Page 59 of To Ride the Wind

She gazed expectantly at Gwen. The other woman grew first pale and then red again, her hands tightening convulsively on each other.

Charlotte frowned, instinct telling her what Gwen feared. “Have you been keeping your home a secret? Because you’re scared of the people you left behind? I promise I won’t tell anyone anything about you unless you want me to.” Indignation filled her voice. “And if the monsters you’ve left behind ever come searching for you, I certainly wouldn’t reveal anything about your whereabouts.”

Gwen smiled, a shaky gesture. “Do you think if I had been born here, we would have been friends? I’ve never had an ordinary friend before. But I always wished for one.”

Charlotte reclaimed one of Gwen’s hands. “Of course we would have been friends! I only wish you had been born here.” She paused, examining the other woman’s face. “Would you like to stay here? I’m sure I could find a household in the valley that would be willing to take you in permanently if that’s what you’d like. Are you sure you want to search for Easton? You might never find him.”

Gwen was already shaking her head before Charlotte finished.

“Logically I know the search is almost hopeless. But I can’t just give up on him. Not without at least trying.”

“Then you have to try,” Charlotte said stoutly. “Which leads us back to making a search route.” She gave Gwen a coaxing look. “Can’t you tell me where you’ve come from?”

In the back of her mind was the thought that whatever community Gwen had left, it wasn’t a healthy one. If she’d come from one of the valleys, Charlotte would have to convince her to report them to Master Harold. And if she came from somewhere further away…Perhaps Harold could still report them to Rangmeros. The capital had responsibility over the whole kingdom, and she doubted they would be happy to hear of a community that had gone as rogue as Gwen’s clearly had.

“I come from the mountains,” Gwen whispered, silencing Charlotte’s thoughts.

“The mountains?” Charlotte looked instinctively toward the ranges that towered over them. “You mean one of the valleys that’s deeper in? I’ve heard there are a couple…” She trailed off since Gwen was already shaking her head.

“I come from the mountain kingdom.” She still spoke in a whisper.

Charlotte stared at her, struck silent by the claim. The mountain kingdom was just a legend!

But was it? Henry had asked her to look for information about them, and she had heard the occasional hushed whisper in the valley. But none of those instances had convinced her the mountain people were anything other than stories created by those who gazed up at the impassable mountains in awe.

Gwen’s claim was another matter, however.

“You’re saying you grew up in the mountains?” she clarified. “Not in one of the valleys but actually deep in the mountains? And there’s a whole kingdom there?”

Gwen nodded, her face pale. She seemed to understand the import of what she was revealing.

Charlotte leaned back, trying to absorb it. Gazing at her new friend, she noticed her straight posture and thought of everything she had said—and not said. After seeing her portrait in Henry’s castle, Charlotte had been certain she was a princess. But sitting in the forest with Gwen, it had seemed nothing more than fancy. Not only was she alone in the depths of Rangmere, but Charlotte had learned the royal families of all the kingdoms as a child and none of them had contained a Princess Gwen.

She had never learned about the royal family of the mountain kingdom, however. Her earlier certainty returned. She wasn’t just talking to a girl from the fabled lost people. She was talking to the mountain princess. And something was terribly wrong in their kingdom if she had been forced to flee.

Charlotte swallowed down the enormity of the revelation and nodded slowly. “Very well, then. Is it possible Easton is somewhere in the mountains? I have no idea how you would search the peaks for a lone person.” She gazed again at the glimpse of distant stone visible through the canopy.

“It would be an impossible task.” Gwen slumped before rallying with a determined look. “But the mountains are a death sentence, and the queen said Easton was banished. There are ways out of the mountains—we have a few traders who make the trek in secret—and I think she might have abandoned him on this side of the mountains.”

Charlotte raised her eyebrows at this information, but it made sense. If the mountain kingdom existed, then the stories hadn’t been mere fancy after all, and they must have originated somewhere.

“Do you have any idea where the paths exit the mountains?” Charlotte asked. “If we could work out where he came out…”

Gwen grimaced. “I wish I knew. But I came out by…another means.” Her hand strayed to her pocket.

Charlotte waited, full of curiosity, but Gwen said nothing more. Charlotte would have liked to press her for more information, but it seemed rude, so she let it go. She had secrets enough of her own, so she couldn’t fault others for keeping their own counsel.

“I think Harold might know something about the routes,” Gwen blurted out. “It’s why I’ve stayed with his family so long. I’ve been trying to convince him to tell me, but he won’t talk about it. From what I can gather, only a chosen few valley folk are permitted to meet and trade with the mountain delegations. I think the queen’s people might have threatened those valley folk that if word gets out more broadly, they’ll lose their trade.”

Charlotte’s mouth fell open as several things clicked into place. Her aunt and uncle were clearly among the chosen few to be permitted to act as traders—it was the source of their extra wealth. And it must have taken her father all these years to gain enough trust to be included in their number.

But that new knowledge did nothing to help Gwen. “The most obvious place to look is the valleys,” she said briskly. “So you’ve done well coming here. Have you asked Harold if he’s met anyone by the name of Easton?”

Gwen nodded. “He says he hasn’t.”

“Hmmm…” Charlotte hummed to herself as she thought. “That rules out all the closer valleys. We should ask him for help, though. He could provide a map of the remaining valleys and mark off those where he knows all the residents. That will narrow the initial search a little. Unless Easton changed his name when he arrived.” She looked to Gwen. “Would he have felt the need to do that if he was on the run from…your kingdom?”

Gwen frowned. “I suppose it’s possible. But I did ask Harold if he knew of any boys who had arrived alone ten years ago, and he seemed certain there was no one like that in any of his valleys.”

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