Chapter 4
CHAPTER 4
The camp that the auburn-haired male had spoken of was indeed a camp, albeit a small one. There were two other tents and four other siltenite fae males in addition to Jax and Phillen, making six males total. None of the other four spoke to me, but all of them gave me side-eyes when I finally emerged to join them.
Squinting in the brightening eastern sunlight, I studied them covertly. Jax was the tallest of the six, and that was saying something since none of them appeared under six feet.
Phillen was the brawniest, with arms like logs and legs like tree trunks. He also had a pale complexion, given the slit of skin his mask revealed. As I watched him, he hefted his tent clear off the Wood’s floor and shook it out before folding the canvas and stacking its wooden poles.
Two other males worked beside Phillen. One had an earring through his left ear, and he appeared to have short brown hair and light-brown skin.
The other was the shortest of the bunch at maybe six-one. He had blond hair, tanned skin, and long legs. He looked lean and quick and could probably draw the blade in his boot faster than I could blink.
The remaining two worked behind Phillen, but since they were farther away, and they were all masked and wore identical ebony clothing, it was harder to discern their features and coloring.
But all of them wore black and were masked, concealing their identities, and all were siltenite fae. No wildling fae were among them, which wasn’t overly surprising since siltenites were more magically powerful than wildlings.
The dipping and twisting in my stomach continued, and I went in search of a bush to relieve myself.
“Don’t go far, lovely!” Phillen called from behind me. “I would hate to hunt you down in the Wood.”
I glanced warily over my shoulder. The blond male beside Phillen made a snickering sound. At least, I thought it was the blond, but since I couldn’t see his eyebrows, given the angle he stood, I wasn’t entirely sure. But he was the leanest one, so I was pretty sure it was the blond.
Heart beating rapidly, I tracked my way through the trees even though my muscles protested the quick movement. My gown caught on every branch, but I didn’t stop until I found some semblance of privacy and ducked behind a tree .
The sound of the Wood filled the air, and the constant chirps and buzzing snagged my attention as I made quick work of my needs. When finished, I let just enough magic rise to cleanse my entire body along with scrubbing my teeth and freshening my breath. Thankfully self-cleansing had never been an issue with my collar, but it wouldn’t help my clothing.
My gown was entirely wrinkled, had several dirt stains, and was ripped in multiple places. Not to mention, it was tight, constricting around the ribs, and entirely uncomfortable. This dress had been crafted to impress the king, not to garb a female who’d been abducted and was traipsing through the Wood with the Dark Raider.
A moment of hysteria hit me, and I slapped a hand over my mouth before a maniacal laugh could escape me. I was in the Wood. With the Dark Raider. And I was worried about the annoyance of my gown.
Seriously, Elowen? That should be the least of your concerns...
Trying to think more clearly, I stayed where I was. Hard bark from the tree pressed into my back, scratching my bare skin above the gown’s silk, which pulled some of my attention away from my aching muscles.
A quick glance at the sky told me it was still early morning, but even though it’d been hours since I was taken, I knew my guardian would be in pursuit of me. Or if he wasn’t yet, he would be so soon.
Thankfully, from what I’d seen of my guardian’s wound, it’d been a flesh wound, and if there was one thing I knew of my guardian, only crossing to the afterlife would stop him from finding me. He loved me, just as I loved him. I knew he did even if he never voiced it.
Nibbling on my lip, I contemplated my situation. Jax had abducted me because he wanted me to find someone for him by venturing to the Veiled Between to ask the semelees, yet Jax hadn’t known I couldn’t do a calling for him because of my collar. Yet despite telling him that, he didn’t believe this stopped his plan.
So now what? It was obvious Jax wasn’t going to let me go today, so I could either be a pliant and willing captive, and trust him to release me in a few days’ time when he finally accepted that I could never perform a calling for him with my collar in place. Or, I could take matters into my own hands and try to escape.
My brow furrowed, and I considered which was the smarter option based upon what I knew of the Dark Raider. What I did know was that the poor spoke of how the Dark Raider helped innocents and didn’t hurt them.
But what I’d seen was entirely different.
Jax had murdered Mushil.
And Mushil had been an innocent.
Pain slashed through my heart when I recalled how quickly Mushil had been killed by that arrow. The old guard was dead because of the Dark Raider, even though Mushil had been one of the kindest fae I’d ever known and had been entirely innocent of any wrongdoings. All he’d been doing last night was guarding me. He hadn’t deserved to die simply for doing his job, and who was to say my fate would be any different from poor Mushil’s?
A sob threatened to rise in my chest as his death hit me anew, but I blinked rapidly and tried not to dwell on it. I needed my wits about me right now, but Mushil’s murder solidified that I couldn’t trust Jax to do the right thing.
Despite what the poor said of him, despite that Jax claimed he wouldn’t hurt me...after thinking about it, from what I’d seen, I would be a fool to believe that Jax would ultimately release me. When he finally accepted that I could never do a calling for him, it was possible he would just kill me versus letting me go.
In other words, if I wanted to guarantee my survival, I would have to escape.
I eyed the Wood and contemplated how to do that impossible task.
Even though I’d always felt at home among the trees, having grown up in them, in my current state with an aching body, no food or water, and only a few rulibs in my gown’s pocket, I was vulnerable. Not to mention my damned gown and protesting muscles made sneaking through the Wood difficult, and I didn’t know any of the local wildlings here. We were too far from Emerson Estate to call upon any of my friends to aid me.
