Disguised as an elderly sprite, Electrum made his way down to the silver docks the next morning. With only two days before the eclipse, he wasn’t taking any chances. He wanted to check out the apartment in the Gold Realm and didn’t want any questions from Sterling or anyone else.
He stooped over. The upturned collar of his jacket covered the back of his neck. It rubbed against the brim of a tattered hat when he moved his head.
The pollywogs jostled and bumped him as he made his way onto the Dragonfly. He found an out of the way spot and settled in for the ride.
The ship drifted out of the harbor. Morning mist matched his gloomy thoughts as it swirled over the water. A life of spotless service, and now he was sneaking out of the realm like a pirate.
Sneaking off indeed, he thought. It wasn’t like he was stealing anything. Everything in the bundles belonged to him whether he retired to a silver tree or a gold apartment. Sterling wouldn’t see it that way when he found out the prince was gone.
But one could argue it was the prince who was doing the stealing. He wasn’t sure how many items Silverthorn had sent ahead with Gilder, but one thing he did know. An unintended consequence of all this was that his own future in the Silver Realm was gone.
He wondered about the apartment that Ragnar had found. What would it be like living in rooms carved out of rock instead of pallets in a tree?
The front room would be his office where sprites made deals for shipping their goods. Silverthorn could handle most of the paperwork. The prince liked making deals.
Not for me, thought Electrum. Most of the time he wanted to be out on the Passage River in a small, unique boat. Enjoying the outdoors. Proving you didn’t have to cloak a ship to be a captain. Sterling would be shocked when he saw him pull up at the dock with his own ship!
Sterling. Suddenly Electrum realized the flaw in his plan. He wouldn’t be able to return to the Silver Realm. Not as the Grand Pookah. Not as a ship captain. Not even as Simon’s guest. Sterling would charge him with treason for helping the prince. Not even Simon would be able to intervene.
Voices shouted from the dock as the ship eased into port. Electrum struggled to his feet and made his way off the ship. It took several minutes to rent a handcart.
He sat on the side of the cart and waited while the dockhands unloaded the ship. Finally he saw his bags being carried down the ramp and waved with his cane. They dropped the bags into the cart. The last bundle was the weather-stained bag with the tarnished metal seal.
He threw a tarp over the bundles and handed a coin to the dockhand. “Stay with the cart,” he rasped out. “I need a word with the captain.”
Electrum limped up the ramp leaning heavily on his cane. Only part of it was an act. His leg was stiff from falling out of the hammock the day before. Ragnar’s door opened and he waved him inside. As soon as the door was closed, Ragnar chuckled.
“I like the limp, Electrum. Nice touch.”
“Just something I picked up along the way.” He eased himself into a chair.
The captain sobered and handed him an envelope. “Here’s the papers for your office. The apartment is in the back. Comfortable and not too public. It’s built out a bit so you even have the windows you wanted. Thought you might need that after living in a tree all these years.”
“I’m sure it will suit my purposes.” He dropped a small change purse on the table. “Your payment as agreed.”
“It’s not near as fancy as the royal tree.”
“After all these years in the palace, a little privacy will be welcome.”
“Privacy or secrecy?” Ragnar’s smile was warm. “You’re quite sure you know what you’re doing?”
Electrum chuckled. “No, I’m not sure at all. Time will tell.”
“The prince was quite a favorite with the pollywogs. He is missed in the Gold Realm. I suppose once he comes of age, things won’t be quite the same at the royal tree.”
“You don’t know the half of it.”
“Well I don’t want to pry...”
“I appreciate your concern and your friendship,” Electrum said.
Ragnar shrugged. “You know best. Should you run into any difficulties, I’m sure we could work out an arrangement that would be beneficial to all. Perhaps we can do business together in the future.”