Lamps and Lies Read online

  Lamps And Lies

  Grimm Academy #5

  Laura Greenwood

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Epilogue

  Author Note

  Also by Laura Greenwood

  About the Author

  © 2019 & 2020 Laura Greenwood

  * * *

  All rights reserved. This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise – without prior written permission of the published, except as provided by United States of America copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher at “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at the email address; [email protected].

  Visit Laura Greenwood’s website at:

  www.authorlauragreenwood.co.uk

  Cover Design by Design By Definition

  Lamps And Lies is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Created with Vellum

  Blurb

  Lies always catch up with the ones keeping them, and Alyeesah has several.

  * * *

  Caught up in her pretence as a Princess, Alyeesah learns about her prophecy when it's almost too late, and if she's going to stop it and win the heart of her prince, then she'll have to move quickly.

  * * *

  With someone else pulling the strings, and the rest of the academy just waiting for her to make a mistake, it might even take Alyeesah's third wish to get herself out of trouble.

  -

  Lamps and Lies is book five of the Grimm Academy series and is based on the fairy tale of Aladdin and the Lamp. It is an m/f non-bully academy romance.

  Prologue

  18 Months Ago...

  * * *

  The market is a mess of colour and movement. Nothing stands still here, and it can be heard in the symphony of noise which accompanies it. The clanging of pots and chatting of hundreds of voices does a good job of hiding the seedy underbelly of the city. The one that includes the likes of me, doing my best to get by despite not having a home, or enough to eat. At least I have quick fingers which can pinch a coin or two when I need to. Even if I hate it. I wish I could go about my life the same way the merchants and the shoppers do, with honesty and proper employment. But unless I want to sell myself, it's just not possible.

  It only takes me a moment or two to spot the right kind of person to lift some coin off. The woman is weighed down by bags of produce which keep getting tangled in the tails of her headscarf. She's fumbled at least four times in the past five minutes.

  That's the kind of person who will never notice a couple of coins missing.

  I draw my own scarf tighter around my head, hiding the dirt on my face and hair. The last thing I need is for someone to yell at me for dirtying up their store. It'll only call attention I don't want.

  The woman picks up the pace, so I do too. She's too good of a target for me to let go, especially because it'll make the difference between eating and starving.

  She stumbles and begins to fall, spilling her belongings all over the ground. A shiny red apple rolls towards me. I check around to make sure no one is looking, then pocket it. Even if I can't get any coins from her, at least there'll be something I can eat.

  "Are you all right?" I ask, rushing forward to help her up. I push away the guilt building up inside me that I'm only doing this because I want to take more from her, but she has plenty and I don't. This is how I have to live.

  "Yes, yes, I'm fine." She brushes herself off, a harried look on her face. Now I'm closer, I can see she's older than I first thought. But I shouldn't let that bother me.

  I have to eat, I have to eat, I have to eat. The more times I think it, the less I feel inclined to go along with my plan.

  Apparently, I'm not a very good thief.

  "Here." I hand her a bag of vegetables, which she takes with a grateful smile.

  Her bulging coin bag is only inches away from my fingers, and slightly open. If I want to, I can reach out and take a couple of the golden coins from the top.

  But I don't. I have the apple, that's going to have to be enough for today. It should at the very least keep the pangs of hunger at bay.

  She flashes me another smile, then disappears into the crowd.

  I stand there, dazed. I'm such a fool. Her purse was so full she wouldn't have missed a couple of coins, and yet I let my conscience get the better of me.

  I sigh and kick the ground, watching as the sand creates small dust clouds around my feet. Something sparkles in the sunlight. I crouch down and clear away the dirt, finding a beaten gold ring beneath the surface. I close my fingers around it and rise to my feet once more. I glance around for the woman, trying to find where she's gone. If I find her, then I'll give the ring back to her. If I can't, then I suppose it's only right that I keep it.

  No matter where I look, I can't find her anywhere.

  Something inside me screams that I need to get the ring out of the square and to somewhere private. At least no one will have stolen my sleeping spot this early. The afternoon is only just beginning, anyone who needs a sheltered alcove to sleep in will be out and about trying to work out how they're going to feed themselves today.

  I glance over my shoulder as I thread my way out of the market square and back towards the place I slept in last night. It'll give me the right amount of privacy to look at the ring and decide what to do with it. From what I saw when I picked it up, it's not going to be worth much, but perhaps I can upsell its value.

  It only takes a couple of minutes for me to arrive there. I check around to make sure no one's following me, and when I'm sure they aren't, I duck under the dirty old sheet which separates this space from the path. Now I'm back here during the day, I should try and take it down. Something like that may be invaluable for me as I move around the city.

