A Lost Kitten by Jessica Kong Read Free Book Online Page B

you sure?”
    “Yes. Where are you off to?”
    John detected Bogdan was eager to change the subject. Could he be lying about the ghost? “Back to my room.” He rubbed his arms. “I’m freezing. Is Surreal normally this cold?”
    “I wish there was a chill in the air.” Bogdan tugged on his collar. “It’s stifling hot today.”
    John saw the beads of sweat pouring down Bogdan’s face. It made him pause before his next words. “Um…when are we leaving?”
    “I have to take several packages to neighboring vilijez, which means several days of travel on horseback. When I return, we can prepare to leave. I have to go, John. I will talk to you later.”
    “Bye.” John watched him hurry off.
    Bogdan’s manner told John more than his words did. He was hiding something. What was it? The delay in departure had John on edge. Bogdan’s hollow excuses told him something was amiss. Plus, the stares Bogdan and King Yudit kept sending his way were suspicious. John no longer trusted them.
    By next morning, John began to think that perhaps he had imagined what happened at the schoolhouse. However, King Yudit’s and Bogdan’s odd behaviors continued. During dinner that Thursday, they stared at him yet again. John grew uncomfortable. Frustrated with what was happening, he left his dinner unfinished. That infamous McCall temper was steadily rising in him.
    He found one of the housekeepers in the corridor wiping down a table and a vase. John’s anger spurred his decision to give up the pretense that a hand towel wash was enough. It might work for Surrealans or for people in the olden days, but John needed to submerge his body in water if he was to keep his strength up. Plus, towel washing did not leave him feeling cleansed. Felines liked to keep themselves well-groomed.
    He asked the middle-aged woman where he could take a shower. The maid confirmed that the citizens of Surreal took baths on a biweekly basis, and that John should have a washcloth and a basin in his room. John politely insisted that a hot bath be brought to his room. The woman promised to have a tub sent to his room as soon as the water was heated. John thanked her and left.
    Dena arrived with five men. The men placed the copper tub they carried in front of the fireplace, then left. John stood beside the only window in the room. He watched Dena pour several buckets of steaming water into the tub. He found her attractive; her movements were graceful like a cat. The scent of lilac reached his nose. He looked at the bucket she placed by his bed. Perhaps it could be one of the products she carried.
    “Would you like me to scrub your back?”
    John covered his surprise with a cough. “What did you say?”
    “Would you like for me to scrub your back?”
    With a side grin, he asked, “Do you normally do such things?”
    “Yes.”
    That erased his smile. John immediately pictured Dena bathing other men. He wondered how many of those men she had slept with. Perhaps Dena knew a trick or two she could teach him. That placed a larger smile back on his face.
    “Thanks,” John said, “but there’s no need.” He read the disappointment on her face. He knew what would make her happy. “Would you like to have lunch with me on your day off?”
    “I’m off Tuesdays and Wednesdays,” Dena happily told him.
    “Then next Tuesday it is.” He escorted her to the door and watched her hurry down the corridor. There was a spring to her step.
    John closed the door and made sure it was securely locked. He returned to the bed to remove his soiled clothes. He eagerly lowered into the hot water. A familiar wave of pure heat raced through his body as a membrane of skin developed between each of his fingers and toes. His senses grew sharper. He detected distant voices and smells inside and outside the castle. He kept his eyes closed, for his sharper vision was more suited for seeing underwater.
    John found it a bit difficult to breathe, so he leaned back against the tub and