Page 2

Chapter

Two

The two bags weigh heavily on my back as I stand in the doorway to give one last glance to the only bedroom I’ve ever known. Just like Mother, I’ll never see it again. I’ve burned her image in my memory, and I attempt to do the same with the sleeping space sparsely decorated with four single beds, one dresser, and plain white curtains over a tiny window.

More than anything, I want to give my sisters a tight squeeze goodbye, but Gunnar will never allow that. Maybe one day after I’ve figured out my powers, I can return and make him wish he’d been nicer to me when he had the chance.

Or I could choose to forget all about him and never give him another passing thought. That might be the better sort of revenge, though making him pay would be more fun.

I shove those thoughts from my mind and head for the kitchen, grabbing enough food to tide me over for the night until I figure out where to get my next meal.

Wailing sounds from the big bedroom. My chest tightens, and a single tear trails down my face. Unfortunately, I don’t have the luxury of the mourning week the rest of my family will take.

Come to think of it, returning to make my stepfather pay does sound like a good idea. There’s no reason other than spite that he wouldn’t even let me take time to cry over my mother. It wouldn’t cost him anything to give me a few more days here, but he wouldn’t wait until her body cooled to toss me out like trash.

So be it. The sooner I’m away from him, the better. My only regret is not being able to say goodbye to my sisters. We’ve always been close, despite Gunnar’s many attempts to turn them against me. He can’t take away the fact that we’re blood—as much as he hates that fact.

I let my bags slide to the floor and return to my bedroom. Once I find a pad of paper and a dull pencil, I scribble a note letting my beautiful sisters know how much I love them and will never forget them.

It will crush them to lose me on the same day as Mother, but there’s nothing I can do about that. I’m not sticking around to marry that wicked man. I have to get out of here as fast as I can, before he arrives.

My siblings losing me is on Gunnar. As much as I want to tell them so, I refrain from mentioning him in the letter. It’s important they know I didn’t want to leave them. They’ll understand the subtext. Maybe not little Runa, but the others will explain it to her.

I’m losing everything today, and I can’t even take the time to think about it. I leave the note in a place my sisters will find it then return to my things in the kitchen. My heart aches to join my family in the remembrance of Mother. I should be here for all of it, especially the funeral march two days from now, but the best I can hope for is to watch from a distance.

If I’m safe staying in the village.

Even that is nothing more than wishful thinking. I need to get out of Skoro completely. Gunnar is well respected here, so most everyone in town would jump to help him find me. He will stop at nothing to get a fat dowry from my marriage.

The people I’ve known my entire life will form a mob and drag me through the village to return me to him.

Tears blur my vision. Every time I turn around I face another loss. More than my mother, family, and home, it’s everything I’ve ever held dear. I’m forced to abandon all I’ve ever known.

The only thing I can afford to think about is survival. I don’t know what lies outside the walls of Skoro—only frightening rumors about the fae. And given Mother’s last words, I’m one of them. Kind of. Half.

There’s a chance they’ll accept me, small as it may be.

Here in Skoro, every male who reaches maturity joins the military and serves time protecting our human colony, even though fae rarely make the trek here. Not with the extreme cold weather. They like to be comfortable, so they’ve taken over the moderate climate areas, leaving the humans to make due in either the snowy regions or scorching deserts. Our kind can only live free in those rare pockets of protected land. From what I’ve heard, humans in fae territory are either slaves or in hiding.

Not that I can even call humans my kind anymore. Will I ever adjust to being both—and at the same time neither? It’s surreal to think I’m half fae, yet it does make sense.

A small fire burns in my chest. What powers do I have? How can I figure them out and use them to my advantage? Will I need to find my father to get any of those answers?

If only my mother had been able to finish her sentence. Of course it had been Gunnar who kept that information from me. Even without trying, he still manages to ruin everything for me.

My stepfather’s voice sounds louder. He must be coming closer.

I pull myself from my thoughts and realize I’m just standing here thinking. Trying to make sense of everything that just happened. Despite how much Gunnar hates me, I want to stay. The farm is all I’ve known, even if my stepfather hates me and wants to make my life miserable.

Loud footsteps echo from the other room. Soon he’s speaking with someone… It sounds like his brother. Of course he would bring his family here at a time like this, and not to mourn my mother. Gunnar wants backup should I flee instead of marrying. He’s protecting the dowry, coveting the rich man’s payment for my servitude.

