The Centaur by Brendan Carroll Read Free Book Online

real pretty, Mark.” Merry agreed and resumed her seat. “Are you… is she… are you and Sophia married?”
    “Married? No. I don’t think so.” He munched on one of the cookies and then offered her one. “These are very good. Miss Sophia made them herself. Oatmeal. My favorite.”
    “I know.” Merry looked away from him. She couldn’t believe it. This was impossible.
    A door slammed upstairs and echoed in the lower halls. Footsteps clambered down the stairs and then the sound of Nicole’s voice preceded her to the kitchen. Merry stood up again automatically.
    “Daddy, where is that…” Nicole stopped short at the sight of Merry.
    “Nicole.” Merry nodded to the very young-looking woman, who looked very much like herself.
    “Mother?” Nicole dropped the box she was carrying on her foot and then bent quickly to retrieve it.
    “No.” Merry shook her head.
    “Oh,” Nicole smiled broadly with her father’s smile and pressed one hand against her heart under the wooly brown sweater. “Thank God! I’m not ready for that.” She gave Mark a peck on the cheek and picked up one of his cookies before going after a cup of coffee. She began to talk while she mixed her honey and coffee with a wooden spoon from the dish rack. “I see you’ve met Daddy. He’s recovering quite well after the accident, aren’t you, Daddy?” She glanced over her shoulder and Mark nodded. “You see, he lost a lot of his memories, but he’s OK now, aren’t you, Daddy?”
    “I’m fine, Nicole.” He assured her and then winked at Merry.  He leaned forward and whispered as if Nicole couldn’t hear him. “She worries because I have to talk to myself sometimes, but it’s OK.”
    Merry nodded. This was too bizarre.
    Nicole brought her cup to the table and sat down.
    “So you came to see Daddy?” Nicole raised one eyebrow.
    “Yes. I thought he might have news of Luke Matthew.” Merry told her.
    “Well, Uncle Luke didn’t have to much to say to Daddy before we left him.” Nicole sounded almost satisfied to deliver this bit of disappointment to the Queen. “And of course, he didn’t have too much to say to me either.” She smiled wickedly and Merry’s temper rose. “I suppose that might be because he let our son go off with Satan and he was ashamed to face me.”
    “You mean Lucifer?” Merry managed to control her temper.
    “Whatever.” Nicole picked up another cookie and Mark went after more, fishing around in the cookie jar like a small boy.
    “Nicole, look, I didn’t come here to argue with you. I didn’t even know you were here and I…” Merry stopped when Sophia came back carrying a basket full of dirty laundry.
    “Sorry, Your Highness.” Sophia muttered as she dropped the basket in the rear hall and came back. “Laundry day. Nicole. Good morning.”
    The dark-haired woman sat down across from Nicole and pulled Mark’s hand from the jar. He held three cookies.
    “Mark.” Sophia seemed embarrassed by his actions. “You’ve had enough cookies. You haven’t had breakfast.”
    “That’s why I need more cookies.” He told her and laughed. “You forgot to fix breakfast.”
    “I didn’t forget.” Sophia corrected him. “I… oh, this is just great!”
    Sophia got up again.
    “Miss Merry, Queen Merry.” She shook her head. “Look, let’s go outside. We’ll take a walk and see how the gardens are doing.”
    “That sounds like a grand idea.” Nicole said and continued to smile at Merry smugly. “I’ll make Daddy’s breakfast. You and Queen Merry go on and enjoy yourselves.”
     
     
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    “Schweikert, you fool!” Ruth met him in the dimly lit passage under the palace. The ground shook and trembled as the bombardment continued unabated above them. The palace residents and guards had taken shelter in the lower regions of the structure when the four armies had shown up outside the gates. “Why is the Prophet not returned? Who are these imbeciles burning