7. A Familiar Face
Chapter seven
A Familiar Face
Sleep didn’t come easily.
So when Elena woke me up early the next day to get a good spot at the market, I was a bit out of sorts.
The entire walk there, my mind jumped from one thought to the next.
I had rubbed the Order of Emberlight’s mark from the door with the edge of my shirt and had mentioned nothing to Elena.
These symbols showed up all over town, and most likely this was simply some random graffiti.
And yet I couldn’t shake the unsettled feeling in my gut.
“Everything okay, Cas?” Elena asked with a creased brow as we walked along the cobbled road. “You’re quiet today. You haven’t insulted me once.”
“Sorry, just lost in my head,” I replied. Elena was getting better at reading my moods. It was harder to hide things from her. “Umm…you smell like wolf’s breath.”
“Do not!” Elena exclaimed, sniffing her shoulder. “You’re the one who stinks. Even your insults are half-hearted.”
We continued to the market, trading insults, and some of mine were even good ones. Elena had taken my mind off my troubles, at least for a while.
Our spot at the market was much better than yesterday’s. We were busy enough that day that we both had to attend to customers. I assisted a portly gentleman who needed an indigestion tonic as Elena helped another customer with a deep but youthful voice. Something about it was captivating.
I waited for a brief lull in my conversation and stole a glance at Elena’s customer.
My jaw dropped.
It couldn’t be. And yet it was.
The same man I had seen in the Citadel Gardens yesterday stood an arm’s length away. Remembering the way he’d smiled made my chest flutter in a way I didn’t expect.
His eyes met mine, and he smiled slightly. I adjusted my assessment of him. He wasn’t just handsome. He was stunning—infuriatingly so. I’d known men like this before, and they were inevitably trouble.
The sun dappled his wavy sandy brown hair, his beautiful face, and bright smile. Time stopped for a moment as I watched this gorgeous man.
The customer I was helping cleared his throat, his brow furrowed. “Excuse me.”
“S-sorry,” I stuttered as I rubbed the back of my neck. “I—uh—I thought I saw somebody I knew.”
As I continued helping my customer with his tonic, I stole glances at the other man out of the corner of my eye. What in all the hells was he doing here?
When I finally finished, I turned to face him. He was staring directly at me with his emerald-green eyes, a crooked smile tugging at his mouth. Our eyes locked for longer than any two strangers might consider normal.
Elena looked back and forth between us with a crinkled brow. “Do you two know each other?”
I said, “No,” just as he said, “Yes.”
“We met at the Bleeding Oak yesterday,” he added.
Met was a bit of an overstatement, since all we’d done was exchange a look from a distance, yet he remembered the moment as clearly as I did. That made my pulse quicken, despite all my attempts to suppress my emotions.
“Are you following me?” I asked, perhaps a bit more pointedly than I intended.
“No,” he said. “I mean, maybe a little? When I saw you here, I remembered you from yesterday. I needed some herbs anyway, so I…um…just came over.” He was beaming as he spoke, his rosy cheeks reddening further.
I couldn’t remember the last time a beautiful man had seemed so enamored with me.
It was unsettling. I didn’t have time for this.
And yet I couldn’t help feeling the tiniest bit flattered.
“And so you stood in my sister’s line?” I quipped.
“Well…I mean…you looked busy.”
Elena gawked at us like we were a circus act. “I’ll let you finish helping him,” she said, handing me a parchment list of no fewer than twenty items, a few of which had check marks next to them.
“This is pretty extensive,” I said, running my finger down the list. “What are you making?”
“I really can’t say.”
“Of course, sorry. I shouldn’t have asked,” I said. “I’m Cassian, by the way. But people call me Cas.”
His face lit up. “Pleasure to meet you, Cas. I’m Darion. No one calls me Dar.”
We both laughed, continuing to stare at each other until a light breeze ruffled the parchment I was holding, snapping me back to the matter at hand. I glanced down at the list and tried to focus on anything other than Darion’s handsome face.
“We have most of this,” I said, “but we just sold out of goldvein root.”
“That’s too bad,” Darion said, looking crestfallen. “I need all this today. Guess I can try another vendor.”
“Cas is going foraging today,” Elena cut in. “Isn’t that right, Cas?”
