Royally Yours Page 9

  "Mother, I'm being rude to my hosts," Melody said. "What is it you wanted to talk to me about."

  "Hosts? You're at someone's house?"

  "Yes, I am."

  The Queen was quiet for a moment. "How lovely and American of you to be celebrating Thanksgiving Day. You know that it led to the slaughter of the natives in that country."

  "I'm aware of my history."

  "Thanks to my paying for your tuition at the best boarding school in Europe. Tell me, dear daughter, who it is that you've met?"

  "Pass," Melody said. “I’m not answering that question.”

  "Ah, so it's another girl. Yet another girl on the long list of women that you've used and discarded as shock value."

  Melody bit her tongue to keep from exploding. "What is it that you wanted to tell me?"

  "I need you back here as soon as possible in Madrana. Something has occurred that would precipitate your training to be pushed up."

  "I'll be home for Christmas, Mother," Melody said. "Just like Herschel has promised you many times."

  "I see. So, you would abandon your new girlfriend at the drop of a hat, would you?"

  Melody sighed. "Do you want me to come home or not?"

  "Come home, Melody."

  "Fine," Melody replied. "Happy Thanksgiving."

  She hung up the phone, fuming. Taking a step forward, she heard a cracking sound.

  An icicle fell on her head, bounced off something that snapped, and hit the ground in front of her. Her heart pounding, she put a hand up to her head. The plastic rhinestone tiara came away in two pieces in her hands.

  Melody and Ellie fell asleep the next night next to the fire in each other’s arms. At three o'clock, wailing came through the baby monitor.

  "Wha’s that?" Ellie mumbled.

  Melody sat upright and rubbed her eyes, grabbing the old baby monitor. The plastic had yellowed from age. "I think she's giving birth. Ellie, we've gotta go!"

  Melody hopped up and pulled a completely dazed Ellie to her feet. They stumbled into their snow gear and out into the night, using Melody's flash light on her phone to guide them. There was no moon to reflect off the snow, and more was falling as they walked.

  Thankfully, the barn door was easier to get open this time. They stepped into the earthy-smelling barn that had hints of the fresh hay Tom had laid down for the chickens.

  The goat was baaing and moaning in the corner of the barn.

  "Is she okay, you think?" Melody asked.

  "I've only ever seen one goat birth before," Ellie said quickly and in hushed tones. "It was on YouTube, so I'm not sure I'm the best source for goat births."

  Melody sighed, wracking her brain for a memory of something, anything she had learned about this as a child. Herschel had tracked her down one winter's night to a barn much like this one. She'd wanted to sleep next to the cow that was heavy with pregnancy. Herschel had carried her back inside away from the cold. Melody remembered asking Herschel why the cows weren't cold out there, and him telling her that they had shelter and were perfectly fine outside.

  The goat let out a grand baa and suddenly, Melody stood up, shrieking with excitement. "Oh my God! I see a hoof!"

  Ellie grabbed Melody's gloved hand. The two women held their breaths as they saw a glutinous sac fall out of the goat. The hooves broke through the membrane and it was Ellie's turn to shriek.

  "There's two of them! Are they twins?"

  Both goats were pure black with a white marking on their foreheads.

  "They look like twins."

  The mother started licking their wet fur clean.

  "Oh," Melody cooed. "This is…this is…this is—" She burst into tears.

  Ellie wrapped her arms around Melody. "What is it?"

  "It's just that I felt so lost before I met you," Melody said, tears streaming down her cheeks. Ellie took off her glove and gently dried them off Melody's face. "And you're just so nice, and so pretty, and your family is so warm and welcoming…I miss my dad." She sniffed. “It looks like I’m upset about a lot of things, actually. And happy. It’s hard to explain.”

  Ellie kissed her nose. "Just let it out. It's okay to cry."

  Melody sobbed harder for several minutes. Ellie just held onto her and let her cry it out in a safe space. She finally stopped. "Thank you."

  "For what?"

  "For not being weird about me crying."

  "Who's weird about you crying?"

