Chapter Twenty-Six

Entry:

  It's getting worse. My thoughts consume me. I fear I may act on them soon.

Phoenix

--

It was rare to call a family meeting, so when Phoenix told Cole and Lucas, they dropped everything.

"Do you know where Daisy is?" Phoenix asked.

"Last I heard from her, she said she was going to the gardens," Cole said. 

"I'll get her, you get Greyson from the barracks."

With a nod, Cole grabbed Lucas' hand and made their way out of the room. Lucas turned to glance back at Phoenix and she offered a warm smile, to which he returned tenfold. She followed the two out the door and through the halls until they were outside. Then, they split. The boys went towards Greyson, and Phoenix hiked her way through the gardens looking for Daisy.

Phoenix noticed William as she walked around, and offered him a little nod of acknowledgment, which he politely returned. And there, Daisy sat by the fountain, skirts pooling around her as she gazed down into the water.

"Daisy?"

She looked up and smiled. 

"What's up?"

"I'm calling a family meeting," Phoenix said. "Everyone is meeting in your room."

She narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "Is this a good family meeting? Or a 'you messed something up' meeting?" 

"I wanted your help planning… you know what." 

An even wider smile spread on Daisy's face. "It's about time."

"That's my girl," Phoenix smirked. 

The two grabbed each other's hands and made their way back to the castle. Solid, sturdy. 

"You look beautiful," Phoenix said as they entered the Great Hall.

She blushed and stood up a little straighter. "I know."

Daisy's room welcomed them with a stream of sunshine into the face, and the two sisters sank into her made bed. The mattress was softer than Phoenix's, and she wondered if Daisy preferred soft things. 

"After this, do you think we can go back home?" Daisy asked.

Not all of them.

Phoenix knew if they stole the crown, then someone would have to stay behind and take the blame. Not all of them would be able to walk away free. And Phoenix knew she wouldn't be going home.

"Yeah, that'd be nice," Phoenix whispered. 

The three boys announced their presence with prompt laughter. Lucas was sandwiched in the middle of Greyson and Cole, holding hands with each of them. It seemed to be his new favorite spot. Cole and Greyson took a seat on the floor and Lucas jumped into Cole's lap; Cole absentmindedly playing with the boy's hair. 

"So," Phoenix said, "the plan is to steal the crown and give it back to Serva. Any ideas?"

"Did you find Serva?" Greyson asked.

"Yes. I talked to him, and he would like the Burning Stone back."

"Well," Daisy jumped in, "we need to do it when everyone is in the same place. So I was thinking-"

"The ball," Cole finished. "It's perfect. That also gives us a week to plan."

"You could have at least let me finish my idea," Daisy mumbled. 

"Well," Phoenix said, "I was thinking we could create a distraction, maybe we could create a commotion outside and draw out the royal family."

"No," Cole rejected, "we already have them in a room all together, and there's no way of knowing if they'll leave the Throne Room. They could stay inside and have guards go out."

"Okay fine," Phoenix said, "then we stay in the Throne Room. But we need to get access to the Queen. Maybe we could utilize one of their secret passages?"

"But we don't know where that is and could get caught looking," Daisy pointed out. "How about instead, we force the royals to use a passage and follow them."

"We still need to distract the royals enough so we can slip the crown off of the Queen's head," Cole pointed out. 

"The ball is going to be hosting a lot of people. We could make a distraction using the crowd, forcing the royal family to leave their safety from the dais and through a passage, and sneak up behind them," Daisy said. "Then, Phoenix and Greyson could return the Burning Stone to Serva."

Phoenix made a mental note to bring the Burning Stone to the underground library, where Roman would be. 

"Because of the golden circumstances, the thieves may be there too. We should try to identify them," Phoenix said.

Greyson placed a hand on his chin. "Also, Bird and I talked earlier, and we agreed that you three should stay as far away from this theft as possible. None of you should be in the castle if that's where this is all going down. Cole will supervise. Everyone will wait for Phoenix and me to escape and take us to the Lowlands."

Phoenix shut her mouth and caved into herself a little. Everyone in the room was smart, but too optimistic. They thought everyone would be able to walk out of this without a problem. Phoenix would stay behind, take the blame, and let her siblings go home and live happily. She was hoping that Roman would put in a good word for Phoenix and she wouldn't have to spend too long in jail. Or worse, be executed. 

