CHAPTER VII #12
“I agree with Lord Daniel and want to know what curiosity led her into the thick of the forest in the middle of the night,” Desmond demands.
My body goes stiff at the tone behind the Master Informer’s words. I know better than to refuse him an answer, the being of who he is and the nature of the work he does not lost on me.
“This village…” I tread carefully, holding his stare, “it’s too quiet to rest on the edge of a forest that borders foreign lands.”
I think I see Keane smile from the corner of my eyes but continue to watch Desmond.
“This is a village where those from Warrior come to rest and retire,” he scowls.
“Then where are they?” I ask steadily.
Lord Daniel chuckles. “Curious and cunning,” he gives a small laugh, “but I thought I heard the Prince tell you at dinner last night that the majority of townsfolk work at the mills.”
“I’ve seen those mills,” I huff in frustration now, “they had a solid twenty men working them, not enough to fill half the townhomes and cottages you have lined off the Great Road.”
Both Desmond and Lord Daniel glance quietly at the Prince in question. Keane continues to watch me, his shoulders shrugging in reply to their gazes.
“She found the mills late this morning. Interrogated Yara’s boy for directions.”
“I did not interrogate him” I sigh.
“Of course you didn’t, Lady,” Keane grins.
“The mills weren’t enough to satisfy your curiosity then, Lady Alexis?” Lord Daniel returns his gaze to mine in genuine question.
I shake my head and glance back at Golem, “hence tonight.”
“What do you mean when you say this town is too quiet to rest on the edge of a forest that borders foreign lands?” Desmond inquires coolly.
Leave it to Disce’s Master Informer to pry into that comment.
I tread carefully again and hold his gaze as steady as I can.
“Who is here to protect the patrons of Fumagalli?”
“The forest surrounding the village offers protection enough, Lady Alexis,” Lord Daniel answers for Desmond.
I laugh at the statement and reach for the canteen under my cloak. “Ah yes, the forest that puts everyone to sleep.”
Keane is on me with his Discerni speed before the bottle can even touch my lips. He grabs my hand and lifts the drink to his nose, his eyes dancing across mine.
“Coffee,” he announces to the men behind him.
I glare at the Prince from under my hood, watching him give me a small wink before he returns to his spot between the Lords as if he’d never left.
“Clever,” Lord Daniel smiles, “but I still don’t think she’s satisfied by our answers.”
“Nor am I by hers,” Desmond replies, eyes narrowing yet again, “why would a Lady from the Court of Knowledge be interested in another Court’s protection?”
“I’m not spying on you,” I tell him angrily.
“Your actions suggest otherwise,” he replies curtly.
“Look,” I continue with a sigh, exasperated with this conversation, “it doesn’t take an outsider much to notice the inconsistencies of this village.
Or maybe it does,” I shrug, “I don’t know.
But anyone with two eyes and their wits about them can see that this village lacks a certain form of defense and protection should anything unwanted come down the road. ”
“And now she’s talking of defense,” Desmond lifts a brow.
“You have three other outsiders from Knowledge with you, Lady Alexis,” Lord Daniel looks at me curiously, “why haven’t they made out what you have?”
My heart quite literally stops at the question as I slowly turn my gaze to the Prince. He’s watching me quietly, his eyes taunting.
Say it, I can hear his voice through his gaze, say what you know to be true.
I sigh in small surrender and smile back at Lord Daniel, shaking my head softly.
“They are too content to care, Lord Daniel.”
“Warrior,” the Prince speaks the word directly at me. For once I don’t answer a denial.
“The Kingdom of Disce hasn’t been breached by anyone unwanted for almost three hundred years,” Desmond watches me with hard features, “why would you have any fear of that now?”
“I truly have no answer for that, Prince Desmond, nor any impending fear. All I know is that if, for some reason, something foreign did pass through the Black Forest along the Great Road, I would not feel safe or comfortable living here, especially when sleep comes so deeply.”
And that’s the damn Ancients truth.
The three men stare at me silently again, all in contemplation. Keane is the first to break the silence, his words slow and deliberate.
“We’ve certainly learned a lot. Let’s take it to a vote.”
A vote?
“Lord Daniel?” he asks, turning to the side.
“Yes,” Lord Daniel nods and gives me a beaming smile, “as I believe we can learn much more from Lady Alexis than we already have.”
“Brother?” the Prince asks.
“No,” Desmond responds simply, his features remaining stoic.
Keane nods at his answer and returns his gaze to mine.
“You’re in luck tonight, Lady Alexis, as I share Lord Daniel’s sentiment on this one.”
I look back at him in obvious confusion and watch as that sparkle of pride shines through his whole being. The Prince lifts his arms from his chest and angles his hands to the trees above us, his eyes never leaving mine as he sends me a grin.
“Tell me, Lady, do you feel safe and comfortable in these woods now?”
He flicks his fingers to the pines, and in that instant the full of the forest illuminates with moonslight. I look up in awe to the hundreds, no, thousands of bows pointed directly down at Golem and I from the tips of the trees, the weapons angled at our heads and tightly drawn.
“Welcome to Fumagalli,” Keane states proudly.