The Phoenix People

Chapter Fifteen

Dinner was in the kitchen, a small room in which the temple residents could barely all fit. As I entered the space, my stomach roared at the delicious aromas assaulting me from all sides. With a jolt of shock, I realized that I hadn't eaten since yesterday. I had never gone so long without a meal in my life, if memory served.

Grace carefully held the twins on her lap, feeding them mushed-up food and stealing bites of her own meal as the babies worked on their mouthfuls.

Annamarie sat with Jack balanced on one knee, reading a book with one hand and eating with the other while Jack grabbed messy handfuls of his food. Now, the child looked happy rather than apathetic, as I had first met him.

A few other Lowborns sat around the fireplace, talking softly. Melody sat with them, inserting herself into their conversation occasionally, but otherwise sitting back and quietly observing.

Everyone turned to watch us as Moon led me into the warm room. Melody's gaze met mine and then flicked away without so much as a flicker of warmth. I bit my lip, turning my attention from her to the room as a whole.

"Hello," I greeted everyone nervously in the uncomfortable silence.

"Alexia, sit here," Annamarie called, gesturing to an empty chair next to her. Grateful for her kindness, I hurried over to her as the other conversations slowly began to pick up once more. I didn't even mind the child's disrespect by not using my royal title.

"What are you reading?" I asked her as I sat.

Anna gestured to a plate of food at her feet that she had obviously saved for me and, as I picked it up, replied, "A Study of Magic-Using Creatures."

"I love that book," I told her, remembering with a pang of loss the huge palace library in which I had read it.

"You like reading?" Annamarie closed her book and eyed me with dual parts curiosity and hopefulness. Since many Lowborns didn't learn how to read until they joined the Phoenix People, I wasn't shocked that she was used to being alone in her passion.

"Of course!" I exclaimed. "It was pretty much the only thing I ever did back at..." I stopped, feeling awkward for mentioning my life at the palace.

"What's your favorite book?" Annamarie queried, unperturbed.

I tapped my cheek, grinning. "Oh - goodness - I don't know. Nonfiction or fiction?"

We chatted happily about books for the remainder of the meal. Since we had read many of the same ones, the conversations flowed easily. Finally, however, Annamarie had to end the discussion, explaining that she had to get Jack to bed.

"Alexia," she said as an afterthought when she was at the doorway, "it was lovely talking to you."

"It was lovely talking to you as well, Annamarie."

She grinned. "Call me Anna." And she was gone.

I smiled, watching the flames in the fireplace dance. Perhaps I had made my first friend in the Phoenix People.

*

I had no trouble falling asleep that night, despite my rather lumpy, hard bed, so unlike my fluffy, soft one in the palace. The day's events made me crash into a deep slumber almost before my head hit the thin pillow.

But suddenly, I was being shaken awake by small, urgent hands. "Alexia!" the owner of the hands hissed desperately.

I opened my eyes blearily and was met with the sight of Annamarie's worried face. It snapped me into consciousness. Anna seemed like such a calm child - what could make her so worried?

"The king's soldiers are here!" she explained hastily. "Come on!"

I jumped out of bed and looked down at myself. I was in yesterday's now-rumpled dress, the plain one I had found in the trunk of clothes. I can't get captured in this outfit, I thought crazily, hysteria rising within me.

Anna took my hand, oblivious to my emotional peril. "Stay close and be quiet," she warned me before leading me from the room.

To my dismay, we headed straight for the main room of the temple. I halted, silently shaking my head.

"Please trust me!" Anna whispered impatiently. "We don't have time for this!"

As if on cue, I heard raised voices coming from beyond the hallway door. The girl was right. We had no time for arguing. Whatever her plan was, it would have to be executed now or never, and it had to be better than what I had come up with since waking - nothing.

Anna turned to me and took my other hand so she was gripping both of them tightly. "Get ready to run," she ordered, and squeezed her eyes shut.

A strange, shivering sensation passed over my body and before I could process what had happened, Anna was sneaking us through the door to the main area of the temple and then dashing silently for the medical room, never releasing my hand, passing directly behind two of Audric's soldiers, who were passionately arguing with Moon. "How dare you accuse me of harboring the princess?" she demanded angrily.

As one of the guards began to respond harshly, we slipped through the sickroom doors. The rippling sensation passed over me once more and Anna fell to her knees, gasping as if she had just ran a mile rather than a couple hundred feet.

"Anna!" I dropped to join her and shook her shoulder gently. "Anna!"

"Fine, I'm fine," she choked out, staggering to her feet and making her way quickly between the rows of cots. "Hurry!"

Further confused as to what had just happened, I trustingly followed her as she felt around on the bare stone floor. Making a small sound of triumph, she pressed down on a stone and the trapdoor that I had entered the temple through popped up slightly. Anna had me go first so she could reseal the door behind us.

At the bottom of the ladder, Anna opened the door, ushered me through, and closed it after us. Pressing her back against the wall, she sank to the floor, panting. I did the same opposite the child.

"Anna..." I sought for the right words to comfort her, but could not, so I focused instead on my utter befuddlement. "What was that?"

"That was the thing that Grace didn't want me to tell you about." Anna sighed, raising her head to meet my gaze.

"That was magic."