Thorns of Decision (Dusk Gate Chronicles) (19 page)

“I think it still freaks her out – the same way it freaks all of us out. We haven’t talked about it a whole lot. She usually changes the subject pretty quickly when I bring it up, so I think it does bother her, and she’s still trying to get her own head around it before she deals with
my
thoughts, you know?”

“Do you think she doesn’t talk to you about it because of the way it changes things between the two of you?”

“I’m sure that’s part of it, but I think it’s a lot more, too. I mean, what she just found out changes pretty much everything about who she ever thought she was. And she’s always been so close to her mom…”

“Yeah … can you imagine finding out that Mother and Father had been keeping something like that from you?”

William looked up at his brother, an unexpected flash of irritation filling his chest. “They have been keeping this from us, Thomas. They knew this whole time. They sent me to school in Bristlecone with her for all these years and I never had any idea. Why would they do that?”

“What did they say when you asked them?”

“That they were trying to protect the secret, keep her safe. And that it would have been ‘too hard’ for me to know.”

“But you don’t believe them.”

William paused for a moment, trying to organize his thoughts before he answered his brother. He’d thought about this before, of course. Actually, since finding out, there had been many times that he’d thought about little else. “It’s not … I don’t think they’re lying. It’s more that their explanation doesn’t cover everything about it. I mean, I get that they made some kind of promise or whatever to Quinn’s mom about not telling her, I just don’t understand why they would keep it secret from
everyone
, especially after she found the gate the first time.”

“Would you have been able to
not
tell her? Or at least, not tell me? And if you’d told me, I would have told her, for sure.”

“But it’s that, right there. The fact that none of us would have been able to make it past the first two days that she was here without just telling her. I don’t understand how
they
could keep it from her. Father flat out told her how happy they were that she’d come, and how much they’d
missed
her. And you’ve seen Mother, how she’s doted on Quinn hand and foot ever since she found out.”

“Yeah, that part I don’t understand, either.”

“Did you know that they and Nathaniel paid for her horseback riding lessons when she was little, and they’ve sent presents for every birthday and Christmas Quinn has ever had, even though she never knew?”

Thomas nodded, deep in thought. “You’re right, Will. Not telling her once she was here is odd. Doesn’t it make you think that there’s something else to it?”

“I don’t wonder
if
there’s something else to it. It’s obvious that there is. I think Quinn is going to have to talk to her mom sooner or later, and I really wish Nathaniel were here. I know there are secrets he’s still keeping.”

“Yeah …” Thomas stared down at his blanket for a long time, before he looked back up.

“What, Thomas?”

“There is one possibility I’ve been thinking about. It’s a little crazy, and it’s probably wrong, but it would fit.”

“A little crazy? As opposed to how sane the rest of this is?”

Thomas chuckled. “Yeah … something like that.”

“So, your theory is?”

“It’s not even a theory, as much as several questions.”

“Okay, then, what are you questions?”

“All right. We know that Nathaniel is not our uncle. He came to live here, with Grandfather and Grandmother when he was a young teenager.”

“Right.”

“And now, we find out that it couldn’t have possibly just been him. It would have had to be him and his brother – Quinn’s dad.”

William’s eyes widened. “I hadn’t even really thought about that. But, obviously, that’s true.”

“So, who are they, Will? They weren’t related, or at least not closely related to Father, but Nathaniel’s a Rose.”

“So, they have to at least be pretty close to the direct royal line somewhere, but it would be pretty hard to be that close to the direct line, and not related to us.”

Thomas nodded. “Exactly. And I’ve thought about it, Will. One time I even got bored enough to pull out a copy of the family tree. There isn’t
anywhere
on our side that they would fit.”

“Which leaves…” William suddenly had trouble breathing.

“Exactly. It leaves them somewhere on the
Philothean
royal line.”

*          *          *

The family’s common room in their private wing was easily Quinn’s favorite room in the castle. Filled with comfortable couches, arm chairs, massive bookshelves, and a little kitchen area with a small wood-burning stove, it was where the king and queen and their children spent a lot of time as a family, playing games, talking, and relaxing.

When Quinn woke up from a disturbing dream sometime in the middle of the night, she found herself drifting automatically there; it was a place she would feel comforted and safe, even when the rest of the castle was dark.

A cup of tea would make her feel better, help her relax, and maybe fall back asleep in a while, she thought. Tea was an important ritual in Eirentheos. Practically everyone she’d met here who was over the age of about thirteen drank tea all the time. Every morning began with huge pots of a rich, spicy tea at the breakfast table, and in the evening, there would always be a full kettle on the common room stove, ready for mugs to be filled again and again, mostly with a soft, sweet tea that carried a flavor Quinn could only describe as minty, though she couldn’t think of anything in her own world that it was exactly like.

 As soon as she opened the door, she flipped the light switch. The bright glow from the sconces along the walls blinded her for a moment, and she stood there blinking. Once her eyes had adjusted, she made her way over to the kitchen area.