  I drop down onto a step, then pull the ring out of my pocket. I turn it over a couple of times before noticing a dirt patch. It must be from where it fell on the ground. I'll have to clean it up before I try to sell it.

  I lift the hem of my headscarf and begin to rub away the dirt. It's stubborn, so may have been from before it fell after all. The metal warms beneath my fingertips, and my eyes widen. Is it supposed to do that? I can't admit to knowing enough about jewellery to be sure if this is a good or bad thing.

  A large purple puff of smoke erupts from the ring, hitting the back of my throat. A violent cough wells up and I burst into a fit. I wish I had some water saved, but I don't have any such luck.

  "You are the master of the ring," a voice booms.

  I whip my head up to find a man standing in front of me, his arms crossed over his chest and his muscles bulging. The purple smoke swirls around him, almost as if it's at one with the man. Which makes no sense.

  "Who are you? Where did you come from? I have a knife." I slip my hand to my side to get it. I'm no expert with a blade, but I know better than to walk around unarmed. It took me months to scrape together enough coins for the simple rusty blade, but it's
been worth it.

  "I'm the genie of the ring," he announces. "Granter of three wishes."

  "Wishes?" I echo, confused by what I'm hearing. Genies aren't real, are they?

  "Anything you wish is my command. Though I can not raise the dead..."

  "There's no one I'd want back anyway," I mutter.

  "...make anyone fall in love, or change the way the kingdoms look," he continues without acknowledging my words.

  "And I can ask for anything?"

  "Except more wishes." He shrugs and unfolds his arms, appearing much less intimidating than before.

  "Do you like being a genie?" I blurt.

  Shock crosses his face, as if it isn't a question he's ever been asked.

  "I've never known any different."

  "That isn't a yes or a no," I point out.

  "How can I know if I like something if I have no experience not being it? Do you have any experience not being a woman?"

  "Well, no. But I like being female," I counter. "I still know that."

  "Hmm." He seems genuinely confused by my question. "May I think about your question, Mistress?" he asks.

  "Of course. You don't have to answer me if you don't want, either." I glance away from him, not wanting to make things weird between us. Well, weirder than they already are.

  "Excellent. Then I will be needing your first wish."

  "You can do anything?" I repeat needlessly. I heard him the first time, but it's taking some time to sink in.

  "What is it you wish?"

  "I don't know," I answer honestly, beginning to pace back and forth as I give it as much thought as I can.

  "Is there something you don't like about your life?" the genie suggests.

  A small laugh escapes me. "All of it?"

  "Then why don't we start with that?" the genie suggests.

  "You just want me to wish my life to be different?" I stop pacing and turn to face him. I'm sure my confusion must show on my face.

  "I can't tell you what to wish for, Mistress, that would break the rules. But I can advise you that you don't simply wish that your life is different. Perhaps I might suggest you should be more specific in your desires."

  "Oh." I tap my chin, thinking of all the whispers I've heard at the market over the past few months. That gives me the idea I need to come up with a wish. "How complicated can I make the wish?" I ask.

  "Within reason," the genie says, the purple smoke which came with him growing stronger with each moment.

  I glance over my shoulder to check we're still alone, not wanting anyone to overhear the two of us and start asking questions I can't answer.

  Like where I got a mystical genie from. If I'm honest, I'm still confused about that one myself.

  I take a deep breath and look him directly in the eyes. "Hypothetically, if I was to wish that I was the Princess, with all the trappings and things necessary to keep up that pretence, so that I could attend Grimm Academy, then would that be possible?" I'm not sure if going to the academy is the right thing to do, but I've heard whispers about it in the market that imply it may be a good place to find a noble husband. If I can do that, then there's no way I'll ever have to be back on the streets ever again.

  "I can't change the way the kingdoms look," he reminds me sternly.

  I shrug. "I'm not asking you to. You could make me the Princess of a small made-up nation that nobody has ever heard of. I believe I'd need a patent of royalty or some such proof, but no one will question it."

  The genie nods. "That should be doable. Is it what you wish?"

  "Yes."

  "Then I need you to say the words. It isn't a wish unless you make it properly."

  I clear my throat, already wondering if this is the right thing to do. It has to be better than the life I've grown accustomed to, and that's all I can ask for at this stage.

  "Very well. I wish to be the Princess of a made-up kingdom, and have all the things I need to maintain that pretence, including the right wardrobe, riches, and trappings, none of which will run out, so I can attend Grimm Academy."

  "Your wish is my command, Mistress," the genie says, rolling up his sleeves.

