Chapter 116
RYKER’S P.O.V
Camilla got dressed so that we could take Audrey to the school. I wasn’t going to let her go just anywhere without knowing what it entailed. It was a simple two storied building but it had a very tall wall at the entrance that I knew would be hard to climb over. There were guards lined around the entrance to keep it safe and I felt some of her worry ease a little. Audrey grabbed onto my hand and she squeezed tightly. I glanced down at her and gave her a small smile which she quickly returned.
The headmistress was waiting for us in front of the building. She looked to be in her mid-forties and she had a soft and kind smile. Her hair was tied in a neat bun at the base of her neck and she was in a long pleated skirt and a white shirt. She looked like the kind of person I would want to be around my daughter especially when she greeted Camilla and I then turned to greet Audrey as well. She bent over so she was at eye level with Audrey.
“Hello darling,” I liked how she didn’t speak like she was speaking to a dumb infant but rather another person. “You look beautiful, I love your dress.”
“Thank you,” Audrey smiled but she still didn’t let go of her tight grip on my hand. “You’re very pretty.”
“If it is coming from you then it has to be true,” she stood to her feet. “Please, come on in. The students are in class right now so we will not be disturbed.”
She led us to her office and I took in the entire building with careful eyes. There were guards at every turn and it gave me some sort of ease to know that there was protection available and that Audrey would be well protected. When we got to the office, the headmistress gestured for us to take a seat and she shut the door behind us to give us a semblance of privacy.
“I know you’re busy people so we can make this as quick as you want,” she began as she took her seat. “The students you see here are children of some of the highest ranking people in the nearest vicinity. We have students from other packs as well who come here. Even Elder Caius has a granddaughter who schools here.”
I raised a brow because I didn’t know that. “You don’t need to sell the school to me, Christine already did that.”
She smiled at the mention of Christine. “I knew her, she was one of my favorite students while I was here. I was a new teacher and she was an amazing girl. How is she
doing?”
“She’s good, she wanted to be here but she had some things to do,” it was Camilla who
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responded to her. “We can see that you have good security in place but with everything that has been happening, we need assurance that Audrey will be safe here.”
“I understand your worries, your majesty, your daughter will be more than safe. There are guards everywhere and you will be allowed to bring guards from the palace if you wish as well. There are fires lit every night even though the kids won’t be here by then. I promise you that the safety of our students is the utmost priority.”
Camilla glanced at me and I nodded at her. If Christine trusted her then so did I, besides, it was only for a few hours a day. She would be back home by three every day at the latest. I turned back to the headmistress who was watching us carefully.
“When can she start?” I asked and she smiled widely.
“Tomorrow is a good day if you want, it all matters on Audrey. We need her to be comfortable here. Of course there are uniforms for the children to prevent favoritism; I hope that isn’t a problem.”
“It isn’t,” I assured her, I actually liked the idea. I didn’t need any special treatment towards Audrey because of who she was. She was going to get enough of it in her lifetime. “We will discuss it with Audrey on the way home and she will be back tomorrow.”
She walked us out of the building and I waited until we got into the carriage before I turned to Audrey. She hadn’t said a single word and her expression didn’t let anything slip. Her hand was still intertwined in mine and she had her eyes fixated on the window. I couldn’t tell if she loved the school or hated it. I waited until we had driven a distance away before I spoke.
“What do you think?” I asked and she shrugged but didn’t say a word. “Tell me, Audrey, if you don’t want to go then you don’t have to.”
“I’m scared,” she whispered and I saw Camilla stiffen. I pushed away all the worst case scenarios that were bubbling in my mind and focused on her.
“Can you tell me what exactly is scaring you?”
“I don’t know if I will make friends,” she whispered. “Do you think that they will like me?”
“Of course,” Camilla’s voice was soft as she spoke. “You are an amazing little girl. I can promise you that they will love you. What’s there not to like?”
“Are
you sure?” she asked and we both nodded. She thought about it for a second before nodding. “Okay, I’ll go tomorrow.”
When we got back to the palace, Camilla took Audrey back to her room while I decided
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to make my way to the general library. I needed to check out the history of the school. I needed to squash the remaining doubts in my chest. It was quiet when I walked in and that was why I didn’t even think that there could be another person there. I had found the large book on the school and was taking it out when I bumped into someone. I heard books fall to the ground and I immediately dropped to pick them up.
“I am so sorry,” it was when I heard that voice that I realized who was in front of me. Alara had a small sheepish smile on her face as she tried to pack up her books. She looked embarrassed and couldn’t even meet my eye. “I should have been looking where I was going. This is my fault.”
“I wasn’t looking either,” I said in an attempt to make her feel better. I helped her to her feet and handed her the books I had gathered.
I looked her over and nodded to myself when I realized that she looked a lot better than she did when we got her out of that fire. She looked like she had been well fed and rested. Her clothes did look a little ill fitting and I made a men tal note to get it handled.
“Please forgive me, your majesty,” she began but I waved it off. “I have probably already messed up your day. Is there any way that I can make it up to you?”
I didn’t want to think too much into her words but it sounded like there was an alternate meaning to her words. I didn’t know if it was the way she said it or the fact that she was looking up at me innocently but I suddenly felt uncomfortable and I took a step back from her. I could have sworn that I saw a frown on her face but it was gone too quickly that it almost seemed like I had imagined it all.
“I should be leaving, I have a lot of work to do,” I said and I glanced at the books in her hands. Only one book had a visible title and I saw that it was on the royal family. “Do you have an interest?”
She looked confused but I gestured towards the book and her eyes widened. “It has always been an interest of mine. We don’t have access to as many books as there are in the palace and I just thought I should take this opportunity to find out more. I hope that is okay, if it isn’t, I could put them away.”
She dropped the books on the closest table before I could say another word. I wanted to assure her that it was fine but suddenly she was in my space and her hand was on my
arm.
“Please don’t get me in trouble, your majesty, I didn’t know it was against the laws.”
I slowly removed her hands from my b*dy and took another step back. “You’re allowed to take the books, they just have to be checked out and they must be returned within a week. As long as you are in the palace, the library is open to you.”
She let out a sigh of relief. “I thought I had broken some rules and I was about to be
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“Have a good day, Alara,” I brushed past her without another word and I could feel her eyes on me the entire time. I tried to convince myself that it was all in my head but something told me there was more to it. I wanted to tell Camilla but I didn’t want to bother her in case it turned out to be false so I forced the thoughts out of my head.
I was on my way to my office when a guard rushed over to me. He bowed to me and handed me what looked like an envelope. I was confused at first because I wasn’t expecting any letters but when I saw the familiar scrawl that I had come to recognize as Damien’s writing, I remembered the letter I had written him all those weeks ago. I had completely forgotten about it when I didn’t receive a response.
I tore it open almost immediately and read his response. It was very brief and it had me worried.
I’m sorry it took so long for me to respond to you, I don’t know any more about the vampires.
There were some attacks at the pack and something happened to Riley.
She got sick out of nowhere and we have done everything we can to get her better but it wasn’t working.
She seems to be stable now but I am worried that it will come back. Lucy couldn’t find out what was wrong with her but she wrote a note with her symptoms.
I just wanted to know if your physician could look at it and figure out what is wrong.
Please, Ryker, I’m worried that she is dying.
