“I’m sorry if I worried you.”
Finn dismissed my apology with a wave of a hand holding half-eaten toast. “We learned that Griff somehow has a magical talent for knowing where you are.”
I raised my brows, but Griff just shrugged and ate another piece of Finn’s bacon.
“No one expected you to be up this early,” Finn continued. “Most people in your situation would take advantage and sleep in.”
“Pretty much impossible for me.” I shrugged.
“But Lexie—” Finn paused and snatched his last piece of bacon from his brother’s grasp. “May I call you Lexie?”
No one had before—but I was in a new kingdom, might as well get a new nickname. And it was better than Princess.
At my nod, he continued, “I’d expect a deluge of people at anymoment.” He gestured toward the open door, bacon flopping in his hand.
“I don’t know if I’d say at any moment,” Griff murmured, his first comment of the day. “They do still have to find her.”
“And what are my chances of escaping before that happens?” I muttered, but both twins heard me. Finn laughed and Griff’s mouth twitched.
We sat in comfortable silence for a few moments more, the sounds and bustle of the kitchen making me long for the hearth at home with Nana. She would be up with the sun as well. Was she proceeding with her day as normal? Or was she looking around, instinctively wondering where I had disappeared, before remembering that I was gone?
Loud footsteps pounded through the hallway, followed by a boy of about twelve bursting through the door. “Has anyone seen—” He stopped dead as he saw me before whipping around and charging out the door again. The shout of “I found her!” echoed through the hallway.
I looked in alarm at the twins. “Should I do anything about that?”
“Nah,” Finn said, popping a piece of a muffin into his mouth. “Just wait.”
I looked at Griff, question in my eyes.
“I’m sure it’ll be resolved shortly, Princess,” he said over a sip of coffee.
That was ominous.
But Griff wasn’t wrong. The thunder of footsteps resounded behind us. My shoulders tensed as I prepared myself for whatever was about to happen.
“Brace yourself.” Finn gave me a sympathetic look.
I plucked Griff’s coffee out of his hand and downed it. He shot me a look but made no comment.
So this was my first full day as a princess. I sent a silent apology to the kitchen staff around me who were about to have their worldturned upside down, if the number of footsteps were anything to judge. But how bad could it be?
Turned out pretty bad.
A cacophony of colors assaulted me as I was surrounded by people, like flies to honey. I had to assume they were courtiers, from the clearly expensive fabric of their clothes and the jewels dripping off of them. I twisted on my stool as I turned from person to person clamoring for my attention. I could barely make out anything anyone was saying over the racket.
And then it got worse as I lost the tentative hold on my mental shield and the deafening thoughts thundered into me. It was dizzying, like I was being spun on the stool in ever-quickening circles. I began to panic, unable to separate myself from everyone else. All of their thoughts and feelings swarmed over mine, suffocating my own.
“Finn!”I screamed mentally, hoping against hope he’d hear this and could do something.
Instantly, the comfort of his mind wrapped around mine, muffling the noise.“Easy there, Lexie. You’ve got this. Purple channel, remember? Bring it up and cast a shield over your mind. Make it strong enough that no one can get through that shield.”
I did as he told me, concentrating and breathing deep. On the edges of my consciousness, I heard the brothers talking.
“I don’t like how they’re looking at her,”Griff growled, downing Finn’s coffee as he slid off his stool to take up a defensive position at my side, physically blocking the courtiers who tried to invade my space.
“And how is that?”Finn asked.
“Like she’s fresh meat. You going to deal with this?”Griff asked.“Or you want me to step in?”
