"So you didn't think to question him further?" Al asked as he paced back and forth in front of the fireplace.

Summer glared at him. "No, I was too busy finding a way to kill him before he killed me."

They sat in the circular room. After she'd told them what the man had said in the forest, they moved to the circular room Summer and Ida had gone through earlier.

Lily had disappeared. Logan had made an appearance with a servant who lit fire in the hearth and brought in a tray of tea and sweet treats.

Summer curled on a chair, nibbling on a piece of honey bread. Ida tapped her feet on the carpet next to her. While Leon slumped back on a wide, padded chair, with Logan standing stiff behind him like a statue.

"All I'm saying is that with such an important piece of information, you should have stalled for time in order to find out more," Al added.

Summer didn't bother responding. He would find fault with whatever she did or said. For Al, her past as a thief would always weigh heavier than anything else she did. She wasn't even going to try anymore.

"You're one narrow-minded asshole," Summer said with a smile. Al stopped pacing and stared at her with open shock. Ida snorted, then laughed out loud.

Al's ears reddened. "You- you just-"

Summer waved her hands with wide eyes. "Yes, use your big boy words, Al."

"Your insolence is staggering," he said with a frown, so clearly surprised it was funny.

Summer rolled her eyes. "Well, you know what they say about girls like me."

"What's that?" Ida asked, leaning her chin on her hand with a smile. She was enjoying this as much as Summer was.

Summer grinned. "You can take the girl out of the streets, but you can't take the streets out of the girl."

Logan looked as if he was about to implode. His chest kept puffing up. So someone else was as insulted by Summer's existence as Al was. Lovely.

"Alright, enough." Leon opened his eyes and looked at Al. "Summer didn't have time to interrogate the man. What she isn't saying is that she was trying to kill him as fast as possible so she could get to me. She had left me unconscious in our shelter, and a friend of her attacker was making his way to me."

Al pursed his lips and turned to look at the fire. Summer picked up a honey roasted nut. It was scrumptious. Leon had a weird look in his eyes when she met his gaze. A smile touched his lips before he ushered Logan close. He whispered something in the man's ears. The man left without a word.

"What do you think, Summer?" Leon asked. "Of the man's words."

She frowned. "He did have a good look at me. So I don't think he mistook me for someone else. Besides, my features are pretty distinct." She pointed to her face. Her eyes were still an unusual violet color, her skin paler than what was considered usual in the south of the kingdom, with heavy freckles across her nose and cheeks.

"I have no idea who my parents are," she added. "No one I know does. So maybe the man is right, and that Lady Mauve is really my mother. Who knows?"

"Lady Mauve," Leon murmured, his fingers drumming on the arms of his chair. "We'll see."

"Alright, let's get over the facts." Ida leaned forward with her elbows on her knees. "The man Al had questioned before he died said they were hired by Northerners to retrieve the artifact. Which is coherent with what Al and Summer heard when they scouted ahead and found the ambush. Northerners have stolen the artifact, they've lost it somehow, and they've hired mercenaries to get it back."

"But how did they lose the artifact?" Al asked, leaning on the side of the fireplace. "Something so valuable, after all the trouble of breaking into the Royal Museum for it?"

There was silence, then Leon said, "Greed."

They all looked at him. He continued, "someone, or several people, wanted the artifact all to themselves, an argument ensued where they lost the artifact."

That was a possible theory. Although Summer still didn't understand... "What's so special about that old thing anyway?"

Her question was met by averted eyes.

"That is confidential knowledge, unfortunately," Leon said.

Hmm. Summer was intrigued. But she shook off her curiosity. There was no need for her to know.

No need at all.

The witness joined them in the circular room shortly after. One look at Summer and he shook his head. He didn't recognize her. She felt relieved as she walked back to her room. It was so anticlimactic after everything she had been through to get to this point.

Summer knew it would not be enough to absolve her of all suspicion, especially in the eyes of people like Al who didn't know her and had no reason to trust her. But she could do nothing about that for the moment. She would give Leon time to solve the mystery.

Meanwhile, she was meeting up with Rose in her room. Ida had informed her that the young mother would come late in the afternoon. She couldn't wait to see her friend. Back in her room, however, she found a covered bowl on her bedside table. Carefully taking the lid off, Summer blinked at the contents: roughly cut dark brown squares the size of a coin. Summer couldn't keep the grin off her face. Her heart fluttered oddly in her chest.

Chocolate.

*** **** ***

Rose's face breathed new life in Summer's soul. Her friend looked better than ever before. She didn't bring Berry along, the boy was taking his afternoon nap. The two of them sat in the chairs by the cold fireplace, the afternoon sun warming them.

"Felix said he needs as much rest and nutrition as possible in the first few weeks of the treatment," Rose said, her cheeks glowing with health. "Oh, I can't wait for you to see him, Summer. He's gotten so much better already. I'm very grateful."

Summer smiled. "Ida said you found work as a seamstress. I knew you always loved working on clothes. You'll be spectacular."

"It is lovely," Rose said, putting the tea cup on the table. Lily was kind enough to bring them cookies and tea and give them privacy to talk. "The head seamstress I'm working for is impossibly sweet. She's a grandmother, but all her children live in other cities, so she's very fond of Berry."

"That's great!" Summer said, she scooted forward in her seat, her heart aflutter with excitement. "By the time Berry fully recovers, I'll probably be free to go. I've been thinking, you already have your work, I can find work, too, in the city. We'll be able to rent a house, the three of us, right? Between the two of us, one can watch over Berry while the other works. I can find a night job, that way you can have evenings with Berry and work the days..."

