Substantial Progress

Whisking the siren away, Lady Coralie and I tug her with us as fast as possible, not wanting to let the neighboring ladies to get a word in the conversation.

I put a spell on the siren that makes her answer our questions truthfully. Witches cannot fully control and manipulate the mind as that is considered dark magic. However, I can... at certain moments.

All witches are born with light magic. Magic in general is light magic. For those who touch forbidden magic that can corrupt the soul, they are dark witches. Through regular spells, many creatures do our bidding, but some are immune or can fight back to light magic.

Vampires for example, have a slight tolerance to light magic. Dark witches are known to live in covens, and cause corruption to all those around. They learn the dark arts even though they are banished from North and South lands. I am sure it is generational.

I ask the siren where her dwelling resides, and she leads us to a quaint cottage house. My dagger is under the band of skirt of the dress, and I pull it out. The blade is sharp as sin, and I take off the covering.

Breaking the locks to the siren's home, Lady Coralie goes in first, sitting the siren down at a chair by the fireplace. I examine the room, taking note of furniture placement. Everything is neatly tucked away and cleaned nicely. A soft snore catches my attention, and Lady Coralie grins at the siren knocked out on the chair.

"I am going to look in her bedroom, Lady Coralie. Keep watch over her, and if she wakes up, knock her out before she gains conscious thought. We need to hurry."

Leaving the common room, I open all the doors. The fourth door is her bedroom judging from the stronger natural scent here.

The bed is small, but plush. There is a small wardrobe on the left side, next to a hickory desk. The window on the left side is large and complements the room well. I go forwards to the desk, opening all the drawers and looking around for hidden compartments. Nothing.

Getting up to my feet, I head to the wardrobe and I sift through her clothing. Still nothing. I look under the bed, and I am met with emptiness. The nightstands next to her bed are empty too, and I frustratingly glare about the room.

Glancing down at the nightstand again, I notice a slightly raised wood panel. Pushing the nightstand closer to the closet, I realize that the panel is under the bed. I push the wood frame as hard as I can, trying to shift it to the left.

"Coralie!" I shout.

Lady Coralie comes running into the room, her eyes full of worry.

"Are you okay?"

I nod. "Come help me move this bed."

The apprehension leaves her eyes, and she lifts a brow at me. "She is out in the unguarded."

"It's fine. Hurry, hurry."

She comes to the right side of the bed, and together we forcefully push the bed over. The legs of the bed scrape on the wood panels beneath it and Lady Coralie grimaces.

"I will repay her," she mutters.

My mouth curves, and I motion her over to the raised panel. Kneeling down, I bring out my dagger again to take out the jammed in piece of wood. I hand the wood panel to Lady Coralie, and she sets it on the bed.

Examining the hole in the ground, I blow out an irritated breath. It looks deep. Hopefully I can reach whatever is at the bottom. Pushing my right hand down into the dark hole, I brace myself.

Feeling my way blindly through the hole, my fingers touch a thin, flimsy material, and I pull it out. There are many letters in here, and I dig further down.

After a period of time, my hand hits a cold smooth surface, and I hear a clunk as that object meets another. Curving my fingers around the object, I pull my hand out.

Lady Coralie gasps as I swirl the sparkling pale turquoise liquid in the vial. I place it on the bed before taking out another vial. In total, there are four vials left in there, but I take only one more.

It is her treasure, and it is selfish to take more than what we need. It is already plain selfish to take from her stash. But it needed to be done.

Placing the letters back in the hole, I cover it with the panel. I place the vials in my skirt pocket where I keep my dagger, and we both leave the room.

The siren is awake and alert now, and she simply sighs when she spots us coming out of the hallway. She also gets up to bow when she recognizes Lady Coralie.

"You could have just asked for the siren tears."

Lady Coralie stiffens, and I squeeze her shoulder re-assuring her, before saying, "We are so sorry, miss. It was a really urgent matter and we could not risk you not cooperating."

"What is the urgency?"

I glance at Coralie, and she dips her head, allowing me to speak about it.

"I am sure you have heard that the King has fallen ill. Your tears will be a part of the antidote I am making."

The siren nods. "I am honored to be of help. How many vials did you take?"

"Two."

The siren sighs again. "Okay. Like I said earlier, you could have just asked me."

Lady Coralie takes the siren's hands in hers. "We are so sorry. I hope you are not too upset."

"It's okay, your highness."

"Um, we also scraped your floors, but I will pay to help you clean up the wood panels."

The siren's eyes meet mine in surprise, and I lift a shoulder. It is hard to decline Lady Coralie's kindness.

"Thank you for being so considerate."

Lady Coralie and the siren, whose name is Amelia, made plans to fix up her floors. Coralie is going to send over some guards to clean up the small mess we, mostly me, made in her bedroom. As soon as they started to shift their conversation to more trivial matters, I interrupt.

"I think it is time for us to get back. The crown prince is mostly likely trying to locate your whereabouts now, Lady Coralie."

Coralie immediately groans. "Oh my goodness. You are so right. We should head back to the castle."

Saying our quick farewells to Miss Amelia, we exit her cottage and run up into the streets. Our strides are fast, the heels of our shoes clicking on the stones and our skirts swirling around our legs.

Scanning the area for an open carriage, I glance over at Coralie and she looks so hopeful.

"Do you think we are going to be able to save my father?"

"I really hope so. I cannot guarantee anything."

She lets out a long exhale. "I know."

Waving my hand up, I catch the attention of a carriage driver, and he stops in front us. The carriage footmen jump down from the back and helps Coralie up. They lead me up the steps, and I ignore their prodding hands. Before the door closes, I lean my head out, calling directions to the castle to the carriage driver.