Page 8

Chapter 8

So Soon

R aewyn

Shivering in the sudden absence of Pharis’ luxuriant body heat, I opened the cottage door and went inside.

As it was the middle of the night, everyone was, of course, asleep. I tried my best to move through the one-room space and climb the ladder to the sleeping loft in silence, but my father must have heard me.

He sat up on his cot. “Who’s there?”

“It’s me, Papa,” I said softly so as not to disturb the girls. “I’m home.”

And then he was on his feet, moving toward me. Though he couldn’t see me, he had every inch of the cottage memorized, and he knew where the ladder was.

I was gratified to see he still moved well. When we embraced, he felt strong. Apparently Sorcha had kept her word about his healing being the real thing.

And she hadn’t gotten the opportunity to reverse it—yet.

“How have you been?” I whispered. “How are the girls?”

“We’re all well. How are you , daughter?” Papa asked, sounding a bit choked. “When you didn’t return the morning after the ball, I feared—”

His voice broke into a sob. “It was like losing your mother all over again.”

Between sobs, he said, “The girls have missed you desperately. I’ve missed you. I wanted to go after you, to try to find you, but everyone advised me against it—no one would lend me a horse or an escort. No one would go in my stead. Everyone was too afraid.”

I nodded rapidly, matching tears streaming down my own face.

“I understand, and they were right. I’m glad you didn’t go. There was nothing you could have done, and truthfully, it would only have made things worse.”

“Was it so very bad?” he asked.

He reached out to hold my face then patted my shoulders and arms as if checking for damage.

“I know you wouldn’t have stayed away if you’d had a choice. Were you imprisoned?”

“Something like that,” I said. “I’ll tell it all to you in time. For now, you should go back to bed—we don’t want to wake the girls.”

Too late. I heard the scramble of both pairs of little feet overhead.

Looking up, I saw Tindra and Turi’s messy bed heads appear in the loft opening.

“Raewyn!” Turi screamed.

“You’re back,” Tindra said, and both of them came scrambling down the ladder.

“I knew I heard your voice,” Tindra said.

She threw her arms around me, and I noticed they were not nearly as scrawny as before. They’d continued to eat well then.

Turi launched her small body at me, and I picked her up, hugging her tightly. She had grown sturdier as well.

Something in me relaxed—they’d been alright without me. Sorcha had not caused the food to suddenly rot or rescinded her magical pain cure.

“I thought I was dreaming when I heard you,” Turi said, her cheek pressed to mine. “I’ve been dreaming of you all the time—almost every night. Why were you gone so long?”

“I was afraid you were never coming back,” Tindra said. “It’s been ever so long.”

I stroked her hair, pulling her closer. “I know, sweet girl. I am so sorry. I wanted to come home, I just couldn’t.”

“Did the wicked Elves hold you prisoner?” she asked.

I laughed, whether from the joy of the reunion or amusement at her unknowingly calling Stellon wicked, I wasn’t sure.

Once not that long ago, I had thought the same thing—about him and about his brother.

Stellon was the farthest thing from wicked.

Now I wasn’t so sure about Pharis either.

In spite of his annoyance at having to spend time with a human, he’d put himself at great risk to get me home and risked his own safety along the way to protect mine.

Maybe it was a price he’d been willing to pay to get me away from Stellon and prevent our “unsuitable” match. Whatever his reason, I was grateful to him for enabling this moment, surrounded by my family.

“I was detained,” I said in answer to Tindra’s question. “But they weren’t all bad. And I saw so many wonderful things. I’ll tell you all about it in the morning, but you must go back to bed now.”

“Awwwww,” both girls whined simultaneously.

“It is the middle of the night,” I said. “And growing girls need their rest. If you don’t get it, you’ll be too sleepy to pay attention to my stories of the ball and the palace.”

After a bit more grousing, the two of them climbed the ladder and settled again onto their sleeping pads. When I was sure they were asleep, I walked with my father over to his cot.

“You need your rest, too. We may have to travel soon.”

His furry gray eyebrows lifted. “Oh?”

“It’s a long story,” I said. “But our village may be too close to the royal city for comfort.”

Pharis’ warning still rang through my mind. My father wants you—and he always gets what he wants.

“And Sorcha could return at any time,” I added.

“You say that as if it’s a bad thing. I took comfort in the fact both of you were gone this past fortnight. I had hoped she was protecting you,” Papa said.

“No. The Earthwife is not our friend,” I told him.

