Chapter 3
"Evelyn! Hurry or we'll be late!" my mom shouted from downstairs.
"Coming!" I had woken up too late on this particular Monday. I had this country look-- I was wearing belted jeans, a white tank top and a cute unbuttoned red checkered polo shirt with its sleeves rolled up to my elbows. I plaited my hair in my usual ponytail then hurriedly ran downstairs and took a piece of bread, letting it hang on the side of my mouth while I was adjusting my boots.
After closing the front door behind me, I found my father crossing his arms at his chest in front of an opened truck door wearily saying, "You sure took your time."
"Hey! You fixed the truck. Nice." I shrugged, distracting him while trying to ignore his rolling eyeballs which implied his irritation that they were running late for work. The red rusty old pick-up truck carried mom's flowers and pots which were crowding itselves at the back of the truck.
"It's a masterpiece that needs a bit of new paint. Besides, what's the use of a handyman if he can't fix things?" he rhetorically asked. His mood was lifted after the compliment.
"Please let's go now! We're late. Late!" My mom was being frantic, pushing my dad in the driver's seat.
"I'm taking Orion. I'll meet you there."
"Okay sweetie. Just hurry!" My mom then slid into the front seat beside my dad who just turned on the engine.
We were headed to the town's biggest orchard. It has always been the number one source of food and income of our town. We also supply fruits from the orchard, which are the pride of our town, to the rest of the kingdom. It's where my parents have been working for as long as I could remember. Almost everyone in town works there aside from the town shops. The Whitlock family has been running the business for so long; they've been so kind and open to everyone. The only daughter of the Whitlocks is my best friend so I spend most of my summers there with her.
Upon arriving at the orchard, I was nearly thrown off Orion's back when we almost got hit by a speeding motorcyle coming out of nowhere.
"Watch where you're going jerk!" I blurted out angry before riding towards the stables just a bit adjacent from the manor and orchard.
"Evelyn, mia bella!" a man about in his late fifties or early sixties with a smooth old voice called out to me as he saw me from the stables.
"Uncle Francisco!" I grinned as I climbed off Orion.
He said as he hugged me, "How are you? Finally! You came back from the city. Couldn't wait to smell the country air, am I right?"
"Absolutely." I said still grinning at his usual jolliness.
A little girl, about ten years of age, peeked out of the stables before happily shrieking my name, "Eve!"
"Katie!" She ran leaping to my open arms. "Wow! You've grown!" She giggled at my compliment.
"Katerina has grown into a beauty, yes? She's becoming quite a handful." remarked Uncle Francisco.
"You are getting prettier Katie," I said as I poked her nose, her hands still around my waist. "Handful? Has she now? You're turning old Uncle." I jested, turning back to Uncle Francisco who heard Katie laugh after hearing the word 'old'.
"Oh, don't laugh at me young lady. Just because you have a horse now doesn't mean you are any better than this old man." he reprimanded her.
"You have a horse?" I asked Katie sounding surprised, and she nodded grinning back at me.
"Riding lessons later. Now go to your mother and bake the best pie for Evelyn." he ordered Katie, who then ran and waved goodbye to me saying, "See you later Eve!"
"As for you," he turned to me with his hands on his hips saying, "someone is waiting to see you at the orchard. I know you know who she is. Don't worry, I will take Orion."
"Thanks. You're the best." I said thankfully hugging him then headed towards the orchard.
I ran through a large wide iron gate which has rusted over the years. The orchard was separate from the Whitlock Manor for it was behind it. I ran through a huge courtyard to the back of the manor and past their huge back garden then entering into its maze which lead towards a vast valley filled with trees and bushes of all sorts: maple trees, oak trees, trees of citrus and apples, even cherries and berries of every kind all lined up in separate rows and columns under a vast clear blue sky-- it was the orchard.
I went around asking the other workers where my best friend was as they welcomed me but that was until I saw her standing under an oak tree holding an acorn that has fallen from its branch. She looked radiant even under the shade of the tree. She was wearing a pale pink sundress which complimented her fair yet sun-kissed skin, straight brunette hair and her gorgeous hazel brown eyes.
"Zia!" I waved at her as she finally looked back running towards me smiling. We both laughed and hugged each other happily.
"Eve, I missed you!" she said parting us with both her hands on my shoulder.
