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“That is where we will have our wedding feast,” he says.

“Except there will be no feast,” his mother cuts in. “We will pack you a basket.”

Eraric’s shoulders slump. “I think we could spare an hour to—”

“We cannot.”

The queen leads us past the empty stone table to a narrow path. The king and queen go first. Eraric follows…until he sees Sergeant Hauge slipping in behind me. At that, Eraric moves me in front of him, murmuring an apology for momentarily forgetting his manners.

We proceed through a rocky passage and come out beside a beautiful waterfall.

“Oh!” I say, hurrying forward.

Again, it is Sergeant Hauge who stops me, this time only stepping into my path. “Take care, my lady,” he says as he motions to the sheer drop a few feet away, the waterfall rushing down into a distant pit.

My heart stutters. I thought I understood how this would go.

I know the local legend, at least, and it does not involve the new bride being slaughtered on a stone table or pushed into a waterfall.

Still, the legend and the reality often bear only a passing resemblance to one another, the story third cousin to the truth.

“It is fine to stand where you are,” Sergeant Hauge says, his voice low. “I will stay where I am. You are safe.”

“Of course she is safe,” Eraric snaps. “She is with me.”

Hauge only nods and stays between me and that precipice. The king and queen walk farther, onto a jutting rock, and I hold my breath, ready for them to call me out there. I did not expect this, and I’m not ready. If they—

“Oh, great gryphon,” the queen intones, lifting her hands. “Bear witness to my son’s new bride, a common girl, as you demand.”

I brace, and Hauge does, too, but Eraric stays relaxed, and the queen makes no move to summon me over.

She keeps babbling nonsense, and I soon realize it is for my benefit.

After all, they have said the gryphon only wants Eraric to marry – so thoughtful!

– and therefore they have invented this little ceremony to tell the beast that the deed is done, and they hope it is now satisfied with our nuptial bliss…

as it munches on the corpse of poor Captain Basara.

“Please accept the gift of this ring,” the queen says.

When she reaches for me, Hauge sidesteps, just a little, as if ready to stop her from pulling me into the pit. She gestures with impatience.

“Your ring, girl. The beast must have your wedding ring.”

“What does it want with that?”

“How should I know?” she snaps.

I lift my hand and frown at the very fine ring with its very fine stones. “But this is the symbol of my marriage. If I take it off, I am no longer married, and the beast will be angered.”

“Just give me—”

“No, Mother,” Eraric says. “She is correct. We cannot take the chance of the gryphon thinking Marielle has thrown away her vow with her ring. Use one of yours.”

The queen sputters. Oh, I understand why she wanted my ring. It is obviously a valuable heirloom. Either she would pretend to toss it in and palm it like a sideshow magician, or she would toss it onto a ledge, where she could retrieve it later.

“I will buy you a new piece of jewelry, my dear,” the king says to his wife. “Let us be done with this.”

She takes forever to choose a ring and then pitches it into the pit. “There. The ceremony is complete. Now off with you.”

“Our dinner basket?” I say.

The queen growls and starts to stomp toward the coach, which only has a single bundle atop it, leading me to suspect I was never getting a fancy dinner.

“Allow me to help you, Your Majesty,” Hauge says, striding after her, and I hold back a smile. At least someone is making sure we get a proper dinner tonight.

The king wishes us well on our ‘honeymoon,’ and then Hauge returns with an overstuffed basket. He bows to us.

“Shall we be off, Your Highnesses?” he says.

Eraric nods curtly and leads me to the single horse tied behind the coach.

“Where is yours?” I ask, looking around.

“You will ride with me,” Eraric says.

The better to ensure I do not flee. I only smile and say that sounds lovely, and then I let him help me up onto the steed.

***

Eraric is troubled. Yes, perhaps one should be troubled by the fact they are about to sacrifice their new bride, but in my experience, princes just want to get this part over with so they can get back to their normal princely lives.

The fake wedding and real sacrifice are terrible inconveniences, and even more inconvenient if they begin to suffer pangs of guilt.

I had one – a young king, actually – who became so incensed by his own emotional reaction to committing murder that he decided to blame me for the whole thing.

Worked himself into a foaming frenzy insisting it was my fault for being a young virgin, upon which I told him that I absolutely was not a virgin and it was his fault for making such a ridiculous presumption based on my age and gender. That one did not go well.

