CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR #2
Had I done it? Had I found a home here, in Grenythwood? If I had, that was all the more reason to familiarize myself with its pathways, I decided. Even if there was a rather loud part of my spirit that preferred to hide away in my room.
I rested a hand on Winnie’s shoulder as I descended the two steps that landed my boots on cold, packed dirt. “You have my thanks.”
“And?”
“And my word that I will return before midday.”
I shuffled off before she could change her mind. Heavy-legged and tight-chested, it was all I could do to place one foot before the other. But fear was a conniving master, and I had no intention of yielding to its whispers today.
“Your mind will continue to conquer you as long as you allow it. You must show it that there is nothing to be afraid of.”
Anise infiltrated my mind infrequently, her betrayal still too fresh to contemplate.
But perhaps she was right after all. It was my responsibility to conquer the fear nipping at my heels; no one else would do it for me.
I had drawn near enough to hear the women in their fine cloaks, and I welcomed their conversation as a distraction from the pang in my heart.
“Naeno will be full in less than a day’s time.”
“Depths, I thought we had another half month at least. Not sure I’m prepared to stomach another blood pit so soon after the last.”
“It was despicable, wasn’t it?” The taller one balked as she drew her cloak tighter around the middle. “I saw the Videa boy out back with the hollow henbane just this morning.”
Milo. I slowed midstep, adopting a leisurely pace in the hopes of hearing more. This blood pit must have been the event Winnie alluded to—but what could Milo have to do with something so grotesquely named?
“Gavner and his lot should be arriving soon, then. Best we make this quick.”
It was only then the taller one noticed me and, after pinching her face together disapprovingly, rushed her companion off towards the Ugly Tankard.
A familiar flush of embarrassment was soothed by the cold biting at my cheeks.
Oh well, I thought. If no one planned to tell me what was happening, what choice did I have but to eavesdrop?
On the way to Catrin’s shop, I found myself mirroring the passersby I’d spent days observing from my window.
Head down, cloak drawn tight, and a quickened pace.
I had found comfort in the ironbarks surrounding Lunamor, but Grenythwood’s looming trees and gnarled limbs weaving together to obscure the sky was downright eerie.
What little sunlight pierced the canopy dispersed through the forest’s mist before offering any warmth.
As a result, the wood’s atmosphere was thick with the scent of frost and decaying greenery, and as its dampness began to cling to my hair and face, I realized why I so rarely saw villagers gathering outside. This place was downright unpleasant.
I managed to make it to Catrin’s shop without incident.
I hadn’t properly assessed the outside of the building on my first visit, but I recognized the hand-painted wooden sign swinging above the arched doorway.
Although the letters were now illegible, I spotted the remnants of chipped pink paint I had noticed before.
The building was nestled tightly between two others, its weathered, timbered walls just as moss and ivy covered as the rest. The diamond-paned windows were dark despite the smoke unfurling from the chimney. Was the shop closed?
Hesitantly, I ascended the porch steps. I suddenly felt very much as though I were intruding.
After all, I had succeeded in conquering my fear; I’d been out and about in the village, all on my own, and nothing frightening had happened.
Perhaps that was enough for one day, and I could return to the Ugly Tankard without imposing on Catrin and what I’m sure were vital herbalist duties.
I’d only be bothering her if I showed up now.
If she wanted to see me, she would have—
The door burst open as someone in a long brown coat tried to exit Catrin’s shop with haste, and I startled backwards, gasping into my palm to silence a screech.
At that moment, the heel of my boot caught on a stubborn, warped plank, disrupting my equilibrium as I lost my footing.
I was half a breath from landing flat on my back in the mud, but just as my focus found those dark curls and stormy eyes, a deceptively strong arm snaked around my middle, pulling me close and upright.
In the blink of an eye, Vayen had closed the distance between us and used her own body to stabilize mine.
Without thinking, I grasped her shoulders, strangled breath and sputtering heartbeat sounding in my ears.
And then I was looking up into those eyes.
That stoic face, those warm, bronze features that captivated my mind whenever I lost hold of my concentration.
But more than her beauty, it was her warmth that startled me.
