AllFreeNovel
Share Us
As if on cue, that image of his face pressed its way into my mind for the thousandth time, the texture of his stubble and full lips practically throbbing against my fingertips. My heart was already on overdrive before I could fully inhale. He had locked my door from his side after he left, something that was not unusual. But now…
“He went to his weekly training,” Aeinya’s Catalyst said, careful to keep her eyes downcast. “He said he will be back by nightfall.”
My heart gave another almighty lurch.
“He said?” I was nearly squeaking. “Do you know the–” I flailed my hands around, trying to mimic what I had seen the Boy do with my mother’s Catalyst last night. Aeinya’s Catalyst looked at me like I was crazy, her eyes somehow both wide and narrowed. My hand waving resorted to laughter as the poor Catalyst looked from me to Aeinya before dropping her gaze again.
“Don’t worry, I’m not crazy. It’s a real thing, I promise.” She still didn’t look at me.
“He will return.” Was all she said, her focus now solely on her feet.
Well, at least he wasn’t running away from me after last night. He was required to go to training once a week, and I was supposed to stay in my room while he did, which never happened.
“Well, I for one am glad he’s not here. I know you like the security he brings, but your shadow is creepy.” Aeinya was already pulling me out of the door.
“He is not creepy!” I smacked her arm and changed her gate, suddenly walking like the Boy always did, hand on her imaginary sword as she led with her head.
I don’t think I had noticed how much he walked like that until this very moment. She looked ridiculous.
“Carry, tell her I’m not wrong. I mean, you’ve spent more time with him than I have when we are here. You’ve noticed.” Aeinya turned to her Catalyst, who was clearly trying not to smile.
“He is her guard,” was all she said, although I was fairly sure she wasn’t even trying to hide her grin of agreement.
“Thanks Carry,” Aeinya rolled her eyes before turning back to me. “And don’t get me started on the whole getup.” She gestured to her face, mimicking how the shroud covers all of him. “He’s worse than a shadow, he’s your wraith, Elara. It’s creepy.”
I rolled my eyes, “He has to wear that.”
“But why?” she asked, still sounding disgusted.
I shrugged. I’d often asked him, but it wasn’t like he could answer, and Batian would recite some old law from centuries before I was born. Perhaps I would learn whatever hand language he had been speaking and find out for myself.
There were a lot of things I would like to find out for myself. Starting with his name.
“Well, maybe that’s something else I would change. Unless he is a beast under there, all hideous and deformed.” She shrieked in laughter, changing her walk into a monster.
“He’s not.” The precious bits of his face flooded back into view, but so did that scar, the hideous line that ran down his ear and neck. My stomach clenched, the angry red skin bringing out a whole different set of emotions.
Anger. Fear. A dark need to find out who had done that to him and do it right back.
“Ooooh?” Her monster walk was forgotten as she leaned in and whispered in my ear. “How do you know, Princess? Did you steal a peak?”
“No!” I pushed her away, but she came right back, tugging me against her.
“I bet you did, you’re a sly minx like that.”
“I did not!” Could I sound any more guilty? She gave me a look, she was going to keep pushing. I glared right back, I wasn’t budging.
I won.
“Fair enough,” she sighed, backing down and leading me down the hall. “But we should get him another uniform. Poor boy must be sweating day in and day out.”
That I could agree with.
The cook, Lari, was in fact waiting for us, all of the pastries that Aeinya had ordered laid out on a small table in the corner of the massive kitchen. There were scones, and tiny cakes, but also cold duck and potato cakes from last night. Half way through the meal she even brought over a pile of sandwiches for us to take, and for me to save for later. I peeked in the bag to find even more cakes and scones, things that were forbidden to me. Lari gave me a wink before she waddled away, ordering her staff to continue work on whatever massive meal they were making for that evening.
They would be busy as every royal household from the Realm continued to arrive for the wedding. These would have to last me, but even cold sandwiches were better than daily gruel.
“That’s when she said I was two feet over!” Aeinya shrieked, continuing some story about when she had been a Cedrian, an accolade in training her magic. “I had accidentally sent the river into the neighboring village!” Aeinya laughed and I popped more blueberry cake into my mouth, well aware I was going to be sick later but not caring.
