The Eve, Part One
© 2021 by Walter Reimer

Thumbnail art by  Major Matt Mason



The limousine was plush, comfortable, had enough headroom for his antlers, and the air inside was very lightly scented with lavender. Daniel adjusted the collar of his spotless white dress shirt and sat back as the car pulled away from the curb and headed into traffic. While the chauffeur drove, the whitetail deer slipped the invitation from his suit pocket to look at it again. It was very heavy paper, almost a card, and bore a simple paw-written inscription in black ink under an embossed golden crown: Her Royal Highness the Princess Electra requests the presence of Daniel, Lord Traverside for dinner on Thursday the fourth. Drinks at five o’clock, with dinner served at six.

The invitation was signed with a simple letter E, meaning that it had come directly from the Princess’ own paw.

Daniel frowned at the invitation before slipping it back into his suit pocket and glanced down at his well-polished hooves. Princess Electra was the oldest child of the ruling family, and the twenty-year-old doe had been abroad at college for the past several years. It made sense that she would immerse herself into the social whirl that surrounded the Court and would probably be encouraged by the King and Queen to find an eligible mate.

The whitetail buck immediately discounted himself from that competition. He was five years older than her, and his noble title was a very minor one. His father, Baron Greensward, wasn’t quite fifty yet and still had a lot of years on him. There were plenty of furs with higher and more senior titles, as well as wealthier and more politically powerful. It was a mystery that the Princess was inviting him, and he wondered who else would be there.

He glanced up as the car paused at a side gate to the Palace, and he moved over as the passenger door to his left opened and a wolfess in Royal Guard fatigue uniform took a seat beside him. “Lord Traverside?” she asked.

“Yes, er - ?”

“Captain Helen Bach, Royal Guard,” the wolfess said, “and don’t laugh; I’ve heard all the jokes already,” and she chuckled as Daniel smiled. “I’m in charge of the Princess’ personal guard detail.” She nodded to the chauffeur, and the car made its way across the courtyard as the gates closed behind it.

“Pleased to meet you,” Daniel replied. “What’s this all about?”

Her ears swiveled. “I’m . . . not at liberty to say. Her Highness will tell you everything. I hear that you hold a commission in the Army.”

“Reserve commission, ma’am, as a lieutenant in the Judge Advocate Corps. I’m just out of law school.”

“I’m surprised that you haven’t joined your father’s firm yet.”

The buck shrugged, ignoring the fact that she knew so much about him. She was charged with the Princess’ security, so finding out everything she could was a prudent move. “I’m told that there’s a junior partnership waiting for me. You’re part of her personal guard, yes? What was she majoring in at college?”

Bach smiled. “Law and political science.” He nodded at that; it made sense, as she was the kingdom’s heir apparent.

The car slowed to a halt under a canopy, and Captain Bach got out as the chauffeur held the door for Daniel. The buck followed the wolfess into the building and up a winding staircase. “Side entrance, back stairs,” he observed. “Very cloak and dagger.”

“She insisted that your visit be as discreet as possible.” Daniel’s ears swiveled at the cryptic statement, but he stopped and made sure he was presentable as the wolfess stopped at a door on the third-floor landing. “You look fine, my Lord,” Bach said before giving a quiet rap on the door with a knuckle and turning the knob. “After you.”

“Thank you, ma’am,” and she closed the door behind him after he’d stepped through and bowed to the two does who were the only people present in a rather snug sitting room decorated in understated but excellent taste.

Princess Electra smiled happily at the sight of the buck and as he straightened up she came forward, extending her right paw. The whitetail doe was perhaps an inch shorter than Daniel with a slim build, shoulder-length sandy blonde headfur that she wore loose, and was wearing a stylishly modern red dress. “Lord Daniel,” she said as he gently grasped her paw and bowed over it. “It’s wonderful to see you.”

“Thank you for inviting me, Your – “

“Electra, please,” and his ears swiveled at the breach of protocol. “I insist.”

“Of course. Electra.” The buck grinned. “Daniel.”

She chuckled. It was a pleasant sound, and she beckoned to the other doe. “This is Lady Alexandra. She was at college with me.”

“Sandy, please,” the other doe said in a quiet voice. Her headfur was a collar-length mass of chestnut-brown curls, and she was in a black evening gown.

“Sandy.” He smiled as he bowed, not quite as deeply as he’d bowed to the Princess. “Electra, thank you again for asking me to come for dinner, although I’m a little mystified as to why.”

“Well,” Electra said, taking his right arm, “let’s discuss some things over drinks before dinner.” Sandy took his left arm, and Daniel led them toward chairs as a servant wheeled in a small bar cart. “Sandy and I will have whisky sours, Thomas. Daniel, what would you like?”

The buck glanced at the contents of the cart and said, “Gin and tonic, please.”

“Yes, sir,” the beagle said, and soon, drinks in paw, the three deer settled into comfortable chairs.

Daniel took a brief sip of his drink. The gin was first-rate. “As I was saying,” he said, “I’m honored by your invitation, but I can’t help wondering why - although I wouldn’t have refused the company of such beautiful young women.”

Sandy giggled softly, while Electra chuckled. “I’m glad. I haven’t been here at Court since going off to college.”

“How much longer do you have before you get your degree?”

The whitetail doe rolled her eyes. “One more year.”

“And what are you studying, Sandy?” Daniel asked.

Electra interrupted the other doe, who subsided and gave a demure smile as the Princess said, “Oh, she’s studying law as well, but one of the reasons I invited you, Daniel, is because I want to meet some of the nobility, especially the younger members, in order to do what one of my professors calls ‘networking.’” He nodded, comprehending the concept, and she added, “I thought an informal setting might be better to put people at their ease, rather than a ball or reception.”

“It sounds like a wonderful idea,” Daniel said.

They whiled away the hour before dinner, talking about school experiences and the latest in art and music before the beagle reappeared to announce that dinner was ready. Daniel rose, feeling a bit unsteady on his hooves after three cocktails, and offered his arms as escort to the two does. Electra smiled widely at him as she took her position, while Sandy looked a little glassy-eyed.

Dinner was a tasty salad for a starter, with a delicious roast pumpkin for an entrée. Daniel had a glass of wine with his dinner, while the does had water. Midway through his main course, the buck set his fork down on the plate with an almost unseemly clatter.

“Is anything wrong, Daniel?” Electra asked, her mildly curious tone of voice paired with an odd smile.

The whitetail swayed slightly in his seat, blinking. “I . . . I ffffeelll . . . “ He slowly sagged to his left, and would have fallen from his chair had not one of the waiters caught him.

The last thing he saw was the Princess looking down at him.

And her smile.



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