"What happened?" Marcellus asked as Jia ran a hand over her mouth.
Jia recounted the events of the festival before Marcellus let out a curse.
"Language Marcellus!" Iris chided him.
"I`m sorry but honestly, how could you do that?!" Marcellus turned to yell at her grandmother, "How could you go behind my back and get Jia to go out in public?!"
Her grandmother looked hurt, "I thought she was protected. The Ravenpoint Guards- "
Marcellus broke in, "Are a police force, they aren`t my Elites! I don`t trust them with any guard detail!" He ran a frustrated hand through his hair," Jia could have died!"
Laurel winced as Marcellus growled and stood to pace around the room. Jia leaned back reached up hesitantly to rub her chest. She wasn`t surprised to see or feel that her entire chest area had been bandaged up. There would be a huge scare now. The bullet went right through her.
"Ballistics?"
Nikolai cleared his throat before removing a plastic bottle that rattle slightly. He stepped forward and held it out for Marcellus to see," Ballistics confirmed that the bullets were from a Mill 1 Rifle."
Marcellus took the bottle and examined it, "How many people own that particular Rifle?"
"Including our own men?" Brad asked.
"Ten different people from the fifteen Kingdoms." Dalton answered and Helena shook her head.
"Even if they had access to the weapon, we all need to take into consideration connection and motive," Jasmine pointed out.
"But it wouldn`t be our men. They`d soon injure themselves before going after your own daughter." Dalton added. Everyone nodded in agreement.
"And they'd have to know where she was going to school or give their whereabouts to the central computers in order to leave the Base." Helena added.
"I already know who did it, or rather who the shooter could be connected to,'"Jia admitted.
Marcellus looked taken back, "Who?"
"The Emperor."Jia answered.
"That psychopath? Why would he be going after you now?"
"Actually, this isn`t the first time he`s gone after me."The white haired teenager admitted.
"What?!"
"I...have a confession to make."
She then told him of the events from the Butterfly Sanctuary and the Reserve. Her father`s face paled rapidly with each passing minute and her other relatives weren`t faring well. Her aunt`s looked like they wanted to lock her up and her uncles looked like they wanted blood.
"How could keep this from me?!" Marcellus questioned her.
Jia's jaw dropped and she looked as if she couldn't believe that her papa had asked her that question,"Because I knew that this is how you would react. By shutting me away from the world!"
"This is not something that you keep from your father,Jia! And you?" Marcellus turned to Brad who lowered his head," You kept this from me?"
He then studied everyone's faces before speaking, "I understand that you all love her and you want the best for her but you don`t know. You don`t know what my daughter means to me, "Marcellus accused them, "Not after what I went through with Marina." Marcellus turned away and took a deep breath to calm himself down. "Leave us now."
Brad and the others wanted to protest but one look from Dalton silenced him. They all kissed Jia`s head before leaving with her aunt Willow closing the door behind her. Marcellus went to sit on his daughter`s bed, "Finding this sucker will be top priority but for now, you are not going back to school. I`m withdrawing you on Monday."
"Papa!" Jia protested.
"No arguments." Marcellus stated.
"You can`t just keep me locked up here!" Jia exclaimed as she thought of her plans and her friends. She had just experienced freedom and now she was to be shut away?
"Watch me! Sending you away to that school was a mistake."
Jia shook her head and tried to stop herself form crying, "Sending me to Viola was the best thing that you have ever done for me. My mother wouldn`t have wanted me to be locked away like some kind of caged bird!"
Marcellus looked like he was in pain, as he recalled the very words spoken by his wife, "You have no idea what your mother would have wanted."
"I know she wanted me to be different, have a different upbringing that didn`t include Lady lessons and society parties. That was why I was able to be with Uncle Brad and the others. She wanted me to have a normal education like Roy and not like her."
"She would want to be safe." Marcellus tried to reason with her.
"She`d want me to fight back. Isn`t that what you taught me?" Jia asked her papa," I know you love me. That`ll you'll protect me from anything but I feel like this is my trial. The Emperor already knows that I`m alive and he wants me gone because he`s afraid of me for some reason. If I run away now, I let him win and then we`re going back to the Dark Ages. Another war but this time, no Honor Guard to stop him."
"The Honor Guard stopped him before right? "Marcellus asked her," What does this have to do with you?"
"I have an idea but I need answers and they lie back at the school. Back at Viola." Jia explained. "You've protected me long enough, isn`t it time that I put an end to this and find out why mama was taken from us?"
"What does your mother`s death have to do with this?"
"I`m trying to make sense of this myself as well but…I need to go back to school and you need to focus on finding him," Jia told him.
Marcellus felt tears fall form his eyes as he pulled her close and ran a hand through her hair. Jia clutched her father close, "I see her. Every time I`m sleeping. She`s always calling me and I miss her so much."
"Me too," Marcellus revealed and Ja pulled back to look up at his face. He looked sad and tired," She calls out for me whenever I`m a sleep and then whenever, you smile or do something amazing, I see her standing behind you. Smiling proudly at you. As if telling me, 'what did you expect? She`s our daughter."
"I miss her."
"I miss her more, Bolt."