Heart pounding, I quickly tiptoe toward the door. If he sees me trying to escape, he’ll tie me up or lock me in a room until Vog arrives to have his way with me.

Grief overwhelms me as I slip through the doorway for a final time. I’ll never see my mother, siblings, or this house again. After one last glance, I hurry away. Heaving a sigh that sends a puff of white vapor into the air, I turn my back on the only home I’ve ever known then start down the snow-covered dirt road to the end of the property. Hopefully the fat flakes continue to fall and cover my tracks.

I’ll have to figure a way out of the village unseen. The army guards the entrances around the clock. It’s mostly to keep out the fae, but they also refuse to let people like me leave. Women and children can’t exit without permission from their fathers or husbands. I have neither, so one would think that wouldn’t be a problem, but I’m still considered Gunnar’s. If others know of his deal, people will also see me as Vog’s.

My future depends on me escaping as soon as possible. I’ve heard of places where women can live free and make their own decisions without deferring to a man. If that’s true, I’m going to find one—even if it’s across the globe. I’m an adult but people still treat me as a child. I only stuck around because of my mother and siblings—and I’d stay if my stepfather allowed. I’ve put up with Gunnar’s mistreatment this long, I could continue a little longer. But he doesn’t want me. Worse, he wants money for me and is insisting on marrying me off. Not only do I have no desire to get married, but I refuse to wed Vog.

That’s all irrelevant. I’m on a new adventure now.

It’s dusk, which helps camouflage me as I hurry from my home. Even so, I dart near trees, posts, and anything else that will keep me from being completely out in the open.

A wind picks up, brushing more snowflakes against my exposed skin. Even with my warm coat and hat, I shiver. Soon enough, walking with these packs will have me in a sweat.

A furtive glance around tells me I’m still alone. My stepfather isn’t after me yet. He hasn’t noticed I’ve slipped away and he’s losing whatever riches Vog promised him for my hand… and more. I shudder at the thought.

All of this snow is enough to make me wonder what it would be like at the human establishments in the sunny deserts with no need for thick warm coats just to step outside. They probably have the opposite problems and dream about living somewhere cold.

It’s in the fae establishments where things are most comfortable. If I can hide my human half, I might be able to make a home for myself in one of those places. But before I do that, I have to figure out my fae powers. Somehow I need to solve this mystery with nothing to go on. I don’t know my real father’s name or even which type of fae he is. And if he wants nothing to do with me, I’ll never find him. His powers must vastly outshine whatever mine might be—he’s had decades or even centuries to hone his skills, depending on what type he is and how old he is.

He might be willing to talk to me. I am his daughter. The fact that he had a relationship with my mother shows he isn’t fully against humans, unless of course he didn’t realize what she was. He clearly didn’t accept her being pregnant with me, or they’d have married. I wouldn’t have grown up with a stepfather who despises my very existence.

Everything is a gamble, but I have no other choice than my natural father. He’s the only one who can provide the answers I need. Even if he gives me the boot after filling in some blanks, at least that would be better than where I’m at now.

Alone and cold with the only life I know literally behind me.

It takes nearly half an hour to reach the edge of the farmland. I keep focused on the dirt road ahead, ignoring the fields and large livestock. I’ve spent my life caring for them—before Gunnar relegated me to manure patrol when Mother became too ill to know what was going on outside her bedroom—and breaks my heart to think about never seeing the animals again. I can’t handle more loss.

So I concentrate on the road ahead and the dancing snowflakes. With each step I take, I get warmer. More comfortable. My confidence grows in my ability to make this adventure work. Never mind not knowing how I’m going to get through the settlement’s walls or what lies behind them. Those are problems for later.

Once I reach the edge of the property, I pause. Give myself a moment to rest and catch my breath since nobody else is in sight. The main gravel road past the farmland gives me three options. I’d rather avoid the middle one that leads directly into the bustling main part of town.

The other two routes will eventually take me to the sides of the territory where I can potentially find a way out. It won’t be easy—the walls are designed to keep people on their proper side. But the army can’t be everywhere, and everything has weaknesses. I just have to find one of the wall’s secret entrances.

Someone grabs my arm, and a deep male voice booms behind me. “What do you think you’re doing?”

My heart leaps into my throat, my knees wobble. Why didn’t I grab a weapon before leaving?

I whip around, prepared to either fight or run.

And hopefully survive.