Page 17 of A Rose Among Snakes (Gardens of Ruin and Revival)
Chapter Sixteen
T he next couple of days were spent at the manor getting all of our belongings packed up for the trip to Clavo. Kezara had two enormous trunks filled to the brim—one for clothing and another for everything else you could imagine. I packed a small bag for myself, as the dresses and accessories we bought were placed in Kezara’s trunk. Once the carriage was loaded, Kezara and I waited inside for Velian to be ready. This carriage was bigger and fancier than the one we had been using to go to town. The exterior was painted all black, the doors and windows trimmed in gold. Inside, the seats were lined with a rich ocher velvet, and cream lace covered the windows.
After getting comfortable in my seat, I pushed aside the curtain to look out the window and saw Velian approaching from the stable, leading a leggy, dappled gray horse with a long, flowing mane the color of angry storm clouds. The stallion’s movements could only be described as dancing and a foolish grin spread across my face. Growing up, my father had owned a horse that I adored. He was gentle and patient, and I spent all my free time riding him, or braiding his tail and feeding him apples. The last time I saw him was when my father rode away, heading for Port Deering. When my father didn’t return, I had longed for that velvety nose to smooth the sharp edges of my grief.
“I see your brother has an affinity for giant, gray animals,” I said.
“I never thought of it that way, but it would seem so.” Kezara leaned forward to peer out the window. “That’s Zavi. Isn’t he gorgeous?”
I couldn’t wipe the grin off my face, even while sighing. I was about to start telling Kezara just how much I loved horses when there was a knock at the door.
Velian opened it and peeked in. We hadn’t spoken since our last interaction two days prior.
Without any trace of animosity on his face, he cheerfully said, “Good morning, ladies. Are we ready to begin?” He flashed a dazzling smile causing a flutter in my belly. I struggled to find my words, but thankfully Kezara answered for both of us.
“We’ve been ready for ages. You’re the one holding us up.”
“Wonderful, I’ll let Milner know.” Ignoring her jab, his smile never faltered and his eyes lingered on me before he shut the door. The flutter in my belly erupted into an entire flock of birds, and I shifted in my seat to try and put them at ease. Kezara looked over at me, narrowing her eyes, but then the carriage lurched forward and we were on our way.
The ride was scenic; it was impossible for me to look away from the changing landscape as the rocky seaside bluffs transitioned to mossy forests and then to level, golden plains. Over the hours, I felt restless so I distracted myself with a novel I’d found tucked into the nightstand beside my bed. But I didn’t make it very far without pausing between pages to peer out the window. Kezara tried her hand at embroidery, and when she grew bored, we discussed what we thought the castle might be like. After taking a brief break in the middle of the day, Kezara fell asleep and the rest of our trip was silent. Groves of trees broke up the flat plains and eventually, the carriage dipped off the path, jolting Kezara awake. She sat up and braced herself on the bench.
“Heavens, what is happening?”
“I think we might be stopping for the night.”
“Wonderful, I can’t wait to stretch my legs.” She stifled a yawn as she extended her arms, the embroidery project clattering to the floor.
The carriage came to a full stop and a moment later the door swung open. Velian was there to help Kezara down first, and then he held his hand out for me. Our eyes met as his mouth pulled up into a smirk, and I took his hand tentatively, trying not to notice the warmth it ignited inside me. I let go the second my feet touched the ground.
Behind the carriage, a horse snorted and I turned to see three other men dismounting from their horses. They were all dressed in black, but that was where their similarities ended. Velian looked over and dipped his chin in acknowledgment. “Kezara and Mihrra, allow me to introduce my most trusted men, Corman, Denzen, and Paolef,” he said, pointing at each as they bowed in turn. “They’re here to make sure we arrive safely.”
Corman was fair-skinned with shoulder-length black hair and a stocky build. Denzen was of average height and had tanned skin with a shaved head and strawberry-blond beard. Paolef was tall and muscular with ebony skin, also sporting a shaved head, but he had piercing, light brown eyes that didn’t miss a thing. I knew there were other staff members living on the grounds at Blaise Manor, but I had never interacted with any of them since they didn’t take their meals with the house staff. Still, I wondered why he would have these men accompany us to the royal city.
“Why do we need escorts?” Kezara asked cautiously.