  Melody paused and wiped her nose inelegantly on her coat. "My mother. She says tears are unwomanly."

  Ellie gaped at her. "I've never heard such a thing in my life. Wow."

  "My dad was the one I always went to when I wanted to have a good cry. Or Herschel."

  "Well, I'm happy to be of service," Ellie said. "You feel better at all?"

  Melody nodded and let out a weak smile. "Look at me. Crying next to goats."

  "You want to go make out up in the hayloft? There's a clean section with blankets folded up in the corner. Eric goes up there to smoke sometimes away from my parents."

  Melody laughed. "Are you serious?"

  Ellie put one hand over her heart. "I never lie about make out sessions."

  "Then let's do this thing." Melody leaned forward for a kiss that followed them all the way up to the hayloft.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  "How was your vacation?" Constance asked over morning breakfast a few days later.

  "Fine," Melody said without enthusiasm. She nudged Ellie under the table. They had agreed to play things as low key as possible to keep people from knowing they were an item. So far, it seemed to be working. They'd even staged a loud fight upon their arrival, complete with door-slamming. Ellie, who'd been in theater in high school, took to the production like a fish to water. Melody had a harder time lying.

  "How was yours?"

  "My dad burned the turkey in the deep fryer and very nearly took his own hand off in the oil," Constance said, reaching for the pitcher of orange juice in the noisy dining room. "Did you hear Jason's calling an all-hands meeting tonight?"

  "About what?" Melody asked through a mouth full of orange juice and biscuit.

  Constance shrugged. "Dunno."

  Melody wiped her mouth. "You know, I've been thinking," she said in a low voice. "About talking to Jason about this place and how it runs."

  Constance nearly spit out her mouth full of oatmeal. "You're joking."

  "She's not," Ellie said. "We had a long talk about it over the vacation. About how we pay to be here, and do all the work, and it doesn't seem like much gets done other than selling all the goods at the marketplace. I mean, we don't even have a decent composting system going and this place has been around for at least seven years. It's ridiculous."

  Constance laughed. "You really think that Jason is going to listen to you? You're more delusional than I thought you were."

  Melody carried those words with her all day long as she picked vegetables in the freezing cold, wondering what the meeting tonight could possibly be about.

  The day passed too quickly, and soon she was back in the dining room with the rest of the residents. Jason looked surlier than usual, and she glanced at Herschel, who was, once again, knee-deep in a pulp fiction paperback. It seemed that Herschel became more and more slouchy with each passing day. She wondered how he'd settle back into life in Madrana.

  "Alright, alright. Settle down, please," Jason called out. "I hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving." A few people murmured in the affirmative. "I'll make this quick. Some of you have been slacking on your chores. I'm not naming names, and I hate keeping track of stuff like this. But it's just a fact. I need you on your A game these final weeks, okay? Same goes for most of you when it comes to garden-tending. Pick up the pace. Be thorough and careful, but quick."

  This time the murmuring wasn't positive.

  "Also, in two days we're taking a field trip to Three Sisters Farm right outside the city. Should be a nice way to compare between the two places and see where we
can do better. Alright! Bed time. It's up and at 'em bright and early tomorrow."

  Most people stood up and the people on dish duty began clearing the tables of the dinner dishes.

  Ellie looked at Melody. "You ready?"

  "Might as well do it now, right?" Melody stood up and walked over to Jason. "Hey."

  "Hey yourself. What's up?"

  "We were wondering if we could talk to you for a bit?"

  Jason smiled but it didn't reach his eyes at all. "Sure thing. Let's head up front."

  They shoved into the front office. Jason shut the door behind him. "What can I do for you?"

  "We were wondering if we could get funding for a vermiculture setup."

  Jason blinked. "Vermiculture?"

  "Yeah, you know. Worms. I found a ton of low-cost do-it-yourself options online. It would only be a couple hundred dollars to get enough worms and buckets to chew through our food waste."

  Jason nodded slowly. "Alright."

  "And we were wondering why it is that we're not planting on the roof that's above our heads right now. There's more than enough space up there; it would double our planting."

