Frost burst into Gran's sitting room.  On the floor
in a crumpled heap layed Laurella, crying hysterically.  
Gran knelt beside her, rubbing her back and whispering 
nonsense to the Sidhe.  A broken tea cup layed not far from 
Laurella on the wooded floor, tea splatter everywhere.  
In the full length mirror, Frost saw not himself, but Andias.

"My queen?"  He knealt before the mirror.  
 
"Ah, my Killing Frost.  How humble you are now.  So
unlike when we last meet."

"I beg for-"  Frost began.
 
"It is alright, Frost."  The Queen interrupted,
smiling gently.  She seemed fragile, wrapped in a large 
terry cloth robe, with no makeup and her hair pulled over 
her shoulder in a braid. The robe was peach, even, not Andias' 
usual black.  "Barinthus and my son have explained the whole 
thing to me.  You came to my rescue, in my opinion.  We will 
leave it at that."
 
Frost knew that was the closest Queen Andias would
come to saying thank you.
 
"Now, another concern has come to my attention. 
Barinthus said you were coming here to St Louis.  You shall 
do that, and bring both Doyle and Laurella.  Doyle and you can 
return to Los Angeles and Merry.  Continue to see if she can 
conceive. Laurella will stay with me.  She is carrying Cel's 
child.  If the child is born alive and can be declared a heir, 
then the two of them will marry and Cel will be King.  If not, 
then Merry could still be Queen. When shall I expect you?"  
 
'NO!' Frost shouted mentally.  'How did she find
out?  Oh, Laurella.  What this will do to you... and it will 
destroy Doyle.  "With Doyle as weak as he is, I would say 
tomorrow around lunch.  I would like to arrange for a charter 
flight back to L.A. rather than a commercial jet.  I feel it 
would be safer to be the only passangers.  If you agree, of 
course, my queen."  Frost felt the fear knot in his 
stomach.  If she disagreed, then they would be giving Kevames a 
chance to kill them by being in as large a publicplace as 
Lambert Airport, plus using a commercial jet.
 
The Queen nodded her head.  "I allowed Doyle to be
hurt far worse than I intended.  I will make allowances for his
invald state.  Noon, tommorrow, Frost."
 
With that the Queen was gone.  

Frost turned to Laurella, and scooped her up in his
arms.  He strode down the hallway to Doyle's room.  Gran was 
just ahead of him, and opened the door.  Then she turned the cover 
back to allow Frost to lay the still hysterical Laurella next to 
Doyle.  
 
The opening door woke Doyle.  His mind was instantly
alert, but it still drained him to move an arm to pull at
Laurella.  Luckly, she immediately turned to Doyle and layed 
her head on his chest.  He put a hand on her head.  They stayed 
like this until Laurella fell asleep.  
 
Once she was asleep, Gran spoke up first.  "Explain
all this, please."
 
Frost told her about the unrequited love Doyle and
Laurella shared, how Cel had raped her and that they had already
known Laurella was pregnant.  Then, he told Doyle what the Queen 
had said to him.  He stared woodenly at a point on the wall above 
Doyle's head as he spoke.  He couldn't bear to see Doyle's reaction. 
Finally, he looked at the dark Sidhe.  Doyle's face was completely
blank.  The look he wore when he shut the part of himself away that 
felt anything.  It was the look Frost saw whenever Andias ordered 
Doyle to kill or hurt someone.

Gran touched Frost's arm and left.  Frost stood for
a moment then sat in the chair next to the bed.  Laurella was 
on the otherside of Doyle, sound asleep.  
 
"We can do nothing,"  Doyle whispered finally.  With
Gran gone, the court mask began to slip off Doyle's face.  "I can
only hope he will be kind to her, and that in time they will care 
for each other."  His eyes fluttered closed.   "And that you get 
Merry pregnant first."
 
Frost nodded.  Once he was certian Doyle was asleep,
he left to make the arrangments for their flight back to Los
Angeles, and to contact Merry.