Chapter 13
We spend the next two hours playing rocks and sticks. She gets the hang of it pretty quickly and becomes a good competitor. Around lunchtime, Elowen shows up with two bowls of food. I quickly stand and help her set them down. “I could have helped.”
“Nonsense,” she tells me, waving me off. “Are you having fun?” she asks Auri.
Auri nods. “We’re playing sticks and rocks.”
Elowen looks down at our pile of rocks and sticks on the ground. “I see that; you’ll have to teach me how to play it.”
We both agree to teach her. After we finish our lunch break, I turn to her. “What’s next?”
She shrugs, but I can see the excitement in her eyes. “I don’t know. What do you want to do?”
I think about it for a moment. “How about we get you out of this room? When was the last time you were outside?”
Her eyes nearly bug out of her head. “Outside?”
“Yeah, you know that place outside of this castle?”
She scowls at me. “I know what it is.”
“Oh good; I was worried there for a moment.”
“But I don’t think that’s a good idea. If Rauk heard that I went outside, it would be really bad.”
“Well, then we won’t tell him,” I say easily.
“What if somebody sees me?”
I think for a moment. “Is there a door that leads out back where no one will see you?”
She stares at me a moment. “You’re really serious.”
“Yes, I am.”
She doesn’t say anything, and I wait. I want this to be her decision. “Okay, fine.”
I try not to act like her answer makes me really excited. “Okay. Let’s do this. Do you have a fur to wear?”
“There’s one in my wardrobe.” I retrieve it for her and bring it back to her.
After putting her thickest fur from her bed on her lap, we head out.
I walk beside her and keep up a steady stream of conversation.
When we get to the end of the hallway, she pauses only for a moment before she wheels herself through.
I follow her, and she leads us to a massive door that I haven’t opened yet.
There’s a button on the wall, though, and it does what we need it to.
The locks disengage, and I push the door open.
It’s a little difficult, and I figure it hasn’t been opened in some time.
I put my shoulder into it, and it finally gives way.
When I look out and see all the snow and ice, I realize this isn’t going to work.
I turn to Auri, but she’s already turning her chair around. “Don’t worry about it; it’s not going to work.”
“Well, with that attitude, it certainly won’t.”
She turns back to me, and her eyes flash at me. “It’s covered in snow and ice. How do you expect me to be able to get out there?”
I keep my voice even. “That’s what we’re going to figure out.”
“This is dumb.”
I don’t let her remark get to me. “Well, you can either help or get out of the way so I can get to work. Let me ask Elowen where I can find two shovels.” A few minutes later, I return with two small metal shovels and hand one to her.
“What am I supposed to do with this?” she asks.
“Help.” I step out onto the back steps and try to shovel off some snow.
That doesn’t work, and I realize it’s going to be more difficult than I thought.
But I don’t let it deter me. I use the sharp end of the shovel to chip at the ice.
Eventually, I get down to the step and then can move that section of snow and ice.
It's a lot of grunt work and takes way longer than I planned on. But I don’t want to quit in front of Auri, so I push on.
She helps when she can by pushing snow away from the areas where I chipped up the ice.
Finally, we clear a big enough section, she can wheel her chair out.
It’s actually good timing, because the sun shines brightly.
I look over to where she’s sitting and see her eyes are closed.
I worry for a moment that it’s too much, but then her lips tug up into a small smile. I look away, feeling pleased.
We don’t stay outside long; I don’t know how she’ll handle the sun after not being in it for so long. But I promise to bring her out as often as we can. Instead of going back to her room, I convince her to wheel into the kitchen. “Well, hello,” Elowen says, smiling broadly.
“Hey, Elowen,” I say, matching her enthusiasm. “We came to see if you have any snacks.”
“Oh, I believe I have just the thing. I just pulled these out of the oven.” She uses a linen cloth to pick up a tray of something and brings it towards us.
“You made sweet biscuits.” There’s just a little lilt to Auri’s voice, but I notice it.
“I take it they’re good,” I say out loud.
She nods. “They’re the best.”
Elowen hands us each a plate. I look down at the round biscuit with light brown icing on it. Auri leans forward to take a bite. “Wait,” I call out, halting her. She freezes and looks up at me. “We have to try it at the same time.”
“Oh. Okay.” She waits for my signal. “You too, Elowen,” Auri says.
Elowen gets a plate with her own biscuit.
I notice they both have a fork, so I grab one as well.
“Ready?” I ask, and they both nod. “Three, two, one.” I use my fork to cut off a bite and slide the bite into my mouth.
My eyes widen at the sweet, chewy texture.