"And I missed you too." I said with a smile.
"I know you're tired but I'm dying to hear your stories about the city." she squeaked. She took my elbow and we walked together back towards the manor.
We entered the manor at the garden entrance. It lead to a wide empty room with two great doors opening to the lobby which had polished marble floors. It had a big antique crystal chandelier which laid above a grand staircase. It was really much like a ball room in fairytale stories.
"Grandmother and Grandfather also wanted to speak with you Eve. They're at the living room."
We went through another great door into the living room. It was as elegant as the lobby but smaller in space. There were only two people in room- they were Zia's grandparents.
"Evelyn, welcome back dear." Countess Eleanor Whitlock, sitting at a single plush chair near the window, greeted as she welcomed me with a hug. She was beautiful even in her old age. She wore a formal beige blouse and skirt. Her skin, though wrinkled, was fairly pale and her hair was pure white which complimented well with her pearl jewelry. She maybe an old lady in her seventies but she was very gentle and youthful.
"It's good to see you Evelyn. So, how fare the city?" asked an old man nearby the fireplace who looked at me with a warm smile. It was Count Edward Whitlock who had silver gray hair and beard, and was in his early eighties. He was wearing a sharp business suit with a simple bow tie, but what was always eye-catching was his black cane with a peculiarly small detailed golden orb at the top.
"It's the same as every year sir-- different." I replied politely.
He chuckled loudly and ecstatically said, "I see. The city is still constantly changing that means it's great for business."
"Why? Isn't that-" I looked confused and nudged at Zia for an answer.
"You may think that it isn't," Zia turned to me, "but it is. Change never affects our produce or production. It's just like antiques- still popular and high priced for their fine quality and rareness. Neither the city nor the entire kingdom have our crops grown there so it's always demanded." she said then smiled wittily.
"That's why Matilda and David went to the Kingdom. They wanted to negotiate further with the royal family in terms of business because Arxean has always been popular with them." explained Countess Eleanor.
I never knew that our place was greatly known throughout the kingdom. The Whitlocks must have a lot of connections.
"No more business talk Grandmother, Grandfather. Now, we'll have to excuse ourselves. I want to spend time alone with my best friend." Zia said politely.
"Of course dearie." her grandmother smiled sweetly while her grandfather stood quietly holding his wife's hand and simply nodding at us.
We went back out to the garden. Their garden was gorgeous as I had always recalled. It had the most beautiful array of local to exotic flowers, statues and arched pathways adorned by vines and wild flowers, and bushes cut exceptionally by expert gardeners just as the maze they made.
We sat at a nearby table where one of the Whitlock's butlers seemed to have finished preparing a small morning breakfast for us. After we sat across each other having equal view of the garden, Zia kindly sent the butler away so he gave a small bow and left us.
"We can't have any privacy with someone other than the two of us here, right?" she said as she began buttering her waffles.
"You still haven't eaten breakfast?" I asked her as I put two cubes of sugar on my tea.
"No, but that's because I waited for you." she smiled at me then continued asking, "Did you already have breakfast? I had them prepare waffles for you too."
"I did. Thanks, but I can't to eat this. I already had toast." I said while pouring milk on my tea.
"Really? Just toast?" She looked at me while raising an eyebrow sounding a bit deflated.
"What? That's breakfast enough for me." I pouted.
"Not for me. You are eating those waffles young lady." she scolded in a silly manner waving her fork at me.
We both laughed and I surrendered to her by eating a piece of my waffle then continued with a mouth full saying, "Fine, but only because I love waffles and I love my best friend." I stopped laughing then asked her, "So your parents went to the kingdom?" I asked before I drank a bit of my tea, recalling the previous conversation with her grandparents.
"Yes, it is very important that we keep a firm hold in the Kingdom aside from the cities. Business is business, and we have to sustain our town's high agricultural standing." She continued eating.
I simply stopped sipping my tea while saying, "You talk as if you're so into this. I thought you told me you weren't into your family's business."
"I had to take interest since I'm the only heir to the business. Mother and Father will have a fit if I didn't. They'd practically flip out." She laughed at the thought and continued saying, "No more talk of this nonsense and just tell me about the city instead." she smiled kindly with a spark of interest in her eyes and leaned closer to show me that she was eager to hear my story.
