The area immediately surrounding them was more familiar—softly rolling hills that were covered with sandy grass. As silverreign was melting into greenreign, colorful flowers blossomed everywhere she looked.
Aizel marveled at the soft, pastel shades of the delicate petals. They were so much softer than the vibrant hues on Istroya. She wanted to slide off her horse and run up the nearest hill, scooping up every shade of flower she saw.
As the sun fell, the prince slowed down, sauntering off the road for a little way, then coming back.
“I’m looking for a good spot to camp,” he said, speaking to her for the first since that morning.
She nodded in understanding. “Obviously,” she thought. “I’ve only been doing this exact thing for days on end.”
“This northern route has few towns,” he continued. His voice was light, but as soon as he finished speaking, he turned away from her quickly as though remembering who she was. “Don’t expect comfortable accommodations.” His final words were gruff.
Aizel nodded again, even though he was no longer looking at her.
A few moments later, he slid from his mount. Grabbing the reins of her horse in one hand and his own in the other, he veered them off the narrow main road into a shallow valley.
A small copse of trees huddled around a flowing stream that cut through the basin of the valley. Dense, overgrown meadows filled the rest of the area, spreading over the gentle hills back toward the main road.
The prince led the horses straight to the stream so they could drink. As her spotted horse dipped her head down, the mare’s body tilted forward at an uncomfortable angle. Alarmed, Aizel gripped her mane and jumped off the tall animal.
Her bare feet landed hard on the rocky riverbank and small shivers of pain shot up through her ankles. She quickly restabilized, reminding herself not to dismount so quickly next time.
The prince ignored her.
She patted her horse in an awkward attempt at an apology—since she had grabbed her poor mane so tightly—and wandered back toward the copse of trees.
The ground was covered in a thick layer of deep green grass that appeared to have small, circular leaves. Airy, purple flowers grew atop the green bedding. The flowers were perfectly spherical and she wanted to know what it would feel like to hold an entire handful of them.
Unable to restrain herself, she dropped down, hunching over the balls of her feet so she could pick a small bouquet.
“You will not stray out of my sight.” The prince’s harsh voice sounded immediately behind her and she jumped forward with a voiceless yelp.
Turning to face him, she held out her cupped hands full of flowers, hoping to show him she was doing the most harmless activity she could imagine.
He jumped backward at the gesture and she rolled her eyes at his skittish behavior.
A small part of her mind wanted to find out how far she could push his comfort. Readjusting her hands, she picked one of the flowers and held it out to him, opening her eyes wide.
He looked from the flower to her face, clearly confused, but made no move to accept her offering.
Shrugging, she gave him a small smile and dropped back to the ground to continue gathering a fuller bouquet.
By the time the sun fully set, he had built a small fire in the center of the glade and she sat down opposite him, basking in the warmth of the flames.
She arranged the spherical flowers into a small mountain in front of her legs, enjoying the way they rolled off but also seemed to cling to each other. Choosing three, she slipped them into the small sack at her side.
As she reached inside the bag, her hand touched the vial. Her spine froze as her stomach tightened. For a moment, she’d forgotten she was carrying poison.
She glanced at the prince, almost afraid he could read her thoughts. He was removing food from his saddlebags.
Watching him, she considered what it would take to get a few drops of her poison onto the food he was about to eat.
The thought made her stomach turn and she quickly pulled her hand from the bag. She had multiple days to carry out her assignment; she didn’t need to worry about it quite yet. It would be better for him to take her most of the way to her destination first.
By the time she looked up, the prince was standing over her. She started, guilt piercing through her.
Had he seen what was in her bag?
“Are you saving flowers?”
