Breaking the Cage
~ GRACE ~
I wished I could curse. Out loud. Spit those scandalous little syllables of spite, rat-a-tat-tat, without a care, the way the men did when they thought I wasn’t near enough to hear.
But Nanny had trained me well. The moment one of those unspeakables came to mind, my belly twisted and I flinched in memory of Nanny’s ruler, applied sharply to my bare buttocks the one morning I’d grown bold and said damn out loud when the cat scratched me.
So, while the occasion certainly seemed to warrant inappropriate language, I kept my lips firmly closed and squinted ahead into the deepening shadows of the forest.
It would grow dark soon, yet this was the stunning hour during which the fading light turned every leaf and blade gold. When I looked up to search the branches of the trees overhead for my elusive prey, the dappled light danced through the canopy.
Yet, all that beauty revealed no sign of Vane, the man I’d been following for six hours.
My heart, which was already racing, galloped in my chest.
Where was he?
Frustration and self-doubt roared to life in my chest. I’d been certain he was close to whomever, or whatever he’d sought over this great distance.
His posture had straightened, and his stride increased.
He’d only been obscured from my sight for a moment, as I slipped behind the trunk of a tree when he turned to look casually over his shoulder. Yet, the next moment he was gone.
Had he reached his hidey-hole and I’d missed the entrance? But, no. There was still sign of his passage, though it was easy to miss.
That meant there was a chance he’d detected me, and fled.
If that were the case, perhaps I would swear after all.
It had been a frustrating day from the first. I’d been looking for my new friend, Bren, a visitor from the neighboring kingdom of Vosgaarde—or perhaps her devoted General Donavyn.
But no one had seen either of them. Which was odd.
Bren always shared breakfast with me unless she was riding—and no one had seen them leave the castle, or observed their dragons taking off.
After searching for over an hour, I thought to ask Cook if Bren had arrived and eaten earlier than usual—sometimes they flew their dragons in the small hours of the morning.
But as she turned me away, unaware of Bren’s movements, I observed Vane, the guard Bren had introduced to me, slipping out of the trade entrance to murmur in the ear of the butcher’s man, outside.
I’d drawn back into the shadows of the kitchen in a blink, because I didn’t want Vane to catch me staring.
But I hovered in the dark, watching, to see what he did.
Wishing I didn’t want to know. He’d been rude and abrasive with me from the first moment we were introduced.
I should have wanted nothing to do with him.
But something about his dark, angular good looks, and the way he’d hovered protectively over Bren, fascinated me.
I couldn’t imagine what I’d done to offend him, and had no desire to attract more of his ire. Yet, the ache that appeared in my chest at the sight of him was disconcerting. I should have turned and continued my search. But I didn’t move.
And then something changed hands—either gold, or information—and Vane climbed into the back of the butcher’s wagon, along with the empty, stinking sacks.
The man who protected my friend in the absence of her lover was sneaking out of the castle?
Either, he was going to meet her, wherever she’d disappeared to, or he was the reason she was gone.
It was second nature to utilize the skills I’d developed to follow. Since the age of twelve, I’d grow so tense in the quiet, dark hours of the night, that I couldn’t breathe. I’d needed to move without eyes on my back, or my father’s guards following.
Those early, stumbling years were an embarrassment—so often discovered by the servants and sent back to bed, or revealed by a snorting horse and anxiously ushered back to the house by the grooms. But, what had begun as an adolescent’s rebellion, had become a woman’s weapon.
One I could now employ at will. And at pace—because if I didn’t move, that wagon would reach the busy city streets, and the man hidden within could disappear before I’d even caught up.
I was forced to slip out of the castle without attracting attention, sprint to the stables, and garner myself a horse—along with a stable boy’s clothing—before galloping in pursuit.
Keeping myself out of the driver’s sight wasn’t hard. The man barely shook the reins of his mule. The wagon’s wheels creaked, and the intelligent animal followed the road, while the driver dozed until they reached the lower districts of the city and the streets became busy.
Their progress was so slow, and with no sign of movement under those sacks, I began to doubt that Vane remained under them.
