Far away . . .
Lottie looked over at Ellie and was glad to see that the same thing had occurred to her at the same time. Everything was coming together. Lottie needed to attend Takeshin Gakuin in order to safeguard her place at Rosewood, and it was the best way to do so without drawing attention to her failing grade. The last thing they needed was any more media scrutiny.
“Your Majesty”—Lottie bowed low—“we must confess another problem, but before we do please allow us to present you with our solution to both our current situation and the one we are about to share.” Reaching into her pocket for the pamphlet, Lottie looked at Jamie. She had to do this, whatever he thought. “Your Majesty,” she continued, “I must confess that my exam grades were not up to Rosewood’s standards.” She swallowed hard; she would not shy away from this. “We believe the results may have been tampered with. But with no proof, and for fear of drawing unwanted attention, we are given little choice but to remedy the grade as quietly as possible.” Lottie continued talking quickly, not wanting anyone to interrupt until she’d said everything she had to. “With your permission I feel our best course of action would be to attend a Rosewood-approved summer school. Not only to make up my grades, but to get away from the media and find some respite.”
“I’ve been looking over the courses.” Ellie took over now, and Lottie went to her, their hands searching for each other’s in solidarity. “This school will also help me build up my confidence after everything that’s happened in the past year.” Her last words disintegrated into another fit of coughing, and she pulled her hand free to cover her mouth. It was clear Ellie needed to recuperate somewhere far, far away.
A muscle twitched in the king’s jaw. Lottie could only wonder what terrible thoughts of his older brother she’d just summoned.
“Takeshin,” he said quietly, glancing at the pamphlet. With a sigh, he turned to face the wall, his shadow extending longer with each step he took away from them.
Strangest of all was the queen. Usually so tranquil, her face had turned rigid like she’d been frozen in place.
“I know that school,” the king said at last, still not turning back to them. “I attended myself one summer.”
Ellie and Lottie exchanged a surprised look. Lottie knew the two countries had business ties, and Jamie had said that the king’s brother had fled to Japan, but she would never have expected there might also be a far more promising connection.
“Wonderful!” the queen trilled, her face lighting up once more, as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred. “An alumnus in our midst. I’m sure that will help the application process.”
“So we can go?” Ellie asked, hardly believing it.
The king slowly turned his head, and Lottie imagined it would spin the whole way around like an owl, only it stopped just as his ebony eyes locked on her own. “We will begin preparations.”
It took Lottie a moment to realize they’d been successful, and she had to stop herself from spluttering in disbelief.
The king’s words should have been a relief, but the Maravish royal family was drowning in secrets. And perhaps she’d just discovered one more.
5
PULLING HER CAP DOWN LOWER over her face, Lottie felt like a spy. Everything had happened so quickly that it was hard to keep her feet on the ground—quite literally. From the capital of Maradova’s St. Krystina International Airport to Tokyo Haneda Airport took almost four hours. Four little hours to escape the clamor back home. It seemed too good to be true.
They had been told they could expect a hospitable welcome from the headmaster, Nobuo Chiba, upon arrival—a special privilege for the princess.
“I hope he’s not teaching any of the classes.” As they passed through immigration, Ellie scrutinized his photo in the back of the brochure. Professor Croak, the headmaster at Rosewood, was at least capable of the occasional smile. There was absolutely nothing smiley about Mr. Chiba, with his gunmetal gray hair and sharp frameless spectacles.
“He might look mean, but he’s saving us.” Lottie could handle a bit of mean if it helped them out. “Besides, I think we all know better than to judge a book by its cover, don’t we?”
“You’re right.” Ellie smiled. “Remind me to thank him when we arrive.” Most people caught colds on planes, but Ellie’s had almost entirely vanished, her body getting stronger the closer they got to Takeshin. Lottie was glad to see that they’d made the right decision, for Ellie at least.
Now that it was real, now that she had reached Japan, Lottie let the excitement flutter in her belly, a feeling she knew all too well, because it was the very same feeling she had when she was on her way to Rosewood Hall. The only problem was all the other students at Takeshin had already chosen their classes. Lottie had been reassured that she could choose when she arrived, but it still felt like a daunting decision.
“Can we pay attention to where we’re walking, please?” They were the first words Jamie had spoken in a while, his tone making it clear how he felt about this excursion.
Lottie remembered what he’d said about running away from her problems, as if she couldn’t handle reality. But, looking out the window at Tokyo, the flow of neon lights like electric blood, it all appeared to be very real to her. She wasn’t running away from anything; she needed to do this to stay where she was, in her rightful place at Rosewood.
When they emerged onto the main concourse it was not difficult to spot Saskia and Anastacia. Their attempts to remain inconspicuous did far more to draw attention to them than
