Chapter 25 Audryn
AUDRYN
Ipulled the front of my shirt away from my sweat-soaked body and fanned it, desperate to cool down.
Even with the colder climate, working on the land kept me hot.
We’d been outside most of the day while Athela sent a steady stream of food and drinks in our direction.
Sky and Amalee sat near the steps of the castle porch while I sank into the gravel next to the little pond full of orange and white fish.
“I think you’ve done enough for today.” Col rubbed my back with one hand while holding a book in the other.
“I’m fine.” I dug my hands back into the gravel.
If he wasn’t taking care of me or roaming his hands over my body, he was reading nearby.
In the evenings he would lie in my bed and read stories out of the small book from his childhood.
Most of the time, I fell asleep before he made it to the end.
Several times I’d woken and found my bed empty with the covers pulled up around me. It had become a welcome routine.
“We should go to the tavern tonight. There will be people with stringed instruments, and a bunch of the locals are selling baked goods,” Sky said.
Amalee groaned, letting the obliterated gravel dust fall from her hands adding to the small pile in front of her.
“Athela wanted to host dinner tonight.” Fisher leaned on the doorframe.
My eyes shot up to him, as did everyone else’s. He’d been spending so much time at the castle, I regularly lost track of his whereabouts. But when I did see him, he looked happy.
“Oh, really?” Amalee eyed him suspiciously. “Are you hosting together, or will you just be in attendance?”
The guard didn’t look away and narrowed his eyes at the dark-haired woman. “You shouldn’t make assumptions.”
“My mother is a grown woman, and she’s free to do as she pleases, as we all are,” Col said casually, not looking up from the leather-bound book. “Let her know we’ll be there.” He gazed up at the horizon. “Maybe another hour or so. We’ll go into town after.”
“Do you want to go with us?” I asked Fisher, who was eyeing Col’s hand still rubbing my back. There were moments he’d seen us brush up against one another, but we hadn’t been so blatant, and I had honestly stopped caring.
He nodded his head, looked down at the pile of dirt near Amalee, and arched a brow. With a lift of his hand, a hum of magic moved through the air, and Col directed his onyx eyes in the guard’s direction. I placed a palm on his leg to calm his nerves.
Fisher conjured water into his palm and let it trickle off into the dirt pile in a slow drizzle.
The tiny particles and water danced, combining into a thick mud.
It wasn’t just mud, but soil. The mixture might’ve been missing some nutrients and minerals, but it looked more like the ground I was used to working on than the black gravel surrounding us.
“What the fuck?” The words rolled out of my mouth in a whisper. I hadn’t considered changing the makeup of the gravel, making the same mistake as Ryder with the bitumen.
Fisher’s eyes drew to mine. “Let your neighbors help put your fire out, Audryn.”
I chuckled. Somehow I’d overlooked a solution that should’ve been obvious from the beginning. Much like Col helping me solve the problems with the seeps, Amalee and Fisher could’ve helped me with the land weeks ago.
Col huffed a breath out of his cracked smile. “I suppose you should tell my mother we’re going to need a few extra hours before dinner.” He set his book on the porch. “Looks like we have work to do.”
For the next hour, Col dug trenches into the land, Amalee eroded the gravel, Sky sprinkled some of the nutrient-rich soil from the pots in the courtyard, and Fisher supplied the water to moisten the dirt.
I moved in behind them to see what I might grow, hoping I hadn’t entirely depleted my magic from working all day.
The first attempt was to grow a peony—they were my favorite, and I didn’t care that they weren’t at all consumable.
It took a bit more effort than normal, but the soil shifted and all at once, a green bush of pale pink peonies formed, sitting tall and vibrant.
I snapped off a flower and walked over to Col.
“A little gift for you.” I smiled and extended my hand. He pulled me into him, and I shrieked from the movement.
Dipping me down, he placed a gentle kiss on my lips and I pressed in, not caring who was around. I breathed in his saltiness; it would be the first thing I’d miss when I returned to Rivale.
Fisher cleared his throat, and Col lifted me up, letting his mouth linger a bit longer. Maybe we would skip going to town and spend our time in bed. I couldn’t seem to get enough of him.
Col pulled away. “I think your guard may be worried I’m suffocating you.” He plucked the flower from my hand and kissed my forehead before walking over to his book and placing the flower on top.
“You’re not going to press it?” I asked and shivered from the shift in temperature. Col grabbed his jacket and wrapped it around me.
He shook his head. “I’ll put it in water for a few days and then I will. I want to watch it live first.” Walking toward the trench, he grabbed the shovel and continued digging.
I worked and focused on vine vegetables, perennials, and root vegetables.
Figuring out which vegetables would be the most beneficial, I also focused on self-seeding options, such as tomatoes and arugula.
Col changed his focus to providing lattices and other supportive structures for the produce to climb.
I wouldn’t be around to speed up the growth time, so I had to be efficient. Melons, berries, and grapes spread around the makeshift garden as my magic hummed through the area. The space wasn’t huge, but it was a start, and we could work on expansion the following day.
