In Chains - C. Noble (best novels to read for students txt) 📗

fly you out with us to BC. Your folks won’t care, aren’t they going to Florida all summer with Lana and Drake?”
“Will, you are just the best guy I’ve ever met,” Darcey squealed. Apparently this was exactly what she was trying to ask for, but had been too polite to continue with it. But with this out of the way, she was free to continue. “Including Dante. But yeah, they were going to leave me at home all summer, to attend ‘remedial world studies’. Like I’d want to go to that place. They actually acted like it was my idea!
“Wow. Well, hey, we can work on our essays together. Mary Ann can probably come over on the weekend, you know, and help us out. Or help you out. I mean…” Stumbling on his words, Will stopped. That crimson shade spread across his dark features seemed permanent. But Darcey seemed unaffected.
“Oh, I know. You two will coach me into submitting a decent piece of writing which will make my grade a perfect one hundred, and I’ll be on honor role, and everything. I don’t mind that I’m failing, Will. Honestly,” she added, when a look of doubt crossed his face. When she said this, he just laughed and told her that he totally understood. Secretly, however, he was absolutely overflowing with good spirits. Instead of just the weekend, he’d have Darcey all week, and then they’d fly to his mountain home in British Columbia and spend all summer playing manhunt in the woods and free diving off the old trees, like any teenager reliving childhood would do.
They had been out of town for some time, and were winding their way through a sharply cut stone driveway snaking through the trees. Rounding the last bend, Will saw his parents and brother standing and talking together outside around their traditional campfire, despite its still being some hours from dusk. A confused look pass through all three faces before them, and before a rather embarrassed Darcey could mumble out a greeting, Will confidently stepped in.
“Darcey, Mary Ann and I have big essays due on Monday. They’re all on a related topic, so we decided that Darcey would stay here for the weekend and Mary Ann would come over. And since the school year is done on Wednesday, we thought that Darcey could just stay here until then and we could fly her out with us Thursday morning.” Will drew a deep breath and puffed out his chest, which forced him to stand straight as a pole, rising to a teetering height. Staring down a doubtful Dante, Will continued. “Darcey needs to concentrate. Mary Ann and I are doing fine in world studies, but Darcey’s failing, and this essay could turn it around for her. Tutoring would be much easier if she were just down the hall, instead of a twenty minute walk into town.”
A gruff nod from Dante displayed his approval, while Mr. and Mrs. Foster came right up and hugged Darcey. Mr. Foster was very kind to her, and insisted that she call them Dan and Marie. Mrs. Foster seemed to realize how much Darcey didn’t want to be at home, and winked at her while she said, “You know dear, we have a lot of room. Whenever you feel the need to get away, just come on by. We’ll make you up a spare key, and really, you can just move in if you wanted!”
Will’s excitement at this reception of his plans was evident, and equally contrasted by Dante’s lack of enthusiasm. He strode over to his older brother and turned to watch as his parents escorted Darcey into the house. Without so much as blinking, Dante hissed, “What’s your problem?”
“What’s my problem? What’s your problem? You act like she’s some kind of alien or something. I just wanted to help her out!” Will was getting frustrated with his brother, which was something he tried to avoid. Instinctually he would always reach for something to hit Dante with whenever he got angry, for which Dante returned the favor. Only a year apart, Dante and Will had never seen eye to eye. Dante was remote, cold, and plotting. He would have made an excellent general in Stalin’s army, Will would often remark. Will, on the other hand, was kind, warm, and free spoken. There was hardly a mean bone in his body, and he couldn’t stand the ignored plight of suffering creatures. Whether it be a squirrel needing food or a homeless man begging for dimes, Will went out of his way to help them.
“Well, she’s really easy on the eyes, I’ll give her that.” Dante said coldly. Will’s temper was just about worn out.
“Shut up, you overgrown playboy. Leave Darcey alone, she’s not something you can just play with and then dump in the trash. She has feelings, and a brain, and…” Something in Dante’s amused expression infuriated Will.
“Aww. Little Willy’s got a crush. Well, I’ll see if I can’t just play around a bit, shall I? After all, I am nothing but an overgrown playboy.” A sadistic wink from Dante left Will steaming. Who was he to tell Will who to hang out with? So what if Darcey was pretty, it was her sparkling personality that mattered. That great twit didn’t know anything. Will stormed back up to the house, Dante’s laughter ringing in his ears. Without knowing where he was, he ran into his dad’s office.
His father looked up over peculiarly shaped glasses and motioned for his youngest son to have a seat in the fine leather chairs adorning the spacious study. For a while, Will sat and stared at the many pictures of his dad hanging out with people Will couldn’t recognize for all the free beatings of Dante in the world. But just as he was about to speak, his father interrupted him.