Escaping wouldn’t be easy, but at least I had time on my side, since Jax knew I couldn’t perform another calling for a few days. That could work to my advantage.
I nibbled my lip more. I knew my guardian would eventually be in pursuit of me, likely with guards or the kingsfae at his side. And if he could find me...
My thoughts whirled as I began to form a plan. If Guardian Alleron had enough time, he could track me and catch up to me. Finding a way to help him rescue me was likely my best option, considering it would be difficult on my own in the Wood even if I could escape, which meant that I needed to help my guardian locate me.
But I had no idea where I was or how far I’d traveled, so I had no idea what distance I was up against. Sighing, I scrubbed my cheeks with both hands as the impossibility of everything nearly crushed my spirits.
A butterfly danced by on the wind. Its turquoise wings glistened with purple spots and blended into the bright foliage of the Wood’s diverse plant life. And seeing that, along with the beauty of the Wood, helped to dispel some of the anxiety coursing through me.
I can do this. I’m not helpless. I’m in a bad situation, yes, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing I can do about it. I will survive this.
“Use your wits, Elowen,” I muttered to myself. “Find a way to stop them from taking you any farther.”
“Elowen?” Jax bellowed.
I shot to standing, pain ricocheting through me, and from the quietest rustle of leaves, I knew that Jax was nearly upon me, but by the Goddess, he was practically silent. If my senses weren’t already on high alert and he wasn’t almost on top of me, I never would have heard him coming.
Before I could round the tree, Jax was towering over me.
As before, all of him was covered, save for his eyes, but in the bright morning light, I was better able to see the planes and angles of his body. He was broad, built, and entirely... male . Rounded shoulders that reminded me of steel balls pressed against his shirt, and a defined chest that hinted at a male used to fighting made me remember how easily he’d murdered Mushil.
My heart hardened. Despite the poor’s reverence for this male, I would never revere him again.
He arched a dark eyebrow. “Are you done? You’ve been gone awhile.”
Nostrils flaring, I pressed my spine into the tree more. “Well, if I wasn’t, this situation would be entirely more awkward.”
A twitch came from beneath his mask. “You need to eat. There’s bread and cheese by the tent. I’d advise you to eat now as we’re leaving soon and won’t be stopping often.”
Somehow, I managed to keep my tone from being too sharp when I replied, “Yes, Guardian Jax.”
His breath sucked in. “ Don’t call me that.”
“Sorry . . . Dark Raider. ”
He huffed out a breath and then gestured toward camp. “After you.”
I lifted my bulky skirt and slowly began to walk toward the camp.
The Wood quieted around us, as if the creatures eyeing us through the foliage were also mindful of the male in their vicinity. Despite most of the wildlings hiding, I still caught sight of a pair of thin yellow eyes, no more than a foot from the ground. The beemi was entirely hidden, and if I hadn’t spent so much of my life in the Wood, I wouldn’t have seen him.
But the moment I stepped toward him, pleading with my eyes for help, the wildling scurried silently away, not even disturbing the leaves hiding it.
Shoulders drooping, I gathered my skirts more and took my time stepping carefully over the foliage on my way back to camp.
I debated faking a fall to delay us, but since Jax walked so closely behind me, he’d likely catch me right away. Besides, a fall would only delay us by a few minutes.
I’d have to find another way.
Only minutes later, I was back to where I’d woken up with no solid plan in place, but as promised, near the disassembled tent I’d slept in, waited a plate with a wide slice of bread, a wedge of cheese, and a cup of water.
“Eat.” Jax gestured to the food, then left to join Phillen and the other males.
Sighing, I did as he said, or tried to, but when I leaned down to grab the plate, my gown’s tight corset stopped me and pinched off my breath.
Grumbling, I straightened and rubbed my sore ribs.
“Excuse me?” I called to the six of them. “Do you by chance have a new gown for me? This one is quite heavy and cumbersome. Perhaps you have something less bulky that will make walking easier?”
One of the males, the one who had been farther back in the group initially, eyed me. Brown eyebrows and dark-brown skin were visible in the slit between his mask and scarf.
So there are two brunettes in this group. The male beside him remained quiet but had red eyebrows. And a true redhead as well apparently.
“We don’t,” Jax replied gruffly. “But don’t worry, you won’t have to walk.”
“I won’t?”
Jax shook his head. “No, you’ll ride. I can get you a change of clothes after we’re out of your kingdom. Two days at the most. You’ll have to wear that gown until then.”
I frowned. We’ll be out of Faewood Kingdom within two days? Goddess Above, how far have we gone?
But then his words hit me. We were riding out of here, yet there were no domals , but if I remembered correctly, Jax had said the same thing when we’d been in the tent. And there’d been the sound of hoofbeats last night when they’d abducted me. But there weren’t any domals anywhere .
I held my hands up in question. “What in the realm am I to ride?”
Jax hooked his thumb toward Phillen. “Him. He drew the short straw.”
My lips parted, and annoyance flared through me. “You want me to ride your friend? Is that to be done in some kind of perverted stunt?”
A few of the males outright snorted, and I could have sworn a sly smile lifted Jax’s lips from the way his eyes crinkled even more. “It’s no joke, Little Lorafin. You’ll ride him, but not in the way you’re suggesting.”
Before I could ask anything further, a flash of magic cut through the clearing, and Phillen’s fae form disappeared.
The creature that stood before me made all hopes of delaying my captors’ journey die a thousand times over. Now I knew what I was going to ride.
And there was no way Guardian Alleron would ever catch up to me.