Stop,it said.
Maylie licked her dry lips, fighting back a scream of fury. She could not face the creature now; she did not have time to waste. She was about to turn away, when it added,You are going the wrong way.
She paused.
The hamadryad stood clear and beautiful before her, greenish tendrils of hair winding from its head, beady eyes so dark they were nearly black. It was making no attempt to hide from her. Its whorled, shimmering face watched her expectantly.
How do you know where I am going?She kept her tone purposefully brusque. Not a manner that befitted addressing the Hidden People. But the hamadryad showed no sign of offence. Its impossibly delicate features almost seemed anxious.
You are looking for the Maiden’s Path.
Maylie wiped a hand across her brow.Yes,she replied.
Like all Mountain folk, she had glimpsed the path a few times in the distance. It twisted its way up mountainsides through remote land between the boundaries of the villages. No one sought it out except the girls travelling towards their deaths.
I can show you where it is.
Maylie tried to ignore a prickle of hope. She kept her voice curt.Why?
I did not protect you once. I am in your debt.
Despite everything, Maylie believed the creature was truthful. There was something oddly sincere in its demeanour.
You must speak with the Great Dragon,it added.
Maylie almost stepped back in surprise.What do you mean?
You have met it before.
A memory surfaced of a mighty, towering beast with flashingtalons and curved fangs. Its shimmering scales catching the light in shifting hues of red and gold, as if the sun itself had been trapped beneath its skin. Smoke wafting from its nostrils, thick and acrid, and its vast wings beating the air with thunderous force, stirring up gales that flattened trees and sent stones tumbling down the mountainsides.
No,replied Maylie, trying to push the recollection aside. It was an incident she had always tried to forget.I need to find the Princess. I must tell the King’s guards that they have chosen the wrong girl.
The hamadryad regarded her with a long, unblinking stare.
I need to find the Princess,Maylie repeated.
It is too late. The Great Dragon must have a soul before sunset. It is the ancient treaty.
But they cannot have her! It’s—
One of your own made the treaty with the Great Dragon.
I know that!Maylie snapped. She considered walking away and continuing on alone. She would surely come across the Maiden’s Path at some point.
Perhaps it is time to strike a new bargain,said the hamadryad.Follow me. All will become clear.
Maylie glanced behind her at the deserted mountainside. She saw nothing familiar, just tussocky boulders and scrubby bushes. It was possible the hamadryad was right and she had been walking the wrong way.
You must trust me,added the hamadryad.
Maylie winced. She was not sure she had another choice.So be it.
The creature’s small mouth lifted in something like a smile.I will show you the way,it said.
Maylie hesitated.I do not understand any of this,she said. The words felt small and feeble against the magnitude of what she wasfacing. The dread that had caught hold of her earlier that day had swelled into a roiling mass of fear. It was not just fear for the Princess, it was grief reborn, piercing and fresh, tearing at wounds she had spent winters trying to bury. She had already lost too much. Esmelie’s memory was still a hollow space in her life, a loss that echoed through every spring since her sister had walked the Maiden’s Path. Maylie could not bear to lose anyone else.
The hamadryad made a clicking noise like the clatter of branches in a breeze. It was a gentle, soothing sound.Follow me,it replied.Follow me.