  "Weight restriction."

  Ellie frowned. "Constance checked out the building plans when she got here; she really doesn't think there's a weight problem."

  Jason leaned back. "Look at you, Nancy Drew."

  Ellie clenched her fist at his attitude. "Listen, if you don't want feedback, just say so."

  Jason grimaced. "I'll take both those things under advisement."

  "This is a cooperative, is it not?" Melody asked, her anger rising.

  "This is private property," Jason said. "You serve at my pleasure."

  "Ah," Melody replied. "I see. Ellie, let's go."

  Ellie was glued to the spot. "You're not going to take our suggestions seriously, are you? You're going to let us walk out of here and just continue letting things be the way they are?"

  Melody grabbed Ellie's arm. "Ellie, please. Let's just go, okay?"

  Melody managed to get Ellie out of the room, though it took a good bit of coaxing to get her there. "You almost lost it back there."

  "I hate that guy," Ellie muttered as they walked up the stairs. "I hate him."

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  They loaded up in busses to head out of the city to Three Sisters Farm. Ellie and Melody took separate seats, eager to ensure their secrecy when it came to their relationship. By luck of the draw, Ellie ended up sitting next to Herschel.

  "This seat taken?" he asked, three paperback novels in his hands.

  "Of course not, please go ahead," Ellie replied.

  Herschel almost immediately began reading the text in his hands.

  "Can I ask you something?"

  "Certainly."

  "What is it with you and these sci-fi paperbacks?"

  Herschel sat up straight and blinked at her. The bus moved out onto the crowded New York road; Ellie heard several cars honking. "It's not just sci-fi. These are canonical Star Wars novels that expand the universe."

  Ellie grinned. "I never was much of a fan."

  Herschel paused for a second before smiling at her. "Well, may I interest you in some reading material, then?" He reached down for his small leather duffel bag and pulled out a tattered paperback. "This one's my favorite. You've seen all the movies, yes?"

  "Unfortunately for me, I have. Episodes one and two were just dreadful."

  "Indeed they were. If you enjoyed the original trilogy even a little, you'll like this one, I can promise you that."

  Ellie, having finished re-reading the final Harry Potter novel for the millionth time just last week, decided to dig into the book. She was soon swept up in X-wing battles and Han and Leia’s romance, turning each page eagerly. Ellie finally put the book down when she got to a particularly emotional scene. She blinked her eyes and saw that Herschel was staring at her.

  “You like it?” he asked with an uncharacteristic smile.

  Ellie nodded. “Very much.”

  Herschel grinned broadly. “I knew you would.” He put a bookmark that was shaped like a Wookiee into his pages. “I’ve been meaning to speak with you.” He lowered his voice. “About Melody.”

  “Oh?” Ellie asked, feeling the heat rise to her cheeks. “What is it?”

  Herschel leaned closer to her. “You make my girl very happy. But if you hurt her, you’re going to hear about it from me. Is that understood?” His voice was intensely serious.

  Ellie gulped. “I have no plans to hurt her.”

  “Good,” Herschel said, tucking back into his book.

  It was another hour before they arrived at the farm. Everyone piled out into the muddy ground outside a picturesque navy-blue farmhouse. A small group of people were gathered, all wearing farming clothes: overalls and Carhartt jackets.

  A woman with ebony skin and her hair in a long braid greeted them. “I’m Mitchell,” she said. “Yes, I know I have a boy’s name.”

  Jason laughed and shook her hand. “Pleasure to meet you finally.” He looked back at the crowd from the Block. “Mitchell and I have been speaking with each other over email the last few weeks. I expect all of you to be on your best behavior while we’re here.” He clapped his hands together. “Let’s split into groups for the farm tour!”

  Velia had her trusty clipboard and started calling out names. Ellie and Melody were in the same group. Melody walked over to Ellie and gave her a surreptitious hand squeeze when she was certain that nobody was looking.

  It turned out that they were paired with Mitchell, who took them over to the fields that were filled with winter vegetables.

