Chapter 19
Darragh and I sat in silence atop Celeste and Astorath, hips swaying at a leisurely pace as we rode back through the countryside.
We loudly left the castle that morning, talking about our venture into the market, so nobles and staff heard.
I was sure Darragh was secretly hoping I would want to go shopping instead of with him to Relystone, the village named as the shipment location by the three men two days prior.
A sparse field of orange pumpkins sat in front of the forest's edge, giving the drab landscape a splash of color against the dreary sky and barren fields.
I wondered if their harvest dwindled like ours did in Edenalee.
They certainly had an uprising happening, with militia members bombing areas of the city.
Gabriel said the militia wanted to take the continent back to lawlessness, chaos, and crime.
Something that was beginning to happen with the humans.
I kept turning over in my head everything I had learned.
My plan to get back through the barrier had taken a turn, and now I made it my responsibility to make sure other humans were not being brought into Tironaill—the most unequipped and underprepared human to do such a task. I was dizzy with the thought of it all.
I had been practically twisting my fingers into knots the past couple of days with the sinking realization that Cora and I might not be able to get home any time soon, and a swell of dread turned my stomach. Or was that hunger?
My stomach loudly groaned. Well, that answered that question. I didn't have much of an appetite last night or this morning. My nerves overrode my hunger.
Darragh looked at me out of the corner of his eye. “There is a small butcher shop in the village of Relystone. Let’s get something to eat when we get there, and then I will go see my contact to find out what he knows.”
“If it is not too much trouble.”
His eyes softened when he looked at me properly. “You’re never too much trouble, my lady.”
Another flip of my stomach, but this time it wasn’t from hunger. I couldn’t stop a shy smile and the warming of my cheeks. “I am starting to believe I have angered a god or two with the amount of trouble I have come across this last week.”
Darragh nodded. “Then I have angered many gods over the last few decades. I won’t be stopping any time soon.”
I sighed. “Nor will I.”
Relystone reminded me of Olinbury, a quaint and quiet close-knit community where day-to-day life may have seemed mundane to those who resided in Aquila City. This was exactly the kind of village and life I wanted for Cora and me. If we ever got the chance to get back home.
Celeste’s and Astorath’s hooves clomped through the village streets, and as we came upon the town square, I pulled back on Celeste’s reins and gawked at what sat in the center.
There he was. Again. A glittering, bright white pillar thrusted to the sky with a basin at the bottom.
At the top sat the stony face of Themis.
The liquid in the pool surrounding it was tinged pink, and not the deep crimson boasted at the pillar in the courtyard.
It looked so out of place among the thatched-roof homes and old buildings that hosted shops.
The sight of him had never come gently to me, and there was nowhere to escape the unsettling stare of this god and his required penance.
Darragh stopped Astorath and turned in the saddle. He tracked my gaze to the pillar and back to me. “My lady.” I met his eyes. “Let’s get you something to eat.” I nodded, and we continued, but I couldn’t help but feel the bruising weight of a marbled stare on me.
Darragh bought us salted pork at the butcher’s, bread from the adjacent bakery, and four green apples from a merchant.
“Do you like apples that much? I can only eat one,” I chuckled.
He smirked. “Two for us and then one for each horse.”
That was sweet to think of the horses. “I wish you had let me use the royal credit instead of your own coin.”
Darragh shook his head. “I can’t chance that the crown will see I brought you outside of the city. The people who manage the royal coffers are diligent and will alert the king.”
A small alcove of trees at the edge of the village provided a secluded place to eat our lunch while keeping our distance from the villagers.
Though Darragh didn’t cause panic or blatant disdain in the seraphs of this village, it was noticeable that they did watch us cautiously or pointedly ignored us altogether.
Through the trees, soft sounds of water flowed nearby.
It was quiet here, and my unease about what we had learned and what to do next was tempered by the tranquility of our surroundings.
The boulder I sat on was cool underneath me, but the warmth of the sun on my face balanced it.
I leaned back on my hands, closed my eyes, and breathed slowly, focusing on the air moving in and out of my lungs to steady myself.
A moment to break away from the ramblings of my mind.
