THE TREE MAN halted, eyes on something behind me.
A single green leaf fluttered to the ground, jiggled loose by his jarring stop.
Another fell as he spun on his heel and thundered off in a new direction without a backward glance.
That was close.Close enough that my life should’ve flashed before my eyes.
The inane thought snapped me out of it.
What’d stopped him?
I peered over my shoulder.
Gwen stood ten steps behind me. Armed to the teeth, she wore her usual stern glare. Still, she didn’t strike me asthatscary. Soren had mentioned her tattoos made her a redcap. Redcaps must’ve had a more serious reputation than I’d realized...
I hurried over to her.
“This isn’t a coincidence, is it?” I asked once I was beside her and could finally take a deep breath. Because what were the odds that I would run intoallof Soren’s friends in the last few hours?
Gwen didn’t try to hide her sigh. “You weren’t supposed to see me.”
She’d just confirmed my suspicions. “Did Soren tell you guys to keep tabs on me?”
“I have no idea what that human phrase means.” Gwen crossed her arms, then added, “But if you’re wondering if he asked us to make sure you weren’t harmed, then yes.”
“I don’t get it...” I chewed on my lip. It was thoughtful. And frankly, it would’ve saved me a couple heart attacks if I’d known I wasn’t on my own sooner. “Why wouldn’t he want me to know?”
“You know how some human females are about accepting help from males.”
I wrinkled my nose and squinted at her. “What?”
“It ruins their all-males-are-the-worst narrative.”
Pulling my lips into my mouth, I tried not to react, but I snorted a little.
“What do you find funny about what I said?” Gwen scowled.
I tried to stop the smile, pressing my lips together. “Nothing... I actually, well, I guess I see your point. I’ve just never heard anyone say it quite like that before.”
She shrugged and turned to leave.
“Wait,” I called after her. “Want to stay? Since, you know, I blew your cover and all?”
Another shrug. “Why not.” She dropped onto a bench at a half-full table. All the fae sitting there stood and left in a hurry. She didn’t seem to notice. I stared at their retreating backs, then lowered myself onto the bench beside her.
“Um... Can I ask a question?” I dared to speak up.
“Of course.” Gwen’s mere presence scared away fae that looked like they could snap her in half, so this might be a bad idea, but she didn’t seem intimidating to me.
I decided to risk it. “Do I come across like one of those girls who wouldn’t accept help?”
True to form, she considered me before answering logically. “I haven’t known you long, but you hid details from Soren, confided inCaiusof all folk before trusting us”—she said his name the way someone might talk about dog poop—“and probably most telling, you came to the Hollow Court alone.”
Gwen made fair points, but it still stung.
“Maybe I just don’t know who to trust,” I muttered.
“Reasonable,” she agreed, surprising me. “If it helps, you can trust me. What’s your plan when you talk to the little prince?”