“I’m so thankful you are feeling well and you all had enough to eat while I was gone,” I said, “I was so worried about that. But there was a price to pay for the food and the cure… and I didn’t pay it. Sorcha wanted me to murder people, Papa.”

Now the eyebrows pulled together, and his forehead above them was an accordion of wrinkles.

“Murder? What the devil?”

“Yes. There’s a reason people are so leery of making deals with Earthwives. And now I’ve broken one. We may not be safe here. Also, the King might come looking for me.”

Papa’s head jerked back in shock, and he shook it side to side. His voice was filled with worry.

“But where would we go? How will I travel like this?” He gestured toward his eyes. “And traveling takes money.”

I lifted one of his hands and deposited the heavy bag of coin Pharis had given me. “We have money. What we might not have is time. I plan to start making preparations in the morning.”

Papa nodded again. “I don’t understand, but I trust your word. You’ve always been a good girl. I know you wouldn’t make up something like this.”

“Thank you for your faith in me,” I said. “I hope I’m worthy of it.”

Unfortunately I had the same questions Papa did. Where were we going to go?

How far would be far enough to be safe from the King’s reach? From Sorcha’s reach should she manage to free herself from the dungeon?

How was I going to keep my family safe?

Suddenly swamped by a wave of weariness, I climbed the ladder and stretched out on my own sleeping pad next to the girls.

Though I was tired and I knew I had an extra busy day ahead of me, my mind refused to settle.

I thought of Sorcha, who I hoped was still in the dungeon and not on her way back here already.

I thought of Stellon because I always thought of Stellon in spite of admonishing myself not to.

And I thought of Pharis, who was at this moment riding back to the palace alone. I wondered what he’d face when he got there.

Had the King discovered I was missing? Would Pharis be under suspicion of aiding me? I hoped not.

It was depressing to think his rare good deed would earn him punishment. He deserved much better from his father.

Both princes did.

The wee hours of the morning passed with me managing to catch fitful naps between sessions of worry.

I was in the middle of a dream about being far too warm, trapped between a roaring Auspex fire on one side and Pharis’ large, hot body on the other when a series of raps on the cottage door woke me.

The sun was much higher than it usually was when I awakened. I’d overslept. We all had. The girls lifted sleepy heads from their mats, looking around in confusion.

Scrambling down the ladder, I ran to the door and almost pulled it open but then paused with my fingers wrapped around the handle.

“Who is it?” my father asked from behind me.

“I don’t know,” I whispered.

Before my trip to Seaspire, a knock at the door had always meant a visitor from the village, a friendly face I’d known all my life.

Now, my world was much larger—and much more dangerous.

Anyone could be out there, from Sorcha to a battalion of royal soldiers. I clutched my stomach, which was rolling with cold dread.

Just in front of my face, the rapping started up again and turned to pounding, making my body jump and my heart thrash in my chest.

This time the racket was followed by Katricia’s voice.

“Hello? Wake up in there. Hello?”

I finally took a breath and heaved it out with relief before opening the door to my best friend’s face. The fear returned instantaneously as I took in her troubled expression.

When she saw me, her eyes went round, and her jaw dropped.

“Raewyn,” she exclaimed, throwing her arms around my neck in a fierce embrace. “You’re alive! You’re back.”

I patted her shoulders. “Yes, yes. I’m okay.”

Drawing back, she said, “Oh no, now I fear it may be worse.”

“What is worse?” I asked. “What’s going on?”

“Harrell made an early supply run to Ardenmoor,” she said, naming the village next to ours. “He came tearing back home on his horse. He said the King’s soldiers are there, going door to door. They’re looking for you , Raewyn. Apparently they’re searching all the villages in the region.”

My hand came up to cover my mouth. I could feel my breath moving against it rapidly.

“So soon,” I wheezed.

I’d known this was a possibility. It was exactly what Pharis had said might happen. I just thought we’d have more time.

Though enough time had passed for Pharis to make it back to Seaspire Castle, I knew he hadn’t revealed my location. If he had, the troops would have come directly here.

They must have been working their way through the villages surrounding the Fae lands from nearest to farthest.

If they’d already made it to Ardenmoor, they must have started very early this morning.

Waterdale was next.

Katricia’s voice was distraught. “They’re ransacking each cottage. Harrell said when people asked why, they were told the King was looking for a human fugitive named Raewyn.”

“It has to be you,” she reasoned. “I’ve never heard of anyone else with your name, and you’ve been to the royal city.”

