Chapter 62 - Al Tells the Truth (1/2)

The blizzard continued for another three days. In that time I stayed out of Mariela's way and she never called for me so I assumed she was still processing what had happened and was trying to figure out what to do alongside her husband.

With no one able to enter or exit the palace due to the snow, I wasn't even expected to have tea with anyone since neither the queen nor Rosenia were interested in me when not keeping up appearances in front of other nobility.

Al and I were left entirely to our own devices, which got very, very boring.

We built about fifty card houses, played more than a dozen rounds of every game I had taught him, read books until our eyes glazed over, and went to the kitchens for treats twice.

I really wanted to talk to Marcy about what she knew regarding the palace's inner network but I would need to do that when no one else was around.

There had to be a way to meet her alone outside of the kitchen.

Maybe I could try and find her the next time Al took a bath. This was a conversation I did not want him to be a part of.

She was a good actress, I'd give her that. Both times we met her Marcy was bright, cheery, and chatted lightheartedly like the incident had never happened.

None of the other kitchen staff thought our interactions were strange either. Good. I hadn't blown it.

If I did nothing else in this world, I had to at the very least make sure the commoners got representatives in the court.

That was the biggest plot point other than the romance. And honestly, I didn't know if it were even possible to make that happen anymore.

I was nearly certain Al was in love with me by now. His overprotectiveness after I found out what sorts of things went on during power struggles in the palace kind of clinched it for me.

He said he couldn't bear to lose me. If that's not love…

In order to figure out how to proceed from here, I needed to know how he felt.

If he truly was in love with me, wouldn't it be cruel to try and push him onto another woman? I would have to find another way. What that other way was…I had no idea.

Playing Truth or Dare ought to do the trick. I hadn't done this since a sleepover when I was in sixth grade.

I didn't want to tell who I had a crush on because his twin sister was present so I did the dare and got mayonnaise smeared all over my face.

I nearly puked from the smell. They didn't have mayonnaise here so I should be safe.

I explained the rules to him and he seemed intrigued since he was just as bored as I was.

”You go first, show me how it works.”

”Okay…pick either Truth or Dare.”

”Truth.”

”What is the most embarrassing thing that has ever happened to you?” I asked.

”Sigmund dunked my head into a bowl of soup when no one was looking during a banquet when I was ten. A piece of carrot got up my nose and the doctor had to extract it in front of everyone. Is that the sort of thing you're looking for?”