Page 65 of A Girl and HER Prince
Venice reached carefully around the broken glass and unlocked one of the glass doors. He shoved it open with his shoulder to reveal a long hallway lit up by statues of young men bearing torches. “Looks like they still have electricity,” she said.
Venice picked around the broken glass, and she followed his lead. The first thing she’d do was find some shoes in this house… and then some blankets, food, a phone—all in that order.
To the side of them was a salon covered in cozy sofas. A large grand piano made up one side of the room next to gold-and-ivory papered wallpaper. Her feet sank into the soft carpet as she walked inside, and a rush of relief soared through her. Finally! She was so tired of the cold marble and rough cobbles.
Venice dragged a soft blanket off one of the couches and tucked it around her shoulders. She clasped gratefully to its fuzzy warmth. Her core body temperature needed something more intense—like a hot shower or a gallon of hot chocolate—to bring it back up again, but this blanket was just one of those comforts that made her feel human again.
He paced the perimeter of the room, searching for supplies. “There’s got to be a phone in here somewhere,” he said.
She sagged in relief at the thought of getting out of here. She’d let her stress get to her earlier, which meant she’d also been hangry. “And food!” she said. “We need to find the food.” Gathering the blanket over her shoulders as a shield, she returned to the cold marbled hallway to scrounge for some sustenance.
Usually, Livvy had a nose for the kitchen, but as they passed one study, and then another salon, followed by a professional meeting room, she began to despair of ever finding the “servant’s quarters.” She moaned. “I just want a sandwich!”
“I hear you, sister.” Venice eyed the staircase as they passed. “The bedrooms will be up there,” he said. His hands landed on the railing. “I’m getting you some warm clothes.”
“And I’m getting you a sandwich!” She smiled, though it was mostly to forget the grumbling misery that was her stomach right now; it was either that or cry. He was being so sweet right now, and she could barely stand watching the injured Venice hobble up the stairs like he was climbing Mount Olympus.
They were both in terrible shape. They needed food immediately. Livvy pressed on through the never-ending hallway until she finally stumbled into a kitchen at the very back. The area was massive. There were at least three fridges hidden inside paneled walls.
She opened them one by one, pulling out the essentials: chocolate milk, apples, chunks of meat. She nibbled on string cheese and chomped on the apple, going from one hand to the next. “I found food!” she shouted at the vicinity of the ceiling. No way would Venice hear her good news upstairs, but he’d be thrilled once he did. “Lots and lots of food!” She finished up the string cheese and picked up the chocolate milk next, not bothering with a cup. She just downed the carton in a few gulps.
Livvy was turning into a caveman, but she’d never been so hungry. How long had they been down in those ruins? Her eyes shifted to the clock. It was four in the afternoon! It was worse than she’d thought. They’d spent more than a day huddled away from the elements.
They were lucky to be alive!
A braying noise sounded outside, and her chin shot up. A donkey stood in the cute little courtyard outside, attempting to pry open the window with his nose. Was she seeing things?
The plucky creature was brown and cream with a springy tuft of hair between its ears, and big eyes that watched her pleadingly. She wasn’t sure how donkeys were supposed to act because she’d never been so close to one before now, but this one was mischievous, she could tell.
And he’d almost gotten the window open. Her eyes widened. He was an industrious little fellow, wasn’t he? She rushed for the sliding glass door, wrestling with the lock, before she could run outside into the cold.
The donkey brayed again, like he was trying to tell her something, or possibly he was yelling at her because he thought she was part of the staff, and he was hungry.
She stopped short, not sure how to proceed. “Whatisthe matter?”
The donkey barreled forward, nodding and burrowing its oversized head into her stomach like she’d just become his mother. Did he want her to pat his head? Poor thing! He was desperate for some loving.
Watching those huge buck teeth, she obliged, her heart racing.
Don’t bite me.
The donkey made the typical whining noise that everyone associated with that species and started sniffing her.
She ran her fingers down his soft, long nose. “It’s okay.”
The donkey discovered her apple and nibbled at it, forcing a laugh out of her. “Oh, you’re hungry! Was that what you were trying to tell me? Aww, I’m so sorry. Well, there’s more fruit where that came from. Certainly!”
She might be telling herself that.
Livvy allowed the donkey to devour the apple, and jumped when actual chickens began pecking at her legs. She scrambled back in surprise. “Oh, there’s more of you!” she said. They had a family to feed. She scanned the courtyard for any other animals that might try to lunge out at her.
She didn’t think it was very nice of the family who lived here to leave them all behind, but… did that mean that they’d left the staff too? Maybe these trillionaires hadn’t taken off because of the storm, but were gone for the season.
Livvy walked through the empty terrace, seeing the buildings carved out of the mountain. They were like miniature ivory towers. Those must be where the staff lived. “Hello?” she called. “Is anyone out here?”
She edged around a serene pool…of course, there’s a pool. Surprisingly, only a few branches floated against its surface. A Jacuzzi was placed prettily on its other side to make a figure eight, and that was where most of the patio furniture had ended up. She noticed a wicker chair had toppled inside, along with an umbrella.
“Your donkey is out!” she shouted.