"Please don`t lock me up."Jia pleaded again.
Marcellus scanned her face carefully, "You'll try and escape if I do right?'"
"Most definitely," Jia confirmed.
And despite the seriousness of the answer Marcellus laughed and hugged her, "Okay. Alright...You'll go back...but under certain conditions."
Jia pulled back and sighed, "Name them?"
"I want weekly updates and you`ll stop hiding life threatening incidents from me," Jia looked ready to protest when Marcellus held a hand to silence her," It`s not so I can take you away but to hear your progress and news on the Emperor`s movements and for my own piece of mind. If I know you`re okay, then…I`ll be a bit okay."
"Alright, next."
"You will take your mother`s armor with you."
"What?"
"She was going to give it to you when you turned twenty but I think now is a great time for you get it."Marcellus admitted.
"Thank you."
"And finally, you`ll at least stay here for the entire week to recuperate, you`ll go back on Saturday," Marcellus concluded.
"Only if I can call my friends sand tell them to take my notes."Jia suggested.
"Your aunt Willow will do that. She will also be notifying the school that you will be gone for one week."
"Fine."
"You can stop eavesdropping and come in now, "Marcellus said with a smile as they both looked towards the door as it opened and all her uncles and aunty entered looking very embarrassed and sheepish. Jia burst out laughing and fell back against her pillows before yelping in pain causing her papa to scold her for not being too careful.
Everyone came in and apologized as Marcellus filled her in the events of the last two days. Apparently, the Healers were able to stop the toxin after Tristan found the bullets and gave it to them. After she was stable, her Uncle Elias had her medevacked to Castle Paravel. Her father arriving just on Monday afternoon with that idiot Lady Grace trailing him and the other men.
Roy had left on Monday morning as his mother forced him to leave to go back to school. She reasoned with him and said that since Jia was stable in a safe place, there wasn`t anything to worry about anymore. She would just need rest. Later at night, her grandmother came in and stayed with her to apologize which Jia accepted. No one could have predicted that she would be shot. It was different from the last time she was attacked.
She spent the whole week resting, healing until the stiches could be removed and she could move her arm without it aching. Thank you Magic Healing!
Her aunts brought over her cousins and she was entertained by their babbles and smiles but they didn`t stay too long as Marcellus wanted her to rest.
On Saturday morning while everyone was inside the Castle, Jia took her opportunity to sneak into her papa`s office. It was in the right side of the Castle and wouldn`t be locked as he would be using it the whole day but he had been called to the Armory by Uncle Nikolai.
When she entered, she levitated to the bookshelf and looked for the hidden switch at the top of the bookshelf. Once found, she pressed it and the bookshelf vanished. In its place was single safe.
"Is there a reason why you`re sneaking into your father`s study and trying to break into his vault?"
Jia winced and slowly turned around to see her papa standing at the entrance of his study with his arms folded. "I…I need something,"
Marcellus studies his daughter and his heart ached, she looked too much like Marian that it made him miss his wife so much.
"What do you need?" He asks.
"The dagger, I need the dagger,"Jia answered.
Marcellus stood up straight and frowned at her, "You trying to get revenge?"
Jia looked taken back as Marcellus moved to stand in front of her, "No, papa."
"Good, revenge is not the sort of thing I want you turning to at your age," Marcellus warned her.
"I stopped thinking about revenge a long time ago,"Jia stated. Marcellus sighed and ran hand over his mouth.
"Please, papa,"Jia pleaded.
"What do you need for?"
Jia ran a hand over her mouth, making Marcellus note that despite her looking like Marina, she still had his mannerisms," I was told that the dagger was important. That I`d need to use it against the Emperor."
"And who told you that?"
Jia shrugged and Marcellus continued to stare at her until finally he sighed, "Is it need-to-know?"
"Let`s go with that."
Marcellus nodded before he moved to open the safe. He took out a red velvet covered item which he unwrapped to reveal the dagger. It was long and had a single jade encrusted at the hilt. It`s blade was clean but if Jia concentrated really hard, it seemed to glow a dull green.
"This dagger can`t be traced, I`ve had your uncles look into it over the past few years," Marcellus revealed as he handed the dagger over to his daughter," It`s made from elements that aren`t from this Kingdom, or any other of the fourteen Kingdoms."
Jia glanced up at her papa, "So it`s not from this dimension?"
The Elites Commander nodded, "Your Uncle Dalton suspects that it either came from the Ether or the Nether Dimension but even that is hard to prove since no-one has actually been to either of those dimensions and lived to tell."
Jia shivered slightly as she wrapped it up again and clutched it tightly, "Remember to never lose it."
"I won`t."
"I`ve arranged for a Ship to take you back to school, would you be against me dropping you off?"
Jia smiled and shook her head, "No."
On a lighter note, when you come back for Christmas, I have a surprise for you waiting."
Marcellus watched his daughter instantly perk up with excitement, "Really? What is it? My own Castle?"
"Do you want your own Castle?" Marcellus asked with a laugh.
Jia shrugged," Every princess wants her own Castle and I am not opposed to that suggestion."
Marcellus rolled his eyes, "Good to know, I`ll be sure to tell your uncles that."