I knew when I left here, my problems awaited, but pushing the thought away, I focused on the sounds of the distant stream and the birds.
Celeste nickered. I popped open my eyes, and straight ahead was Darragh, intently looking at me.
He blinked and averted his gaze, taking a sudden interest in the ground around him.
“We should get moving. My contact’s home is just there,” he pointed to a small circular house with a thatched roof down a cobblestone street lined with similar structures.
He took the last bite of his apple and threw the core into the forest.
“Follow me, my lady,” he directed. “You will have to wait out front while I go inside. He doesn’t like strangers, especially nobility. I will be able to see you through the window.”
I sat straight up. “I am only nobility in title.”
“I know.” Darragh held both hands up. “He is a bit ornery, but he knows everyone in this village, and if something odd is happening, he will have heard. It is best we don’t test his patience.”
I sighed. “Can’t I just stay here while you go speak with him then? The alcove is hidden, and there is a perfect line of sight to the home. I can give the horses their apples and take a moment to collect myself before we head back into the fray and chaos that is my current situation.”
“I don’t like leaving you that far from me. If you are out front of his home, we are only separated by glass.” His arms folded in front of him, and he took a few steps forward. He towered over me where I was seated on the mossy boulder.
“Again, I don’t think that is a good excuse when two days ago I was left to wander for hours in a darkening forest before finding my chaperone tied to a tree.” I kept my voice light, and the corners of my mouth turned upward.
Tipping his head back, he rolled his eyes. “Alright. I see your point, my lady. But take this.” He unsheathed one of his silver daggers and handed it, hilt first, to me. “You certainly didn’t hesitate to use it last time.”
“Pure luck.” I had never actually used a weapon before that moment, and I hoped to never have to again.
“Instinct,” he corrected. “Always lean into it.”
I placed the silver dagger beside me on the boulder.
“I will return shortly. Stay hidden…please, my lady,” he practically begged.
I nodded, and Darragh walked toward the small home as I stood and moved to the horses.
I raised my pitch to them. “I suppose you two would like a treat for being such a good boy and girl.” Astorath stomped the ground in excitement, and Celeste, ever the proper lady, nuzzled my arm.
I handed them both a green apple, and they chomped them greedily. The juice from their first bites ran down my hands, and with a few more chomps and crunches, the apples were devoured. “Hungry beasts, aren’t you?”
The sticky, sweet mess of juice and horse saliva coated my hands. Wiping them on my cloak wouldn’t rid the tackiness.
I kissed Celeste on her velvety nose. “I’ll be but a moment. You two stay out of trouble.” I grabbed the dagger as I passed by the boulder and stepped into the forest.
Just fifty yards into the trees, a bubbling stream flowed quickly, filled with leaves in a swirl of autumn color.
The days of rain had made the stream high and rushing.
A small deer stood on the other side of the embankment with her spotted fawn as I plunged my hands into the cold water, washing away the apple and horse residue.
I smiled at how attentive she was to her fawn.
The doe alerted, her ears at attention. The mother and her young turned and bounded quickly through the trees, hearing something that I was not privy to.
“A pretty little thing wandering around the forest?” The deep voice startled me, and I jumped to my feet, spinning around.
Four seraph men stood before me, all with wolfish grins. A man with a scar across his cheek, a redhead, a curly-haired brunette, and a seraph who looked like he was barely into adulthood. All strapped with daggers and swords. My heart froze in place.
The man with the scar took a step toward me. “Our lucky day.”
The redhead lightly slapped the shoulder of the brunette next to him and pointed at me. “Hey, ain’t she that pet human the city is all abuzz about?”
I took a step back, my heel hitting the edge of the stream with a tiny splash. The silver dagger lay on the ground, naively dropped in my haste to plunge my hands into the water.
“She is.” The scarred seraph sucked his teeth. “I saw her ride in with the king’s brother. That’s her.”
They all took another measured step toward me. I tried to control my breathing and straighten my face. My heart, however, could not be tamed, and it boomed in my chest.
The brunette tipped his head. “Pretty dress.” He looked at the young seraph. “She looks expensive, don’t you think?” I willed my hands not to tremble.
The young man looked at the rest of the group and back at me. “She sure does.”