He waited patiently for me to speak, crossing his arms so I would know he wasn’t going to let it drop. I took a deep breath, knowing that Cheng might be the only person who would ever tell me the truth.
“Does the Viden sometimes make a foretelling that isn't meant for you?”
“What do you mean?”
I cringed and almost stopped, but decided what the heck. “When I met her for the first time, I didn't like her very much, I still don't. She's vain and only has nice things to say to her prodigies, like they're the only ones that matter. It's all a load of bull anyway. When I got up to leave she said something. Could it have been meant for someone else?”
“Did the wind blow and her eyes light up?”
“You can say that,”I said, trying my best not to give away that it was the one he’d read out loud at the museum.
“Yes, Elena. It was meant for you and only you,” he said knowingly.
“Thanks, Cheng. That’s all I wanted to know.” I smiled and we said our goodbyes. I was tired when I reached the room, drained by today's trip and I fell on top of my bed. I was glad that Becky and Sammy were still somewhere in Elm.I didn’t have the energy to recap my trip with Cheng.
I was so frustrated that I didn't have the answers. I wasn't desperate enough to crawl back to that awful hag and begher to tell me what she’d meant.
I fell asleep only to be awoken by an over-excited Becky, who jumped on top of me.
“Wake up, sleepy head.”
I growled into my pillow, but it didn't stop her bouncing.
“I hope your learning about the past is over now.”
“Yes, and thank you, my lady, for giving me the time off to roam free,” I joked, my face slowly emerging from my pillow.
Sammy sat on the couch, sucking on liquorice, smiling at us.
“I've learned so much today about everything.”
“That happens if you mix business with pleasure,” Becky said.
“How was your day with George? I assume he was with you since he can't do anything without his Becky,” I teased, trying to do an old British butler accent.
Sammy laughed.
“Ha, ha, funny, did a clown swim in your cereal this morning?” she said, glaring in my direction.
“Admit it, Becky, you dig George. You always had this little crush on him ever since we started attending Dragonia.” Sammy teased her too.
“Fine, so I like him. It was bound to happen since I'm forced to spend every single day with him.” She crossed her arms in defense.
“There's nothing wrong with liking George, Becky. He has really changed,and hey, I even forgave him for the stupid prank.”
“I forgot about that. I fell for a loser,” Becky cried, and she fell backwards on my bed.
“He's not a loser. I got a feeling you're going to do great things together.” I remembered Cheng's words when we found George's foretelling.
She rested on her one elbow. “You really think that?”
I nodded encouragingly.
“Thanks, Elena, you're so cool. Next time, you're coming with us.”
We talked all night long about everything they did in Elm. When the main clock struck twelve, we called it a night and went to sleep. I couldn't wait for tomorrow. Lucian had sent Sammy a message telling what time I should meet him.
As much as I wanted to put my questions aside and fall asleep, I couldn’t. The Viden’s words haunted me so much that it made my head hurt. Not to mention the Queen. Why did she decide to appear in my dreams? I closed my eyes, and before I knew it, I was standing at the top of the hill again.
Chapter Twenty-Three
The next morning I found Lucian waiting by a black Hummer. I ran straight into his arms and gave him the longest kiss ever.
“I hope you're done mixing business with pleasure,” he said with his face buried in the nape of my neck. He opened the passenger door for me. “So, did you enjoy the museum?”
“Yes, especially the exhibit on you and your family,” I teased.
His face turned red. “I hate that stupid thing. It took hours just for them to get the measurements right, and they still did a crappy job.”
I laughed excitedly. “So where are we going?”
“I told you it's a surprise, although not the one I had planned, but it will have to do.” He started the Hummer and music blared from the radio.
"I want to play you something," he said, and took out a disc and slid it into the player. The song had an upbeat rhythm, and I started bouncing in my seat. The lyrics were deep, and I got lost in them as I listened to the vocalist singing of a girl he hadn't found yet. He sounded lost.
Lucian smiled, and looked at me every five seconds through the corner of his eyes.
“What?” I asked, scared I had something in my hair or worse, my teeth.
“You know who that is?”
“Who? The guy singing?”
He nodded.
I listened again. “No, should I?”
A huge grin appeared on his face.
“C'mon, Elena, guess.”
I giggled. “Is it you?”
He roared with a contagious laughter. “Hell no. I can't keep a tune.”
“Then who? I knew I'd never heard this voice before.
“It's Blake.”
My mouth dropped. “Get out! Really?”
“He has what it takes to make it big, but the Council doesn't want to grant him permission to go for it, because he's the Rubicon. It doesn't stop him from doing a couple of gigs though.”
“Wow. Do you think he wrote this song for Tabitha?”
Lucian gave a chuckle I'd never heard before.
“What?”
“Elena, Blake only keeps Tabitha for one thing?”
“He's that shallow.” I shrieked, disgusted.
He smiled again, but this time I could see sadness around the edges. “You still need to learn that Blake only does things for himself, no one else.”
“Then who did he write this for?”
Lucian shrugged. “He recorded this about a year ago.” His forehead crinkled in thought.
“You really miss him, don't you?”
His nose wrinkled, not answering, as his eyes looked out the window.
“So, what song did you play when you faced the big, mighty Rubicon?” I needed to change the topic. A huge grin spread over his face and lit up his eyes. He happily took out another CD.
“Blake once admitted that this song scares the living crap out of him.” The radio swallowed the CD, and his grin spread wider.
My eyes grew bigger as the song started. “You know ACDC?”
“Elena, everybody knows ACDC,” he said, rolling his eyes.
I leaned back in my seat and closed my eyes, trying to imagine what Lucian looked like being introduced by “Thunderstruck”. It gave me goose pimples.
“Wow.” It slipped out as my image of him in gladiator gear exposed his muscular arms.
“What?”
“I can just imagine what it must be like. I'd be scared too if I was Blake.”
He laughed and turned into a deserted parking lot. When the Hummer stopped, he put on a baseball cap and shades.
“Just a precaution.” He smiled and jumped out to open my door. “You don't know what I had to do for this surprise.”
When we walked to the entrance, I saw that it was an Art Gallery. “You didn't?”
“I had to.” He knocked three times on the glass doors.
A woman with a short bob opened the door. She wore a soft grey suit with a white satin blouse completely covering up her neck.
“Good morning, your Highness,” she greeted Lucian.
I suppressed my giggle.
“Maggie,” he muttered.
“You must be Elena. I'm Maggie and this is my art gallery. Welcome.”
Lucian rolled his eyes. He despised being addressed as royalty.