sure they won’t be worried?”
“Please try to understand that time moves much more quickly here. Your parents won’t even know that you’re gone. You’ll be home, and they won’t notice any changes. That’s how time is in other worlds. Sometimes it’s faster, and other times, it’s slower. I know you miss them, but they will be all right. Just don’t tell them what you have been up to.”
“Oh, they’d never believe me in the first place.” Olivia got up and looked at the group. “All right, I think I’m feeling well enough to continue. Let’s get to that castle and find out what’s really going on.”
“I just told you what happened.” Jei said.
“I believe you, but I feel like there’s more to this story. Now, let’s get going. The sooner we get there, the sooner I can get my answers.” The pain was still shooting through her side, but she needed to go. She had a feeling that the Queen had only told half of the story. She wanted to figure out what the other half of it could be. She also wanted those strange messages to stop.
As everyone loaded up the sleigh, Olivia decided that this was the perfect time to talk to Jei. He was standing by himself while Alice kept looking at him. She could sense the tension between them, but decided not to question either one. Their tension was going to have to wait. Right now, she had more important questions on her mind. It was the first time she was actually going to talk to Jei in person. She ran up to him, as best as she could while injured.
“Excuse me, Jei, I was wondering if I could bother you with some questions.”
“Anything would be better than getting the death-stare from Alice over there.” Jei nodded towards Alice, who was glowering in his direction. “She hasn’t been the same since we’ve split. She claims she’s over everything, but I don’t think so. Look at the way she’s glaring at me! It’s like she would strike me down if she could!”
Olivia did her best to move away from the subject. “I was wondering if you could tell me more about the Brotherhood of Iced Blood. I’ve heard bits and pieces, but I just don’t understand why they would want me. I don’t have powers. I never believed in all of that.”
“That’s what you think,” Jei said. “In reality, you can move through worlds very easily. If they were to harness your ability, the world would be in chaos. They find you to be more valuable than even the Hearts Under Ice. They may claim they want peace, but peace doesn’t come that easily. You cannot just set people free and expect no repercussions. That’s why the Queen refuses to hand over her power. She knows what could happen if she did.”
“Are we sure that the Queen is really on our side? She’s been creating snowstorms left and right ever since I got here.”
“Oh, she is on your side. Don’t let those storms fool you. She can be emotional, but she is not a monster,” Jei promised. “I was a little confused by her plan at first. I asked her why we didn’t just ask you for help in the first place. She said that we had to go behind the Brotherhood’s back. We had to pretend that we were working for them. This was the only way we could take them down. She has been scared ever since the group firebombed that factory. She was so terrified, she went into hiding for a whole year. No one heard from her or knew what happened. We all feared that she was dead until she finally appeared again one day. She told us that she had been working on plans to protect the world, and that’s why she stayed out of the picture. Most people bought that excuse.”
“You clearly didn’t buy it,” Olivia realized. “How come?”
“I didn’t say that. I had a few doubts, but I didn’t see any reason for the Queen to lie. After all, it was a very traumatic incident. We were all shaken up by it, and no one wanted to leave their homes for a long time afterward. It took me a while to get back outside and live a normal life again. That was just one incident. Who knows what could happen if they attacked more public places?” Jei took a deep breath and added, “Did anyone ever tell you about the