“Will, you’re just about a man now. You can handle what I will tell you. Perhaps I am not the one to best recall to you these things, but I believe you already have a meeting with the man who can.” Taking a deep breath, Will’s father continued.
“Will, you know that your mother and I love you and Dante very much. No, now don’t look at me like that, we do love Dante too. We would do anything to protect you, which would include giving up position, money, and fame to keep you safe. Well, son, this we did, and much more. You see, your last name isn’t really Foster. It’s Doscier. Now, now, don’t panic. Your other names still apply. But now you are William Fernandez Paulo Doscier. My name is in fact Paulo, and your mother’s name is Teresa. We come from a small island called Dijoubwe. You might have heard of it before. We were one of the closest families to the royal family, the Martinaques. We were their military advisors, and although Dijoubwe is world famous for its peace, we have seen troublesome times. Fifteen years ago, a haughty general from our neighboring island, Obweji, told our King that if he refused to sign over the crown of his country peacefully, that the general would be forced to take it, killing whoever got in their way.
“King Martinaque did not take this well. He sent his advisors instantly to find a safe place for their only child to grow up, a daughter. Our close friends and the other advisors of the monarchy, the Palmas, also had a daughter. They sent them both to the same place to grow up, hoping to keep them in contact. After much persuading, we got the King to allow us to go with the babies. You were a baby at the time, and Dante was still crawling. We could not send you both away, where you would probably grow up apart, neither of you knowing who you really are or where you come from. So we took the girls and hid here, and have been here since, waiting for King Martinaque to give us the word that the island has peace. Of course, this signal has not come, so we must still wait.”
For several minutes, the library was silent. The heavy chime of the grandfather clock and Will’s concentrated breathing were all that could be heard. Finally, after some time, Will asked, “So which baby was which? I mean, which one was Palma, and which was the…princess?”
Smiling, his father replied, “Mary Ann Price’s real name is Mary Ann Matilda Montoya Palma. This, by the process of elimination, means that our dear houseguest, Miss Darcey Carter, is actually Princess Darcey Thessilia Love Martinaque. Do you understand, son?”
Will was star struck. Darcey…a princess? But then again, it was hardly as likely as Mary Ann being a lady or his being a lord, or whatever he was expected to be. In a quiet voice, he accosted his father. “So what now?”
“Well, as we cannot yet allow Princess Martinaque to ascend her throne, she must stay hidden. To do this, she needs to believe that she is normal. Do you understand? If this were to slip in to the wrong hands, our Princess would be killed.”
Will swallowed loudly and murmured his ascent. He then left the study, determined to find Darcey. If he couldn’t tell her, then he could at least protect her. Aside from a strong inner direction which told him to provide safety for the future of his newfound homeland, there was something deeper. Will felt angry that anyone might try and kill Darcey just because she was the heir to the throne of Dijoubwe.
He finally found her sunbathing next to his pool, dipping her fingers in the water as she baked on the warm cement. Will’s anger dissipated instantly, leaving nothing but his intense urge to protect her from harm. But before he could get back inside to change into his swim trunks, Darcey had spotted him and called him over.
“So Will, what’d your dad have to say?” Darcey said casually, still chasing waves with her fingertips.
Will sunk his feet into the cool water before casually replying that it wasn’t really worth repeating. Just some stupid plane protocols that he had known for over a decade.
“Oh,” Darcey said, her face falling slightly. “I just mean, the window was open, and I thought I heard my name…not that I was eavesdropping or anything, but one does tend to answer to one’s name.” She added quickly.
“Oh, well, yeah. Dad wanted me to make sure that you would be safe,” this is not entirely a lie, he told himself. “But it’s nothing that I couldn’t handle alone.”
“Cool. Go get changed, I want some company out here. Without dear old mom and dad popping in my room, I’m feeling rather neglected.” Darcey feigned a pout as she drew her sun kissed hand out from the water and placed it beside her hip. Will ran inside to change, and was out again within a minute. He laid down on the concrete above her, so that their heads were even with each other. If they turned their heads, they could have a regular, if somewhat upside down, conversation.
The time passed, and crickets began their nightly adieu to the day. The sun was beginning to set, and they had yet to move, or even really talk. Darcey asked about ideas for her essay, if Will could remind her what the summer house was like, and what he thought about her bikini. The last question he found hard to answer, as he stuttered out a quiet, “G-great.” His mother came out on the deck and spared him any further humiliation by announcing that it was dinner time. Surprised, Darcey looked at her cell phone’s clock and exclaimed loudly at how fast time seemed to fly.
After dinner, the duo headed up to Will’s room to begin their essays. Now that