I couldn't help but smile at her then began saying, "Well, it was beautiful. During the day there are sweet smells of food from nearby restaurants and bakeries, while at night there are pretty lights that seem to glow like stars on the streets. When I wake up I can hear different kinds of music and coffee from cafes; and the view is just overwhelming-- it's so different from here. The buildings of glass look as if it can touch the clouds and everything else is so advanced like their cars that seems to float on air and doesn't have wheels which seem to be from a different century or something. Even the clothes are more futuristic than what we're wearing now. The vast sea marks the edge of city with the grand ships sailing nearby the coast, the park reminds me of home, and the university was amazing but you already know that since I sent you pictures before I graduated. Oh, and I spend most of my time at their huge library. They also have this art gallery that just opened. You would love it there Zia."
She smiled but looked at me with lonely eyes then continued saying, "I envy you Eve. Hearing you talk like that about the city-- about what you've seen and experienced-- it makes me think that I'm missing out on adventures of my own. You get to go and have adventures to the city while I'm stuck here doing business."
"It's not that big of an adventure. I only went to the city to go to school and find a job. Our town doesn't really have a great educational system unlike the city and I can earn more for my family." I said astonished at her words. 'Zia? Envy me? That's really not what I expected.'
"Compared to you I'm only homeschooled here in this very manor. How much adventure does that even have?" She stopped eating now and looked at me.
"At least you don't have to worry about finding a job. Zia, everything is laid at your feet with no worries and I envy you for that. What more can you ask for?" I said but with a small hint of doubt in my words.
"A life-- a life outside of this." She waved her hands in the air to emphasize what she meant.
I kind of understood what she meant by that-- the feeling of being caged and unfree. It's suffocating, I knew but sometimes life doesn't always serve you luxury on a silver platter-- that's what I wanted but couldn't afford to have.
"Okay, okay, I get it. Don't worry. I'm sure you'll get to have adventures like your parents that are in the kingdom. As for me, the farthest I can ever reach is the city." I said then drank my tea.
"Now don't say that. If I'm going to the kingdom, I'm taking you with me." she smiled kindly after avoiding the previous predicament and continued with a devilish smile, which was rare, asking, "So, any guys I have to know about when you were at the city?"
"You know I don't care about guys nor do I have plans on having a boyfriend. End of discussion." I took another bite of my waffles and looked at her seriously.
"No, not end of discussion. You went back and forth from here to the city for four years now. You graduated and even went on job huntings. It was a big city and still no one? Well, I don't believe you. You must have a guy who you're interested in." she persisted sounding playful.
"None. So far, no one has sparked my interest." I flatly answered, but then she got me thinking about the guy from last night. He was an interesting character and the fact that I've never seen him around town before was just strange. "Well, I. . ." I whispered to myself feeling unsure on how to ask her about him when suddenly, her butler, which prepared our breakfast, came back from inside the manor and approached us in a hurry.
"Miss Zia, your guests have arrived." he said feeling out of breath.
"But I thought that they will arrive tomorrow morning?" she asked clearly confused.
"Well, it seems they arrived yesterday instead of tomorrow miss. They're now in the living room with Madam Eleanor and Lord Edward waiting for you."
"What! They're a day early?" she exclaimed sounding worried.
"Calm down Zia." I said comforting her.
"I'm so sorry about this Eve. Oh, this is not going well as planned. We're not prepared." she pressed her hand on her temple looking troubled then sighed looking back at the butler, who now straightened his state, saying "I want you to tell the cook to prepare brunch for us and also a fine course in the menu for lunch later, tell the maids to prepare their rooms, and let the other butlers attend to bring their things to their rooms as well. Oh, and tell the guards to be on maximum security starting today." she said finally gaining back her composure and effortlessly taking command of the situation.
"Yes, miss." he said with a bow and hurriedly left.
"It's rare to see you like that just for some guests. They must be really important. Who are they anyway?" I was curious about this. It's not everyday that "important guests" come here in this town.
"You'll see." she stood up from her seat and pulled on my hand urging me to join her in the living room. Though I was reluctant, she ignored it by pulling me to my feet and towards the living room clearly dragging me into this bind with her. I found myself standing with her before its very door-- still unknowing of what and who awaits on the other side; I felt strangely nervous, and I was right to be.