He raised an eyebrow. “I’ll be the judge of that.”
Men. I fought the urge to roll my eyes. Before I could sayanything else, he snapped his fingers. “Take her to a guest room, but ensure a guard is at the door, day and night.”
So, I was a prisoner here as well. I said nothing as the man who brought me here pulled me from the chair and led me from the room. I glanced over my shoulder, finding Hansen’s green eyes fixed on me. He said nothing; he merely watched.
We crossed the courtyard to the row of doors on the other side. Just like when I was kidnapped by Adis, a door was pushed open for me and I was directed inside. But unlike before, where behind the door had been a sad excuse for a cell, here there was a large bed decked out in green and gold linens, a wooden wardrobe, and a dressing table against the wall. I fought to keep my shock in check, as this was the nicest room I had ever seen. And I’d seen a lot of rooms the past fortnight.
“Bathing chamber is there. You will take your meals here for the time being,” the man directed before closing the door behind him.
I was still in such awe I didn’t have a chance to ask about the nightgown I wore, but I figured I would have a chance to do that later.
Unable to resist, now that I was alone, I crossed the room and jumped on the bed, smiling when I sunk into it. Although I’d had a bed like this at home, it was nothing near this soft. Plus, after weeks of sleeping on cots, this was the most luxurious thing I could have envisioned for myself.
I was basking in the plush arms of the bed, wondering if dinner would top this experience for the day, when there was a knock at the door.
Furrowing my brows, I shifted into a sitting position just in time for the door to open and a man to enter.
I recognized him immediately, my heart speeding up at the sight of him. “Leif!” Before I could consider my actions, I was across the room and pulling him into a hug. Once the novelty of seeing someone I recognized wore off, I came to my senses, pulling back to reveal what I was sure was a look of horror on myface, “How are you here?” I dropped my arms and took a step back.
Leif frowned at the distance I had put between us. “I told you I would follow you to ensure you were safe.”
I raised an eyebrow and pursed my lips. I didn’t believe him.
“All right.” He sighed, resigned. “I was one of the spies in Ralheim.”
I took a second step back, the back of my thighs brushing the plush bed. I wished I could say I was surprised, but I had already surmised someone near me had betrayed me. The betrayer being Leif actually made a lot of his recent actions make more sense. “And how did you find me in Salheim?”
“I really did follow you,” he admitted. “Hansen has been wanting me to sneak you away since we first met, and since you wouldn’t come with me to my coven . . .”
I didn’t know why, but an immense feeling of disappointment filled my stomach. “So, everything was a lie then?”
He shook his head. “No, I never lied to you—that I swear. I just didn’t tell you that I was a spy for Hansen.” His lips twisted, making it look like he might just cry. “I just . . . I was so pulled to you that I told you that first, and then I didn’t know how to back track and explain why I was there in the first place.”
“Hm.” Though I could still feel the disappointment, a flicker of hope sprung to life at his confession. “Does Hansen know?”
His eyes searched mine for a moment. “About us being weighted?” When I bobbed my chin, he shook his head. “No, that would give him power over me.”
I tilted my head to the side. “Doesn’t he already have power over you seeing as he is your employer?”
He took a step closer. I remained where I was. “It’s not like that—with weighted, I mean.” He let out a huff of air, running a hand through his blond hair. “It’s common knowledge that weighted can always find each other, no matter how far apart they are. It is also known that they will sacrifice anything for each other, even their own wellbeing.”
I closed my eyes, diving into the emotions I was feeling. His words made sense in that they explained how he always found me, and I did feel something, almost like a thread, connecting us. But what I didn’t feel was that I would do almost anything for him. For example, currently, I would definitely pick sleeping in this bed over this conversation with him. It wasthatsoft.
I tried to picture my parents’ relationship in my mind, frowning when the image failed to emerge.
“Your feelings will grow in time. Then you will see,” he said, his voice just above a whisper as he practically read my thoughts.
My eyes snapped open to see he had closed the distance between us, leaving him now standing toe to toe with me. I scooted back on the bed. “Why did you tell him where to find me then?”
A baffled expression appeared on his face. “So he could get you away from Otho.”
I frowned, still unsure how I felt about Ralheim’s general. “And you thought my being a prisoner here would be more to my liking?” I really didn’t understand his justifications if he really thought we were weighteds.
He swept his arm around the room. “Does this look like a cell?” When I just shook my head, he sighed and reached for my hand. “Runa, I am just one man. I got you away from Adis and Otho in the only way I knew how, since you wouldn’t sneak off to my village with me in the dead of night.”
I withdrew my hand, reasonably sure I had been the one to earn my freedom away from Adis, but I didn’t voice that.
“Runa.” He reached forward, tilting my chin up as he stood between my legs. “I know you don’t trust me, you have every reason not to. But I know my feelings for you, and they are different from any other person I have ever met. I know you are my weighted, and I will do whatever it takes to prove it to you. I’ll move a mountain if that’s what you ask of me.”
