Chapter 26
The Pool
By the dumbfounded expression Glo wears, I believe she’s fallen even more smitten with Jasmeen. Glo stares at her with such an intense heat that my cheeks flush.
“Ah,” I say, with an awkward chuckle. “So we all carry secrets here.”
“It would appear that way,” Brynn says, a ghost of a smile on his lips, though his tone sharpens as he turns to Jasmeen.
“We need to rest. It’s unlikely we’ll make it to the next communal area, and it’s best to avoid the main path by nightfall.
Are you comfortable camping? We can take turns keeping watch.
I know a spot not far from here—a few hours more.
We will discuss everything once we make camp. ”
Jasmeen offers a weak nod. It’s settled that Brynn will ride with her, to hold her steady on Shadow, and that Glo will ride with me.
Glo looks a little miffed at this—likely torn between her duty to protect the prince at all costs if Jasmeen is in fact a walking target and her strong desire to burn him to ash for accusing her of thieving behind his back.
But she agrees. And despite any jealousy she may feel at their closeness, she also knows that Jasmeen is safest with him.
Regardless, I am touched by our group’s resolute camaraderie.
Brynn is peeved that we harbor a second possible thief, and he will no doubt grill Jasmeen as soon as we make camp, but he still wishes to keep her safe.
I can’t help but wonder how badly he wants back in my good graces.
Or perhaps he’s genuinely kind, that unhelpful voice inside my head coos.
“You know…” Glo whispers into my ear moments later atop Moon.
She sits behind me in the saddle, her arms—now a normal temperature—curled loosely around my middle to hold the reins.
She speaks so low that even Brynn can’t hear her.
“He’s a dick—for assuming it was me who attracted trouble.
And worse, he was a fool—for not telling you his title the instant you met.
” I let out an uneven sigh as she continues, “But I owe my life to Vir. He’s selfless.
I am lucky to know him. To serve him. I hope you can forgive him. ”
I twist enough so that she can watch my imitation of her mock salute. She laughs. Brynn throws a perturbed glance over his shoulder. When his eyes land on Glo leaning into my ear, his jaw clenches.
“There are few joys in this world greater than teasing him,” she says. I smile innocently. He turns around with an irritable huff.
Brynn was able to find a new tunic in his pack on Shadow’s saddle. I dropped his bloody shirt somewhere among the trees when that whisper—that disembodied creature—spoke to me. I see you, they said. It unnerved me that I couldn’t see them.
“Glo, what the hell was that shadow thing?” I ask. “Was that a Draider doing… magic?”
“Ah… no,” she says softly. “The Blackwoods are said to host only a handful of creatures. Ghosts are believed to find peace in the stillness here. For how eerie they are, the Blackwoods are surprisingly safe.”
“You mean despite the occasional murderous Draider, surely,” I add.
“Yes, of course,” Glo says with a dark chuckle.
“There are always passersby—of good and bad variety. But… those who inhabit the forest? There are tales of ancient shadow hags that lure travelers in with whispered promises. I’ve seen the shadows before, it’s not uncommon to see them—but I’ve never heard them speak. I guess they have nothing to offer me.”
A shiver runs down my spine. I hadn’t given the whisper—the second, unseen shadow—a chance to promise me anything. But what would it offer?
“Don’t worry though—even the fae enjoy fairy tales. Children’s fantasies. These are just stories passed down to keep travelers on the main path—to give the ghosts of the Blackwoods the peace they crave.”
Her tone is casual. Unconcerned, but not uncaring.
But she didn’t hear it—feel it—like I did.
I know you.
What if it did?
“Thea,” Glo mutters after a lingering silence, and I involuntarily jerk. It’s Glo, I remind myself. “I wanted to say thank you. For pulling me from the cliff back there. Sometimes I… I lose myself.”
I shake my head. “You owe me nothing.”
“Well,” she says, “perhaps not, but I feel rotten for threatening you—I like you. And I want us to be friends.”
“I would like that very much,” I say, feeling fuzzy, as though the air around us softens.
“I like having you around. I’ve never seen Vir so rattled. It’s entertaining, to say the least.”
Glo and I settle into a comfortable silence, and I allow my mind drift.
To shadows and whispers in the woods. To Jasmeen’s crimes—what could they be?
Glo likely ponders the same, but does not probe me.
It’s obvious I too was left in the dark.
Jasmeen had been acting strange at the inn.
