as good to us as we are to them,” Auggie reasoned. “Come.”
Dash inched forward slowly. Finally, he reached forward, offering his own small handful of berries. The deer gingerly reached forward for a bite, which made Dash giggle. The deer darted away, making the whole family laugh.
Finally, we reached a walled garden. In the center was an impressive fountain, spraying water at least six feet in the air. The gardens around it were meticulously kept, with all manner of flowers growing there, including black roses that glimmered purple in the daylight.
My family was overwhelmed as we sat at the outdoor table for our lunch, under precisely groomed topiaries of the Quinn family. “This is just lovely, Auggie,” Mom breathed, unable to take it all in. “I can hardly believe that you can call this place your home.”
He smiled. “I haven’t spent nearly as much time here as I’ve wanted.”
“You should honeymoon here,” Dash decided.
Auggie laughed. “You think so?”
He nodded. “It’s the perfect place for a fairy tale ending.”
Auggie looked at me, then reached for my hand. “Something to consider,” he murmured. “Technically, the family home is Castlewick, where all the Quinn babies are raised.”
Jack jumped in my tummy, as if he knew he would be a Quinn. I caressed him.
“Greystone could always use caretakers, though.”
Dash’s eyes lit up. He turned to Mom and Dad. “We should live here!”
Mom and Dad shared a stunned look before she turned to Dash. “This is the Quinn family home, honey.”
“We’re family,” Dash insisted. “Queen Maeve said so herself. And she’s the queen, so what she says, goes.”
Everyone laughed, but Mom and Dad still looked shell-shocked. It was as if they knew their world was changing every bit as mine.
“It’s nothing that has to be decided today,” Mom said, before quickly changing the subject to just about anything else.
It was nearly four in the afternoon by the time we departed Greystone. Dinner waited for us at Castlewick when we returned. After dinner, we retired to the third floor, where Dash and Dallas were quick to turn on the television like most kids.
It was such a weird pocket of normal amid all the regal opulence and history.
They found a silly movie that we knew would make us all laugh. Auggie ordered popcorn and I curled next to him on one of the couches as we ate it. By the end, the news anchors were already pitching that night’s broadcast, with teasing tidbits of what was to come.
“This weekend marks a special one for Aldayne,” a lady said, her hair as red as a flame, her brogue as thick as molasses. “We celebrate Queen Maeve’s Silver Jubilee following a rare concert treat from the Duke of Mayhem himself, our Prince Augustine. Rumor has it, this is will be the last time he tours, given that he’s about to become the father to the next in line to the Aldaynean throne. But not everyone in Aldayne is ripe for celebration,” she cautioned, as the visuals turned to a series of protests being staged. “Some say that the need for a monarch has long ended, and Aldayne should follow the steps of other countries around the world that govern themselves. Tonight, we speak to Astrid Truelove, one of the leaders of this movement.”
The shot switched to a young, beautiful woman with dark skin and a neat halo of natural tight curls, and the brightest smile I had ever seen.
“Ms. Truelove,” the newscaster said, “where do you see Aldayne in the next twenty-five years?”
Astrid’s smile grew impossibly larger. “I see us following the footsteps of great countries like the UK, Australia and even the United States. We deserve a chance to shape our own destiny, Katelyn. We are industrious, inclusive, intelligent, with the sixth largest economy in the world. Even Aldayne’s own Ademar was given the opportunity to self-govern, with our monarchs acting in ceremonial duties only.” Her comment switched the feed to our last trip to Ademar for its Independence Day, where Auggie and I were on stage together. “When your own monarchs don’t wish to rule, maybe it’s time for Aldayne to step out from under their shadow.”
Auggie and I shared a glance.
“It has been well-documented that Queen Maeve will not entertain such a notion,” Katelyn intoned. “Should she step down, Aldayne is expected to transfer to the well-known Byrne family as tradition dictates.”
The video cut to photos of the elegant, near brutally handsome face of a dark-haired man with piercing blue eyes. The caption underneath introduced him