“Now I see why there were no other types of Fae at the ball,” I said.
Pharis nodded, closing his eyes.
“Anyway, there’d be no point in them attending a ball where the purpose was to find a bond-mate for the Crown Prince,” he said. “Intermarriage between Fae species is forbidden, just as it is with humans.”
“Because humans are so ‘inferior?’” I asked with a bit of an edge to my tone. “Or because Fae and humans can’t reproduce?”
“I’ve never heard of any children produced by such a union. Then again I’ve never heard of any Elves bonded to humans.”
He was quiet for so long I wondered if he’d fallen asleep. Then he spoke again.
“I doubt any Elves have even considered it—apart from my brother, who was clearly spelled by the witch.”
The offhand remark stung. I rubbed my nose, which had started to tingle and blinked back a surprising upsurge of tears.
Why did I even care what he thought?
Looking over at Pharis’ regal profile, I reminded myself how little regard he had for me and my kind.
Clearlyhewould never consider taking a human as a bond-mate, as Stellon had been willing and ready to do. I was surprised Pharis even considered my life worthy of preservation.
Of course, he was only doing all this at Stellon’s request.
As he’d said earlier when he’d ordered me to put my hood back on, Pharis was only being this careful because he didn’t want to get caught aiding a fugitive.
He was covering his own muscular backside.
I had to admit to a begrudging respect for the loyalty and love he held for his siblings. I could relate to that. But it was, as far as I could see, Pharis’ only admirable quality.
Suddenly I was filled with fresh urgency to get to my own siblings and my father.
If Sorcha could spell Stellon to fall in love with a human, she could use her magic to influence the jailer to release her or find some other way out of the palace.
I didn’t know her well, but I knew she was clever—and she was determined to make me suffer for failing to uphold my end of the bargain. I couldn’t let my family pay the price.
Waiting until Pharis’ breathing steadied and grew deep and slow, I pushed to my feet and crept toward the cave opening.
As he’d said, it was pouring out.
Well, I’d walked in the rain before, and maybe the gray skies and the downpour would make me less visible to the soldiers Pharis said would be searching for me.
I stepped into the cold rain and picked my way carefully over the uneven rocks at the cave’s entrance until I reached the grass.
Moving through it was even more difficult now that it was wet. The long fronds tugged at me like hundreds of hands grabbing at my long dress and trying to drag me down.
Travel had been much quicker near the forest where the shade of the trees inhibited the grasses’ growth, but there was no way I’d cross the field and get anywhere near that terrifying place again.
Pharis had told me the Dryads were nocturnal. It was possible the storm-darkened skies resembled nightfall enough to awaken them. So I moved closer to the large rocks again.
The footing was less stable here, but the grass was shorter. Keeping to the perimeter of the stony formations, I moved in the direction Pharis had been taking us this morning.
Hopefully when I got beyond the end of the forest to my left and the rocks to my right, I’d recognize something, a neighboring village perhaps. For now, I’d continue my escort’s policy of avoiding the roads—that seemed wise.
I tried to estimate how long it might take to walk home.
Riding to the palace in the horse-drawn carriage had taken a little more than two hours, but I wasn’t sure how long it might be going this way, on foot without the road to guide me and make travel smooth.
Thanks to the rain and the slippery stones underfoot, I made slow progress. And each time I reached a crevasse in the rock formations, I tensed, squinting into the heavy curtain of rain, looking for those bears Pharis mentioned.