  I hold my breath, unsure about what I should do while waiting for my wish to come true.

  Purple smoke engulfs both of us, and takes me away from the only life I've ever known.

  Chapter One

  I hold my head up high and get ready to walk through the doors and into the academy. But it's hard. I already feel as if I'm standing out like a sore thumb, especially compared to the girls I've seen already in bell style skirts and corsets. My flowing robes with intricate thread patterns and bright colours aren't anything like theirs. But even if I change my clothing style to match, there's nothing I can do to change how different I am, my darker skin tone and long black hair set me apart already.

  I shouldn't care, though. A Princess wouldn't. She would welcome the stares and celebrate her differences and heritage. If I don't do that, then it'll raise eyebrows. So I'm not going to care. Or I'm going to act like I do. I'm never going to pull off pretending to be a Princess if I let everything get to me.

  My slippers don't make a sound as I make my way up the steps, unlike the heels of the other girls. I hope they don't expect me to wear anything like that, I fear I'll make a fool out of myself if I do. It's been hard enough getting myself used to the fabrics and folds of the dresses from my own region of the kingdoms, never mind new ones I've never even heard of before. It's taken months of training for the genie to deem me ready to enter an academy full of royals and nobles. I'm not sure why he's taken so much of an interest in me and my wish, but secretly, I'm glad of it.

  I touch the ring, comforted by its presence. At least I'm not going in there alone. Even if my only friend is a magical genie I can't talk to unless I'm in private, it's better than going it alone completely.

  Maybe this is a bad idea.

  No. I can't think like that. I can't rely on the genie's magic forever. My only choice is to find someone I can spend the rest of my life in comfort with and hope he doesn't run away when I tell him the truth about myself. Though that may be too much to ask.

  I follow the directions given in my acceptance letter and find myself in front of a small desk with a middle-aged woman sitting behind it. She looks me up and down, then sorts through her papers, pulling up a bundle and setting them down in front of me.

  "Princess Alyeesah, I assume?" she says.

  I resist the urge to bite my lip. "Yes."

  "We've been expecting you. Everything you need to know is in this booklet. Your room is on the fourth floor, third on the left. Here's your key." She sets it down on top of the booklet.

  "Thank you."

  "We don't use titles here, so don't expect everyone to be calling you Princess or Your Highness here," she says.

  "That won't be a problem." At least that's one thing that'll be a bit easier. I'm less likely to get caught if I don't have to constantly worry about the right titles, or insulting someone by not saying the right thing.

  "Hmm." She goes back to her paperwork without asking me for anything else.

  I try not to roll my eyes. It seems very impersonal. If I were a real Princess, then it may even be enough to get her into trouble. Things certainly aren't how I expected them to be so far. There's a lot less armed guards too. I'd have thought they'd be everywhere, given the status of most of the students here. Though they must be confident that there's nothing to worry about. I'm sure the academy wouldn't risk anyone's safety.

  Without any further instructions from the woman, I pick up the booklet and my key and make my way further into the academy. I'm glad the genie thought to make my bags light to the touch. It's better than the thought of dragging heavy suitcases up four flights of stairs, which I'm sure many of the other students have to do. I imagine there's a lot of complaining from them as a result.

  I grimace. I can't think about my fellow students like that. For all I know, they're lovely people. Without getting
to know them, I shouldn't be jumping to conclusions. I wouldn't want them to do the same about me.

  The climb is relatively easy, but only because the genie's idea of preparing to come here involved daily dance lessons. Apparently, when I made my wish, he decided he was going to be my mentor as well. He counts it as part of my stipulation that my wish covers anything I may need to keep up the charade that I'm a Princess. I think he's doing it because he's lonely, but he hasn't told me enough about his past for me to be certain about that yet.

  Time will reveal all. He seems to enjoy my company, and I his, in as much as anyone can enjoy a mentor-mentee relationship.

  I put the key into the door the woman said was mine, and am somewhat surprised to hear the click which reveals it's now open. I'm not sure what I expected, but somehow, having a room of my own with a lock is so foreign to me, that it takes me off guard. I slip inside before anyone can see me. I don't want to seem completely clueless without first getting the lay of the land.

  Without waiting for anything else, I rub the ring. Purple smoke fills the room, though it isn't as intimidating as it was the first time. Spending a lot of time around the genie has at least gotten me used to that aspect of his magic.

  "So, this is the infamous Grimm Academy," he says, looking around the small room with interest.

  "I wouldn't call it infamous," I counter. I leave my bags by the door and set the booklet and key down on the nightstand before I take a look at the rest of the space that I'll call my own here.