She leaned across her horse and pulled me in for a hug. We held each other slightly awkwardly with our horses so close together.
“I believe in you,” she whispered, and handed me a bag of coins and her leftover food rations.
She pointed out a village at the base of Mount Grimhorn on my map and gave me the name of an inn, saying she’d send a raven to check in on me there. Then she pulled back and rode off without another word.
I swallowed hard, slightly regretting my boldness now that I was faced with traveling in an unfamiliar land alone. This was the first time I’d been truly alone since I arrived in Ethereum. I’d been with Stryker since we left his castle, and then Dawn these past few days.
Stryker.
My heart pinched, but the truth was that if he hadn’t left me, I wouldn’t be alone right now.
After hours of riding, I stopped at a small town for the night. As I lay down to sleep that night in an unfamiliar inn, in an unfamiliar village, in an unfamiliar land, I couldn’t stop thinking about how Stryker had left me. He kissed me like I was the only woman on earth and then he slunk away in the night. My whole life I’d had a weak heart, but for the first time I could confidently say that now it was broken.
* * *
I was proud of myself. I’d gotten up, ordered breakfast, consulted my maps and compass and set off for the Jewel Spring Mountains.All alone, all without my mother’s voice telling me I couldn’t handle something like this.
Hah. I gave a triumphant fist pump into the air.
I was now about two hours into my journey when the sound of hooves clopping on the lonely road behind me had me perking up. I’d been getting sleepy, but someone else to talk to would be amazing.
I peered behind me to see a sweet older couple, pushing seventy and riding on mules. I smiled as they hurried to catch up with me. As far as I could tell they were both seelie, lacking any horns or fur.
“Hello, fellow travelers.” I waved.
The old woman on the smaller mule waved back and grinned, showcasing a missing tooth. I pulled on my horse’s reins and let them catch up with me.
“Where you heading?” I asked.
“Oh, my husband and I are just going to the next village over.” The old lady’s voice cracked as she spoke.
I peered at her husband, about to ask him a question when he pulled a polished stick from his cloak.
He pointed the stick at me and I didn’t realize it was a wand until a bright green glowing light flew out of it and slammed into my stomach, knocking me off my horse. The wind rushed out of me as my back hit the earth and then the man leapt off his mule and hobbled toward me.
I tried to get up but realized I was immobilized and couldn’t move.
Panic rose up inside me as I noticed the rune on my stomach. My heart fluttered and I willed it not to fail on me now. If it was just an immobilizing rune it had no bearing over my power.It would make me unable to move but not unable to affect their emotional state.
I pushed thoughts of deep regret, and empathy into both him and his wife and he faltered in his steps.
“Please remove this rune and let me go,” I said calmly and pushed sympathy and compassion into him.
“We hurt her,” the woman said to her husband, looking a bit frantic.
He frowned, peering at his wand like he hadn’t known why he did it. “We need the coin, Nettie,” he told his wife.
“Remove the rune and let me go and I’llgiveyou lots of coin,” I told him, and then again pushed the feeling of compassion into him.
He stared at me for a long moment and then finally dropped to one knee and muttered an incantation as my body was released from the spell. Now free, I sat up and peered at the man in anger. But when I noticed his tattered clothes and Nettie’s thin frame I thought this might be the only way they kept themselves fed. No longer able to work in the fields or whatever they did around here.
Reaching into my purse, I gave them half of the coins Dawn had given me. Then I took back all of the emotions and feelings I’d pushed into them.
“Go on before I report this,” I said.
He thanked me and they turned their mules and rode off the way they came.
With a sigh, and a bruised back, I mounted my horse.