Summer's voice died down when she noticed the discomfort on her friend's face. Rose's smile faltered. Crossing her arms, she pressed further back into her seat. "Actually, there is something I was meaning to bring up."

"What is it?" Summer frowned. "Is something wrong? Is someone bothering you? I can take care-"

"No, that's not it." Rose took a deep breath, then blurted out. "I'm getting married."

What? Summer blinked. Her mind went blank. She stared at her friend. "Married?"

Rose swallowed and nodded. "to Felix. He proposed a few days ago. And I said yes."

Summer frowned. "Did he pressure you? Because if he did we can-"

"No!" Rose scooted closer to Summer and took her hand, squeezing, "I want to. Marry him, that is. I like him a lot. He's very good to me, he's also very good to Berry."

"Oh." was all Summer could think to say. Her own smile vanished. She felt as though the ground dropped from beneath her feet.

Rose nodded. "So I'll be living with him, me and Berry. He has a very nice house, close to the castle. I've been there and it's absolutely lovely. It has a large garden, and he employs several servants and maids. I'll be moving in as soon as we get married."

"Oh."

"It's very good for Berry. Growing up here in the capital where there are many opportunities, in a house with a mother and a father figure. It's more than what I ever dreamt of for him."

"I see."

"Of course, you're welcome to stay with us until you can figure out what you want to do with your future. I'm sure Felix won't mind." Rose rushed out. "Who knows, maybe you can find a nice guy and settle down, too."

Right. "Maybe."

Rose squeezed Summer's hand again, "aren't you happy for me, Summer?"

Summer smiled, "of course I am! I'm just surprised, that's all. I never thought of you and Felix together."

Rose beamed. "oh, he's very good to us. He's so gentle and caring."

Summer kept smiling as Rose spelled out all of Felix's virtues. It was the first time she gave her friend a fake smile.

And the heartbreaking thing was, her friend didn't even notice.

There she had been, making future plans for her and Rose and Berry. As she'd always done. Summer never pictured her life without Rose, and she'd foolishly thought Rose would be the same. All the while her friend had her own plans laid out.

That wasn't fair for Rose though. Before everything, Rose was a mother. Her first priority was and would always be Berry. And who was she to deny her friend happiness. Even if she wasn't part of it.

Still. She felt silly, naive and hurt.

Rose left just before sunset. Summer's face was stiff after all the fake smiling, but her heart was sore. She felt worn out, crushed. Life just kept dealing her blow after blow.

But she deserved it, because she hadn't learned the lesson despite going through it again and again; that no one ever stayed.

First, parents she never knew. Then Boyd. And now Rose.

The sense of loss was so deep that Summer didn't know how to deal with it. Ever since she was a child, Rose had been there for her despite everyone else's opinions of Summer. She'd been the only friend Summer knew, the only person Summer cared about besides Boyd. Unbeknownst to her, Summer's goal in life had entwined with Rose's for the past eight years. And now that Rose no longer needed her, she felt lost, almost useless.

"Stop being pathetic," she whispered furiously to herself, swallowing down the hurt and the bereavement. Looking around the room painted in the tawny colors of sunset, Summer wished she could do something to vent all her pent up frustration.

Lily skipped into the room then, her skirt floating around her, holding a bowl similar to the chocolate bowl on her bedside table.

"My lady! I know who ordered the chocolate for you!" she said, almost bouncing on her tiptoes. "It took me a while to get it out of Benny but he finally told me! Well, don't you want to know?"

Summer already knew who gave her the chocolate, but she didn't want to ruin the girl's prideful moment. "Sure, who is it?"

"It's his highness!" she said with a wide grin.

Summer frowned. What? "His highness?"

All the color drained from Lily's face. She sputtered, "uh- no! That is- it's the lord, the- the- "

Suddenly, pieces fell into place with a resounding click in Summer's mind. All the bowing. Al and Ida's protectiveness. His authority. The fact that he was a father, his wife deceased, just like the prince. Summer felt so stupid she hadn't seen it before. She stood up slowly from her chair and squinted her eyes at the maid, "Lily?"

"Yes?" she said in a high pitched voice, her eyes skittering everywhere.

"Is Leon a prince?"

Lily laughed, the sound shaky and brittle. "A prince, you say! Nonsense!"

"Lily."

The girl pursed her lips close, a mutinous expression mixing with dread on her face.

"Lily, if you don't answer my question, I will tell Logan you have a crush on him."

Lily gasped and stared at her. "You wouldn't!"

Summer arched her brow. Lily's eyes widened. "I-I don't even have a crush on him!"

"Then it won't mean anything if I tell him anyway." Summer made a move to the door. Lily stepped in her way, the bowl of chocolate held tightly to her chest.

"I can't, my lady." Lily's eyes filled with tears. "I really can't tell! It's an order."

Guilt tightened Summer's stomach. The girl just confirmed her suspicion, but she felt too sorry for Lily to tell her that.

"Alright, fine." Summer patted Lily's shoulder with a smile. "I was just joking, don't worry."

Lily breathed out a loud sigh. The poor girl couldn't lie to save her life.

"I'm going to take a walk."

"Are you sure? It's already sunset."

"I'll be back right away."

As soon as the door closed behind her. Summer strode down the hallway with murder on her face. That lying, cunning asshole! She would show him.

--- ---- ---

Uh-oh! The secret's out!

Do you think Summer will kick Leon's behind?

Don't forget to vote and comment! I appreciate it.

Much love <3 <3 <3

M.B.