Alek sighs, then looks back to the stable hand, whose eyes are wide as saucers. “Ready a trap instead,” he says.
The stable hand scurries. “Yes, my lord.”
I have no idea what atrapis, but Alek says nothing else, so we stand there awkwardly while the stable hand outfits a horse with a gleaming leather harness, then leads the animal out of the barn. As the minutes tick on, I’m so aware of the beat of my heart, pounding hard against the inside of my ribs.
I can’t separate those two moments in my head: the warm weight of his body against me, the way he held me afterward and made me feel so treasured.
And then the moment when he looked at me like the most terrifying creature to ever exist.
Against my will, tears gather behind my eyes. I hate him.I hate him.Hooves clop from behind us. “Here you are, my lord.”
I blink the tears away, but not quickly enough. Alek catches a glimpse of my expression, and he does a double take.
Ugh.I sniff back the tears and turn to face the stable hand. It seems that atrapis a small carriage, because the vehicle tethered to the horse has two wheels and a wide seat, but no doors and no cover.
Without a word, Alek offers me his hand. I reach out and take it, which is clearly another surprise, because his eyebrows shoot up, and he guides me forward.
Then I squeeze his fingers together like a bunch of twigs, and he jerks his hand away, cursing under his breath.
“Did you learn that from your little sister?” he growls under his breath.
“As a matter of fact, yes, I did.”
“I should have known better,” he says.
There’s a rueful note in his voice that I can’t quite figure out, and I peer at him curiously before I can stop myself. He glances over as he takes the reins in hand, then clucks to the horse.
“I was once a little brother,” he says, as if that explains everything.
In a way, it does. His tone is light, but those first words—I was once—hit me harder than I expect.
Because I forgot: his sister was attacked by soldiers, just like mine. Only his sister never came home.
He’s so bold and brazen that I always forget that he’s lost his entire family to war and magic. Maybe the emotion over Nora never really left me, because I find myself clearing my throat again. “I’m sorry,” I say, and then I immediately regret it. He’s the last person in the world to deserve an apology— and I’m not even the one who brought this up.
Alektsksunder his breath. “Come now, Callyn, you were ready to stab me half an hour ago. Now you look like you’re about to cry.”
Well, that chases away the tears. “Don’t worry. I’m still ready to stab you.”
He chuckles as the horse draws the carriage— thetrap, I suppose— through the gates, and we rattle over the cobblestones. But after a moment, his own emotion goes somber.
“Forgive me,” he says. “I truly did not consider that you wouldn’t know how to ride. My intent was not to imply weakness or poverty.”
He’s so frank about this that I really do think he’s being genuine, and it takes the wind out of my sails a bit— but not so much that it changes my attitude about him being here. I shrug and look out at the city as we pass. “I suppose it’s no surprise that a man born to privilege would forget that other people arenot.”
I expect him to bristle or spar with words, but he nods. “True enough.”
“Tell me what you’re doing, Alek. Are you dragging me outside the city walls to abandon my body somewhere?”
“Come now, Callyn. I certainly wouldn’t undertake such a taskmyself.”
I think he’s being funny, but the sad thing is that it’s probably also true.
He glances over. “I haven’t lied to you. The queen did ask me to take you on my rounds among the nobles. While many people are pleased that the king is gone, I suspect there are some who believe the queen should be, too.”
I gasp.
“You’re surprised?” he says. “You yourself know the queen’s life was threatened when she was captured in Briarlock.”
