Page 44 of The Courting of Bristol Keats
“I’m not in a wall. I’m here. In Elphame,” Bristol whispered.
“What have they done to you?”
“Shhh,” Bristol said, keeping her voice low. “Nothing. I’m fine. I promise. I think . . . I think this might be a portal.”
She explained to Harper the deal she had made with the fae, what she had learned, and that one of them was taking her to question trows about their father in a short while.
“Faeries fostered Daddy?” Harper asked. “That’swho raised him?”
“Yes.”
“So there really is an Aunt Jasmine?”
“A foster aunt, yes, but I haven’t had a chance to ask her questions yet. Did you take the art to Sonja like I told you?”
“Yes. She gave us a thousand dollars just like you said and sent the art off to experts. Yesterday more art was delivered and when we took it to her, she gave us another thousand dollars. What’s going on, Bristol? Is this illegal?”
“No. It comes from this Aunt Jasmine’s personal collection. At least that’s what they told me.”
Harper peered closer. “Whereareyou? Are you under a table?”
“Yes. I snuck into someone’s room and found this portal. . . .” Bristol shook her head, not sure how to explain the strange passageway. It was nothing like the portal they had passed through to come here. That one had been enormous. “I have to hurry, Harper. Go get your book about this world. I need to know more. I don’t even know which questions to ask. Hurry, go—”
“Snuck?I thought you said you were okay? I thought—”
“The book, Harper! Get the book! Now!”
Harper ran.
Bristol listened to the clanking hum of the dryer. Why was there a portal here that led to their mudroom? Even if the portal was small—so small it was impossible for anyone to get through. Was someone spying on her family? Or had her parents been spying on someone in this room?
She pushed against the edges of the portal, trying to enlarge it, but it didn’t budge. Maybe it was one of those old portals Madame Chastain had mentioned, wiped from the records long ago but never fully closed. This one’s small size made it useless. Maybe she should ask—No, I better keep this one to myself so no one will find out I was snooping, and lock it away from me.It was her only lifeline to her sisters.
Angus slinked back into the mudroom, sidling close to the broom. His shiny black eyes studied her. If a ferret could have a disapproving expression, his was condemning. Or maybe he was just leery of a human stuck inside a wall.
Harper rushed back in, at least Bristol thought it was Harper’s footsteps until Cat’s face loomed in front of her. Her eyes were swollen.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing? I told you not to meet with anyone! I told you—”
“Cat, they took Daddy. Willow told me. It was trows that Mother and Father were running from all their lives. I had to—”
But Cat was already wound up for a long one and went on a lecturing tirade that ended in tears, ordering Bristol to return. “Come home. Now!” she cried.
Bristol reached through the portal and grabbed Cat’s hand. “I can’t. I’m committed to this.” Her sister tried to pull away, but Bristol held on strong like when they were kids and they used to help each other up to a high tree branch. There was no letting go. They’d sooner tumble from the tree themselves than let the other fall. It was all or nothing. It didn’t matter how old they were now; that bond was still there. It would be there forever. “Listen to me, Cat. Please. I made a bargain with the person in charge here, and I’m going to keep it. He’s going to help me find Daddy. Once the art checks out, the money will be more than enough to—”
“We don’t need any money, Bri,” Cat pleaded. “The gallery called. Someone bought Daddy’s painting for more money than Sonja was asking. All we need isyou.”
Bristol’s heart twisted like it was being torn in two. She and her sister had a bargain, too. It was Cat who stood by her. Cat who understood her insecurities, Cat who was always there, not just sister, but best friend, too. After their mother died, Cat landed a full scholarship to the music institute. Bristol mourned for days after she left, but she was happy for her at the same time because Cat had a rare gift that deserved to be cultivated. Likewise, she grieved for Cat when she returned home, leaving a promising future behind. Cat came home when Bristol and Harper needed her. That was all Cat was asking for now.Come home.But what about their father? He needed her too.
“I can’t leave Daddy behind if he’s alive. He was always there for us. He came every time we got lost, every time we needed him,” Bristol pleaded. “And we need answers. What if they come for us next? We can’t run forever, Cat. Don’t you want to stop running too?”
Cat leaned over the washer, like she had no strength left in her. She buried her face in her arms and silently sobbed.
Bristol’s knees weakened. The worry Cat carried was breaking her. “It’s going to be all right. I promise.”
Cat looked up, shaking off tears that were long overdue. “It’s my job to take care of you.”
“And you’ve always watched out for me. Let me carry this load for a while.”
