Ruby Red

Chapter Fourteen

One might have expected that after the commotion at the ball, the streets would be crowded with everyone flooding back to the safety of their own homes. Contrary to expectation, the streets and taverns of Cordavis were empty save for a few stragglers.

Alana and Indigo had abandoned their coach a few blocks back and they were now walking to the Crimson Sailboat to celebrate. Every so often, they would trade off who was holding their prize of the night. Messing around and wielding it like a sword was making their victory ten times better. It was still surreal that they had actually succeeded.

The Scepter itself was about a foot long and made out of solid gold. The handle was simple with only a little embellishment on the bottom and where Queen Marjorie would hold it, but the top was the real masterpiece. Each head of the Scepter was what fit into the Vault, and each design was unique. This year, petals of gold, each with specific heights, curled around a giant ruby in the center. Smaller rubies embellished each one so no matter what angle it was at, light danced around the room casting flecks of red onto everyone's faces.

Indigo wrapped their arm around Alana's shoulders and held the Scepter out in front of them. "Alana, you beautiful genius! We actually did it. If I knew this was going to happen five years ago, maybe all of that time in jail wouldn't have been so bad."

She laughed and nudged their side. "We make a pretty good team."

"And we did it all with only a couple of people getting hurt!"

The smile dropped from her face. "You killed eight people, Indigo. And you hurt one of my friends." Lévian's face when the dagger pierced her thigh flashed through Alana's head in a bloodstained memory.

They snickered. "Who, the princess? She came at me with a dagger and got in our way. I did only what was necessary for us to succeed." Indigo lowered the Scepter and let it dangle at their side. "You're not going soft on them, are you? After everything we just accomplished?"

Truth be told, Alana still wanted to be friends with Fallon, Lévian, and the others. She wasn't sure if that was going to be possible because she was practically a wanted criminal at this point, but she wanted to try again one day. Maybe if they only heard her side of the story. Maybe they would forgive her.

As her heart ached for her friends, the one face that stood out to her the most was Karis's. All she could think about as she looked at him from the coach was that she was going to miss him. She hadn't seen Karis cry many times before, but even she could see the tears on his cheeks last night. It was almost enough to make her want to give up and go home to him, but it was too late now. What was done was done.

Alana never answered the question. They burst into the Crimson Sailboat, Indigo's arms spread out like a performer. They stood up on a chair and called out to the empty tavern. "Oh, Etta!" Indigo yelled, drawing out her name. "Guess who's back!"

The door leading to the inn burst open. Etta waltzed out with a towel flipped over her shoulder. Tonight, instead of the gown Alana was anticipating, she wore a red and black shoulder-strap corset with black pants and tall black boots. She came out in front of the counter and grinned. "I've been waiting for you! Judging by your elated announcement, I assume tonight went well?"

"You bet it did," Indigo beamed. They jumped down and held the Scepter out to her. "Just look at it. The whole kingdom will be after us. This is amazing!"

"If I wasn't retired, I would definitely cash that," Etta laughed. Her ways had changed, but she was a pirate through and through. She ran her fingers along one of the glittering petals and turned to Alana. "How's the boy?"

"Karis?" Alana looked up from where she was messing with her ballgown. "Oh, he'll be okay." She couldn't hide the smile on her face. It was so good to see him again tonight, even if it was in the way that it had to be.