“Dolphins! I love dolphins!” said a voice behind us, and I closed my eyes for a breath as the moment was broken.
Opening them again, I smiled at Celine. “Me too.” I almost added that I had loved watching the dolphins in my years on Catalie, but I stopped myself just in time. If I admitted I had once lived there, the princess would want to know why I no longer did so.
Celine leaned perilously far over the edge, stretching out her hand toward the beautiful creatures, before her brother tugged her firmly back down to the deck. She looked over her shoulder at him cheekily.
“Do you think if I fell in, the dolphins would rescue me?”
He looked at her blandly, his voice calm. “I think it is possible they might rescue you from the water, but they wouldn’t be able to rescue you from me once we hauled you back on board.”
Celine winked at me, looking entirely undaunted. “But just imagine getting to ride a dolphin! Celeste told me once that dolphins rescue people from the ocean.”
“Did she now? Was it by any chance when she was playing stupid?” Frederic asked, referring to the curse that had forced his now-married sister to spend years pretending to be empty-headed.
Celine scrunched up her nose. “You’re no fun, Frederic.”
“You know, I have heard such stories. Of dolphins rescuing people,” I said. They were popular stories in Catalie where the dolphins were beloved. “Not that I can completely vouch for them, though. I’ve never seen it myself.”
A new light entered Celine’s eyes as she gazed over the rail, and Frederic gave me a wry look. Oops. That might have been a mistake. I mouthed an apology at him, and he shook his head, although his eyes showed amusement.
“Now you can’t possibly go overboard, Celine,” he said gravely. “Because it would be clear the blame lay with Evie, and my wrath would come down on not only you, but her as well.”
“Frederic!” gasped Celine. “You beast! You wouldn’t!”
“Feel free to try me,” he said with a straight face.
“Oh, ugh,” said Celine, swinging around to lean her back against the railing. “You really are just like Mother.”
He gave a small bow. “I take that as a compliment.”
“You would,” she said darkly, and I smothered a smile. The prince had played that one well. For all her talk of rebellion, Celine was too large hearted to get me into trouble. Then I remembered her plan for me to help find wives for the princes, and my amusement fell away. She might still lead me into strife yet.
The ship was now well underway, and most of the nobles had been coaxed back on deck. One in particular led the way, calling gruff encouragement to the others in a booming voice. When he spotted us, he waved a greeting to the royals, and remarked on the fine weather for a sail.
“That’s the Earl of Serida,” whispered Celine, while Frederic replied to him in kind. “He always treats me like an absolute child and says the most awful things to me, as if I were four. But he’s as loyal to the crown as can be, and he grew up on the islands, so Father insisted he come. I just hope he doesn’t ruin all our fun. I’ve been so looking forward to spending time on one of the isles. I’ve never spent more than a few nights there before.”
“Which island are we to visit?” I asked, attempting to keep my voice casual.
“Well, we wouldn’t all fit on Inverne,” she said with a grin, naming the smallest inhabited island. “Some of us would have to sleep in the water. I think Viscount de Villa has invited us to stay with him. So that would be…”
“Catalie,” I said softly when she stopped to think. “The viscount lives on Catalie.”
“Oh, yes, of course.” She looked at me curiously. “How did you know?”
I just shrugged and turned back toward the water. She regarded me for a moment, but let it drop.
So, we were going to Catalie just as I’d feared. I told myself there was no reason for the nobles on the island to even notice me among the hordes of servants and guards accompanying the Tour, but I didn’t really believe it. Then I told myself that maybe it was a good thing. Catalie was only the first of the painful places from my past that we might visit, and the royals were bound to drop me sooner or later. Surely it was better for it to be sooner—it would only hurt more later.
But I didn’t really believe that, either.
Chapter 6
I had been assigned a hammock in one of the cabins below deck which had bunks lining the sides and hammocks hanging down the middle of the room. The other two girls sleeping in hammocks needed help working out how to climb in, but I slipped in without trouble after showing them the trick. I had been sure I would have nightmares given our destination, but the rocking of the ship proved soothing enough to grant me a good night’s sleep.
I felt much less calm when I stood back in my spot on deck, watching the main harbor of Catalie grow from a distant speck into a bustling dock. Someone had obviously sighted the royal yacht some time ago because it looked like half the island had crowded down to the harbor to welcome us. Their clamor sounded clearly across the water, almost drowning out the birds who had once again joined us as we approached land.
Our approach had brought us in around the far side of the island, and the sight of its quiet beaches had brought an unexpected surge of excitement at the opportunity to revisit favorite places. The harbor, however, brought only bitterness. I still remembered how it had looked in the opposite direction, fading out from full-size to the barest pinprick on the horizon, my future before me as uncertain as it had ever been. I pushed the thought aside and decided I needed to find a spot to hide myself in case Celine decided to drag me off the ship at her side or something.
Part of me actually wanted to march down the gangplank next to the princess, proud and sure in a triumphant return. But I was too afraid the viscount would renounce me on the spot. So I instead lost myself in a group of servant women, keeping my head down as I shuffled off the ship and stepped once more onto the island that had been home less than two years ago.
A dock worker recognized me and nodded a greeting, and I replied with a tight-lipped smile. For all its size, the island was still too small a place for me to think I could remain lost in the crowds for our entire stay.
The royals and most of the nobles were being accommodated in the viscount’s manor, with the rest of the Tour in tents stretching around his extensive property. As tempted as I was to get a glimpse of his family, I instead stayed out of their way. I had plenty of experience hiding myself in the gardens and woods around the house.
Since organizing a fitting with the princes would involve approaching the house, I decided to take up another project instead. I had long ago memorized Celine’s measurements, so I was confident of my ability to produce a well-fitted garment even without chasing her down to model it for me. For the first time I felt thankful for the wide range of fabrics I had brought with me from my supplies in the capital.
But after the second day sewing in my tent, I had to admit I couldn’t continue hiding forever. The island was calling to me, and I wanted a long ramble through my old familiar, secluded haunts. When I put in the last stitch, I stood and stretched, admitting to myself that I had run out of excuses to put it off.