Chapter Six Trust #2
“How can we trust you?” she replied.
“What do you expect me to do, look my way out of captivity?” the Prince asked, letting some of his annoyance show; the girl was infuriating, there was no need to feign that.
Tomaz chuckled, and the Prince’s heart gave a sideways lurch, half out of excitement that his plan was working and half out of disgust that he was repaying the big man by betraying him.
They have betrayed all that I stand for, all that is good in this world: the Empire, the Princes of the Realm, my Mother. They deserve no special treatment.
The Exile girl continued to watch him, her emerald gaze unyielding.
“You said it was to be a deal. What is your part of the bargain?”
“I promise that as long as I am in your captivity, I will not attempt to contact the Empire, and I will warn you should we come upon another ambush, or if we are being followed. This I swear by my Mother’s name, by the Children, and the Light that they serve.”
They both watched him for a long moment, and then Tomaz looked to the girl, deferring to her judgment. It was a long time before she spoke, and when she finally did it was with the same harsh directness as before.
“This changes nothing,” she said. “You are still our prisoner, you are still a captive of the Exiled Kindred, and you are still coming with us wherever we choose to take you. Should you break your promise, I will end you, Prince of Ravens or not, before you can take your next breath. I want it to be very clear to you that, as you’ve seen, you are extremely valuable to us alive.
But should it come down to it, you are much more valuable as a dead Prince than an escaped one.
If there is the slightest chance that you are about to become the latter, then I shall make you the former. ”
The Prince waited for Tomaz to say something, but the big man only stood in stoic silence.
It was then that the Prince realized that the girl was the true leader of the two; despite being the younger, she was in command, and the big man would advise her only.
The final decision, after debate was done, would always be hers.
“I can accept that,” the Prince said. In truth, it was no less than what he had expected, if far less than he had hoped. “But with one more request.”
She stiffened, and her face grew thunderous. The Prince continued quickly.
“Every day that I keep this deal, I would ask that I be allowed to earn your trust, as much as I can. You, both of you, saved me from death. Tomaz has, if he speaks true, done so twice. Should I go back on our deal in any way, then you can hood me, cloak me, and tie me to that thrice-damned horse, if you don’t choose to kill me outright. ”
“How will you earn our trust?” Tomaz asked slowly.
“Responsibility. Perhaps something as simple as making the fire. You can supervise me, or you can tie me to a tree with only enough slack to perform the task. But give me something to do, and you’ll see that I can be counted on. And then perhaps you might come to view me as—”
“And then time passes,” the girl broke in, “we come to trust you, the tasks get more complex, you manage to convince us to let our guard down and you run right back to the Empire. You sell us out, then they kill you anyway, and they come after us. Sound about right?”
“I just learned that my Mother sent the Death Watch to assassinate me,” he said quietly, letting some of his inner turmoil show.
“Why would I run to them? I think it has been just irrevocably proven to all of us that there is no place for me to run to even should I wish to leave your company. Which, to tell you what I think you may soon guess, I do not want to do, because I know nothing of this world and it appears the two of you know much. You have food and transportation, whereas I have nothing but borrowed clothes and a price on my head. Not to mention that should the Death Watchmen come again, as we know they may, I would feel more secure with those daggers and that greatsword nearby. Why would I run, knowing all of that?”
There was a long silence as Tomaz and the girl watched him, the first with interest, the second with something akin to loathing.
“You’re lying,” the girl said.
“Eshendai,” Tomaz said, “I see no harm in this. After all, did not the Empire prove to him in spectacular fashion that he is no longer welcome among them?”
“He’s the Prince of Ravens, we can’t trust him,” she said.
“He’s a boy,” Tomaz rumbled gently. “He’s barely older than you were.”
She jumped as if burned, and the Prince flinched back, surprised at her reaction. What had just happened? He wanted desperately to ask, but he knew he would get no answer.
Barely older than you were… had she come from one of the Imperial cities?
A long time passed before she spoke again, and when she did it was without breaking eye contact with the giant. “I understand what you’re saying, but I just don’t trust him. He’s holding something back. I can feel it.”
“The choice is yours,” Tomaz said. “But you have my counsel.”
“Yes, I know.”
She turned to the Prince then and watched him with an intensity that was quite alarming. Her eyes were flecks of emerald stone, and the lines of her face were hard and angular, like the planes of a marble statue.
She strode forward and held out her hand.
“We have a deal.”
The Prince shook her hand, which was cool and calloused, no doubt from years of work with her daggers. She dropped his hand quickly, a small grimace crossing her face as if she had just touched something covered in dirt and slime, and then turned away.
“Sleep,” Tomaz said, with a tight smile, “and tomorrow you journey without the hood.”
The Prince nodded, not trusting himself to smile, before he lay down, turned over, and pretended to fall asleep.
He listened to the sounds of the girl and the giant banking the fire and checking the horses, and then, when they had decided the watch, the sounds of Tomaz settling in for sleep and the girl slipping into the surrounding forest.
The plan had worked. They would begin to relax their guard, even though the girl had reservations about doing so. He was a step closer to making his way back to his rightful place beside his Mother.
And yet, peace of mind did not descend easily on him, and he spent the night, once again, trying and failing to find sleep.