Caitlin looked at her again, and marveled at how royally she was treated in this palace.
They descended a set of marble steps, turned down another hallway, then descended yet another flight of steps. Finally, Lily stopped, and looked over her shoulder.
There was no one in sight.
She removed a small key from inside her dress, inserted it into the door, and unlocked it.
They walked down another long marble hallway, and Caitlin was confused as it seemed to end in a marble wall. It looked like a dead-end.
Lily reached up and ran her hand along the wall, as if searching for something.
Finally, she found a hidden latch. She pressed, and as she did, the wall suddenly opened up, spinning open, and revealing a secret passageway.
Caitlin watched in surprise.
“I haven’t opened this wall since I was a child,” Lily said. “No one knows about it in the palace but me.”
The two of them entered the dark staircase, Lily grabbing a torch off the wall before they did, and headed down into the darkness.
It was dark and damp down here, lit only by the torch that Lily held before them. They turned down twisting and turning passageways, and entered a subterranean level covered in stone.
“At one time, this was the wine cellar,” Lily said. “It hasn’t been used for centuries, though.”
They turned down yet another corridor, and again, it seemed to end in nothing but solid stone. Lily reached up, combing the walls, as Caitlin held the torch for her. Finally, she found a patch of mildew, scraped away at it, and pulled at a small knob.
Out of the wall, their opened a small drawer.
Lily opened it, and began to extract something.
Caitlin held up the torch, and was shocked at what she saw.
It was a large, silver cross, bigger than the size of Caitlin’s hand, and as Lily held it up and put it into Caitlin’s palm, Caitlin could feel how heavy it was.
“It’s the cross of the Alutic,” Lily said. “It’s been in the royal family for centuries. It’s meant for you.”
Caitlin marveled at its weight.
“How do you know?” Caitlin asked.
“You asked about the Fields of the Scholars. It could only be meant for you. I don’t know how this will help you in your search, but I know that somehow it will.”
As she spoke to, Caitlin felt it to be true.
“But there’s one thing I don’t understand,” Caitlin said. “My brother, Sam, he dreamt of the Notre Dame. I was thinking that was my next stop. But after reading the letter, and seeing this cross… it all seems to be pointing me to the Church of Saint Germain Des Pres. So how is that connected to the Notre Dame?”
“Maybe you are meant to go here first. And whatever you find there will lead you to the Notre Dame. I don’t know. But I do know that this church is your next stop.”
That felt right to Caitlin, too. She turned and looked at Lily, and her eyes filled with gratitude.
“I don’t know how to thank you.”
Caitlin reached out, and the two embraced, like long-lost sisters.
“Whatever I find may just lead me back in time,” Caitlin added, with worry. “If it does, I won’t see you again.”
Lily smiled back. “You’ll see me. Humans have many lifetimes, too. And I’ll tell you a secret: some of us know how to time travel, too.”
Chapter Thirty
Polly stormed back into the room, pushing her way through the crowd, eager to be by Sergei’s side. She could not believe how rude and jealous Caitlin had been. She had thought she was a close friend. Now she saw that Caitlin, like everybody else, was just jealous. She had probably taken a liking to Sergei, too, and probably just wanted to steal him away.
Either that, or Caitlin just couldn’t stand the fact that Polly had such a great man in her life. Whatever her reasons, Polly certainly didn’t need any advice from her. She knew, deep down, that Sergei was the one for her.
Polly pushed her way through, and got close to Sergei. He was surrounded by a dozen admiring girls, and Polly felt her jealousy rise. She shoved her way in, right in front of his face, forcing him to look at her.
Finally, he did. He looked somewhat resentful, though, as if she were interrupting him.
But Polly felt that she knew the real Sergei, deep down, and that he was just putting on a show, for other people, that he was afraid to publicly show his true feelings for her.
“I loved your concert,” she gushed.
He merely raised an eyebrow and looked away, and began talking to someone else.
Polly knew that, too, was just part of his act. She knew he was hopelessly in love with her, and that he was just trying his best not to show it.
It was okay. Polly had staying power. She would wait until all these hangers-on disappeared, and then she would talk to him, one-on-one, and know how he truly felt.
Sergei finally left his backstage area, and Polly positioned herself in the hallway so that when he walked out, he had to see her. He stopped, surprised.
“Have you been waiting for me all this time?” he asked.
Polly nodded. “These are for you.”
She reached out and handed him a bunch of flowers.
He took them without a word, and began walking quickly away.
Polly joined him, walking alongside him.
Finally, he broke the silence. “You can tell me again about my voice,” he said, as they walked.
Polly was thrilled that he wanted her opinion.
“It was amazing.”
“Is that all you have to say about it? Just amazing? Wasn’t it greater than that?”
Polly raced to think of better adjectives.
“It was magnificent. The best I’ve ever heard.”
Sergei nodded his head with something like approval.
“I know,” he finally said. “It was one of my better performances.”
Polly raced to think of something else to say to him, some excuse for them to spend time together. She walked quickly, trying to catch up.
“I was hoping…” she began, “I was hoping that we could celebrate your performance.”
Sergei suddenly stopped, turned and faced her. His blazing eyes seemed to stare right into her. There was a long silence.
“What did you have in mind?” he asked.
Polly thought. She really hadn’t had anything planned. She had just been desperately looking for an excuse to spend more time with him.
She shrugged. “I don’t know,” she said hesitantly.
He stared at her for what felt like forever, and finally, he sighed, as if resolved.
“Very well then,” he said. “You can follow me to my room, if you wish.”
Polly stood there, her heart pounding, overwhelmed with excitement. Had she heard correctly?
Sergei turned and walked away, and she hurried to catch up.
“I’d like that,” she said, as she walked. “Very much.”
Chapter Thirty One
Sam couldn’t get over the concert. He had never heard classical music before, and he couldn’t get over that guy’s voice. The guy seemed like kind of a jerk, but he had to hand it to him: he really could sing.
More importantly, his night with Kendra had been amazing. She hadn’t stopped cuddling up to him the whole night. He never knew what to expect with her: she was hot and cold. It seemed that once she’d gotten sight of Caitlin, she’d become super territorial and possessive. She barely left his side since.
He didn’t mind. He felt like she was totally into him, and nothing made him happier. He felt completely glued to her side.
As soon as the concert ended, she’d taken his hand and led him out the room, away from all the people – and he hadn’t resisted. She didn’t want to stick around and talk to the singer. She wanted him to herself. And she clearly had plans for them for the night. With a mischievous smile, she led him away, and he had been thrilled.
She led him down a back hallway, through a huge chamber, and up a flight of steps.
“You haven’t seen my room yet,” Kendra said with a smile. “It’s the grandest in the palace, except maybe for Marie’s. Of course, it should be.”