Where Foundlings Hide

Chapter 19

My fingers tremble with nerves as I am swept into a brightly-lit banquet room. The ceiling is high, just like the one in the library, but this room is filled with hundreds of people seated at long, glass-top tables that appear to be lit from underneath.

Enormous, sparkling chandeliers hang from the ceiling, decadent and orb-like, and rows of tall, potted trees decorated with twinkling fairy lights, flank each side of the room.

The sea of faces turns in our direction as the Vedmak Household stands to greet us, their chairs scraping against the polished, wooden floor.

As I follow Roma up a set of steps onto a high dais, there are whispers of excitement from the curious crowd, the room filled with a growing tension, expanding, filling every corner of the room and seeping into my lungs. I feel like I'm going to throw up.

Roma holds up her hands and the Household falls silent. "Members of the Vedmak Household, as you all know, sixteen years ago we made the heart-breaking decision to send the remaining Foundling children to Earth. At the time, Displacia was ravaged by war, and the followers of Ezra Vedmak had made clear their intentions to regroup." Roma swallows reflexively when she says her brother's name, and I feel Ivy reacting silently beside me.

"Since then, we have rebuilt our world," Roma continues. "Reformed our inter-Household alliances; we have made Displacia good again. While the Shadows are still at large, I cannot bring all of the Foundlings home, but tonight, I offer you a reminder of what we are fighting for. I give you my niece, Princess Acacia, the youngest of the Foundling children."

She beckons me forward and I imagine the room cloaked in purple, shielding my thoughts from the eager Household.

At first, there are murmurs of disbelief, wide eyes, stunned faces, and then the room erupts.

There are cheers and applause, people are on their feet, whistling, catcalling and I feel my face blaze.

Roma lets the commotion continue for a few moments, before signalling again for silence. "There are many among us who feel that sending the Foundling children away was wrong, that they should have remained here, with their families, with their Households, but Acacia is living proof that we did the right thing. Without our intervention, she may not be standing here, alive and well, free from the influence of the Shadows."

Guilt starts to creep over me. Acacia is dead. What would the Vedmak Household think if they knew the truth?

"When we can be sure that Displacia is safe," Roma continues. "We will bring back all of the Foundling children, and they will lead us to greatness."

There is another round of applause, and then someone calls out from the crowd. "To Princess Acacia." It's Caleb, standing close to the dais, his glass raised in the air.

"Princess Acacia." The crowd repeats.

Caleb smirks as he raises his glass to his lips.

Looking at his smug face makes me want to rip off my crown and hurl it at him. He must hear my thoughts, because he laughs raucously as the Vedmak's take their seats and I hastily visualise the purple cloak again.

Caleb sits down beside a beautiful, dark haired woman with the same piercing green eyes. She looks so much like him that it must be his Mother. He leans in to speak to her, but his eyes are still on me.

Ivy and Roma lead me to a table adjacent to the one where Caleb sits, and the occupants eye me eagerly as I take a seat. Butterflies dance in my stomach, but I am spared the Household's attention by the arrival of dinner.

It starts with a rich, vegetable soup and platters of appetisers – mushroom tarts, cheese and olives - followed by a dish of chicken in a sweet sauce served with rice and vegetables. I devour every mouthful placed in front of me and I still find room for the fruit and chocolate pudding that is served for dessert.