his tone she nodded, “Yes it has their portrait inside but I never knew it was theirs until I looked inside after I found my mother’s with mine inside.” Satisfied Lord Drakon nodded, “We need to be on our way back to the castle Milady. It is nearly time for brunch. After that unless you object your activities for the day consist of horseback riding with Manny and poetry with Lord Carlton. After the feast tonight you have no scheduled activities and may do as you wish.
On the way back towards the castle Olivia kept playing the new information over and over in her head. It seemed quite clear that her mother had indeed been the Queen of Light but if that was so then her mother was tempted into betraying her father with Lord Drakon and he was on the Dark One’s side. She didn’t know who she could trust in this new place where everything was familiar yet at the same time nothing was. She wanted to curl in a ball and make it all go away but she knew that wasn’t what a Queen should be doing so she cleared her mind, focused on the Light and proceeded to follow Lord Drakon with her head held high.
For brunch she was lead to the green house where she and Lindy sat to eat at white metal table with a glass top and white metal chairs with dark blue cushions. Olivia noticed that there was another place set but before she could question it a young man with curly brown hair and brown eyes came in and bowed, “You Highness my name is Manny and after brunch I will be escorting you to the stables.”Olivia nodded and he sat down in the empty seat next to Lindy and then the food was brought in.
They ate a light brunch of finger sandwiches and salad with sparkling cider and there was a harpist playing somewhere out of sight. As they ate it was mostly silent except for the harpist and the occasional question Olivia would ask and Manny or Lindy or sometimes both would answer. Having a feeling that it was awkward not only for her but for Lindy and Manny as well she tried to keep up small talk but there wasn’t a lot she felt safe talking about with them.
After they ate Lindy and Manny lead Olivia to the stables where her horse was saddled and ready for her. Manny helped her up into the saddle and then lead them out of the fence. Once they were past the fence they galloped off into the woods following what appeared to be an old and rarely used path. They followed the path along its twists and turns and it appeared as if Manny knew the way well despite the unused look of the path. At the end of the path they came to a clearing with a small house and a stable for one or two horses on one side and the other side had a rather large pond.
Dismounting was easy for Olivia now and she lead her horse, Blaze, to the stable to hopefully find him some food and water. “Just remove the saddle Your Highness. This place is where horses do not escape and can eat and drink as they please.” Manny informed her before she got too far. Still unsure she unsaddled Blaze and pet him and after she stopped he merely bent his neck to nibble at the grass. Seeing that he wasn’t going to run she walked over to Manny, “Why did you bring us here?”
Manny looked at her, “You should know the truth. Something that is not known here and hasn’t been known for awhile. People here have just been accepting lies as the truth and thinking that lies just don’t exist here.” He looked her in the eyes his brown eyes hard with determination, “I will not let them taint you and the Light you have.” Confused Olivia shook her head, “I know there are lies here and I’m not going to let them taint me.”
Manny laughed a bitter laugh and started walking to the house, “Follow me Your Highness.” Eager to have someone who might possibly be the only trustworthy person for her here she followed. When she stepped into the house she smiled. It was such a small one room house that looked pleasant and cozy. In one corner was a small bed and across from the bed was a wooden table with two chairs at either end. In between the bed and table was a small fireplace that looked unused for years. Against the opposite wall was a crib with a pink blanket inside. There were paintings on the wall of the King and Queen and Princess Kyrie.
After a few moments in silence Manny spoke, “The Queen of Light was tempted often by Darkness as often happens to a Queen. Darkness tempted her nonstop and eventually she was weak and listened to Darkness. She betrayed your father with my father. No one knows except for my father and I and the Dark One. I tell you this because I want to help you. I know you found the chest under the weeping willow and found the journal that I found and filled in with all the information about you that I found. I know you saw it all. You know who you are and who my father is. You know he is aligned with the Dark One. We have to take him down before he gives the Castle of Light over to the Dark One.”
Olivia was shocked into silence for awhile then she spoke her voice unsure, “I knew my mother betrayed my father but I didn’t know that she had another baby because of it. I did find the chest under the weeping willow but I haven’t managed to read through either of the journals that I found yet. Your father and Lindy interrupted me before I could really read them thoroughly. I’m not really sure I should confide in you though. Something doesn’t feel right. What if you’re working for your father or the Dark One?”
Manny laughed humorlessly, “I work for no one except myself. My father merely created me and the Dark One killed our mother. What do you mean ‘either of the journals’ though? There is only one in the chest.” Olivia watched him for awhile and decided that she didn’t trust him, “I found another one in a secret hiding spot in my chamber.” Manny nodded, “I thought I searched there but seen as you are born from the King and Queen of Light it makes sense for your powers to be greater.”
Olivia started getting a really bad feeling about Manny and the more she hung around in the secluded house with him the more the feeling grew. She needed to leave soon. Olivia glanced out the window and saw it was getting dark outside, “Manny I think we need to head back before it gets too dark. I still have poetry with Lord Carlton before the feast.” Manny looked out the window and nodded, “Very well but before we leave I want you to look around and remember this place. It was your mother and father’s secret getaway place and the same place our mother betrayed your father.”
On the ride back Olivia’s mind was racing. Something was wrong about Manny and she didn’t know what it was but like she knew her way around the castle and like she knew how to ride a horse she knew there was something wrong about Manny. She knew it in her heart that her feeling was right despite what she wanted to believe so she couldn’t trust Manny as she had hoped. Part of her felt he was more aligned with the Dark One then anyone and this worried her greatly. She had to pretend to befriend him or she was certain he would catch on but knowing he was evil and lying or twisting the truth just made it harder then it should’ve been.