Page 147 of Kingdom of Death and Hope

I open and close my mouth, shocked at what he says.

I can’t believe I thought he had changed. He is still the same evil prince he was before.

Prince Archie stands up. “I will be back in a month to see how you’re healing. I will also be bringing some cream for you to put on your scars, so when the wedding comes your skin is blemish free.”

He leaves before I can say anything.

“I can’t believe him,” Mother grumbles as she walks into the kitchen. “He thinks he can just say and do anything and there will be no consequences. Well, you know what? I can’t wait until the Fae break the curse and your mate goes after him. I can’t wait until he gets what he deserves.”

“You and me both,” I say.

“Now, gently release the cup from your death grip and go take a little walk.” Mother gives me a pointed look.

“I don’t know if I have enough strength to walk around right now,” I mumble. “Prince Archie took a lot out of me. I just want to lie down and sleep.”

But I know even if I do that, sleep won’t actually come.

“I think you should go on a walk to the forest. It will calm you down,” Mother says. “He will.”

Are you free? I find myself asking Kieran after hearing my mother’s words.

Yes, he replies. Come.

“I guess I’m going out,” I mumble, and push myself off the chair.

My right leg in particular has been giving me trouble. The man who beat me several times loved to give his attention to my right leg, almost like he wanted me to constantly think about him and Avira after.

I grab my jacket and put it on as I walk out the door. Even though it’s warming up, my body hasn’t been able to regulate its temperature.

“Going on a walk to clear your head?” Henry asks, pushing off the wall.

Dipping my head, I set out for the forest, taking my sweet time. I try my hardest to keep my walk normal, clenching my teeth as it gets difficult and tears spring in my eyes.

“Don’t,” Henry scolds.

“What?” I look at him, not caring if he can see my tears.

Before I got taken I would have wiped them away and pretended like nothing had happened but now… now I don’t care. I don’t have the energy to care about it.

“Don’t try to force your walk to look normal,” he says. “I saw you walk with a limp the other day when you were meeting Avira and you shouldn’t force yourself to walk normally. It is only going to make it worse, and you need to rest.”

“Walking with a limp will show people that I’m still hurt. I’m going to get into a bad habit of walking with a limp if I continue,” I reply. “Then it will be a hard habit to break, and everyone, including myself, will remember what happened to me.”

Henry stays silent as we walk into the forest, and before we know it, we’re in the clearing where I normally meet Kieran.

“We really need to change the location,” I say, out of breath. “But I don’t think I can walk any further than this right now. Not without taking another break or exhausting myself too much.”

But even when we changed locations regularly, we still got caught and that’s how this all started.

But without getting caught I would never have been able to roam around the castle. Without the deal I made, I would have never had the chance to see the hallway where the witch stays and get the book. We wouldn’t be where we are right now, one step closer to figuring out how to break the curse.

“We will change the location when you are healed more,” Henry says. “There are Fae walking around right now to make sure that no one is spying on you. And with me here, there shouldn’t be anyone keeping tabs on you.”

“Unless Avira tells someone to do it,” I mumble, chills running down my spine at the thought.

What if she possesses someone and makes them get close to me? What if they are spying on me and I have no idea because they are still acting the same?

“The Fae will be able to tell if any magic has been used,” Henry reminds me. “Don’t worry too much about it. We are keeping you safe.”