Chapter 12 Ariana
ARIANA
The last thing I remembered was looking up at the stars. It was as if the night sky covered me in a blanket of twinkling darkness that felt strangely safe. I eventually fell asleep only to wake in my bed still dressed in the clothing worn yesterday. Erik or Kole must have moved me from the balcony.
I frowned, for they touched me without my knowing.
Light seeped in through the window. Golden strands filtered through in bright rays, landing on the wooden floor, warming wherever it touched. Nothing in the room appeared out of place, even the bag I brought from home still lay in a chair, appearing untouched.
The door was shut, and I wondered whether I was locked in.
Rising out of bed, I crossed the room. My hand hesitated over the knob for a heartbeat before trying it. The heavy wood creaked open, and I nearly sighed in relief.
Kole sat in a chair, staring in my direction. The sight of him gave me a start, and I jumped. I would have fallen backwards had my hand not still been on the door handle for support. It was creepy. Who stared like that?
“Do you ever sleep?” I squeaked the question, my heart somersaulting with surprise.
His lips twitched, undoubtedly hearing the galloping in my chest. “Hardly. And I’m terribly bored. Care to go for a walk?” he asked, and I could have leaped for joy at the invitation. Was I ever ready to get out of that lovely prison of a room? Yes, I certainly was.
“Just let me get changed.” I closed the door, splashed water on my face, and put on some clean clothing, the last of what I brought from home.
The time for collecting intelligence was finally upon me, and I was about to have a tour guide. Everything was perfect. A smile found its way to my lips.
The empty feeling from last night still lingered in the dark corners of my mind.
However, it was largely pushed to the side, no longer holding me in its grip.
I focused on the task at hand: to gather information.
The rest did not matter and so I held those thoughts in the shadows, keeping them from stepping into the light and being fully observed.
When I emerged from the room once more, Kole rose to his feet with ease.
He shifted as if stretching stiff muscles before leading me through the halls.
Once outside, he took me through the streets, which earned me curious and at times ugly looks from the Lysians.
Knowing the stories we told of the Lysians, I could only imagine what they must have told themselves of us.
Kole picked up his pace to a brisk walk, placing me on the verge of a jog. I hoped to get a better sense of the immediate surroundings, but he guided me through and away from the densely populated areas until we were at the edge of the woods.
I bit back a frown. The woods were not likely to offer much information.
Glancing back at the town, I tried to think of a way to get us to explore that area.
What was their capitol like, or other Lysians for that matter?
Where were their closest cities? It seemed like there weren’t any between my capitol and theirs.
When I turned back, I found Kole’s crystal eyes watching me.
He did not trust me. Until I earned some of that trust, he likely planned on keeping me as far away from the others as possible.
The area permitted for me to explore was unlikely to change anytime soon.
I glanced at the forest, trying to keep the disappointment from my face.
Either way, I gained access to more than a single room. It was progress.
Though my home was also woodland in nature, it was vastly different.
The trees that surrounded my home were impossibly tall, at least three times the size of the trees in their forest. It also smelled different.
Both carried the scent of green earth but there were subtle undertones that were unfamiliar.
Despite the differences, being in nature brought me comfort, at least while in the sunlight.
Kole shifted from leading to following, allowing me to explore. As we moved deeper in, I relaxed at the peace there. Nature often had that effect, as if it welcomed me. I found myself wanting to move faster and faster, to feel the freedom of it.
“Is it okay if I run for a little?” I asked Kole after walking a while.
“You like to run?” A confident smile graced his brutal face.
Not exactly. But I had become accustomed to training physically and mentally. Since my mother’s passing, Edda developed a regimen for me to follow, and I always had until the past several days.
“Sometimes,” I answered. “My muscles are sore from sitting all day. I’d rather them be tired from exertion.”
“Sounds like fun.” He grinned, and I realized I wasn’t the only one who was burning for a physical release.
I bit my lip with apprehension. “You won’t attack me? Instincts kicking in or anything like that?”
When dealing with wild animals, the trick was to always frighten them away. Fearful running risked the opposite. It provoked a predator, leading to a chase.
