Seize the Day

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Fifteen

I barely had any sleep that night. The storm outside was still raging like a wild herd of horses when I woke up the next day. Its fearsome winds aptly described how I was feeling: tumultuous. In the confines of my study, the wind would have created a soothing rhythm had my mind been calm. But my mind was not calm.

When the tomte had disappeared, the rest of the world was set back into motion, and Titus was free to move around. To keep him from asking questions (because, frankly, his interrogations were painful), I told him that he blacked out when the tomte entered. For some reason, he actually believed me and became somewhat panicked. To my joy, he wanted to leave the stable immediately. I didn’t know why, but I wasn’t going to complain.

All of these secrets aggravated me. Nezira and now the tomte were keeping information from me. And Philippa was too busy for me to get the answers I so desperately wanted. Apparently, talking to magical creatures had something to do with the balance of the world. And with me.

I shuffled my writing papers into a neat stack and exited my study. The column I wrote for the tribune petitioned Nezira’s innocence. I would be given an enormous amount of grief and hate mail, but if I could spread my influence to prove that the nymph was free of guilt, I would do anything in my power to do so.

Clarice’s lesson was this morning, but I wasn’t looking forward to it. I felt like a badger having a bad day. Leaving my house was going to be a pain in the backside, but I had to go to the castle today because I had an important errand to complete. Philippa told me to speak with Nezira today, and that was exactly what I had been waiting for.

That nymph knew something about me, and if I could get information out of her, then this stupid mystery would be solved. I hated mysteries and puzzles. They were a waste of my time.

I grabbed my cloak and suited up to enter the outside world again. I had a firm plan in my mind, and it would take everything I had to make it work.

I unbolted the seven locks binding my door and opened it, revealing a tycoon of wind. The streets were in turmoil. Loose papers flew across the cobblestone, and flower pots that people neglected to hide before the windstorm lay broken on the ground. A sign flew off its hinges and broke a window, eliciting several shrieks from inside the unfortunate house.

Windstorms were dangerous if you didn’t know how to handle them.

Thanks to Mother, though, I was expertly trained on how to maneuver through one of Aria’s windstorms.

I closed the door and clutched the messenger bag to my chest, keeping my head down as I dashed towards the main road to the market. The wind was blowing from the east, making it hard for my northern route. Even so, I continued on. The buildings on either side of the main road acted as windbreakers, but the violent wind seemed to blow right through the wooden structures. I avoided broken vendor booths and the shattered glass that was scattered across the cobblestone street.

I reached the marketplace without much difficulty. The stalls were boarded up for protection, but some wood pieces still managed to break free from their hinges. I ducked as one came flying past my head, narrowly missing my nose. I bolted across the open area and made it safely to the other side. Now there was only the road to the city square, then the main bridge to the castle.

The city square looked far worse than the marketplace. The tavern’s furniture was strewn all about, and part of the fountain in the square was broken off. Suddenly, the wind picked up speed, and I heard thunder in the distance. Rain was coming. If I had known that this would turn into a thunderstorm, I wouldn’t have stepped foot outside my house. But I had come this far, so there was no turning back.