Chapter 11
I slept fitfully after that—if what I did could even be classified as sleeping.
My eyes were closed, and I was somewhere between conscious and unconscious, but my body felt awake.
Every little sound—or lack thereof I supposed—hammered into my skull, making me jolt every few minutes.
There was a constant low rumbling, like a thunderstorm out in the distance, reminding me that the lava wasn’t far away.
I still wasn’t sure how Rhydian’s magic kept it at bay.
Speaking of Rhydian…the thought of our last conversation also prevented me from getting any quality sleep.
I was caught in a vicious circle of being angry that he brought me here, angry that he wouldn’t give me answers, and angry that I would die alone.
Round and round it went in my head until I finally threw back the blankets and stalked to the curtain-covered windows.
They were so tall and thick and heavy that they barely moved an inch as I wrapped my fingers around the black fabric and tugged. I finally managed to yank one side open, then the other, marveling at how heavy a stupid curtain could be.
Nausea filled my stomach at the sight of the two moons still hanging in the starless sky, so different from the farm.
What was happening back home? What were Lila and Joey doing?
Had my father punished my mom when I didn’t come back with the groceries?
What did he think about me disappearing?
Did they all think I left and abandoned them? How long had it even been?
I angrily swiped at my burning eyes, the hatred I felt for Rhydian for taking me away from them curling my hands into fists.
A light knock sounded at the door, so faint I thought I might have imagined it. But then a quiet voice came through the wood. “Maren, are you awake?”
Nico.
The air whooshed from my lungs in relief that it wasn’t Rhydian, and I shook my hands out, trying to rid myself of the scalding fury flooding my veins.
Crossing the room on tiptoes, I stopped at the door, bracing myself.
What did he want? Was Rhydian going to make good on his threat of a prison cell and Nico was here to deliver me there?
Or was it something even worse? Maybe he’d come to bring me to my execution.
Get ahold of yourself, Maren. We’re going to get out of here. Alive.
Sucking in a breath, I held it as I twisted the knob and found Nico’s bright blue eyes staring up at me.
“Good morning,” he said, his voice staying quiet as if he were afraid of waking others up.
Except there were no others. Without asking my permission, he shuffled past me and headed straight for the fireplace.
“Rhydian thought you might be cold,” he said by way of explanation as he threw sticks into a neat pile and started a fire, with much less effort than I had expended last night.
Soon, there was a blazing fire roaring away, and he walked back to the doorway.
I sighed in relief as I stood next to the flames, holding my frozen hands as close as I dared.
I ignored his comment about Rhydian caring if I was cold. My kidnapper didn’t care about me.
“What time is it?” I asked.
His eyes widened like it should have been obvious. “It’s seven past moon rise.”
“Moon rise?” Not sunrise?
Nico nodded, giving me an odd look that made me feel extremely stupid for not knowing what moon rise was.
I glanced toward the balcony doors. “How could they have risen? The moons haven’t moved since I was brought here.”
Nico’s face twisted into an amused smirk. “They’ve moved. You just have to know how they move.”
Great, more mind games.
“When does the sun rise?” I tried, momentarily warmed enough to walk over to where he stood just outside the door. Surely it had to get light at some point.
A crease formed between his brows. “The sun?”
“You know, the giant orange ball in the sky that lights everything up? Makes the air warm?”
Nico gave me a blank stare before shaking his head. “There’s no such thing here.”
Dread settled into my gut like a ton of bricks. “No sun? You mean it’s always dark?”
He shrugged, as if it wasn’t a big deal that this world lived in perpetual darkness. “You’ll get used to it. I’ve heard the other kingdoms don’t have constant night, but I’ve never confirmed it.” There was a sadness in his eyes as he said the last part—as if he regretted not seeing for himself.
“Doesn’t the darkness get to you?”
Nico hesitated, his body tensing at my question before saying, “There’s no power in darkness other than what you give to it.”
I blinked several times, unable to understand how a young boy could say such a thing. I wasn’t even sure how to respond to that so instead, I asked, “Why haven’t you ever left this place?”
From the way Nico’s eyes nearly bugged out of his head, I must have hit a topic he didn’t want to discuss. His mouth popped open, but nothing came out.
I took advantage of his silence and asked a different question, one I might not have the chance to ask again.
