6. The Bargain – Rosemary
The Bargain
ROSEMARY
My bed creaked as I sat up, feeling that today was different.
Rubbing sleep from my eyes, I smiled with newfound hope at my partially packed sack.
Before the morning dew disappeared, I planned to have everything foraged and safely tucked away.
But as I glanced out the window at the wall of trees, a sliver of fear crept in.
There was a chance I might never return to my quaint cottage, my slumbering sister, or the little life I'd built for us.
That harrowing thought snapped my attention to Briar's bed. I inched my way to her bedside, my fingers barely grazing the cool skin of her arm as doubts flooded my mind.
If I never returned, would somebody else find her here? Would they bury her alive? Would she still live or would the curse be her undoing?
What if the curse broke on its own and I was no longer here?
The worst doubt came last; what if I succeeded in collecting the petals and even that wasn’t enough to break this curse?
I shook my head. Thoughts like these helped nothing.
They were like poison that festered. I gritted my teeth, glancing toward the window and the forest beyond, my fingers working through the strands of my sister's silky hair.
"I'm going to break the curse, Briar," I whispered.
"But it means leaving you for a small while.
If you can hear me, I want you to know that I am going to wake you up. "
I sighed as another memory surfaced. Gray eyes.
A crooked, knowing grin. There was a familiarity to him that I just couldn't place.
Yet I couldn't deny the way my body had reacted to him, a fear that froze and a want that sizzled.
I laughed weakly as I straightened and dressed in fresh clothing.
Clearly, it had been far too long since I'd experienced the touch of another.
Something about his dark, tumultuous eyes that reminded me of a brewing tempest lingered in my thoughts as I walked away, but it danced just out of reach, refusing to fully form.
I'd felt this before, a strange hollowness when trying to recall certain parts of my childhood, particularly the years before we’d fled to the cottage. Magdalyn had always said the trauma of losing our kingdom had affected my memories, but this felt different. More deliberate.
I shook my head, dismissing the odd sensation. I had more pressing concerns than half-remembered dreams.
The sun still lay low on the horizon as I continued pulling the brush I'd collected from the woods these past days.
Our cottage had grown from the forest itself, its walls breathing with the trees, unlike the cold marble halls where I'd once curtsied and smiled on command.
Now, most of our walls had been hidden behind scattered brush, dead leaves, twigs, long grass, anything nature provided to obscure our cottage from view.
Caw. Caw.
I wiped sweat from my brow as I paused, glancing to where Herb sat perched, his blue-black feathers glistening in the warm light of the sunrise. His beak dipped to a pile of brush at my feet, then his beady gaze met mine.
"I'm leaving today and need to make sure the cottage is hidden," I said, bending to take another armful of dried grass to the front wall.
When I straightened again, Herb still watched me.
My shoulders drooped as I felt his judgment.
"I have to leave. I think I know how to break this curse, but the missing ingredient is deep in the Everland Forest. I have to at least try. For Briar."
The crow swung his head, as if telling me I couldn't go.
"I have no choice, Herb!" I snapped at him. Tears slipped down my cheeks before I even realized I was crying, my frustration building to a breaking point. "I have to do this. For Briar."
He swung his head again. I folded my arms across my chest and glared up at him. "It's either this or I march myself to the queen and demand to know what will break the curse she placed upon my family. What do you think, Herb? Do you think she’ll tell me how to wake my sister?"
Something dark flickered behind his beady gaze, but then he lowered his head as if defeated.
"Will you watch over her for me?" I asked.
Herb leaped from the branch and plummeted through the air, landing neatly on the windowsill.
He poked his head through the window, scanned the main room, then turned to face me.
He jumped from the ledge and flew to me, landing lightly on my shoulder and nuzzling his head against my cheek before flying back to the ledge.
When he landed and looked at me again, his head dipped in agreement.
A few hours later, my feet sank into the moist earth as I cautiously stepped toward the dense underbrush, drawn to a patch of barksbeard at the forest's edge. It was a rare plant that flourished here despite my failed attempts to cultivate it in my own gardens.
I paused to admire the striking blooms, pale pink and vibrant yellow petals with rough, bark-like texture and dainty white flowers cascading down like the flower's very own beard. Beautiful but dangerous, and a must-have for any healer.