I glared at her, and she looked back at me with the most innocent smile. Sure, I had planned to go foraging soon, but not necessarily today. What was she doing?
Elena continued, “I bet we could have it for you by half past third bell.”
Darion looked between Elena and me. “That’s a very kind offer, but I’d hate to impose on you like that.”
“Honestly, it’s fine,” Elena said, still wearing the smile of an angel.
Darion looked directly at me. “Are you sure it’s okay?”
Elena had backed me into a corner. If I said no, I’d look like a tremendous lout. But a walk wouldn’t kill me. I supposed it wouldn’t be the worst thing to see Darion again later today. But I was still going to kill Elena.
“It’s fine,” I said, although I should have said no. “I know a spot where I can get some goldvein root. I can go during my midday meal.” Darion still looked a bit skeptical, so I finished with, “I insist.”
“Well, if you insist,” he said. “Thank you.”
He smiled so brightly that I felt a flush in my neck and cheeks. This was ridiculous. Everything about him felt like a magnet, pulling me closer. Why did this man have this much of an impact on me? I didn’t like losing control. It was dangerous.
I quickly filled the rest of his order and sent him on his way, watching him as he headed off. When he was nearly out of sight, he turned and looked in my direction, sending me one more smile. I ignored it.
After he disappeared, I glared at Elena.
“What?” she asked.
“What the dust was that?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said, the picture of innocence. “We need more goldvein root.”
I headed north, weaving through the crowds of customers and merchants until I reached the edge of the Citadel Market.
Soon I crossed from the Citadel District into the Barracks District.
This part of Analon housed many of the Royal Guard as well as various other soldiers and mercenaries.
It was packed to the gills with the three b’s: brothels, barracks, and bars.
A woman dressed in not much at all catcalled me from an open window. “Hey, sweetie! Aren’t you cute! You looking for some fun?”
I avoided her gaze and moved on, but in the process, I nearly smacked into two Royal Guards who were walking like they owned the road. “Watch it, punk!”
I hated this neighborhood.
But this was the most direct way to get to the city’s North Gate, and beyond that was the Blackwood Forest, which had some of the best foraging spots.
So I hurried through the district, keeping my eyes on the ground, avoiding eye contact with everyone.
Soon I approached the city’s imposing north wall.
Of all the city’s gates, the North Gate was the most impressive.
The walls towered a hundred feet in the air, casting a long shadow across the nearby homes.
The gate itself was thirty feet high, made of massive timbers reinforced with iron, and a large metal portcullis with deadly spikes pointed downward, threatening everyone who entered.
Carts, horses, and peasants pushed through the entrance, jostling in both directions.
I kept my head down as I passed through the gate, ignoring the questioning looks of the guards.
The best strategy when dealing with them was to go unnoticed.
I used my thieving instincts to the fullest, hiding behind carts, horses, and peasants, making myself smaller, quieter, not worth noticing.
Soon I was out of the city, heading along the North Road toward the Blackwood Forest.
The third bell rang out from the Citadel Clock, easily audible beyond the city’s walls. With just half a bell to forage for the goldvein root, I doubled my pace.
Thatched-roof homes and farms dotted the landscape outside the city walls, but they grew less frequent the closer I got to the forest. Even the traffic on the road died down, and I soon found myself alone, imposing trees looming ahead.
As I entered the woods, the temperature cooled dramatically. The evergreens and stately oaks closed in on either side of me, seeming to suck the heat out of the air. I couldn’t see very far in any direction.
The shadows here felt wrong. Despite being alone, the strange sensation of another presence batted at my senses. My skin prickled as my stealth instincts buzzed. I darted my eyes from side to side but saw nothing out of place. My hand didn’t stray far from the hilt of my dagger.
The light snap of a twig came from behind me, and I spun on my heel, brandishing my blade. There was a flash of movement in the forest. Like a lightning bolt, I sprinted toward it. Whoever it was wouldn’t expect the speed of my approach.
I ran around the tree where I had seen the movement. Sure enough, a dark figure pressed against the trunk. They spun around as I closed the distance, and I held my blade up to their throat.
Then my brain caught up with my hand. Emerald eyes. Sandy brown hair. That ridiculous smile.
“Darion?”