My eyes caught on a dirty piece of paper lying partially buried in the soil. It was tinged yellow, folded multiple times, and frayed around the edges. I picked it up and unfolded it carefully, being sure not to tear through the creases that were nearly see-through.
Several long columns of writing adorned the sheet. A hundred names of men and women were neatly etched in black ink on the page. Not knowing what I was holding, I scanned the list trying to find a pattern. I jumped as a hand moved onto the lower curve of my back.
“How about we let everyone else go to dinner and we head home?” Col’s voice rumbled against my neck. “That kiss wasn’t nearly enough, I’m hungry for more.” His tongue roamed over my ear, gently pulling it into his mouth.
My body stiffened, and my stomach sank as I came to the final name in the last column.
Kamden Clair.
“I will not take no for—”
I turned on my heel and looked at Col accusingly. “Is this yours?”
“What? Let me see.” He reached for the paper, but I retreated. “How am I supposed to tell you if it’s mine if you won’t let me see what it is?” His smile was lazy, and his amber hues sparkled in the setting sun.
Side-stepping to his left, I looked at the three people still diligently working in the newly formed garden. “Whose paper is this?” I shouted several times, each request growing louder. They all looked at me as if I were crazy. All except Fisher.
Hesitantly, he stepped forward. “It must’ve fallen out of my pocket when I bent down.” He reached for the paper, but I pulled it away. Shock flashed across his face.
“What is this?” I asked. “Is this some sort of sick joke?”
“It’s something I keep with me.” Fisher reached for the paper again and looked at me with indignation. “It’s not yours, give it to me.” Anger coated his words.
My legs trembled as the realization sank in. I might’ve thought Fisher was my friend, but he wasn’t. He was a member of the Rivale Guard. And he served King Sutton.
He reached again, nearly snatching it from my hand. I sneered.
“Give it to me, Audryn.” Fisher’s voice was low as threat laced his words.
“Touch her and die.” Col’s voice was rough and dripped with venom. He moved to step between us, but I pushed past.
“Why is my brother’s name on this list, Guard Fisher?” I knew the answer the moment he claimed ownership, maybe even before that. It was the same list I carried in my head, only mine was shorter. It was a death list. His death list.
Fisher’s eyes went wide.
Col stepped to my side, and when I looked at him, his eyes were onyx. Magic thickened the air, a mixture of mine, Fisher’s, and what I’d come to recognize as Col’s. An unfamiliar tang was wrapped in the mix, and when I found Amalee staring, I knew hers was the biggest threat to us all.
Col unsheathed his sword and stepped forward.
“No,” I commanded, and the king obeyed.
“What’s going on?” Amalee inserted herself into the conversation, but I ignored her.
“There’s a mistake, you weren’t there—I would’ve remembered you.” The guard spoke slowly, his voice cracking. “This has to be a mistake.”
“You killed him, you fucking killed my brother, didn’t you?” It was a question I already knew the answer to.
“You weren’t there. I’ve remembered every person in the family viewing area, you weren’t—” Fisher’s breath shook. “I would’ve known.”
I’d been looking for the executioner, and he was right in front of me all along. I’d only been too stupid to consider the possibility. Making matters worse, Ryder knew the guard had killed my brother, but didn’t think enough of it to tell me. Instead, he’d sent me away with the asshole.
“I wasn’t there. Hours after you sliced his head off, I arrived. My consolation prize was watching my brother’s blood washed away with the others.” I lifted my chin and took a step toward the guard. Col mirrored me.
“Fuck.” Sky’s voice whispered to my right.
“Did he beg you for mercy? Did you enjoy watching my father being beaten? It must be nice to have so many kills under your belt.” My chin quivered.
“No.” Fisher looked at the ground.
“You ravaged my family!” I screamed as tears welled in my eyes and spilled onto my cheeks.
“Which one?” His voice was a whisper.
“Kamden Clair,” I spat. “Too many for you to keep track of, right?”
He shook his head. “Your brother’s was the last before I asked for a reassignment. There’s no pride in killing people. Especially when so many were innocent.”
“You suddenly had a change of heart? Because of Kam? I’ll be sure to let him know.
” The back of my throat burned as sobs threatened to escape.
Col attempted to wrap me into him, but I pushed away.
“My brother should still be alive! My mother killed herself because of you! You destroyed my family—you destroyed me!”
Amalee moved to my side. “I’ll kill him.
” Her voice was cold and calculating. “It doesn’t matter to me if my mother wants him alive or not, she has shit taste in men.
” Amalee paused before continuing, “I’ll erode every organ in his body slow enough that he feels every drop of pain.
Perhaps I’ll move limb by limb and watch him suffer.
” She smiled, her black teeth sparkling against the drooping sun.
“No.” I threw the list at him, letting it float to the ground. “I’ll kill him myself.”
Fisher looked at me, pursed his lips, and nodded. “Hate me for what I’ve done. I hate myself too. If I could take it back—”
“You can’t!” I went for Col’s black-hilted sword, but the beating of wings above stopped me in my tracks. Bile rose in my throat as my stomach tilted.