  “So, these are the main gardens,” Mitchell said with a bright smile. “This is where we do all of the main planting.”

  “You have acres here! And how many people do you have working for you?”

  “Seven,” Mitchell said. “Plus, me and my two sisters. They’re away on a family emergency today. And we farm most of the arable land. We use draft horses for planting, and we properly manage the wooded parcels of land by harvesting firewood. We use the horses for that, too.”

  Melody and Ellie were gaping at each other.

  “Wait, you work alongside the people you hire?”

  “Absolutely,” Mitchell said. “There is no way to properly know the land you’re working with if you’re not out there working on it.” She paused. “Does Jason not work alongside you?”

  “No,” Melody said emphatically. “He doesn’t even live on the property.”

  “Do your workers pay you to farm here?”

  Mitchell laughed uproariously. “Do you know the question you just asked yourself? Of course not. They get a living wage plus free room and board.”

  Ellie was shaking. “This is all so different from where we are. Does your farm turn a profit?”

  “A modest one, but enough to pay for everyone to work here and live here, including me and my sisters.” Mitchell lowered her voice. “I’ve heard a lot about the Block from Jason, and I’ve done some researching on my own. You all really pay to work there?”

  Ellie and Melody nodded, along with the rest of the group who mumbled in assent.

  Mitchell shook her head. “How is it that you came to sign up for that?”

  “I just thought it would be an incredible learning experience,” Ellie said. “I wasn’t really thinking much beyond that.”

  Mitchell nodded. “I see. Well, we’ve got a lot of space to tour out here, so we better get moving.”

  The group trod through mud and snow after Mitchell, both the girls brewing anger in their heads.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  Melody was nose-deep in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince when Ellie had an idea. She was sore from so much walking at the Three Sisters Farm earlier in the day. She’d showered and was reading the Star Wars book that Herschel had lent her. The idea fell neatly into her brain and she couldn’t ignore it.

  She pulled her slippers on.

  “Where
are you going?” Melody asked. She had her sleeping bonnet on as well as her flannel pajamas. They were much posher than Ellie’s, which were threadbare from too much use.

  “On a little secret mission.”

  Melody shut the book. “You’re kidding. It’s after midnight.”

  “What better time to manage a little mischief than when everyone’s asleep?”

  “I can’t believe you’re breaking the rules,” Melody said. “I feel like the world has turned upside down.”

  Ellie grinned. “I’m just taking after Fred and George a little bit. What can I say?” She paused with her hand on the doorknob. “Are you coming, or what?”

  Melody sighed and hopped out of bed. “Of course I am. What kind of girlfriend would I be if I left you all alone to get in trouble?”

  Ellie beamed. “So, I’m your girlfriend? Officially?”

  “Officially.” She kissed Ellie. “Okay, okay. Enough of that.” She pulled away from Ellie. “We’ve got mischief to manage, do we not?”

  They padded quietly down the hallway and down the stairs. The house was deathly quiet, and only the occasional door had light leaking out from under the gap. Ellie led the way to the office. She put her hand on the doorknob.

  “Wait!” Melody said, whispering in a high-pitched voice. “What if there’s an alarm on it?”

  “There isn’t,” Ellie said. “We would have seen it when we were in here a few weeks ago, remember?”

  Melody nodded. “Okay, fine.”

  Ellie twisted her hand to spin the doorknob but it was locked.

  “Dammit,” Melody said.

  Ellie fumbled in her messy bun and pulled out a hairpin. “I learned a thing or two in my youth.”

  Melody gaped at her. “You know how to pick a lock?”

  Ellie stuck her tongue between her lips as she jiggled the bobby pin inside the lock. “You know when Jason called me Nancy Drew?”

  “Yeah. I know her. One of the few American series my mom let me read as a kid.”

  “He wasn’t wrong,” Ellie said. “I read all the books at least three times. Every single page.” She moved the hairpin around, twisting the knob as she did so. “And then I used the internet to learn how she did the things she did. Thus, lock picking.” As if on cue, she turned the knob and the door swung open. “Ta-da!”