Kole snorted. “I’m not hunting you, Ariana. You will be fine.” He shook his blond mane of a head.
“I’ll try not to lose you,” I commented casually, knowing fair well that I likely stood no chance.
My words were just light banter in attempts to soften the walls Kole erected when it came to interacting with me.
Though he did not trust and was cautious, he also did not openly hate, and that was something I could work with.
He opened his mouth to respond but never got the chance, for I took off into the woods in an all-out sprint. I was ahead of him for only a few seconds before he caught up and kept pace with me.
Kole grinned. “Try not to hurt yourself. You won’t outrun me.”
I pushed myself harder.
Kole remained beside me the entire time with complete ease while I struggled to keep the pace I originally set. Eventually, I slowed and settled for a jog. It was evident that I truly could never hope to outrun one of them.
The Lysians’ list of advantages continued to grow.
They were faster, incredibly silent, and had heightened senses.
With dread, I wondered if the Bavadrins could ever hope to truly stand against them.
The now broken treaty between our lands might have been the only thing keeping Bavadrins safe for all these years.
Blood surged through my body with every powerful beat of my heart, sweat coated my skin, and my breath became ragged.
It was glorious, the physical freedom of running.
Yet no matter how hard I pushed myself, unease still clung to me like an impossibly permanent stain.
The forest surrounding me was not my forest, the land not my home.
I was not free, and neither were my people.
I considered slowing when Kole broke our silent run with a sharp, “Wait!”
His sudden alarm startled me as he grabbed the back of my shirt, keeping me from falling over as I abruptly halted. He pulled back, maneuvering me so that I stood a step behind him.
“What are you doing?” I complained, shaking free of his hold while he scanned the surrounding area. His complete attention focused on the woods. Something unsettled him. The hair on my neck stood. It troubled me to see the Lysian alarmed, even if he was my prison guard.
Kole then sighed with what sounded like relief. “You shouldn’t sneak up on me, Iver!” he called out into the forest.
Nearby, someone laughed and came out from behind the brush. I recognized him immediately. The one who had been sitting on the other side of Erik when Fraser’s life was taken, the one who called me princess. One of Erik’s brothers.
“It’s getting easier and easier to do just that.” He grinned.
Lysian senses were excellent, but this was impressive. Hardly anything could be heard over the sounds of my own footsteps and the pounding in my ears. There was no way I would ever have been able to find someone silently hiding in the woods the way Kole had.
The prince turned to me. “My name is Iver. It is a pleasure to finally have the opportunity to properly meet you.” He held out his hand.
I eyed it coolly, leaving it suspended in the air. After making no move to touch him, his hand dropped to his side and the smile on his face widened, exposing even more of his teeth.
His unruffled gaze turned to Kole. “And what would my brother say if he knew you were out here running about in the woods with our guest?”
“I wouldn’t be here if he did not approve.” Kole sounded bored. His body went from poised for an attack to that of complete comfort. I wondered if he was actually comfortable or just trying to pretend to be.
Iver’s head tilted, his eyes darkening. “Is it difficult for you to need his approval for anything you do when you used to be pretty much equals?” His smile turned cruel. “Constantly bowing to Erik. Subservient.”
Kole and I were not friends. I was a captive and Kole’s responsibility.
He intended to keep me both safe and imprisoned.
There was no reason that someone being rude to him should have bothered me.
I just hated when some found the need to be rude and hurtful for no other reason than to bring themselves a sick pleasure.
“I’d say that it’s probably no more difficult than it is for you,” I said, unable to hold my tongue. Both of the Lysians turned their attention to me.
Iver became the brother of the King. He no longer had free rein to behave however he would like toward Erik. I’d bet that for someone like Iver, that would be quite the adjustment. He only pointed something out that bothered him himself.
“My, my, the little Bavadrin girl speaks.” The prince took a step towards me. “And even has a bite, despite her lack of teeth.” He flashed his canines to make a point.
When I did not back down or hide, Iver tilted his head like a curious mongrel observing something which it did not understand.