"Greyson," Phoenix said, "are you planning on coming back to the Lowlands with us?"

He scratched his head in thought. "I still have to finish this year until I either sign on for another year in the guard or go back to the Highlands. What if I finish this year and then go down to see you guys?"

"I'd like that," Daisy chirped. 

"Greyson," Lucas said, turning his head, "if you live in the Highlands, can we come and visit you?"

"You'll see the Highlands again," Greyson comforted, "I promise."

"Back to business!" Daisy clapped her hands.

"Once the distraction happens, the royal family will have to leave through a secret passage to avoid the hordes of people. Then, we can follow them and slip the crown off her head while she busy," Phoenix said. 

"Busy doing what?" Cole pushed.

"What if we made them sick?" Daisy suggested. "When the family is sick, Greyson, in his uniform, walks up behind her and picks up the crown. Nausea could give us a window to escape. Greyson could slip out of his uniform and walk right out of the Throne Room with Bird. They return it to Serva and meet us outside by a carriage that's ready to go. But how do we make them sick?"

Greyson let a smile creep over his face. "I have an idea for that."

The group continued bouncing ideas off each other, building and destroying plans until they felt solid on one. Once they had a plan for the heist, Lucas fell asleep on the floor. By the time they made a plan of escape, Daisy was nodding off mid-sentence. She had already gotten ready for bed, but declared she would pull an all-nighter. 

"Daisy?" Phoenix whispered. There was no response. 

Cole walked over and shooed Phoenix off the bed. He scooped Daisy up, slipping her underneath the bed cover's and tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. 

"She'll be mad if you treat her like a kid again," Phoenix warned. 

Cole smiled down at Daisy and her peaceful slumber. "Just let me have this, Bird."

Greyson bent down and picked Lucas up. Together, all four of them walked out of Daisy's room and into Lucas', not resting until Lucas was also tucked in bed. Phoenix's exhaustion melted away to love as Cole planted a kiss on Lucas' forehead.

"Sweet dreams," he whispered to the slumbering boy.

Cole rubbed the sleep from his own eyes, letting a yawn slip past his defense.

"Want me to tuck you in, too?" Phoenix chuckled lightly.

"Of course not," Cole snapped with a harsh whisper. 

Phoenix instinctively flinched back. She knew he wouldn't agree, but there was no reason to be so upset.

"But," he looked down to the floor, "I wouldn't complain about a hug."

Phoenix's jaw unhinged as she sprinted over to Cole and threw her arm around him. Her other hand grabbed his, and she felt his thumb slip over her and tap three times, lingering on the last tap. Phoenix paused-he hadn't done that in a while.

She pulled back and stared at Cole, who nodded with a smile, assuring her it was true.

She let go so both her arms could fit him in a hug, pulling him close, until she smelt the slight floral scent that followed him. It had been so long since he had been this open with her. Perhaps it was because Phoenix had been busy, not checking in on him enough as she left him with the kids. Or maybe he was just too tired to put up his cool act and really needed some love. 

"Greyson," Phoenix said to the man watching from behind her, "come here."

She heard Greyson approach, and soon the three of them were leaning into each other with a tight grip. Back and forth, they rocked in each other's arms. Eventually, Cole let out another atrocious yawn and Phoenix pulled free from the embrace. 

"It's time to sleep," she told them. 

Greyson let out a yawn of his own and the two boys bid goodnight, disappearing together into the hall, whispering to each other. Phoenix blew a quick kiss to her siblings before shutting the door behind her. After she felt satisfied that her family was resting peacefully, Phoenix settled into her bed and prepared to drift off. 

But even as Phoenix yawned and her eyelids drooped, she couldn't sleep.

Phoenix would protect her family by any means necessary.

She would take full blame should suspicions arise. It was a simple plan. A plan that would work because there was no reason for anyone to suspect Phoenix as a thief. They had the element of surprise and a guard on the inside to tell her who would be on duty and their weak points. They had an escape plan. They could do this. 

Even still, Phoenix couldn't relax enough to rest. So many things could go wrong. Seven days to prepare for a couple of minutes. They had seven days to make this dream foolproof.