“I need to confess something to you,” Eraric leans forward and whispers in my ear.

I sigh. Part of me does not wish to hear this confession.

It is easier if I can simply continue playing the role of the dewy-eyed virgin sacrifice until the last moment.

However, there is always the risk of the prince being caught in the crossfire, and I would hate to do that if he did not deserve it.

“Yes, my lord?” I say as I shift, trying to get more comfortable. I am seated in front of him, which is damnably un comfortable. But if I were riding behind him, I could slip off and flee, so I am here, ostensibly safe in his arms.

“Hauge!” Eraric calls, the sudden shout making me jump.

The sergeant looks back.

“Ride on ahead,” Eraric says. “I wish to speak to my bride in private.”

Hauge’s gaze meets mine, and Eraric’s arms tighten, but Hauge only nods and spurs his horse ahead.

“I fear you are in danger,” Eraric whispers. “There is…” He sucks in breath. “My mother did not reveal the whole of the legend.”

“Whatever do you mean?”

“It is…possible the gryphon may still come for you. That it may demand, well, you.”

I twist to look at him, all innocence and fluttering lashes. “What would the beast want with me?”

“Er…” He tugs at his collar. “I…do not know exactly, but I fear…I fear it would harm you.”

“Oh dear.”

“Yes. That is why my parents wanted us to ride this way at night. It is also why we were supposed to have a full quartet of guards, to ensure I did not try to save you if the gryphon comes.”

“Oh my.”

“But I will,” he says hurriedly. “Fate has intervened, leaving us with only one guard. Hauge is not the commanding officer, so it is unlikely he knows the exact instructions. We are supposed to ride through a certain mountain pass, in case the gryphon wishes to take you. I am going to suggest another route.”

“But won’t the sergeant tell your parents the truth?”

“I have jewels. I intended to try and bribe the captain, but instead, I will pay Hauge. He will need to flee the country, of course, but he will have the wherewithal to do so.”

“And then?”

“Well, then we shall tell my parents that the gryphon took him but left you alive, which must mean that it wishes for you to live.”

And then? I want to ask. Pure curiosity, of course. Eraric seems like a lovely young man, but I very much doubt he would ask me to stay, and even if he did, I have a fate to chase, monsters to slay.

Perhaps he does not specify our future plans because he does not wish to address them. What would he say? That he has fallen madly in love with me on the barest acquaintance? That is not how things work, but I am a young woman, naive and hopeful, and I might be crushed if he did not say that.

I am secretly pleased by his plan, though.

It is terribly sweet. I will still need to slay the beast, for his kingdom’s sake, but I am unreasonably delighted to find a young nobleman who does not wish to sacrifice me to a monster.

They are so very rare. It gives me hope that Eraric will be a good ruler, one who will break from his family’s traditions. I would dearly love to see that.

“Your Highness?” Hauge calls from ahead. “I should not be so far in advance for too long. May I return?”

Eraric sighs. “Yes, yes. Come back.”

When Hauge approaches, he is studiously looking away from me, but I can see the worry in his eyes.

“All is well, Sergeant,” I say. “We have seen no sign of the beast, but my husband has a question for you. Did Captain Basara tell you which route we are to take?”

Eraric gives a soft chuckle, and he squeezes my arm, obviously pleased at my show of intelligence.

“Yes,” the prince says. “I was debating the routes, and I was not certain what the captain’s plan was.”

“He did not say.”

“Good. Then—”

“However,” Hauge cuts in, “the queen was clear that we are to take the main mountain pass. I am” – Hauge clears his throat – “not certain I agree. I hate to question Her Majesty’s order, but that pass is where the beast flew. I tried to say so, but she was adamant.”

“You are right to question, my good man. My mother knows many things, but she does not know these mountains. I explored them for years before the gryphon woke. I have another idea of a passage we might take, though it is steep.”

“My horse is surefooted,” Hauge says. “Elevation will allow us to see the creature, if it comes. Please, Your Highness, if you would guide us, I would appreciate that.”

***

We dine before we ascend the mountain path.

Earlier, I could sense Eraric was troubled.

Now it is Sergeant Hauge giving off the same sharp aura of distress.

That concerns me. He’d seemed happy with the change of plans, but now he clearly struggles not to keep looking back at us.

When he does – and I see his expression – I send a warning look of my own.

If this goes awry, I cannot afford to make Eraric suspicious.