I’d caught her searching for someone more than once.
Maybe whoever it was was responsible for this ambush.
Maybe she only agreed to accompany us because she knew Brynn’s title would offer her a somewhat safe passage.
My shoulders sag. Maybe I was wrong to trust her so quickly.
My mind wanders to my father. To Mavick.
To the tangled web woven by one dark purple, glittery elixir.
An acceptance of fate. Mavick asked what I would give for my freedom and I said everything.
Despite what they said, it was a trade. My freedom at the cost of turning my entire life upside down.
I made that choice—rather flippantly, I admit.
But whatever the consequences now, there was no choice but to weather them.
Regardless of what or who led me here, I would own my decisions.
My mistakes. I would press on. What else could I do?
You could disappear and never look back, that voice inside my head answers, adopting Mavick’s screeching tone, as it so often does. I sigh. What is right and what is easy aren’t always in harmony with what is best.
The clearing Brynn leads us to overlooks a small swimming hole, with a craggy rock face that juts diagonally over the pool.
It’s not quite a cave, but it provides coverage from the tree canopy above as well as privacy from the main trail.
Glo slips from Moon, turning to help me dismount.
Brynn lifts Jasmeen from Shadow. She winces as she stretches her legs, but I’m glad to see she’s steady on her feet.
“Is this where Vir brings all his lovers?” Glo quips with a grin, sauntering over to elbow him in the side.
The jest might be an olive branch—or perhaps another way to watch him squirm.
Brynn’s face flushes. I suspect he avoids my gaze, so I busy myself by asking to check Jasmeen’s bandages again. She agrees, though she bites her lip.
It’s late afternoon now. Glo and Brynn venture out to find enough wood for a fire and perhaps a rabbit to feast on. Glo has a bag full of bread and jerky as well, but they likely wish to discuss whatever the hell just transpired in private. How to proceed. Maybe they’ll kiss and make up, too.
Once they’re out of sight, Jasmeen sits on a large rock near the swimming hole and deflates with a heavy exhale.
I raise a curious brow at her, bending at the water’s edge to rinse my dirty hands.
It’s cool and clear. Mysterious pebbles shimmer from the pool’s bottom, as though they are painted with faerielight. It is a beautiful spot to camp.
“I’m sorry, Thea,” Jasmeen says softly. I turn to face her, shaking my hands dry. “I should have told you.”
“You know,” I say, closing the distance between us and reaching for the bandage at her throat, “I’ve heard something along those lines twice in less than a day’s time. I’m starting to think my new friends don’t trust me.”
Well… rightfully so.
“Ha—I do trust you,” she says with a frustrated sigh. “But, as I told you, my reasons for coming along were not so selfless. I believed taking this trip with Vir and Glo would offer me some protection. I—I got tangled up with the wrong fae.”
“Friend of Mavick’s?” I ask with a cynical smirk. Jasmeen’s eyes widen, her expression grave. I take the strip from around her arm. Thankfully, the Clot did its job. She’ll scar, but she’s alive.
“Look—you’re just going to repeat yourself once Vir returns.” I point at the dried blood caking her skin. “I think we should wash off a bit.”
I pull the remainder of Jas’s borrowed tunic over my head and place it on a nearby rock.
Might as well use the leftover scraps as bandages.
I shimmy out of my boots and bottoms too, down to my undergarments, and lower myself into the cool water.
Goosebumps prickle my arms and legs, but I cannot suppress a smile.
My feet meet the peculiar, smooth pebbles lining the pool’s shallow bottom and I stand with ease.
Surviving an ambush has me feeling lightheaded. Wobbly. Like a hangover, born from my body’s fight-or-flight reflex triggering on repeat.
Jasmeen gawks at me, clearly debating my sanity.
But finally, she peels off her ruined clothing.
She has a lovely figure, but my eyes catch on the patchwork of scars across her legs, her torso—scars not unlike the ones today’s wounds will leave.
I wonder what secrets this mortal girl harbors.
If they’re anything like mine, maybe we were always destined to be good friends.
My smile returns when she drops into the water. We spend several minutes picking twigs and leaves out of each other’s hair and snickering. My dark locks are full of them, likely from when Glo took me to the ground.
“You said you’ve done things you’re not proud of,” I breathe after a spell. “But you did not judge me for drugging my own father. I want you to know that I will not judge you—for whatever you decide to share with me.”