“We do our best,” Imelda said graciously.
Caitlyn was really talking about the citizens, but she let it go. She paused to look at a series of paintings on display at a stand, and another person appeared beside her, a girl of about eighteen or nineteen, short and a bit chunky, with fiery red curls.
“I can’t believe it’s the fall festival already!” She seemed to bounce as she came up to them, breezing past the guards.
“You ought to have met us at the palace properly,” Imelda said sternly.
“I only got in from school this morning. I talked to Mum before I left,” the girl protested. She looked at Caitlyn. “Is this…?”
The girl’s eyes were lit up with mischief and excitement.
“Yes. This is Caitlyn. Emrys is on one of his internet meetings or something, so we have some time to get to know her,” Imelda explained. She gestured to the girl as she looked at Caitlyn. “This is Adora, our youngest sister.”
“Ohh!” Caitlyn laughed. She gave a wave with her free hand. “It’s good to meet you.”
“And you. When was the last time Emrys ever bothered to bring a girl home?”
Imelda cleared her throat and apparently decided to keep moving through the market. Caitlyn and Adora looked at one another and followed her.
Caitlyn was glad that Adora had shown up when she did. She was like a little creampuff and positively chatty. There was no talk of politics or governmental structures with Adora by her side. In fact, Adora had the tendency to point at things, grab Caitlyn’s arm, and drag her over to see whatever had caught her fancy.
It was silly, but spending time with the two of them made Caitlyn feel a bit homesick. She wasn’t even sure that was the right word, since what she was longing for was something she’d never had. As an only child with parents who both worked, her childhood home had been very empty sometimes. She would have loved to have sisters, even if one of them tended to bore and lecture her, and the other was potentially exhausting. She hadn’t imagined how much she would enjoy a day out with Emrys’s siblings, but she knew she would count today as one of the highlights of the trip.
When they returned, Emrys hadn’t yet finished with his meeting, so Caitlyn went out for a walk on her own. She hadn’t been running since that day by the Hudson with Melanie, and Adora had convinced her to sample a variety of absolutely delicious but waistline-expanding local treats.
The grounds of the palace had a nice stone pathway to the south. Along each side grew a small hedge and a row of sprightly azaleas and wisteria. Caitlyn drew in a deep breath of fresh air. It was so much easier to breathe here. She liked Cincinnati well enough, and New York was interesting, but the air didn’t have the same quality. There was also no chance of finding a spot this quiet anywhere within either city.
The quiet let her hear the rap of a heavy step behind her, and she turned to see Emrys catching up.
“There you are,” she said with a smile. “Good meeting?”
“Long meeting. Though I trust that my contract will be in better shape for my next movie.” Emrys put his hands over her shoulders from behind and rubbed them as they walked. “You like it out here.”
“I do. It’s…calm.”
Emrys leaned over to kiss her cheek. “And calm is something you need?”
“Occasionally.”
“Funny. I assumed you were one who liked excitement. All this traveling, right? You don’t want to stay in one place?”
Caitlyn pursed her lips and shook her head at him. “Don’t psychoanalyze me. I like to see the world. I like to visit new places. That doesn’t mean I’m not still that girl who wants to put down roots and watch them grow.”
“So you want to be a farmer?”
Caitlyn prepared a glare for him, but seeing his smile, she realized he was simply teasing her. “You’re incorrigible.”
Emrys laughed and put his arm around her as they approached a fork in the path. “Come this way.”
Caitlyn looked at the turn in the path and let herself be guided toward an older part of the path. She could tell from the worn stones that this path had been here for much longer. The greenery framing the path was a bit wilder. She felt a little like she was walking into a fairytale.
As the hill grew steeper, Caitlyn spotted a building at the crest. They were quite far from the palace by now. She soon recognized the building as a church. It wasn’t as grandiose as the cathedral in the city or the palace, and the stones were old and weathered, but it was absolutely lovely. Caitlyn paused when they drew closer and simply looked at the stained glass windows in the middle of the steeple. She pressed her hand to her chest and smiled at the sight. All those fragmented colors, coming together so beautifully to make a huge rose pattern.
“There’s another window on the other side. The sun should be at good height for us to see it as it should be,” Emrys told her.
He took her hand and led her inside the towering doorway. While it looked old, the church itself was very well cared for. Every pew was spotless, the wood rich and wel
l-oiled. And above all, it was so quiet that Caitlyn could hear her own heart pounding.