I chew it slowly, aware that Auri is watching me carefully.
“Well?” she finally asks.
My lips turn up into a full smile. “That was amazing!”
“They’re my favorite,” Auri declares and takes another bite.
I follow her example and groan, not faking it in the least. “These are really good,” I tell Elowen.
Her eyes sparkle. “I’m glad you like them. You and Auri have similar taste.” I grin down at Auri, and she gives me a shy smile.
The rest of the afternoon passes quickly, and then Auri and I help Elowen with dinner.
The three of us eat around the small kitchen table.
I can’t help but notice that Auri is so tired, her head keeps bobbing.
I know Elowen notices as well because of the glances she keeps shooting at her.
Because of that, when we’re all done eating, I yawn and raise my arms. “I don’t know about you two, but I am exhausted.
” Elowen shoots me a grateful look. “How about we get some rest tonight and then start fresh tomorrow?” I ask Auri.
“Will we do more stuff tomorrow?” Her voice is so quiet and yet so hopeful, it kills me.
“Of course! I’m not sitting around this house bored anymore, not when I know you’re here. I’ll be in your room bright and early, so you’d better get some good sleep.”
She gives me a genuine smile. “Okay.”
Because I don’t want to disrupt her evening routine, I say goodnight to both her and Elowen and then head to my room.
I wasn’t kidding when I told Auri I was tired.
I end up soaking in a hot bath for a while and then slowly getting ready for bed.
When I lay in bed, I stare up at the ceiling and think through the day.
It was a good day, a really good day. I really liked Rauk’s sister, but I’m not naive to think that a battle won't be coming when he returns home.
Until then, I plan to do as much as possible with her.
The next morning, I’m up early. My mind buzzes with ideas for Auri and I to do today as I walk into the kitchen.
My plan is to check with Elowen to see if Auri’s up yet.
I push the door open. “Good morning, Elowen. Is it okay if—” I stop suddenly at the sight of the man at the table.
My eyes meet Elowen’s wide-eyed gaze, and she gives me a quick shake of her head. I look over at Rauk. “You’re back.”
His gaze meets mine. “Is it okay if you what?”
I frown in confusion. “What?”
“You were asking Elowen something.”
His question jogs my memory. “Oh.” I scramble for something. Anything. “Is it okay if I,” I pause. “...help with breakfast.”
“Of course,” she jumps in quickly, too quickly.
Rauk’s eyes narrow. “Breakfast is already made.”
“Oh.” I shrug, trying to play it off. “Next time.” Then before he can question me anymore, I turn the tables on him. “Where were you?”
He takes a bite of his food, obviously not in a hurry to answer my question. “Taking care of a few things.”
“Mmmm.” I stare at him, trying to figure him out.
But when he stares right back, I get fidgety.
I may be a strong woman and all that, but I know my weaknesses.
And right now, I’m feeling all kinds of guilty.
Even though I haven’t done anything wrong, I feel guilty that I’m not telling him that I know about Auri.
In fact, I’ve just decided to open my mouth and tell him everything when Elowen coughs.
I glance over at her, and she shakes her head at me, eyes wide.
Her face returns to normal, and I know Rauk is looking at her.
“What is that?”
His question startles me, and I turn to look at him. “What?”
He shocks me by taking my hand in his and turning it over. “What is that?”
I look at the angry red blister on my palm and know it’s from how long I held the shovel yesterday and tried to break up the ice out back. It stings today, but it was worth every minute. I try to pull my hand away, but he won't release it. “It’s a blister,” I finally answer.
“I know that. How’d you get it?”
I decide the best thing to do is to stick to the truth as much as possible. “From using a shovel. I was trying to break up some of the ice and snow.” He’s still frowning, and I decide it’s time to take my hand back. I tug, and he releases it instantly. “What are your plans for today?”
His face tightens. “I’ll be gone for the day—meetings.”
I nod, unsurprised. “Okay.” It hits me a moment later that I said that a little too happily. When I look back at him, he’s studying my face with a frown. I force a pout to my lips. “What am I supposed to do today?”
“I’m sure you’ll figure something out,” he tells me.
And even though that’s what I was going for, his answer rubs me the wrong way. I cross my arms across my chest. “I think I enjoyed it more when you were gone.” I take a deep breath, and I force myself to focus on what’s really important. “We need to talk about the war.”
“There’s nothing to talk about.”
I point a finger at him. “That’s where you’re wrong. You said you would think about it if I came here. I came here, and—”
“My answer is no.”
“But you said you’d think about it.”
He leans forward in his chair. “Okay.” He cocks his head to the side and then looks back at me. “I thought about it. My answer is still no.”