I stepped closer. “Is there really no way for me to leave Eroth?”
Nico paled, fidgeting with his hands. “Not without magic.” Then he winced as if he regretted the words, as if he knew he shouldn’t have said them.
So there was a way to leave? I just needed to find someone with magic who could get me home? Could I convince Nico to do it?
“Please, Nico,” I pleaded. “Please help me. I have two younger siblings. Lila and Joey—they need me.”
Nico’s eyes softened, like he wanted to help, but then, much to my dismay, a familiar voice called down the hall. “Nico!”
Both of us flinched at the sudden loudness and then Rhydian was right there, putting his hand on Nico’s shoulder. The gesture appeared protective, which struck me as odd.
“Are you harassing my servant?” he asked, the gold in his eyes flashing.
“Me?” Anger poured through my veins and my hands balled into fists. “I—”
“I came here,” Nico interrupted, and both of us paused our verbal assaults.
“I came to bring her to moon rise feast. I assumed she was probably hungry since you sent her to bed without food last night.” The words were so close to scolding that I was shocked that a servant would dare speak to his master that way.
Protectiveness filled me suddenly, and I took a step toward Nico, prepared to stop Rhydian if he retaliated.
I might not have known how things worked in Eroth, but Nico reminded me too much of Joey to let him get hurt by another person.
What I wasn’t prepared for was the lightest pink tint coloring Rhydian’s cheeks.
I clenched my teeth to keep my mouth from falling open. He wasn’t…mad? He wasn’t going to punish Nico for speaking to him like that? Rhydian might have been a terrible person, but at least he cared for his servant.
The blush stayed on his face for several more seconds as he rubbed the back of his neck. I refused to admit that it was even slightly attractive. My kidnapper was not attractive.
I forced my focus back to what Nico said in the first place. “Moon rise feast?”
Rhydian smirked. “I believe they call it ‘breakfast’ in your world.”
Nico jumped in to explain. “Yes, the first meal of the day in Eroth is moon rise feast, then the midday meal is mid-moon feast, and the last meal is moon set feast.”
I rubbed at the headache forming in my temple. “Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are a lot simpler,” I muttered under my breath.
Part of me wanted to refuse to eat, to refuse their food and remain outraged that I was here in the first place, but at that exact moment my stomach gave a very loud and unholy growl that instantly sent a wave of heat to my cheeks.
Nico put his hand over his mouth, stifling a giggle.
“I think that answers your question of whether she’s hungry,” Rhydian commented, amusement lacing his voice.
Nico pulled out from under Rhydian’s grip and started heading back down the hall with a wave. “Come on, we eat in the Hall of Feasts on the main floor.”
The boy disappeared around the corner without a backward glance, and I was left alone with Rhydian. I would’ve been lying if I said it didn’t have nerves prickling across my skin. And not the good kind.
I waited, expecting him to say something—banish me to my room without food after all or something—but after a few tense moments he simply waved a hand in the direction Nico had gone.
“You should eat.”
“Is your food even edible?”
Rhydian rolled his eyes. “I’m not cruel, Maren. The food is perfectly fine, better than the food in your world.”
“You’re not cruel?” I asked, bewildered. “Some would consider stealing and murder to be cruel.”
Rhydian’s scowl would have been comical if I wasn’t so upset with him.
“Still on that, are we?”
“Still—” I cut off, mouth dropping open, flabbergasted that he would dare to say such a thing. Of course I was still on that. I wasn’t a violent person in any sense of the word, but I suddenly, desperately, wanted to punch him in his smug face.
“I hate you,” I muttered, noticing the way his pointed ears twitched in response.
They were words I had swallowed and choked on for years with my father, always waiting on the tip of my tongue.
But here…maybe it was because death already loomed over my head, and there was no one that could be punished in my stead, that made me brave enough to speak the words aloud.
His features darkened. “Good. You should.”
Rhydian stalked away in the direction Nico went, but I didn’t miss the way his hands flexed in and out of fists as he walked.
I didn’t understand him. He was so against helping me learn why he’d brought me here, and yet somehow those words had affected him—quite a lot by the rigidness of his shoulders and the angry stomp to his steps.
“Maren?” Nico’s head popped around the next corner. “Are you coming?”
A breath slipped through my lips, and I nodded. “Coming.”