My heart spun when, at a sharp corner of a narrow street, in the shade of the city wall, Vane lifted the canvas cover in the wagon back and slipped out, disappearing into the bustle of the streets without a word to the driver.
Relief flooded my veins. I’d almost made myself believe he wasn’t in the cart, and I followed a butcher home.
But then he’d headed straight out of the city and I’d been forced to continue on foot, because on the relatively clear land around the road, the moment he turned his head he’d see me perched on horseback, even from a distance.
I was convinced he’d lead me to Bren, and continued to follow him, even when it became clear his trip would be across rugged countryside.
Thank God I’d worn my boots.
Vane walked so confidently, I was certain he was either running to friends, or a dragon.
I should have turned back hours ago. But a strange thing occurred as the morning passed into afternoon, and now toward evening. Going back felt like giving up. I had so little time left here—a mere handful of days until life would overtake me, and I would be caged.
My parents had signed a marriage contract with a lord who was a peer of my father’s. I’d always known noble life meant I was intended to marry, run an estate, and bear children. But the older I grew, and the more I saw of the world, the harder it became to breathe at that thought.
In their mercy, my parents had delayed the wedding to my betrothed, and allowed me to come to the castle for the last two weeks, to celebrate the Festival of Lights. But I was required to return in just a few days, and would then marry Lord Breckon.
My parents encouraged me to welcome the match because we both loved to ride horses, and he traded with my father’s estate, which meant I could see them and visit often. Yet, under their smiles and hope, I saw the haggard lines deepening on their faces, and their shadowed glances at each other.
This marriage was needed to replenish wealth to our coffers. Without it, my parents’ estate would be destitute within a year.
I wanted to help them. I wanted to do what was right. But the thought of being closed into a dusty manor, waiting for my husband’s attention…
I shuddered.
I may not be able to fight, or fly dragons, as Bren could. But I could follow men without their knowledge. Gather information on those who sought to harm me, or my parents. And while I did so, my mind was so occupied it emptied of any pressure of expectation or bloodline.
I could breathe.
And afterward, I could sleep.
But those days would soon be over. When I married the man my father had selected, not only would my responsibilities grow so that I couldn’t disappear for hours on end without being noticed, but I would be forced to slip from the bed of a man who saw me as a prize—and jealously protected my virtue until I’d given him an heir.
I’d been trapped in estate rooms before, when traveling with my parents, because guards were set at the doors, or I’d been unable to locate secret passages or servants’ hidden stairways.
It was terrifying how quickly a home became a prison when all you needed was to move without eyes on you.
A surge of nerves rose in my chest and threatened to choke me. The thought of being trapped within a home, always watched by servants loyal to him, and serviced like a broodmare until I’d successfully produced at least one boy…
If I wasn’t currently creeping through a dimming forest, I would have sighed heavily.
Instead, I turned my mind back to the problem I could actually address: Finding Vane, and hopefully my new friend, to ensure she hadn’t been caged against her will.
I took a moment to scan the woods one final time.
Here we were, in the middle of nowhere, where the foothills began their sweep toward the sky, and the sun said its goodnight.
Yet, the fascinating man I’d followed all the way out here, the one I’d kept in my sights for hours, was suddenly nowhere to be seen.
If I didn’t discover where he’d gone soon, this adventure might turn into a very real danger.
I hadn’t brought food, and though I wore a cloak, I had no supplies or weapons. I hadn’t expected to leave the city, and there’d been no time to buy anything when I realized Vane was leaving the city.
I could use the city lights to lead me back and eventually find the castle, but it would have made this entire day a failure—I was about to miss the dinner meal, at which point my absence would be noticed, if it hadn’t already.
The court was aware of my impending wedding.
Rumors would be rife. Once I returned and the scandal was soothed, I would be watched closely to ensure I didn’t flee.
I couldn’t give up my freedom for no gain!
The undergrowth was thicker here, which made progress slower—but also offered more clues to his route.
A scuff in the dirt here. Flattened grass at the side. A spot where a smatter of autumn leaves had fallen from a shrub, because it had been brushed by a swinging arm.
He hadn’t been hiding his passage because he thought he was alone out here.