Chapter 397

Later, I left Elva to play with her Nanny and her dolls, and joined Tiffany, Veronica, and Julian for a meeting in our sitting room/investigatory office. No one seemed terribly excited today, as we didn’t have any good news to share.

“There’s not much progress today, I’m afraid,” Julian said. “In fact, we might even have backwards progress.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“I tried to track down the older couple that crossed the border with the two babies,” Julian continued. He pushed his hand through his hair and sighed. “They are long dead, and from what I can tell, they took all their secrets with them.”

“They didn’t have children,” Veronica chimed in. “No other relatives from what I can tell.”

“They might have confided with a neighbor or a friend,” Tiffany suggested.

Julian pointed at her. “I was thinking that too. Well, hoping it more like. We tracked down their last known location.” Julian motioned toward the map of the kingdom that he had hanging behind him on the board. “They spent their twilight years here.” He pointed at a spot on the map.

Tiffany came closer to see. “I know where that is. It’s pretty close. Just like… thirty minutes from here? Maybe? With no traffic.”

Something sparked in Julian’s eye. It looked like mischief. I braced myself for whatever wild plan he was about to reveal.

“We should go there tomorrow.”

The elimination ceremony was set for the day after tomorrow, so theoretically, we could make this work if it was only a day trip.

“If they are both dead,” Veronica said, “I doubt we would find much info.”

“Maybe,” Julian said. “But if they did make friends… we have to be certain. Buckle in, Veronica. We’re in this for the long haul. We have to exhaust every avenue, purpose every lead just to be certain they are in fact dead ends.”

“I suppose,” Veronica said with a tiny shrug. She seemed resolved to join Julian on whatever scheme he plotted.

Tiffany seemed more excited. “I want to be able to help while I can,” Tiffany said. “If we wait any longer than going tomorrow, it will be too late for me, and I’ll be eliminated.”

Silence fell over us. Julian hummed as he awkwardly turned toward the map.

He pulled up his phone. “I’ll make arrangements,” he said and stepped to the side away from us to make his calls.

When it was clear he was otherwise engaged, Tiffany looked at Veronica and me.

“Don’t give me those sad eyes, girls,” Tiffany said. “We’ve always known I’m the next to go out of the three of us.”

“I have every much a chance to be eliminated as you,” Veronica said.

Tiffany shook her head. “You don’t see the way he looks at the two of you. Veronica, he admires you so much. And Piper…”

I waved off her comment. I already knew Julian’s feelings for me, as did Veronica. It wasn’t too surprising that Tiffany had been able to pick up on it as well.

“Don’t lie to me,” Tiffany said. “Don’t pretend otherwise. When the time comes, and Julian has to pick two, I’m not going to be in that number.”

“Julian likes you,” I said.

Tiffany gave me a small smile. “I know that. We are friends. And when the count was three, I could make it easy. But it’s not three anymore. A friend won’t make it further than third, when the competition is to find a lover and wife.”

“He could do so much worse than you,” Veronica said.

Tears began to well in her eyes. “Don’t soften the blow, now.” She sniffed. “The worst part is, I’m going to miss you guys so much.”

Veronica’s lip twitched. “You aren’t dying, Tiffany.”

“Veronica’s right,” I chimed in. “We’ll still be able to see each other.”

I hoped with all of my heart that would be true. Veronica could visit Tiffany and vice versa. Julian, as prince, would be able to visit whoever he wanted whenever he wanted.

But me? If I returned to my life as a commoner, I doubted I would be let back into the world of nobility. And it seemed unlikely that they would want to visit me. Even someone as kind as Tiffany likely would draw the line at sleeping on the couch in my apartment.

Actually. Scratch that. I would be the one sleeping on the couch if I went back, as Anna had to find another roommate to make rent.

I tried to picture Tiffany on an air mattress on the floor.

Yeah. That didn’t seem likely.

“I hope so,” Tiffany said, and smiled at us both. I wouldn’t ruin the mood by bringing up my worries, so I just smiled back.

“You know,” I said. “I could be the one going home.” I had slighted Julian’s advances. He might not select me after all. As for Nicholas? He might not even be allowed to pick me, depending on what the King decided.

Speaking of the King’s decision, I still needed to approach him. I was fairly certain now, that I was not going to give Bridget my blessing.

I was going to try my best to win this competition after all.

But wanting and actually succeeding were two different things.

Tiffany started laughing. “Sure, Piper.”

Even Veronica shook her head at me. Yet before I could hear Veronica’s cutting remarks on the subject, Julian ended his phone conversation and returned to us.

“Piper,” he said. “Why don’t you invite Nicholas to go on this trip with us? He’d no doubt be jealous to be left out.”

That was very… nice of Julian. Too nice, maybe. I narrowed my eyes suspiciously, but he gave me his best innocent look. I knew better than to believe it.

But… I didn’t exactly want to question him too hard. Whatever the reason he had for wanting to invite Nicholas still ended with Nicholas being invited. I was always happy to spend more time with him, and would have loved to have his company beside me.

“Elva should stay here, however,” Julian added.

I had only stopped narrowing my eyes at him but now I began again.

Julian cleared his throat. “The subject matter might not be overly appropriate for a child. A dead couple. A missing pair of children. A town full of people who probably won’t want to talk to us. She’d be much better at home.”

That was true… But again, that should have been a call that I had made myself. For him to suggest it…

Something was definitely up.

When Julian didn’t offer any more explanation himself, I said okay and the meeting broke.

From the meeting, I went straight to search out Nicholas. I found him near the entrance, speaking with the guards. I stood politely to the side, waiting for their conversation to end.

When Nicholas noticed me, he finished up and came over to me.

“What is it?” he asked, unusually curt.

I blinked twice in surprise.

He caught himself and sighed. “Sorry, Piper. Things have been tense. I didn’t mean to take it out on you.”

“I understand.” That attack from earlier was likely still on his mind. Maybe now wasn’t the best time to bring this up, after all. Though… maybe there wouldn’t be a better time.

“Was there something I could help you with?” he asked.

When I told him about tomorrow’s trip, his tension maxed out and he looked like he might set fire with his eyes.

“Julian wants to what?”