Page 13 of To Bleed A Kingdom

The guards laugh and jest with one another, but their eyes remain vigilant in their inspection of each person leaving and entering the city. One guard’s stare drifts towards us. When his smile turns into a frown and he begins striding towards us, I know he’s going to be an issue.

Tugging at the hem of my hood, I check to make sure that my face is properly concealed, then pull ahead of the others. Careful to keep my eyes downward as I inspect the jewels near the corner of the guard’s eye, I try to recall the differences between races in this land.

This guard has jewels near the outer corner of his eyes, so he can't be a human because they aren’t born with them. Neither can he be fae, since his ears aren’t sharpened and he doesn’t have the same jeweled markings known to their race, a single-colored jewel at the outer corner of both eyes. With rounded ears as well as an aquamarine and starlight jewel near the corner of each eye, I confirm he’s an immortal. Or judging off the aquamarine jewels, he’s more precisely a Water immortal. Which means he’s not gifted by the gods with only a single Gift like the fae, but is blessed with the primary four: Nature, Water, Fire, and Air. The aquamarine jewel signifies his Water power as his most dominant Gift.

Grateful I don't have to deal with one of the less common shifter immortals’ heightened senses or even a shifter fae, I command my horse to a stop once the guard is only a few paces away.

“Are you citizens of Cascadonia?” he asks, glancing at each of us in turn.

I shake my head. “No, just visiting.”

He squints and ducks down, attempting to peer beneath my hood. My knuckles whiten around my mare’s reins in response.

“Why is your hood up?” he asks, suspicion lacing his tone as he ducks lower. “Is there a reason you don’t wish to show your face?”

“My only wish is to not look upon yours,” I snap without thought.

His face hardens and he straightens. “Remove your hood.”

So much for not calling attention to myself.

Jaw hardening, I jerk my hood back. My fingers rip at my wavy, raven locks as they unfurl from my cloak, and I brace myself for his reaction as I slowly lift my gaze to his.

His eyes widen and he sucks in an audible breath, immovable as his gaze sweeps across my face. My lips, my cheeks, my eyes, the strange markings dotting my brows and eyelids.

Gasps sound behind him as the other guards finally take notice of my unusual features and I stiffen even more. My skin crawls at their oily, perverse thoughts.

“Happy now?” I ask, baring my teeth in a smile.

His throat bobs on a swallow. “Yes…I'm…uh… very pleased.”

Amara stills off to the side, her lip curled in derision as Zander and Tristan's horses trot up beside my own.

“You'll find no pleasure here,” Tristan says, his tone cold and threatening.

The guard snaps out of his stupor and sneers at Tristan. “What's your purpose?” the guard asks, returning his attention to me.

My horse stomps her foot, impatient with the male preventing her from enjoying her dinner and a good night's sleep in a stable.

“She and I are here to form trading agreements,” I reply, nodding towards Amara. “We hired these males as our escorts.”

The guard peers around me, seeing only wagonless horses. “What are you trading?”

“Leather.”

“Leather?” he asks, his features twisting into puzzlement. “You're trading leather? In Cascadonia?”

Perplexed by his confusion, I nod my head slowly in answer.

The guard stares at me for several moments, then tosses his head back, roaring in laughter. His fellow guards quickly join in.

Zander leans into me and whispers loudly, “Are they all mad?”

“Maybe they don't know what leather is?” I offer, but it’s highly unlikely when they're all garbed in black and teal trim uniforms, comprised entirely of leather.

“I bid you good luck,” the guard says with a lingering chuckle, wiping tears from his eyes. “Do you carry any weapons on your person?”

That's a foolish question. I think Zander’s right. They're deranged.

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