Once they were both seated on either side of me, I began to tell my freshly invented story about how much my mother and I adored the root. I kept my voice soft and low as I spoke and waited patiently for both children to press their weight against me and start dozing. Once I was certain they were both asleep, I gently laid them down on the mattress and untied Bindi’s cloak from her shoulders.
Just as I had hoped, the cloak was only a few inches too short on me and concealed me rather well with the hood up.Time to put my stealth training to the test...I grabbed the tray of mugs and untouched food, then started for the door.
chapter seven
I passed the guard with my head low and the tray held high. From the corner of my eye, I felt his gaze flick to me, but only for a brief moment. I kept walking at a quickened pace, adding a playful skip in my step, much like I had seen Bindi do. As I moved through the cave’s inner tunnels, I took slow steadying breaths of the musty air. I needed to remain calm and clear-headed if I was going to be successful. As I reached the entryway that led into the central opening of the cave, I placed my tray on the ground, pushing it deep into the shadows. Fooling a guard that I was Bindi was one thing, but I didn’t know who else would recognize her in the main gathering space.
I took a slow breath, then straightened my back, removing my childlike posture. Before stepping into the crowd, I pulled the hood down to my eyebrows, ensuring my vibrant red hair was fully concealed. As I stepped into the wider cave, my ears instantly ached from the excessive echoing caused by the multitude of conversations. My feet remained trained to the outer walls, pressing into the shadows as much as possible. There were a few other openings that likely led to different sections of the cave, but I recalled from my arrival that the narrowest opening contained the exit. Unfortunately, the closer I got to the desired passage, the denser the crowd grew. It soon became impossible to stick to the walls, so I parted from the shadows and quickened my pace through the collection of people. My tiny size made it easy to slip around the rebels unnoticed, and soon enough, I found myself facing the narrow passage.
An elated smile spread across my face as I scurried out of the tunnel. A hint of fresh air tickled my nose, and I instantly relished in the clean air. Just as before, the tunnel grew shorter, and I was forced to bend down. A stalagmite caught the top of my hood, pulling it down around my shoulders, but I didn’t bother to fix it.
I’m so close…
The first flicker of sunlight glinted into my eyes, and I felt as though I could sing for joy. I leaned down to focus on climbing over a particularly unstable rock, but when I looked up, I nearly toppled over.
“You! What are you doing here?!”
My joy drained as I looked up into the eyes of my unwanted betrothed. Todd was entering the cave with a basketful of supplies as I was attempting my escape.
For the love of the realms, why him?
In a rapid moment, I shook off my surprise and decided to take advantage of his bewilderment. I quickly vaulted over the stone in my path and pushed straight past the dumbfounded man. In a quick glance, I took note that he wasn’t carrying his bow. If I could put enough distance between us, I still might be able to escape. My eyes flicked back for a second glance, and I noticed that despite not wielding his bow, he still carried my dagger. A surge of frustration ripped through me at the sight, but as much as it pained me to leave it behind, I didn’t have any other options.
I bolted.
“Get back here!” Todd screamed behind me.
He reached out for me, but it was no use—my light body was far too swift for him take hold of me. As I fully ran out of the cave’s shadow, I felt the warmth of the sunshine brush my cheek. It had been nearly impossible to tell the time of day from inside the cave, so I was relieved to find that there was still plenty of light left in the day. The fresh air nearly made me lightheaded as my heart pumped the clean oxygen into my straining muscles. Todd went quiet, so I assumed he must have retreated into the cave to collect reinforcements.
I need to disappear, and fast.
My eyes quickly landed on a thin line of shrubs and scrawny trees. I quickly adjusted my course for the greenery. It wasn’t much cover, but it was better than nothing. As I rapidly approached the shrubs, my ears picked up on a new noise.
Running water…
A flash of sunlight blinded me for a moment before passing behind a cloud. When my vision cleared, I learned where the sound had come from. Just beyond the loose line of trees was a wide, coursing river. There were very few major water sources in our kingdom, but there was a large river that separated the eastern lands, that bordered Ashbourne with the western lands.I must be close to the west then.With this new knowledge, I knew I would need to travel away from the river in order to return home. However, there was no suitable cover to the east, so I would have to hide along the water until it was safe to journey home.
My feet flew swiftly across the ground as I aimed for the thickest part of the brush. Right before I made contact with the shrubbery, the cloud overhead moved once more, allowing the sun to veil my eyes. I raised my hand to block the glare from my face, but not before I tumbled through the bushes with a much rougher impact than expected. A hard force slammed into me, throwing my feet out from under me. I fell straight forward onto something that was far too hard to be a bush. In my daze, I hardly even noticed the audible “oof” that sounded from my landing pad. Once the sound registered, I pressed my arms up against the strong surface below me, and my jaw fell open.
I crashed straight into a man…
For a moment, I remained silent and frozen, as did the man beneath me. His steel-gray eyes gripped mine with a stunned glare. He must have been hiding in the bushes for some reason; maybe he was a lookout? Or perhaps he was collecting water from the river? I stared at his shocked face for a moment, wondering if he was going to cry out to his fellow rebels, but he stayed silent. Instead, his stunned glare shifted into a more intense look, as if he was studying me.
This was a strange moment to admit such a thing to myself, but the man was extremely attractive. His dark hair swept mysteriously only a touch above his brow, and his features were well-defined. Then there were his eyes... His searching eyes softened as a curious light began to shine through them. The oddness of his reaction held me stiff for a moment, until I quickly remembered that I was being chased by a group of rebels who wanted to force me into a wedding, and I was thrown over a strange man with my hands resting on his chest.
A hot blush swirled through my cheeks as I hurried off of him. “I’m so sorry. The sun was in my eyes. I was just trying to—” I bit my tongue, halting my words.
This man is likely with the rebellion. I shouldn’t speak to him.
“That’s quite alright,” the man replied coolly, raising himself off the ground. “Are you alright? You appeared to be running from something?” His gray eyes flicked to mine with a much more concerned look before grazing his eyes across the stretch of land I just crossed.
Does he not recognize me from the assembly?
“Yes, I mean no, I mean—” My words came out breathlessly as my lungs fought to restore my air supply from my pounding adrenaline.I have no intentions of trusting this man. I just need to run. “Sorry, I’m fine. I just need to leave at once.” Without awaiting his reply, I dashed along the tree line. As fascinating—and admittedly, attractive—as that man was, I didn’t have the time to stick around and make conversation. However, I only made it two full steps before a sharp tug threw me backward.
“Wait a moment!” the man called out in a hushed whisper. His strong hand laced around my wrist, preventing me from stepping further. “You’re running from the rebels, aren’t you?”
My body tensed at the man’s question, and I instinctively tried to tug my hand free. He definitely noticed my panicked reaction, but he didn’t let go; instead, his eyes locked onto mine. He looked so...desperate? Like he so badly wanted to do or say something.