Once she had finally managed to open the complicated latch on the baby gate someone had built between the wall and the tall counter – Emma had apparently been quite adventurous and inventive as a toddler, requiring several different tries at a lock that would actually keep her out – Quinn encountered an obstacle that she hadn’t considered.

She’d never gotten a fire going in the stove by herself before.

Usually, there was someone, a servant, around who took care of the small details like this for her – for everyone. When she stayed in the castle, it was easy to forget that she was in a different world that didn’t offer all – or even most – of the conveniences and technologies she was used to. Like a stove that you could just turn on. Actually, if she wanted to heat water at home, she’d probably have just used the microwave.

While there was electricity in the castle, William had explained to her that it was still a limited resource in their world, mostly used for lights and a few other essentials – things in the medical clinic, for instance. And even though they could probably get enough in the castle to power a stove, there wasn’t exactly an appliance store in town where they could buy one. The small refrigerator in the clinic was something that William and Nathaniel had somehow managed to carry through the gate.

Fortunately, she was an experienced camper and had built many fires. In the end, she didn’t have much trouble getting a fire going in the little stove; it just turned out to be a lot more effort than she had expected to go through to make herself a mug of tea in the middle of the night. She probably wouldn’t have bothered, except she didn’t have anything else to do anyway.

Finally, though, the teapot was whistling, and she had a chance to use the purchase she’d made at the market in the city today. A little tea ball, embossed with delicate floral patterns around the sides, paid for with the strange little Eirenthean coins Charlotte had filled her purse with this morning, despite Quinn’s objections.

“I’ve never gotten to spoil you as much as I’d have liked to,” Charlotte had said. Arguing was useless, as Quinn had already learned from prior experiences – and anyway, seemed a bit cruel when it made Charlotte so happy to give things to her. It was still strange to her to know that she’d had presents in her piles from Stephen and Charlotte at every Christmas and birthday since she was born, and she’d never known it.

Sort of in her piles, anyway. Nathaniel had told her that they mostly provided money, adding as much as they were allowed to help Megan afford more expensive things, like the horseback riding lessons she had taken for years, and vacations that her family had gone on together.

Charlotte had a wistful look in her eyes when she talked about that, and Quinn knew it hurt the queen’s feelings whenever she turned down gifts from her. So instead, she’d opted for grateful, and had even had fun, carelessly bouncing from stall to stall, sampling treats and trying on jewelry with Linnea and Rebecca.

They’d spent a long time at a particularly elaborate tea stand, which was where Quinn had bought the little silver ball, as well as a few neat little mesh bags filled with interesting-looking teas. She’d picked up her own supplies of the teas she was growing so accustomed to drinking here at the castle; after spending so much time here, she knew it was something she’d miss once she went back home.

She was just settling into one of the big, cushy armchairs when there was a strange noise in the hallway. Startled, she craned her neck toward the sound, trying to figure out what it was. It didn’t quite sound like someone walking up the hallway – there was another, clunking quality to it. At the exact moment she started to get freaked out, the common room door swung open, and she could see Thomas standing there, on his crutches.

“Oh my gosh,” she said. “You scared me.”

“I do sound a little frightening on these,” he said, smiling as he hopped the rest of the way into the room. “I got about halfway down the hall before I started to worry that I might wake someone up. Of course, by then I was halfway down the hall.”

Quinn smiled, and stood to assist him, first closing the door behind him, and then taking the crutches so he could lower himself carefully onto a couch. “What are you doing up?” she asked.

“I couldn’t sleep. I’ve spent entirely too much time in that bed. Now that I know I don’t
have
to be there, I doubt I’ll sleep more than a few hours at a time. I was too anxious to get some more practice on these things to just lay there in bed.” He nodded toward the crutches.

“William said you can’t push yourself so hard, Thomas. You need to take it easy and keep healing.”

He rolled his eyes. “Walking down the hallway in my home is hardly pushing myself, Quinn.”

The tone in his voice told her it would probably be wise to let this one go. “It is good to see you up and around again,” she said. “I’m sure it has been hard being stuck in one spot most of the time.”

“There are worse places to be stuck than in a nice bedroom in a castle, but yes, I’m anxious to get back to my life. Did you make tea?” he asked, looking at her steaming mug, and then glancing back toward the stove.

She noticed the way he deftly changed the subject, but decided to ignore it. “Yes, would you like some?”

“I would love some. Thank you.”

A few minutes later they were sitting across from each other, hot mugs in hand, the warm, soothing smell filling the air between them. They sipped in silence for a while before Thomas looked up at her, studying her closely before he spoke.

“So, you and my big brother, huh?”

She nodded, wondering if her cheeks looked as hot as they felt. “I guess so.”

“You guess?” He raised an eyebrow, and her face glowed even warmer.

“I mean, yes. Me and William.”