The Faerie Ring

The Faerie Ring Read Online Free PDF Page B

Book: The Faerie Ring Read Online Free PDF
Author: Kiki Hamilton
Tags: Romance, Historical, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Paranormal, Magic, Young Adult
giant beans so they never run out of food?” Toots’s eyes glowed.
    “No.” Tiki lowered her voice. “Jack climbs the beanstalk and finds a hen that can lay golden eggs.”
    “Golden eggs?” Clara’s eyes got big.
    “But the hen belongs to a giant. So Jack decides he’s going to steal it.” An image of the queen’s ring popped into her head.
    Toots laughed and nudged Shamus in the ribs. “He’s a ruddy pickpocket just like us.” He looked back at Tiki, his face alight with curiosity. “And what happens?”
    “Yes, tell us, Tiki, what happens?” Clara’s voice was high with excitement. “Did Jack get the golden hen?”
    Tiki shrugged. “I can’t really remember. Maybe we should read it together and see what happens.” She grinned at Toots in a sly way. “Maybe you should read it to me.”
    “Oh, Tiki, that ain’t right.” Toots’s face fell as he suddenly realized her ploy. “I don’t want to learn to read.”
    “You need to learn to read. You don’t know what you’re missing.” Tiki turned away to hide her smile. “I’ll tell you the rest of the story tonight if you promise to practice your reading with me.”
    “Say yes, Toots.” Clara turned pleading eyes on him. “Pleeeeeaaaase.”
    “I don’t know,” Toots grumbled. “Maybe.” He walked across the room to his favorite perch and pressed his eye against the peephole.
    Shamus poked at the meager amount of coal in their stove as Tiki went to warm her hands. He lifted up a tin kettle. “There’s a bit of tea left, if you want. An’ a little cheddar.”
    Tiki held her cup out. “Just a spot. I’m going to go up to the apothecary’s over in Leicester Square this morning. You take Toots and see if you can find some bread or potatoes for today. If I have any money left, I’ll get something from the muffin man and some apples from Mr. Albertson’s cart up in the market at Covent Garden.”
    Shamus nodded. “I think Fiona better stay with Clara again, don’t you?”
    “Yes.” Tiki rubbed her arms to try to warm up as she glanced toward the windows facing the railway station. A spill of light cast a watery beam across the long room. “What time do you think it is?”
    “Almost ten.”
    She took a big gulp of her tea. “I better get going.” She moved to the back of the room, pulled open one of the drawers built along the back wall, and lifted out a blue dress. “I’ll need a few coins from the pot to pay Mr. Lloyd for Clara’s medicine.”
    “All we’ve got is what you brought home last night.”
    An image of the ring hung in the back of her mind like a glittering star. Was it still safely hidden in the knot of the tree? A sudden desire to see the stone again, to hold the ring in her hand, burned inside. Did she dare go check? She pushed the idea away and slipped behind the privacy screen—a blanket hung over a rope they’d set up in the far corner of the room—to change into the dress. “Then we need to work on getting a few more coins today, too.” She wouldn’t mention checking on the ring, she could do that on her own.
    *   *   *
     
    T HE wind blew a gust of frosty breath down the lane as Tiki made her way out of Charing Cross Station. She cut across the Strand and headed toward Trafalgar Square. From there she could follow Charing Cross Road straight up to the apothecary’s shop. She shivered in her dress and pulled her threadbare cloak tighter as she walked. The dress and cloak were all she had left from when she had run from her uncle’s house. From the way the seams tugged at the bodice, she knew she wouldn’t be able to wear the garment much longer.
    The word REWARD scrawled in bright red on a handbill tacked to a nearby lamppost caught her eye. She moved closer to read the printed message.
     
    I MPORTANT N OTICE
    To the Tradesmen, Ratepayers and Inhabitants of London particularly in the area of Buckingham Palace
    REWARD!
    £500
    R ING GONE MISSING
    G OLD BAND CAPPED WITH F IRE- R ED S TONE D
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