With steady hands, I reached out, plucking stalks while avoiding damage to the delicate leaves. I hummed a soothing melody, taking only what I required.
I reached for a final stalk when a twig snapped behind me. Every nerve tightened as I spun, my fingers tugging my dagger free from its sheath. My gaze swept the dense forest and settled on a familiar, stormy gray gaze. I gasped.
"Are you stalking me?" I demanded, lifting my dagger. "Have you forgotten how I enjoy sticking you with this?"
"Funny," he said from where he leaned casually against a tree.
"I was just thinking how I'd like to stick you with...
" A wicked grin lit up his gray gaze. "My instrument of choice, should you want that of course.
" Something in his voice sent an unexpected shiver down my spine, not of fear, but of recognition.
As if some part of me knew that voice and had been waiting to hear it again.
I shook my head, dismissing the foolish notion.
I'd never met this man before in my life.
I almost dropped the dagger as I scoffed. "Not even in your dreams. Now, answer me. Are. You. Stalking. Me?"
"You can't pretend to know what I dream about, princess." He came closer, pushing himself from the tree in a fluid motion. Before I even blinked, his chest was against the tip of my blade. He dropped his attention to my tight grip along its hilt.
"Get back," I warned, "or I will cut you."
His fingertips came up as if he were going to caress my jaw, but he thought better of it and pulled his hand away. "Oh, princess. The sweetest words fall from your lips." His smile faltered, and he took a slow step back. "I sought you out because I need your help."
My brow furrowed, but I didn't lower the blade. He was unseelie, and I couldn't trust him. I searched his form for any sign of a wound and found none. "Why would you need my help? Are you injured?"
"No, not for me. My brother. I'm at my wit's end." He ran a hand through his dark hair, and his shoulders slumped. "He was cursed, and I can't break it."
Alarm bells rang in my head. I took a step back, careful not to trample the barksbeard. This was too convenient. Too similar to my own plight. I lowered my brows. "I'm a healer, and I try my best to do no harm, but you’d better tell me right now what game you’re playing, or I’ll make an exception."
His gray eyes glittered as if I'd delighted him with my words rather than threatened him. This man was infuriating. He made me feel things I hadn't felt in ages: rage, heat, confusion. I folded my arms over my chest, the dagger still held within my fist.
He backed away, giving me more space as he leaned against another tree. "I’m playing no game," he said, his gaze lowering to the forest floor. "I've tried all that I can think of, but nothing has worked.”
"You're lying," I accused, "and I don't have time for this."
I began collecting my supplies, needing to find a way to lose him in the woods. I couldn't risk bringing him back to Briar.
"I swear to you that I'm not lying," he exclaimed, and when I faced him again, there was something behind his gaze that made me want to believe him. "I can’t lie. But if it makes you feel better, cast a truth spell. Dig into my thoughts."
"What do you mean you can’t lie?"
He looked at me as if I confused him. "Unseelie can’t lie. Just like seelie can’t touch iron." He shrugged. "We each have our... weaknesses. Don't you already know that?"
I suddenly felt foolish. I'd spent the past century studying plants and healing potions, even keeping up with current affairs of the kingdom.
Yet I'd never thought to study the unseelie themselves.
They'd destroyed my family and kingdom, but I'd done everything in my power to leave them in my past. I’d read this somewhere before, but I’d never confirmed it.
It would be just like the unseelie to say this only to be the best liars.
"Can I ask you a question?" I asked, worrying my lower lip between my teeth.
"Anything for you, princess."
I gritted my teeth and growled. "I told you not to call me that. I am no princess."
"Sorry. An old habit, I suppose." He shrugged. "What should I call you then?"
His odd apology hit me strangely, sending an odd shiver down my spine, a flicker of familiarity that made my temples throb with that same hollow ache I'd felt in the village.
I pressed my fingers to my forehead, trying to grasp whatever memory was trying to surface, but found only fog. Mother's voice echoed in my mind. "Some memories are too dangerous to keep, my darling. Sometimes forgetting is the kindest magic of all."
I'd never understood what she meant by that.
I narrowed my gaze. "Rosemary. My name is Rosemary."