“Because you meet all kinds of people out here. Now, if you’ll excuse me, we need to make camp,” Velian said, stepping around her.
The men jumped into action. Corman untied a bundle of kindling from behind his saddle, placing it on the ground by the trees; the other two followed suit but with bundles of small logs. Milner opened a compartment at the back of the carriage and pulled out a bag, metal clanking inside as it hit the ground. He dragged it over to the trees and opened it up to reveal large panels of fabric and metal poles. Soon it became apparent he was building a tent, as he fitted the poles together. The rest of the men were unsaddling the horses and hobbling them so they could graze freely before being tied up for the night.
“Where are we?” Kezara asked, reading my mind.
“Canderren,” Velian replied, patting Zavi’s flank. “We’re about three-quarters of the way to Clavo. We made excellent time, and we’re here a little earlier than I planned, but I assumed you two might want more time out of the carriage.”
“You assumed correctly,” Kezara said, stretching her arms above her head again, “but why are we sleeping outside like animals?”
“Because any nearby inns hold less than desirable reputations, to say the least. Trust me, this will be much more to your standards, Kezara.”
As she huffed her annoyance, I placed my hands behind my hips and pushed them forward, relishing the stretch. I looked around and noticed Corman trying to get a fire started, but a steady breeze was blowing in his direction. After several failed attempts, I couldn’t stand it any longer.
“Here,” I said, walking over and crouching down by the pile of kindling. I used my body as a shield from the wind and cupped my hands by the wood for additional protection. The spark ignited the kindling, and I gently blew on it to spread the flames.
“Impressive,” Kezara said, giving me an approving look. Corman grunted and shrugged his shoulders, avoiding eye contact with everyone as he shuffled off, ignoring Denzen’s mocking laughter. I sat there for the next few minutes until the fire seemed strong enough to withstand the wind. Corman came back with an iron stand and a pot of stew; placing the stand over the fire and the pot on top of the stand, he began stirring.
“Velian, I can’t sleep in these clothes tonight. Will you please get my trunk out for me?” Kezara asked .
Velian groaned but moved to the back of the carriage. “Which one is yours?”
“Good question.” Kezara walked over to him. “I think it’s… this one.” She pointed to the trunk on the right. Velian grabbed the handle and started pulling the trunk out of the compartment, but struggled to get it free.
Wiping his hands on his pants he asked, “Milner, how did you get these trunks in here on your own?”
Milner, who was finishing up the tent, called over, “Oh, I did no such thing, sir! Franz helped.”
“That makes more sense,” Velian muttered. He rolled up his sleeves, exposing muscular forearms, and gestured for Paolef to come over. Together, they removed the trunk and set it on the ground with a dull thud .
“Be careful,” Kezara chided. She unclasped the lid to check the contents. “Perfect. It would have been a shame if this wasn’t the right one.” She threw Velian a teasing grin, and he began to walk away, but she said, “Wait, Mihrra will need her bags, too!”
Velian’s mouth parted and he shot her an exasperated sidelong glance, then grabbed the handle of the other trunk, but Kezara put her hand out saying,
“No, that’s also mine. Mihrra’s is the smaller case—right there.”
“You’re telling me both of these trunks are yours?” His eyebrows disappeared beneath the wild fringe of hair that had fallen forward during our journey. “We’re only gone for a few days. ”
“You never know what you might need,” Kezara retorted, crossing her arms.
Velian shook his head, but easily grabbed my bag and placed it on top of Kezara’s trunk on the ground.
“Thank you,” I said. He nodded once and walked off rolling his shoulders.
Kezara turned to me. “Want to go for a walk? Stretch our legs a little.”
“That sounds nice.”
“Velian,” Kezara called. “We are going to walk around for a while.”
“Don’t wander far,” he replied. Kezara looked at me and rolled her eyes as she started walking down the road in the direction we had come from.
The path was lined by a thin wall of tall aspen trees, their leaves whispering in the breeze as birds sang from the branches. Kezara talked about Leoran, and how excited she was to see him and be at the castle. It was a struggle to hold my tongue about Leoran. After fifteen minutes, we turned around and made our way back to camp. Between the trees, the sun was sinking closer to the horizon, and the light softened all around us.
When the settlement popped back into view, we saw all five men standing in a line together, their postures stiff with tension as they faced four strangers on horseback.