Chapter 8 #2
I searched for the cause of my unease, gaze darting through the clearing. Pierce stalked toward Eleanor and Harkin. The latter sprawled on his back below a wide terrace while Eleanor keeled over in laughter at the top of the steps.
I could see them, but no sound reached my ears, like I was looking through some kind of soundproofed window.
Movement in my peripheral snapped my head in the direction of the forest, and I squinted through the dark trees. Only the outline of the large trunks were visible, nothing else. All was still.
Something or someone was there. A presence. I sensed it, that feeling of being watched, but no matter how hard I squinted into the darkness, I saw nothing but trees.
Another shrill of laughter rang out, and with it, all sound returned. The stillness ceased, as if it hadn’t even happened at all.
“Lia! Are you ready to go?” Eleanor called out, her arm tucked into Harkin’s elbow, and face flushed from laughter. Neither they nor Pierce gave any indication they noticed what I had.
I offered Eleanor a tight small, unsteady after the encounter. “Sure.”
Eleanor and Harkin chatted animatedly as we wound back to where the men waited with our horses. I trailed behind them, my mind buzzing and heartbeat erratic.
Something happened when I cut myself, when my blood touched the vines.
I sensed magic, at least what I thought was magic, and I couldn’t help but wonder if it had something to do with the curse, and if it did, could it be a sign that I was different?
Could I do what five others failed to do?
I couldn’t succumb to madness; Eleanor was counting on me.
In a daze over the encounter, it took until we reached the horses for me to notice Pierce hadn’t been scanning our surroundings like he usually did.
No, his gaze had been zeroed in on Lord Harkin, where his arm linked with Eleanor’s.
It wasn’t until after our evening meal and Eleanor had retired to her own tent that I had an opportunity to confront Pierce. He had been acting odd around Harkin from the moment we met him. It was clear he hadn’t liked the young lord touching her, and I needed to know why.
“What’s the deal with Harkin?” I hissed at him once my sister disappeared behind canvas walls.
“Miss?” His brow furrowed in what I could only suspect was feigned confusion.
“Don’t play dumb with me. You’ve been acting weird all afternoon, ever since we met him.”
He sighed, flicking his gaze to the patrolling guards, and lowered his voice. “You shouldn’t trust him. His loyalties are questionable.”
His loyalties? What did that mean? “He’s not loyal to the king?”
Pierce pressed his lips into a thin line. “Just be careful.”
Which gave me absolutely nothing. It was clear from the look on his face he wouldn’t say more, and what he had given me was a whole lot of nothing.
I stormed into my tent, more confused than ever. We were surrounded by so many unknowns, and I didn’t know who to trust. Not only that, but tomorrow, I had to break a curse. Had to risk insanity—madness—to do it.
I paced the tent as Wista prepared a bath.
What would happen to Eleanor if madness took me? Who would help her? Guide her? Protect her?
Who’s to say the king would continue to follow through on our agreement if I wasn’t there to demand it. If I was too mad to comprehend anything but my own insanity.
It couldn’t be an option. Failure wasn’t an option.
Just in case though … I had to have a plan. Something in place to protect Eleanor.
“Wista?” I called to my new friend.
“Yes?” She peeked out from behind the privacy screen, and I moved closer to her.
“Tomorrow, if the worst happens,” I whispered, then swallowed thickly as the possibility washed over me. “When I return, if I’m not the same, can you take care of Eleanor? Do what you can to help her, to send her away from here.”
I wanted to say more, to beg her. To tell her to take Eleanor to Hutteran, but I’d said too much already.
There were questions in her eyes, questions I couldn’t answer. Even asking this of her was risking so much, but if I returned not of sound mind, she had to be taken care of. I had to plan for the worst because her survival was imperative.
“What aren’t you telling me?” Suspicion coated her words, but I would be disappointed if it didn’t. I knew in my bones I could trust her, and maybe one day, I would tell her the truth. Not today. Today, I needed to secure her help. I prayed to Vanimalis, Wista would give it to me blindly.
“I have a small sack of coins hidden in a pocket of my bags. Take some for yourself and give the rest to her. Help her get out, please.” Emotion clogged my throat, but I held it together. It was a precaution only. I would make it out.
I had to.
“I’ll do what I can,” she said cautiously, “I promise.”
Her agreement freed the tightness in my chest, even if it had been a little reluctant. I released a breath, moisture spilling from my eyes in relief.
“Thank you.”
Even if she couldn’t get Eleanor out, at least she would be an ally and watch over her if the worst happened. I would do everything in my power to make it back to her and protect her. Because that’s what I promised my mother all those years ago when she took her last breath in my arms.