Two soldiers approached to inspect the car. However, when Luc rolled down the window and they saw his face, they wasted no time hurrying back over to the heavy gates to let us in.
The driver continued inside. The city behind the walls was old and beautiful, massive houses here and there on stretches of well-maintained pieces of land, tall trees reaching up into the sky, their branches casting the area in soft shade.
“This is Old Town,” he said. “Would you believe it if I told you that this part of the city was around two thousand years old?”
My eyes went wide. “I can’t even imagine that.”
He offered a wry smile. “Now, most of these buildings aren’t quite that old, but there has been settlement here at Lausanne since the height of the Roman Empire. Many of the wealthiest of Rome kept summer homes here, feeling that the fresh air and sweeping vistas invigorated them after too much time in the capital.”
I smiled. “You’d make a good tour guide.”
He let out a dry chuckle. “Edoria is my home. And more than that, knowing everything there is to know about this city is part of my job.”
“You know, I don’t think you’ve told me what your job actually is. You work for my father, but what’s your title?”
“I don’t have a title. My job is unofficial, something that your father created for me. But I’m known around Edoria as the king’s right hand. If he wishes something done, he only needs to tell me to do it.”
“And you have that power?”
“Most certainly.”
It wasn’t long before we reached the rear of the palace, a gorgeous, well-tended garden all around us, comprised of immaculately sculpted greenery and flowers of all colors.
“This is… pretty cool.”
“That’s certainly one way to describe it,” he said with a slight smirk and wry tone. “The royal palace maintains a staff of fifty-five live-in maids, cooks, servants, and, of course, gardeners. Such a staff close at hand is necessary to keep the palace in the condition your father prefers.”
I lost myself in the scenery, the garden was like nothing I’d ever seen before. Well-dressed men and women walked through the space, all of them flicking their eyes at the car for at least a second.
“Courtiers,” Luc said. “Don’t worry, you’ll be meeting them all in time. Whether you want to or not.”
I noted the interesting tone to his words suggested dealing with courtiers was his least favorite part of the job. I wanted to press more, but when the car pulled around a massive fountain and to a stop in front of a V-shaped set of stone stairs, I knew we’d reached our destination.
“We’re here,” he said. “Come along.”
He stepped out of the car and opened the door for me. Still in a bit of a daze, I exited and looked around. The sights of the palace grounds had been something else in the car, but now that I was out in the fresh air, the garden stretching out behind me and the palace rising up into the sky, the reality of where I was at suddenly hit me—hard.
“Come along, Princess,” Luc said. “There’s no time for a tour, and something tells me I ought to hurry you to your room to give you some time to get acclimated to your new surroundings.”
“Not a bad idea,” I said. “My head’s kind of spinning.”
The car pulled away as we went up the stairs, a pair of servants opening the large, arched doors and revealing a gorgeous entrance hall. The space was huge—the room adorned with heavy velvet curtains over the windows, ornate rugs along the stone floor, and towering portraits of serious-faced men and women dressed in clothing of styles that stretched hundreds, if not thousands of years into the past.
“Are these my relatives?” I asked, stopping in front of one of the paintings.
“Some are, some aren’t,” he said. “The Jenson line hasn’t ruled Edoria forever. Let’s keep going.” His voice was tinged with impatience.
“Why are we in such a hurry?” I asked, our footsteps echoing in the huge hall. “Can’t I have a second to take a look around?”
“Because, Princess, I need to meet with your father. We have much to discuss before your own meeting with him. This is your new home—you’ll have plenty of time to acquaint yourself with it.”
I didn’t waste my time correcting him that I’d never agreed to actually live there. Instead, I glanced down the adjoining hallways, spotting other rooms, a kitchen, a dining room, a sitting area, each more gorgeous than the last.
“Can’t you at least show me one room now?”
He stopped, and for a moment I wasn’t sure if he was going to agree or tell me to zip up. A thoughtful expression formed on his face.
“I can show you one room. Come with me.”