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Thorne

“ T horne, can we talk for a moment?”

I turned at the sound of Galen’s voice, pausing on my walk back to my hut.

He hadn’t been willing to speak with me since the night I punched him.

I hadn’t even seen him until everyone gathered on the outskirts of the village to send Clarissa off on the Hunt early yesterday morning.

It appeared he’d finally chosen to come out of hiding.

“Of course,” I said.

He motioned for me to follow him, and we walked to the stables on the far end of the Base. Two horses were waiting for us, and we mounted them before taking off and tracing a path down to the now-familiar markets and shops of the main village.

“Where are your mother and Marigold today?” he asked.

“With some of the families farther inland. Marigold has made quite a few friends here.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a faint smile on Galen’s lips. “That doesn’t surprise me.”

We fell into silence once more as we trotted along, discomfort shifting around us.

We passed the village square when he finally said, “Thank you for helping to cover things up after the…incident th e other night.” He cleared his throat.

“I was out of line. I’m sorry for the things I said to you and Clarissa, and for what I did to the maid…

” A sigh left him as he scrubbed a hand down his tired face.

“I wanted to find her to apologize, but Clarissa warned me not to go anywhere near the maid again. Between you and me, that woman terrifies me.”

I hummed in casual agreement, keeping my eyes straight ahead. “She is rather extraordinary,” I murmured.

Another awkward pause followed until Galen asked, “You’re in love with her, aren’t you?”

An ache formed in my chest at the words. I’d been expecting them. I knew this conversation would be coming if he remembered anything from his drunken stupor that night, and I’d already promised myself I wouldn’t lie to him. Things were far too strained between us as it was.

“Yes,” I said simply.

He didn’t respond, merely nodded. We rode past small buildings and open markets with people selling their wares, the scents of nearby taverns and food stalls opening for lunch filling the air around us.

Soon, we left behind the street Clarissa had departed from yesterday, making our way farther east. A small hill appeared before us, with a strand of bamboo buildings visible at the top.

“You know why I have to marry her, Thorne,” he said.

“I know.”

He nodded again, as if that were the only way we knew how to communicate anymore. “And the things I said that night, I wasn’t?—”

“Galen.” I tugged on the reins to stop my horse, and Galen halted abruptly, turning to face me. Clarissa’s heated words from when she’d finally let her true feelings show the other night came back to me, and I hated how accurate they were.

“I’m through listening to your excuses,” I said. “And I’m through defending you. I’ve done that our entire lives. That woman is the best thing that could ever happen to you and to this kingdom. You will respect her, even if you don’t love her. ”

“I know, Thorne.” He looked down at his gloved hands wrapped around the reins, then back up at me. “I—I don’t know what’s wrong with me. But I’ll be better. Once this curse is broken, I’ll?—”

“It’s not about the curse , Galen; it’s about you ,” I snapped.

Clarissa was right. “You’ve been using it as an excuse for almost nine months to hide from your responsibilities as king, but when that’s gone, what will you blame next?

If you can’t figure out how to rule your people in the hard times, what makes you think you deserve to in the good? ”

Galen’s eyes sharpened as he met mine. He opened his mouth to respond when a handful of men came riding down from the tall incline in front of us with shouts of terror and galloping hooves.

“It’s the blight!” one of them yelled, his voice ragged. “Coming from the jungles!” He pointed to the east, beyond the hill.

“Everywhere,” another wheezed. He kept glancing over his shoulder. “It—it’s moving. Got one of our hunters.”

“It’s moving ?” I snapped my gaze up to the jungles they pointed to.

Where Clarissa was currently alone.

I leaned over and gripped Galen’s elbow. “She’s in there,” I said through gritted teeth. “And this is killing people.”

His hands shook as he twisted them in his reins. “I don’t—I can’t control it, Thorne. I’ve never been able to. You know that.”

“It’s heading this way!” one of the men shouted. “We have to move!”

I held Galen’s stare for a second longer.

“Show us,” I commanded the man.

Galen and I followed them up the hill, urging our horses as fast as they could go.

I wasn’t sure how far out Clarissa had gone, but every passing moment caused terror to swell in my gut.

We reached the top of the grassy incline and crested the hill, the buildings I’d seen before now clearly in sight.

The hunters led us past the small community and to a ledge overlooking the jungle and mountains beyond .

That’s when we saw it.

Below us and miles to the east crept darkness, almost as if a blanket were covering the land. It spilled over the jungle floor like ink.

And everything behind it…rotted.

Dead and shriveled, with the signs of the curse I’d come to recognize in the past nine months evident in the blackened trees and decaying branches.

Galen cursed under his breath. “They were right. It’s moving.”

I’d only seen that happen once before. Then, it stopped when Clarissa touched it. Where was she now?

Our horses must have sensed our apprehension, for they anxiously pawed at the ground and tossed back their heads.

A small crowd had gathered at our backs at the commotion. Several gasps echoed around us as people began to see the curse.

“What’s going on?”

“How did this happen?”

“It’s the blight! Is that even possible ?”

Whispers quickly turned to panic. Some of the people found Galen at the edge, and hope flared to life in their features.

“King Grimaldi!”

“Are you here to help us?”

“We need to get out of here! What should we do?”

His ashen face swiveled between them, then his eyes found mine in desperation. He blinked at me as his lips fell open and shut again. “I—I don’t?—”

“It’s getting closer,” one of the hunters rushed out. “What will you have us do, Your Majesty?”

Galen’s hands clenched around his reins, his eyes locked on the curse heading toward us.

“Your Majesty?” the man prodded. Those nearest glanced around in wariness.

These people were looking to him to lead. To save them.

His forehead creased, but no words came out.

I pulled at my reins and shifted the horse to face the hunters. “ One of you, gather every able-bodied rider and horse up here and?—”

A sharp cry sounded from my right, and I turned to see them pointing at the jungle.

Where a red fox sprinted from the dense, green expanse.