The Lost Queen Read Online Free PDF

sloped gently down toward the Royal Palace.
    Was it really only yesterday that she had walked these grassy downs with her sister Cordelia and a pack of racing hounds?
    Far away to her left she saw turrets and gatehouses that she recognized, set behind wide formal gardens intertwined with yellow pathways and adorned with fountains and elegant white marble statuary. The tiny shapes of people could be seen walking, no bigger to her than pawns on a distant chessboard. These buildings were the Royal Apartments, home to King Oberon and his daughters. Somewhere in that mass of red-brick gothic buildings, with their steep gray slate roofs and cream-colored stone ornamentations, was her Faerie bedchamber.
    The building she was in now was not part of themain bulk of the palace; it was a small tower set on the hillside among a grove of aspen trees.
    A stone spiral staircase clung to the curved wall opposite the window, winding up from the floor below and continuing to a wooden trap door in the ceiling. Part of Tania longed to follow the coiling steps to ground level and to run out into the open, to feel the grass under her naked feet and the warm breeze on her face.
    She laughed. “In a towel?” she said. “I don’t think so.”
    Faerie would always be there for her. Just a small side step and she could come back whenever she wished.
    She turned with one last wistful glance out the window and sidestepped into the Mortal World.
    She came into her bedroom just as her mother was leaving.
    Her mother gasped. “Where on earth did you pop up from?”
    Tania swallowed hard. Think! She pointed behind the bed. “I was down there,” she said. “I lost a slipper under the bed.”
    â€œWell, you might have said something—I did call.”
    â€œSorry, I didn’t hear you.” Tania forced a smile. “Did you want something?”
    Her mother gave her an odd look. “Just to tell you that I’ve spoken with the police officer who was in charge of your missing person case.”
    Tania felt a pang of alarm. “I don’t have to talk tothe police, do I? Dad said everything would be all right.”
    â€œEverything is all right,” said her mother. “But I had to let them know you were back. The official line is they don’t intend to take any further action.”
    A wave of relief swept over her. “Thanks, Mum. You’ve been really good about this.”
    Her mother gave a wry smile. “Yes, haven’t I? I expect we’ll all be able to laugh about this in ten years’ time.”
    â€œLet’s hope,” Tania said. She looked thoughtfully at her mother; maybe it was time to drop another small bombshell. “Mum? How would you feel if I wanted to change my name?”
    Her mother looked puzzled. “What do you mean?”
    Tania took a steadying breath. “I’d like to be called Tania.”
    Her mother stood silently in the doorway for several moments. It was impossible for Tania to tell what she was thinking from the expression on her face. Was she mad at her? Amused? Confused?
    â€œTania?” her mother said at last, as if getting used to the feel of the name on her lips.
    â€œYes. Would it bother you?”
    Her mother folded her arms and tilted her head to one side. “Tania’s a nice enough name, I dare say,” she said. “Your dad and I could probably cope with calling you that if it’s what you really want. But unless you get it changed officially, you can’t sign yourself as Tania Palmer, you know.” She raised her eyebrows. “Isuppose Palmer is still okay, is it?”
    Tania smiled, wishing she could tell her mum how much her agreeing meant to her. “Yes,” she said, meaning it. “Palmer is absolutely fine!”
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    As was usual for this time of day, the Pizza Bar was buzzing with young people stopping off for a snack and a chat with friends on their way home from