“Another kidnapping?” Courtney asked in alarm. “Shit. Where’s the king?”
“Do not fret,” Amy said. “He was safe in his chambers. Servants are alerting him to the news now.”
“He’s been there all morning?” Courtney asked, and I shot her a look. Did she suspect him?
“Yes, the dangers his kingdom faces have put such strain on his constitution, and he needed rest.” Amy looked between us as Courtney continued to absentmindedly dab at my brow. “Lady Courtney, why on earth are you tending to Lord Bryce’s wounds? We have an infirmary for such things.”
“No reason.” Courtney’s face flushed bright red. “Amy, someone told me today that heroes used to be very hands-on when it came to hearing the people’s concerns. Is it true Chosen Ones like Edna Johnson were allowed to make friends?”
Amy waved a hand. “Who told you such nonsense?”
She bit her lip. “No one. I just heard it… in passing.”
“Utter hogwash,” said Amy. “When I summoned Edna Johnson, she mingled with the citizens, but only because it was necessary to keep them calm while she and I worked to deliver the people from calamity. Now the Evil One is trying to destroy the utopia we created.”
“What calamity?” I asked. “Did this Edna person face the same Evil One we’re going to have to face?”
“No, of course not,” said Amy. “Now come.” He teetered closer. “You must share your plan for stopping the kidnappings and vanquishing evil with the council.”
“What if we don’t have any plans?” I asked.
Wringing his hands, Amy perched himself between us on the bed. “Of course you have a plan. Why, if you search your memories, I’m sure you’ll find the solution to all our problems has been with you for months. Chosen Ones always hear voices or see visions or have dreams that they forget about until the precise moment when they feel all is lost. Then they remember their premonition, and everything becomes clear.” His watery blue eyes gazed up at me.
“Courtney’s had some really interesting dreams lately.” I couldn’t resist throwing her under the bus after the leech incident.
“Not true,” she said quickly, flashing a demure smile.
Amy turned to me. “What about you, Bryce?”
I hesitated. While my dreams lately hadn’t exactly contained illustrated step-by-step IKEA-style instructions on how to destroy evil, they had been… intense. If there was any chance revealing them could help us get to the bottom of the kidnappings, wasn’t I obligated to reveal them in hopes Amy could translate their meaning?
“I’ve had a few dreams,” I confessed, feeling my hands grow clammy. “Maybe Courtney shouldn’t hear them, though. They aren’t fit for the ears of a… lady.”
The smile melted from Courtney’s face as she gave me a long, calculating look. “You’ve had dreams?”
“I prefer to call them nightmares.”
Amy nodded wisely between us. “Ah yes. Oftentimes such visions can be disturbing.”
“Especially when Courtney’s in them.” My face heated.
“What was I doing in yourdreams, Bryce?” Courtney hissed.
“Praising my name, mostly,” I said dickishly to hide how desperately I wanted to melt into the floor.
She snorted. “Then your dreams are the most fantastical thing to happen to you.”
I leaned back, propping my arms behind me on the bed. “We literally stepped through a portal and wound up in a world straight out of a dungeon master’s fever dream.”
“My statement stands.”
“If Lady Courtney was praising your name, perhaps it is a prediction that you are the Chosen One, and she is indeed your henchwoman,” Amy mused, but neither of us was listening.
Courtney narrowed her eyes. “Tell me about one of these dreams.” The challenge in her voice told me she thought I was lying.
Figuring I might as well get this over with, I leaned forward so I could see her past Amy. “In my dreams, we’re at the big-box store where you work.”
“Hot.”
