Page 16 of The Oracle's Journey

“Lobikno, not you,” Emmelina said without turning to me.

I frowned at her. It was a strange thing to say, but it had to be a coincidence. She couldn’t possibly know what I was thinking.

But her attention moved on before I could ask what she meant.

“Ozanna!” she shouted, as if only just noticing the mercenary was sitting next to her. “Did you sleep well?”

The halfie had massive bags under her eyes and her hair was disheveled. She looked exhausted and pissed-off.

“No,” she said to the girl, her words clipped, “I did not.”

“Really? I thought you’d be comfortable with Lhoris. He even told Lobikno to make sure your hands were around front when he tied you up again. I think Lhoris likes you.”

“Oh no, Princess Emmelina,” cried the young maid, her eyes huge with shock. “That’s not how a gentleman is supposed to treat a woman he is trying to court. Lhoris’ got her trussed up like … like a roast.”

The comparison made me smirk.

“A gentleman would give his lady gifts and perform kind acts out of love,” Judith added. “Like your duke sent you an assortment of his favorite sweets, an excellent gift.”

The halfie nodded. “I’ve only ever been plied with alcohol. And cheese. Besides, dukes and the like aren’t in my dating pool.”

The princess cocked her head curiously and looked back at the trussed roast. “Has Lhoris given you sweets?”

The halfie closed her eyes and rubbed her face, growling into her bound hands.

I chuckled and saw the opportunity to have a little fun.

“Lhoris is a terrible dark elf, but this,” I said gesturing to the ropes, “is how our kind courts a female.”

The halfie and maids turned to me in horror, but the princess looked to be thinking. “So, the rope is like sweets?”

“Yes. The ladies run away before they get to know you if you don’t tie them up. And these are fine enchanted ropes.” I explained, touching the toe of my boot to the rope at the halfie’s ankles. It came undone in a fluid motion. I did it a second time, and the rope flowed about her ankles. “If you had enemies that he could kill, he might even bring you their heads.”

Again, the three older women looked at me in horror and revulsion, but the princess exclaimed, “Ah! That would be a gift and an act of love!” Then the looks of disgust turned to the princess.

“So, is he courting me?” the bodyguard finally asked, her nose scrunched up.

But I knew the keystone to an entertaining lie was to leave them wondering. “He may be, but he could also just want to keep you from causing trouble and getting murdered. I don’t know.” I frowned and shrugged.

“From a human standpoint, that could at least mean he cares about her,” the young maid offered softly. I glared at her, as if the idea were offensive. She went pale, swallowed, and then turned her face away; it was everything I could have asked for.

“He’s not a human. He is no gentleman. Though because he is bad at being a dark elf, I can’t say I understand his motivations.”

The halfie rubbed her face and growled into her hands again. “Well, thank you for this delightful girl talk, ladies,” she said, then paused before adding, “and Lobikno.”

Ah, yes, that was fun.

Then the princess was gone.

Again.

CHAPTER 8

Lhoris

Isecured the red sail to the rock face, high enough to be seen over the trees from the next mountain. Dulanzo would send someone in the next few days. Our older brother had been known to leave us waiting as long as a week, but never sooner than two days. Hopefully we wouldn’t get murdered in the meantime. I turned to make my way back down the narrow, rock cut staircase when I heard a commotion below. Since I had an unusual vantage point, high above the camp, I paused on the steps and watched.

Lobikno shouted for the males to get their asses up and start looking for the princess. Only the humans heeded his urgency and dove into the trees. The elves moved about, preparing to go after the girl, just very slowly. The maids still sat down at the base of the wall. Ozanna, though, the poor thing, had cracked. She lay on her back and cackled, if my ears weren’t mistaken. No doubt relieved that these disappearances weren’t just happening on her watch.

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