It amused Norah that her grandmother would worry about what Alexander did or did not approve of.
Catherine led Norah through the bath and into the cabinet chamber. “Where’s your cloak?” she asked, but pulled it from a hanger before Norah had a chance to answer.
Norah wrapped the cloak around her, then took a second one that Catherine held out for her.
“Take this one for me,” the queen regent said.
Her brows drew together in confusion, but she didn’t have time to question her. Catherine pulled up the center rug and opened a hidden door beneath with a small staircase leading downward.
Norah’s eyes widened in surprise. “What’s that?” she gasped.
“A hidden passageway. All castles have them. It’s how you snuck around when you were younger. You always had your guard on alert.” She looked back at Norah. “And don’t think that big bald one has forgotten.”
Titus.
“Now, go to the bottom of the stairs and wait for me. I’ll meet you there.”
Catherine herded Norah down into the stairwell. Once Norah was clear of the door, her grandmother closed it again, then flopped the rug back over the top.
Norah turned back to the stairs, holding the railing carefully as she made her way down into the darkness. How strange to find herself here, but her lips curved into a smile. Catherine was showing herself to be quite the free spirit as well. Norah felt even closer to her.
She did as she was told and waited for her grandmother at the bottom of the stairs. It wasn’t long before she saw the faint light of her grandmother’s lantern approaching from a side tunnel. Once she reached Norah, she took the extra cloak and wrapped it around herself.
Without a word, Catherine led her through a series of cold, dark passageways, winding and weaving, before they finally emerged onto a cobblestone street.
“Stay close,” Catherine said. “I’ll not have you lost in the city.”
The city. Norah felt a wave of excitement. She hadn’t been able to explore the city yet, having been limited to only the castle on the isle.
“How will we get across the bridge?” she asked.
“We already are, my dear.”
Norah’s pulse quickened, and she looked around to get her bearings, but the connected buildings along the street limited her sight.
“This way,” Catherine called, and swept forward under the cover of darkness. Adjoining houses lined the narrow streets, and they moved quietly so as not to draw attention. The queen regent was fast, floating through the streets, and Norah almost had to run to keep up with her. They turned down a side alleyway and followed the rowed homes until they finally came to a door. Her grandmother gave two knocks, and they waited.
The door creaked open. A woman, Catherine’s age, looked out.
“Esther,” Catherine greeted her.
“Catherine.” The woman smiled and opened the door, inviting them in. Esther was taller than Norah’s grandmother, and thin but with a round face. She wore a simple, green linen dress, and her long white hair fell over her shoulder in a thick braid.
Esther gave Norah a warm smile and bowed her head. “Princess,” she greeted. Then she turned to Catherine. “I’ll get Nemus.”
Norah followed her grandmother in, pulling off her cloak and waiting patiently. She looked around. It was a modest home, made warm by the handmade quilts and candles.
A few moments later, Esther emerged from the back room with an older man, who Norah suspected was Esther’s husband. He was tall, but the hunch in his back made him only slightly taller than his wife. His short, white hair matched his short-cut beard, and he wore a light brown tunic over his darker brown trousers.
“Catherine,” Nemus greeted her warmly. “Princess Norah, we were so happy to hear of your return.”
Norah gave a small nod, noticing their informality with her grandmother. They were friends.
“Nemus, we need your help,” Catherine said. “We have a burden we share in the strictest of confidence.”
“Of course,” he answered, his white brows dipping together.
“While Norah has returned to us, her memories didn’t come with her. We have to find a way to bring them back.”
He looked at Norah in surprise. “No memories?”
Norah shook her head. It felt strange to be so open about it now.
Catherine let out a breath. “I thought you might be able to help.”
He nodded. “I can try. Come.”
Nemus ambled over to a small nook and took a seat cross-legged on a large woven floor pillow. He gave Norah a nod and motioned her to sit on a pillow across from him. She settled awkwardly in her dress.
He pulled a quill and penned ink markings down his forearms, his lips moving in silence as he drew circles, lines, and interwoven triangles, designs she’d never seen before. Then he reached out and poured wine into a small bowl and set it down in front of him. Nemus pricked his finger with the tip of a blade, letting a few drops of blood fall into the bowl. He breathed silent words over the mixture and held it out for her.
Norah raised a brow. Surely he didn’t mean for her to drink it.
“Do you want me to see?” he asked at her hesitation.
She swallowed. Perhaps not anymore. But then, reluctantly, she nodded. “Yes.”
“Then you must drink,” he told her.
She glanced up at her grandmother, and Catherine gave her a reassuring nod.
Norah shuddered back her aversion and accepted the bowl, taking a deep breath before drinking. The wine was tart, and the thought of blood mixed within made her stomach queasy. She forced it down and handed the bowl back to Nemus.
“Close your eyes,” he told her.
She complied, pushing out a breath and dropping her eyelids closed.
“Go inside your mind,” he continued. “Imagine yourself sitting in a room.”
She imagined herself as she was now, sitting on a floor cushion in Nemus’s home.
“You must see it in your mind,” he told her. “The room. Do you see it?”
Norah focused on the visual. “Yes,” she said.
“Don’t be alarmed,” he told her.
Why would she be alarmed? There was a faint flutter around her, and suddenly she saw a man before her in her mind. Norah startled, and Nemus chuckled.
“Happens to everyone the first time.” He was younger, much younger, and he gave her a small smile.
“Is this how you are in this world?” she asked him.
“I am however I want to be.” His words were different now, not heard by her ears but from inside her head. “I project into your mind, and I can control how you see me.”
“Are you able to be someone else?” she asked from inside.
Nemus frowned. “If I know the intricacies of their looks, yes. But I prefer being myself.” He glanced around, noting that the room was his own. “This looks familiar,” he told her, and she gave an awkward smile.
He reached out his hand. “Come,” he said. “Let’s walk around, shall we?”
She took his hand and stood, and suddenly the cushions they had been sitting on were gone. Norah looked around the room and noticed a series of doors. There were more than there had been before. He motioned to one, and they went to it. He pushed it open, and they stepped inside. It was her chamber in the castle.