CHAPTER EIGHTEEN: Arwen's New Friend

"All right, enough." Ling Kray broke the kiss with a sudden jerk that left Arwen confused and breathless. "Can you find your way back to the surface on your own?"

"Of course I can! I came down on my own, didn't I?" Arwen was hurt by the way the pirate treated her – as if the passions unleashed by that fiery and all-consuming kiss were something he could turn on and off at will. Part of her feared it was all an act. Maybe everything he did and said was designed just to make her want him more. The elf-maid stepped back, putting a look of cold disdain on her face. "Thanks for telling me your story. It was very entertaining."

"You won't tell Queen Zuleika what's going on down here, will you?" The anxiety on the pirate's dark face would have been comical if Arwen weren't feeling so angry and hurt. He cares more about those frog creatures and their eggs than he does about me!

"You can trust me, pirate captain. I will be just as deceptive as I need to be. We both know how convincing lies can be." Arwen whirled on her heel and left the sexy pirate, seeking the long-forgotten stairwell carved into the cavern walls.

Climbing up to her room was much harder than climbing down. Arwen was tired and panting with exertion by the time she pushed open the trap door and dragged herself back into her cool, dark bedchamber. A lingering redness on the horizon was all that remained of the burning heat of the day.

She washed and shed her garments and fell face-down on the bed. To avoid unwanted questions, Arwen decided to pretend she was resting if anyone looked in. All she had to do was let herself drift, and imagine she was already fast asleep. Already asleep . . . fast asleep . . . already asleep . . .

Arwen was really and truly fast asleep when the queen sent a flock of chirping maid-servants to summon her to breakfast the next morning. It was a bit bewildering to be sent for by Queen Zuleika, since the queen usually rose early to read state documents in her study. Clad only in rumpled sleeping clothes, the lovely elf-maid was still rubbing the slumber from her eyes as she stumbled into Zuleika's royal chamber.

"Ah, there you are," said the queen, her alert brown eyes taking in Arwen's flushed features and tousled black hair. "My maids tell me you were too tired to eat anything last night. Can I offer you some breakfast?"

"Yes, thank you." Arwen dropped into a low, cushioned chair at a side table heaped with food and drink. Evidently the stately queen had eaten already. She sat and watched from her tall carved throne as the hungry elf-maid feasted on soft rolls with fresh butter and a variety of sweet preserves.

"Did you manage to dig up that valuable bracelet I asked you about yesterday morning?" Zuleika enquired pleasantly.

"Bracelet? What bracelet?" Arwen froze with a mouth full of buttered roll. She definitely had seen the bracelet. Panic swept over her when she remembered using its magic powers to free Prince Kassim from the underground cavern. But she couldn't recall whether she'd dropped it on a table back in her sleeping chamber, or stuffed it into a storage chest, or whether – oh, merciful Lady of Lorien – she'd somehow lost the cursed trinket deep in the secret caverns!

"I thought you were going to look for it yesterday afternoon." Queen Zuleika clapped her hands. "Send a messenger to fetch Captain Margo," she commanded. Her guards obeyed, but Arwen noticed that they kept the door barred and shut.

"I'm sorry I couldn't find the bracelet," she said nervously, gulping down her half-eaten roll. "I tried – after archery practice yesterday – but the sun was so hot. So I went to my chambers just for a short rest. But I must have really slept!"

"Yes, of course." Queen Zuleika softened her expression just a tiny bit. "You must have been tired last night. You wouldn't eat, and fell back to slumber the moment my maids helped you into fresh sleeping clothes. Yet it's quite peculiar – they said the garments you left lying at the foot of your bed were positively filthy, as if you'd been out playing in mud for hours. Just where were you yesterday afternoon, Arwen Evenstar?"

"I was just . . . I was . . ." Arwen fumbled for a plausible explanation of her whereabouts. But the only image her mind could conjure up was that of Ling Kray the pirate, kissing her with a possessive mastery that thrilled her right down to her toes. Arwen knew that she was blushing. Her cheeks were very hot. But if she spilled her secret, both she and her pirate lover and his strange, frog-like friends were totally done for!

"It's all right, Your Majesty," cried a cheerful voice. "The Lady Arwen was with me all afternoon." Clad in shining armor, with her red hair glowing in the morning light, Captain Margo swaggered confidently into the chamber.

"What do you mean, captain?" The queen asked sternly. "Were you not aware that I was seeking my lost bracelet?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. Here it is." The female captain winked at Arwen, and tossed the gleaming bracelet to the queen on her throne. "You see, the elf-lady and I went searching in the gardens, because she thought she'd dropped it there. And we got awfully dirty, and very hot and tired. Poor Arwen finally gave up and went to take a nap, just like she said. But at the end of the day I found it, right under a red rose bush!"

"That's wonderful," Arwen said faintly. She slumped in her cushioned chair, very grateful and relieved. Only a tiny part of her wondered why the captain had covered for her.

"Yes, it seems Captain Margo is definitely the right person to put in charge of protecting my palace treasures," Queen Zuleika said stiffly, sitting up very straight on her throne. "Neither of you could know this, of course, but yesterday there was a subterranean disturbance beneath our palace. It seems some . . . creatures attacked our storage rooms, and made off with several prisoners, aided by persons unknown. Captain Margo, I want you to get to the bottom of this. Take a squad of your best lady guardsmen and investigate the caverns. You may have the rest of the day to prepare."

"Begging your pardon, Your Majesty, but what about the elf lady?" Sauntering up behind Arwen's chair, Margo clapped her strong, capable hands firmly on the elf's slim shoulders. "You don't want her going down into that black pit, do you?"

"The Lady Arwen is my honored guest," Queen Zuleika declared. "She is not a lady of the guard, and she is not to be taken below nor exposed to any hardship or danger."

"Oh, but I don't mind going – I mean, if I can help Captain Margo – I just want to do whatever is best!" Arwen tried to look eager and excited, as if she were hearing about the caverns for the first time. But it was all an act. The last thing she wanted was to lead the clever captain to Ling Kray!

"Good girl!" Margo gave her shoulders a friendly squeeze. "But the queen is right. You can't come with us, but there's no reason you can't help us prepare. So what do you say we round up the girls, and inspect their weapons and armor? We can make plans after lunch, maybe look at some old maps, and then a light workout and some time at the baths."

"That sounds lovely," Arwen said, forcing a smile. She really was incredibly grateful to this nice Captain Margo. But deep down she was very nervous about fooling Queen Zuleika. And she hated lying to her new friend.