Page 21 of Kingdom of Death and Hope

Kieran? I call out, hoping since I’m closer to town he will be able to hear me clearer.

Silence.

My throat gets tight and I push all the bad thoughts to the back of my mind. There is no way Avira found out who Kieran is to me. There is no way she has done something to him.

He will reply to me when he has time and when I’m back in my house.

“Adeline!” someone yells.

My head jerks to the right, eyes wide as I try to find the person.

“What happened to you?” My mother rushes toward me. “Are you okay?”

Everyone looks toward me and I lower my head, not wanting to see their reactions. I haven’t even been able to look at myself, but with how I feel I know that I look like an absolute wreck.

“Oh baby,” Mother whispers, her voice full of emotion. “Let’s get you home where you can sit down. Take your time. Don’t worry. I’ve got you.”

She carefully wraps her arms around my waist and helps me walk all the way back to the house. I can’t help but look over to the forest where the Fae are. Their mouths hang open as they look at me and I continue to scan their faces, trying to find Kieran.

Everett’s face is blank when I make eye contact with him, but he gives me a little nod before turning around and walking into the forest. What was that?

“Have you fallen behind on chores?” I ask as we get closer to the house.

Whispers are heard all around us as we walk past the townspeople.

“Margo, what happened to Adeline?” one of Mother’s friends asks.

“I don’t know.” Mother’s voice cracks.

I look over at the lady. “I got mugged when I was walking back from another town. They took everything.”

The lady gasps, her hands flying to her mouth. “And they did that to you?”

“I fought for a while since the spices and cloth were precious and cost a lot of money,” I trail off at the end.

“Adeline,” my mother scolds me. “I told you never to fight them. We can always make up the loss.”

Guilt festers inside me as they believe my lie. For now they need to believe it like I promised the prince they would. When Mother and I are in the comfort of our own home I can tell her the truth.

Wait.

She still thinks that Avira is her daughter. How is she going to take something like this? Will Mother even believe me if I tell her?

“I’m going to get her home so she can rest and recuperate. If you need anything, we will be closed today and probably tomorrow while I take care of her,” Mother gently tells her friend.

“Do you need me to get you anything?” she asks.

“No, thank you, but I will let you know if that changes,” Mother replies.

We start walking again and I look over at the Fae one more time. They’re still staring at me. I can’t read any of their facial expressions as they look up and down my body. Do they know what happened to me?

“Look ahead so you don’t trip,” Mother reminds me. “You don’t need to hurt your body even more than it already is.”

“I’m sorry,” I mumble.

“We will talk when we get into the house.” Her words are final.

“Henry?” I can’t help but ask.