“I’ll go through the window first,” he says. “Make sure it’s clear. Then I’ll pull you up and we’ll move quietly to where the horses are kept.”
The grate slides across the window again, the sound making me wince. He waits a few minutes to make sure it’s safe, and then slides the window open, handing me his pack. He pulls himself up, then reaches for the pack, sets it down, and pulls me through. He presses a kiss to my lips as a reminder for silence, which makes me grin like a fool. He smiles back.
Funny how a few days earlier, he collected me from the room with a finger pressed over my lips as a reminder. I much prefer the kiss instead.
Taking my hand, he leads me around the back of the hut, peers around the wall, and we skirt across to the next building. We do the same thing with the next hut, over and over, avoiding the homes with lights on, until there’s a clearing that leads to the stables. With a few clicks of his tongue, a horse trots over like he knows Varguk.
Var ties his bag onto the animal, sets me astride, and then climbs on behind me.
We trot right out of the stables without a word.
Once we’re clear, he strikes up a heavier trot, taking us through winding trees and alongside a running creek. The moon is full and it’s probably one of the reasons he picked this night to leave.
After a bit, when the trees grow thicker, he slows us to a walk again. It’s cool out, and he lets his steed drink from the creek while we sit wrapped together at the base of a tree.
“You can sleep,” he murmurs in my ear. “I’ll wait for the first rays of the sun and wake you so we can be on our way.”
“How far are we from West Mountain land?”
“A ways. We can’t travel fast. We have to take hidden roads to keep away from other clans. Our villages are set up like a maze so we can always be aware of travelers.”
My breathing grows steady and next thing I know, I feel him shift. The sky is lighter—just barely—and I know he wants to mount and ride.
The horse travels slowly until there’s a good glow rising over the horizon, and then he picks up the pace.
Chapter Fifteen
Varguk:
BY THE TIME WE enter West Mountain territory, we’re surrounded by their scouts. They move up right alongside us and without a word, escort us toward Solaya.
Negan looks around in confusion. “What is going on? They know me.”
“’Tis alright, female,” I croon in her ear. “This is the way it has to be.”
“I-I don’t understand,” she says.
But she will.
I’m not one of them and I never will be. That’s okay, because it’s worth it to bring Negan home safely. She deserves her friends, her loved ones, her father. She deserves to be protected and treated like the vessel of beauty she is.
“No one’s talking,” she says.
“Probably in a hurry to get you safely to their village,” I assure her.
She bites her bottom lip like she’s worried and so I squeeze her tight. Goddess, she is so small compared to me. So delicate. I don’t deserve her, but I’m not ever letting her go. Not until she’s taken from me.
It’s not long before we reach Solaya. Most of the royal guard are at the gates where they’re ready to care for the animals. They standaround, waiting for us to get off the horse. When I dismount and then help her off, she huddles next to me—wary, unsure. Definitely on edge.
The males around us tense. I know what’s coming. Suddenly I want to shield her from anguish.
“Negan, whatever happens, it’ll be okay. I promise.”
“I don’t understand. What’s the problem?” Her gaze searches my face. “Why isn’t anyone meeting my eyes?”
Hooking my finger under her chin, I turn her face toward me. “Negan,” I say softly. “This is the way it needs to be.”
“I-I don’t… what do you mean?”