I nodded in agreement. “It is me they want.”

Leaning out of the doorway and looking down the road leading into the village, I tried to think.

How long did we have? Was there time to grab any supplies?

Running with a blind man and two short-legged little girls was bound to be a slow-going affair. Could we even make it to the woods bordering the village before the soldiers arrived?

They were traveling on horseback. We would be on foot.

Though I now had money thanks to Pharis, there was nowhere to buy a horse and not enough time to procure one even if I did know of a horse-seller nearby.

Was there somewhere we could hide instead? Our cottage had no cellar—but Katricia’s did.

“Will you hide us?” I asked, desperate for a solution. “In your cellar?”

Impossibly, her eyes went even wider. Her chin began wagging back and forth, the motion growing faster and more pronounced by the second.

‘“I dare not,” she said, beginning to cry. “I love you Raewyn, you know that, but what if they were to move the rug aside? What if they find the hatch in the floor? If they catch me harboring a fugitive from the Crown’s justice, they will hang me—and possibly Harrell, too. I can’t let him die. He is innocent.”

She covered her sobs with both hands, still shaking her head. “Oh, Raewyn, what did you do ? Why do they want you?”

It was a fair question, but I had no time for explanations. I had to save my family, and as always, I had no one to depend upon but myself.

“Go back to your home,” I said to Katricia. “You don’t want to be out in the street when they arrive.”

“I’m sorry,” she sobbed, then she turned and started running.

I wasn’t angry with her. An invasion by Fae soldiers was a scary prospect—for all of us. We had grown up with stories of the failed rebellion and its aftermath.

No one dared to defy King Pontus.

“Thank you for warning us,” I called after Katricia. “Take care of Daisy!”

Our little goat would have plenty to eat in the garden, but she’d get lonely without us, and someone needed to milk her.

Obviously we couldn’t take her with us. The girls would understand the need to be quiet, but the animal might bleat at an inopportune moment and give away our hiding place. And someone would have to carry the little thing.

I would no doubt end up carrying four-year-old Turi at points during our journey. We’d simply have to leave Daisy behind.

For a split second I considered fleeing on my own. I’d travel much faster alone, and if I wasn’t here, perhaps my family would be safe staying in the village. It would certainly be less stressful for them not to have to live on the run.

And then I thought of the King’s willingness to hold me hostage in order to manipulate Stellon. He could do the same thing with my family, using them to flush me out of hiding.

Even if no one in our village spoke up to betray them, and His Majesty never drew the connection between them and me, there was still the threat of Sorcha and her desire for revenge.

If she returned to the village, my family would definitely not be better off here without me.

Closing the door again, I began rushing through the small cottage, grabbing things that seemed crucial to bring along.

Mostly I focused on whatever food we could reasonably take with us, filling a gunny sack with bread and smoked venison, some cheese, and root vegetables.

The girls were awake, peering down from the loft.

“What’s happening, Raewyn? Are the soldiers going to arrest us?” Tindra asked.

“Arrest us?” Turi echoed.

“No they’re not,” I said, not looking away from my frantic supply-gathering.

“Get yourselves dressed,” I said in as calm a tone as I could muster—it might not have been all that calm. “We’re leaving immediately. Put on two pairs of socks under your boots and all the layers you have. We’ll be camping at night, and it will get cold.”

“What about our books?” Tindra asked in a distressed tone.

“Bring only what you can fit in your pockets. One book each. Don’t forget your cloaks.”

Papa was moving about now, too, gathering his blankets into a bundle and telling the girls to throw their own blankets down to him. Clearly he’d heard Katricia’s warning as well and understood the need for haste.

I lifted his cloak from its hook and draped it over his back. Then I grabbed his cane from its position leaning against the hearth. When I tried to push it into his hand, he shook me off.

“I’ll be fine without it. I haven’t needed it in over a week.”

His refusal gave me a moment’s pause, but I had to give him the same trust he’d given me. He wouldn’t say something he didn’t mean. Hopefully Sorcha’s cure lasted.

Handing him the sack of food, I rushed to put on my spare dress on top of the one I already wore and doubled up my socks. My boots felt a little tight, but they’d stretch, and perhaps the layers would prevent blisters.

There would be no majestic purebred steed involved in this journey.

As if conjured by my imagination, the sound of thundering hooves rocked my eardrums and froze my heart in my chest.

Oh no. We were too late.

They were here already.