Stars above, she was downright toasty compared to the relentless chill that had seeped through my clothes.
It must have been quite warm in Catrin’s shop.
“Th-thank you,” I stammered out, hands still resting on Vayen’s broad shoulders as she searched my face.
She stared down at me, jawline fluttering as the silver and green of her eyes disappeared once more behind that expanding blackness.
And I was met with silence. Flaring nostrils.
A set jaw. A lowered brow casting shadows over half-lidded eyes.
The expression was too similar to the one that haunted my memory, and I found myself breaking our locked gazes in a fruitless attempt to distance from her intensity.
As if I could ever escape the sheer magnetism that orbited her.
“Honestly,” Vayen began, the word laced with disapproval.
Without the tavern’s chatter, I could hear the richness in her voice.
It was lower than mine, but not quite low enough to be called deep.
Perhaps deep-adjacent. I was immediately reminded of the amber-colored liquid my father reserved for his private audiences.
I’d managed to steal a sip one time, only for my face to squish up in immediate regret; it certainly had looked better than it tasted, swirling around in his glass.
I wondered if Vayen’s lips would follow suit, if they looked better than they—
“I’m going to need you to stop doing that,” she said finally, making no move to break our embrace. Had I imagined it, or had her grip on my waist tightened?
I was mere moments from nodding my head in agreement—because how could you not agree with this woman?—when I realized I had no idea what she was asking of me.
“Doing what?” It came out breathier than I intended. Clearly, I was still startled from losing my balance.
Yes, that must have been it.
Instead of answering my question, Vayen withdrew the hand that still held me close.
Her arm stuttered under the movement and it wasn’t until I rested my hand securely on the porch railing that she stepped away from me.
The absence of her heat was damn near a punishment in this frigid weather, and I quickly crossed my arms over my chest to compensate.
“Lyssa!” Catrin exclaimed, though I had the distinct impression her pleasantly surprised smile was forced.
Her strawberry curls were hidden beneath a white coif that matched the long tunic she wore, but both her skirts and elbow-length gloves were exceptionally muddy.
“What are you doing here? Is everything all right?”
Vayen rolled her shoulders before turning back to me. Was that anger narrowing her eyes? “I was about to ask the same question.”
Catrin’s expression was substantially more forgiving than Vayen’s, and yet I suddenly wished I hadn’t left the tavern at all. I should have continued rereading that damned paragraph until my mind cooperated with me. At least then I wouldn’t be searching for the words to explain myself.
“I thought a walk might be nice,” I managed with waning confidence.
Addressing Catrin, I added, “I haven’t been out in the village much, and I thought perhaps…
perhaps you might…” I began running my hands down my pale braid, pulling gently to ground myself against the embarrassment prickling my cheeks.
I was retreating into myself as though I were a small child.
Had all of my poise and confidence disintegrated the moment I all but relinquished my title? What in the depths was happening to me?
After glancing towards Vayen, Catrin returned her attention to mine.
“It’s probably best we get you back to the Ugly Tankard,” she said gently.
The way her brow upturned sympathetically made me want to disappear.
“I’m quite occupied at the moment, but I could fetch you the day after next? We can make an adventure out of it.”
She sounded genuinely excited at the prospect of spending time together, which served to settle the nerves multiplying in my stomach. “That sounds lovely. Sorry to have bothered you.”
“You’re never a bother,” Catrin insisted. She stepped forward as though she meant to wrap her arms around me, and I raised my own in reply, but a shared look at her muddy hands prompted a shared bout of laughter.
“Perhaps next time, when you’ve freshly bathed,” I said through my smile.
I caught myself wondering whether Vayen and I might be walking in the same direction, but the thought severed when I noticed how relaxed her gaze had become. The gaze that was focused on me. Praise the stars I was already flushed from the cold.
“I was just leaving.” Vayen’s tone had softened, though not enough to entirely dispel the strained way she spoke.
She looked away from me now, avoiding my attention as she descended the porch steps.
I’d already turned back to Catrin when Vayen called over her shoulder, “You should show her the garden, if you haven’t already. ”