“That’s what you keep saying,” I replied. “But unless you explain, I’m left to speculate. I’m not interested in what happened between you and the prince. I want to know what you said to him last night.”
“What are you getting at?” Leya asked. “Are you accusing me of telling the prince you’ve run away? Do you think I’m that stupid?”
“No,” I admitted. “I think you’re smarter than that. Which is exactly why I can’t shake the feeling that you told him something you shouldn’t have.”
“Did you ever think that if I had, you’d already be dragged out of this coach by now?”
“I know him. I understand the games he plays.”
Something flickered in Leya’s eyes, but she only shook her head. “I’ll say this one last time, Odessa. I didn’t tell the prince anything. I want you out of my life. Let that be the end of it.”
I tried to settle, but the doubt clung to me. My head dropped back against the side of the coach, aching from the chimes of stillness. But the real pain was the tension twisting through me.
What if Gadriel knew?
I told myself he wouldn’t confront me outright. He would wait for the right moment. If anything, that only made it worse. Gadriel’s cruelty was never loud. He punished with precision. He waited until you thought you were safe, then made you bleed for it.
“Fine,” I said, pulling back slightly. I had no real reason to doubt Leya at this point. “Once we reach the city, I’ll find a way to leave. The carriage master mentioned we’d be switching horses at the next station, though I don’t know if that will mean different riders. I suspect we’ll only make one stop today, and we’ll likely follow that pattern throughout the journey.”
Leya seemed unconvinced. “And how exactly do you plan on doing that? Once we’re in the city, with the prince, the riders, the carriage master, and the knights watching, how do you expect it to work? If you get caught, so will I.”
“I won’t get caught,” I countered. “But listen, I need you to do something. Take a look out the quarter light. Can you see the city? What does it look like?”
Leya eyed me warily, then rose from her furs and moved to the small rectangular window by the door. She unlocked the latch and pulled the wooden divider aside. Sunlight flooded in as she peered out, doing her best to catch a glimpse of what lay ahead, though I could see her struggling to make out the details.
“We’re getting closer,” she said. “What was it called again? Falholm?”
“Falhurst,” I corrected her.
Leya rose onto her toes, her eyes scanning the distance. “Not much to see, really. There’s a stone wall all around the city, and it looks like we’re heading toward a gate. Everything’s pretty bleak. Just hills and bare trees for miles. It’s bigger than I expected.”
I thought for a moment, trying to picture it. “We’ll likely be stopped at the gate for inspection. With the prince’s orders, we shouldn’t have much trouble getting through. As for the carriage station, I have no idea what it will be like, but that’s my chance to slip away. Once we’re closer, I’ll take the risk and check it out myself.”
“I pray to the gods you don’t get us both killed.”
I rose and turned to face her. “I understand it’s a lot to ask, but I may need your help, Leya. At least until I’m out of the carriage. I have a cloak just like yours, so I can cover my face, but that won’t be enough. I need to know that if things go wrong, you’ll back me up.”
Her lips pressed into a thin line. “What kind of help are we talking about?”
“Anything. Distracting the knights, swapping places with me, even lying to the prince. Can you manage that?” I lowered my eyes. “I’m asking for one final favor. Help me break free from him.”
Leya hesitated, her fingers playing with the edge of her nightgown, then said, “I’ll do what I can.”
27
“Move forward! Next!”a voice rang out from a distance.
The carriage lurched forward as the box driver gave the command. Not long before, as we approached Falhurst, Leya and I had seen the first carriage pass through the gates. After, we’d closed the quarter light quickly, hearing only the second one pass, and then returned to our places as the third followed. Ours was the fourth to be inspected.
Gadriel’s had passed without delay, while the second and third were held up slightly. Thankfully, no one had entered any of them, and I felt a slight release of tension. I could only hope our inspection would go just as smoothly.
We came to a stop, and the exchange between our driver and the inspector began.
There was no risk I was willing to take, so I buried myself in Leya’s furs, hidden away in one of her chests. Though I had seen her fear earlier, she had regained her composure quickly, moving with the grace expected of a courtesan.
I trusted Leya to handle the inspectors if something went awry. Inthe brief time we had spent together, I had come to understand a little more about the woman I had lived beside for a year. We weren’t quite friends, but there was a quiet understanding growing between us.
“Is there a passenger inside the coach?” The inspector’s voice came through, muffled from outside.
