Heir Untamed - By Danielle Bourdon Page 0,47

one could even point fingers and blame. Two generations later, it happened again. In the same tower, from the same beam. Murder for sure, because all the furniture had been taken out after Andra's death and the tower was bare.”

“...what? Another murder? Who died this time?” Chey couldn't fathom living in those circumstances.

“The youngest daughter of the reigning King and Queen. This girl, though, according to legend, had been the exact opposite of Andra. Sweet, kind, compassionate. Everyone loved her. No one ever confessed and no one ever figured out who did it.” He finished off the sandwich and popped a few almonds in his mouth.

“I'm wondering about the why of it, myself. What could she have done to deserve it?” Chey, slower to finish her sandwich, watched Sander sidelong.

“Who knows. The perpetrator wasn't going to admit doing it, much less why. It was an obvious reference to Andra though, so there was a lot of speculation about reincarnation and all that.”

Chey scoffed. “That's a likely excuse. Why not the more reasonable explanation, which would be something along the lines of a jealous companion who took their rival out in a most dramatic way.”

“Which is probably exactly what happened.” He looked like he was trying not to grin.

“Wait—is all this even true? Or are you just making it all up to give me the heebie jeebies when I visit the castle?” She narrowed her eyes.

Sander laughed. “No, I swear it's all true. You can read about it. There are books in the castle library somewhere that outline the history of the Royal family. It's all there.”

“So you don't really believe in reincarnation too, then. That was just what the superstitious people came up with.” Finishing her sandwich, finally, she stuffed the baggie away into the backpack and fished out a handful of raspberries.

“No, I don't believe in reincarnation.”

“But you believe in ghosts.”

“You'll see tomorrow evening.”

“You didn't answer my question,” she retorted.

“Yes, I did.” He winked and got up off the rock. “You ready to get back on the river?”

“Definitely. This was fantastic though. A view and ghost stories. You know how to entertain a girl.” Teasing him, she finished her berries and packed everything away.

“You haven't seen anything yet, sweetheart.” He swung the backpack strap over a shoulder and picked the cooler up. Sander led her back down the boulder trail to the shore. After stowing the cooler and the backpack, and making sure she was settled on her bench, he shoved the canoe off to start the next leg of their trip.

. . .

Liberated by her truths, Chey enjoyed herself more than she thought she would. Sander, fast with quips and wit, entertained her with his dry sarcasm as the miles fell away under their oars.

She knew something had changed with the river when the formerly smooth ride started to get bumpy and rough. A large boulder made an appearance in the middle of the water that they steered around. The landscape on either side of the bank had flattened out, stretching away into woods instead of high cliffs.

“All right. This is where you're going to need to pay closer attention. I can't see ahead as well with you in the front, so you're going to have to tell me when those big rocks stick up out of the water. I know where most of the large ones are. It's the smaller ones we have to watch,” Sander said.

“Are we heading into rapids?” she asked, using her oar to point out a rock coming up on their right.

“Yes. It's nothing major, though we do have to be vigilant when we're passing through. The easiest way to see the submerged ones are to watch the water. When it splits and passes around something you can't see, tell me. We'll go to the left or right, following the current. Can you do that?”

“I think so, yes. It doesn't look too bad from here.” Looking ahead, Chey only saw a few places where the calm surface rippled into white rapids.

“Like I said, this patch isn't bad. Just steer us around the boulders.”

“Are there places along the river where it's worse?” Chey guided them around another, smaller rock that just broke the surface.

“Yes. Several rapids along the river are serious business. No one but an experienced rafter or kayaker would undertake it.”

“You sound like you know firsthand.” She glanced over her shoulder. Sander looked away from the water to her eyes and smiled in a way that said she was right.

“Of course I