- The Old Book
Imust have dozed through the afternoon, because the grumbling of my stomach woke me to the setting sun.
My eyes opened enough to note the wisps of darkness in the Sky. My cheek was warm and my body relaxed as I breathed in the air’s woody aroma. I closed my eyes once more and listened to the soothing, steady beat of the wind—until I realized that the wind shouldn’t beat.
My eyes flared open, and I found that my head was resting on Rowan’s chest behind me. I frantically sat up, almost falling off the horse. I would have fallen, too, if Rowan hadn’t wrapped his arm around me and corrected my balance.
“Get your hand off of me!” I panicked, and he let go.
“I think the phrase you are looking for is ‘thank you for saving me.’”
“Saving me?! You abducted me!”
“I recall a certain willingness on your part. Something about sacrificing yourself for that girl. What was her name again? Alona?”
“Don’t speak of her,” I bit out.
“No? What about the man who soheroicallytried to save you? Was that your lover? He definitely looked at you like he’d seen you na—”
“Don’t be crass. And don’t speak of him either,” I interjected. The jabs at me were one thing, but attacking those I loved was another.
“But he didn’t save you, did he? No, he just stood there as you offered yourself up to the wolves.”
“He tried to step in,” I bristled. His accusations, coupled with my growing hunger, were eroding my remaining sense of reason.
“No, he watched and let you be taken. He stepped in at the last moment to preserve whatever shred of dignity he believed he had. Lies are easy to believe. The truth is brutal. I’m sorry to be the one to tell you this, but if he had wanted to free you, he could have.”
That was the last straw. I elbowed his chest sharply. A sliver of pride filled me when I heard him release a low grunt. That pride was gone in an instant.
A deep chuckle vibrated against my back, and I froze.
That was worse than silence.
I clenched my fists and let myself feel the bite of my nails in my palms.
“You’re psychotic,” I muttered under my breath, but loud enough for him to hear.
We had reached the prairie, with faint light still left in the Sky.
I looked out over the grasslands, at the red and orange hues of the changing pastures. There was nothing but tall grass and withering wildflowers for as far as the eye could see. It was beautiful but completely different from the wooded area surrounding Oak Hollow that I’d grown up in my entire life.
When I was a child, I dreamed about exploring the continent and seeing all of Ethoria. My wanderlust had dimmed as I grew older and became more aware of my responsibilities. Kaven was right when he told me I was trapped in Oak Hollow. I didn’t want to believe him. But it’s true. I had become complacent, content to be stuck in a stalemate forever.
I had never been this far from home, and yet I felt no awe—only a dull ache in my chest. The longing for the smell of freshly cut oak stung my throat.
The horses stopped moving, and Veilers began dismounting alongside the culled. Rowan descended and turned to me. I prepared myself to be lifted, but he didn’t touch me.
“As much as I would love to continue our back-and-forth repartee, I’m afraid it ends here for the night.”
“Why? Are you afraid the others will question if you can handle me?”
“No, rather why I haven’t. The others would expect me to punish you for speaking out of turn and in disrespect of a man of my stature.”
I almost laughed. “A man of your stature?”
“Yes.” He nodded affirmatively.
“What are you, their leader?”
