Slaves of the Night

Chapter 18

Rax

"Shhh, is she in there?" I ask, finding the handmaid outside her mistresses' door.

"Yes," she says, frowning, "They're getting her dress on for tonight."

"I got the girls taken care of," I say, taking a deep breath.

"What is it? Where's Eero?"

"Getting changed," I got kicked out because they said I was being distracting and misusing the little pins. "Um---how familiar are you with possessions?"

"Not very-- I've only seen one it was dramatic---you think he was possessed?"

"I'm saying I don't know, and I really don't like that I don't know," I say, frustrated, "The prince---I know him. I feel like I could spot the difference but---I can't account for his movements last night. He's not a liar and I know him when he's lying---but I'm finding it really hard to believe what sort of illusion spell could fool the girls and to what end. Also if a spirit did possess him---they typically show themselves. They don't pretend to be the person—they just use the body."

"So what are you saying?"

"I'm saying we're missing something big—and I don't like it," I hiss, "What are the odds all this crops up the moment you two arrive? We've seen the ghost—it hasn't attacked before."

"You're saying we're doing it?" she asks, confused.

"No, damn it—I'm saying it's targeting you. This castle is cursed---it doesn't like outsiders look what happened to Maija," I say.

"You use her name all the time," she says.

"She needs to remember who she was—not keep trying to return," I say, quietly, "That thing isn't Maija, it's some twisted version because we lost her somehow. We need Maija back."

"You think that it's all connected?"

"It has to be doesn't it? And what are the odds it happens this week—for the wedding?"

"Low. Okay---what do we do though?"

"I don't know---I'm damn close to calling off the wedding," I sigh.

"How would you do that?" she asks.

"If the two of you went home, the wedding's off, I have a dozen chaotic plans to accomplish that," I say, tiredly, "Only two involve kidnapping and hexes it's fine—the only reason I haven't done either yet is the prince wants to follow his parents wishes and get married."

"Kidnapping and hexing us?"

"Goodness no --other people mainly my father," I sigh.

"What are you going to do though?" she asks, looking a little relieved at the idea of going home, though. She's what, seventeen at the most? Maybe sixteen? There's baby fat on her cheeks for heaven's sake. She's clever and she's well trained but that doesn't make her any less an actual child who needs to be reminded when dinner is and generally looked after.

"I'll think of something," something is probably enlisting my mother, to at least determine what kind of magic is going on. She's generally helpful if it involves inconveniencing the monarchy or my dad, and I'm sure I can find a way to make it do that and therefore intrigue her. At worst I'll have to agree to do some stupid quest for her in repayment of her services. "For now let's just get through tonight, all right? We'll all talk again come morning. If you or I think that whatever is going on is a threat to your Princess we're done here—you two go home and we'll figure out excuses as we go. Hopefully last night was a one off with some spirit or other trying to save the kids. This castle is more haunted than not."

"But you don't think it's a one off though?"

"Neither do you," I sigh. Her soft green brown eyes are tired, and scared. Being trained to deal with physical threats as well as the odd monster/banshee is an entirely different thing from dealing with actual possessions/malicious spirits.

"No, I don't. Do you—promise you'd know if the prince was lying?"

"I'd know if he thought he was lying---he very easily could have lost time---I'll tell you this: he doesn't think he was up here last night---that doesn't mean he wasn't---it doesn't even mean his memory wasn't messed with---some powerful spells can alter memory," I say.

"Who would be capable of those though?"

"Someone frightening, I can't even do that," I say, shaking my head, "If this is a mage---it's someone dangerous."

"Wouldn't you or Kaisa be able to sense a mage like that, though?"

"Not if they were using shielding spells---those are simple, if we'd wanted to---I assume she knows how if not I'll teach her---your princess and I could have shielded from one another—if we'd cast a spell to reveal what the other was hiding we could have got through it---but I don't stumble around casting reveal spells on everyone in the castle," I say.

"And as you said it could be a spirit---all right you're right. Let's just get through tonight," she says, taking a deep breath.

"Yeah, we'll be fine," I say, deeply wanting to believe it.