Page 88 of Of Glass and of Gold

Fine. He could use his royal coin. My stomach ached too much to resist. Nicholas had offered more apples during our trip here, but after losing the last one, I’d held no interest. Plus, ignoring his attempts to bridge the chasm that’d split between us kept me full of enough anger to battle against the weariness that’d wracked my body. But now, I was feeling desperate.

The woman scoffed, waving off his offer as if it had been an insult. “Psh, no need for all that. We help our own here.” She moved to her cooking station a couple tents away, pulling a freshly baked loaf from a hanging basket, the steam wafting into the air in tantalizing curls. She dipped behind a tent for just a moment before returning with something else wrapped in cloth. I could have moaned in delight when I saw her unwrap it to reveal a hunk of cheese. “Take these. If you need anything else, my name is Alba.”

“Alba, you are a gift,” I breathed out, taking the offering in my hand before balancing them on my body, my arms too sore and now shaky to hold them. The prince’s hard chest kept me together, as much as I didn’t want to admit it. Alba silently departed and another girl, young, perhaps a few years younger than me, stalked over with Ravinder at her side.

“You must be the newcomers,” the fair-skinned woman with freckles dusted over her nose said, her burnt auburn hair shimmering like embers in the sunlight. She had a bow and quiver with arrows strapped to her back. Maybe one of their hunters.

A rush of shame washed over me, my cheeks heating. I must have looked pathetic, draped in the arms of a strong man in front of this huntress. She’d never know I was capable and skilled, not looking like a weakling like this.

“Come, I’ll show you to your quarters.” She waved, turning on her heel for us to follow, clearly not interested in introductions.

“Play nice, Ro,” Ravinder dragged out his warning.

The young woman bounced on her feet, whipping to face him with a scandalous smile, her straight hair swishing past her shoulders. “Don’t I always?”

Ravinder glanced skyward, as if asking the heavens for patience, but gave Nicholas a reassuring nod to follow. She took us through the camp.

Eventually, Ro stopped at a tent that rested on the outskirts, the canvas darkened and dingy from age and weather. “Here we are,” she said on an exhale, resting her hands on her hips. “I’ve been told to fetch you once dinner is ready. Until then.” She saluted us with two of her fingers and swaggered away.

Nicholas ducked to enter the tent. A water basin sat at the side, and two single cots on either end of the small space. He stepped close, gently lowering me on my bed.

“You plan on sharing any of that?” His voice was low, teasing, an attempt to facilitate friendly conversation.

I tore half the loaf, knowing I wouldn’t be able to eat the entire thing anyway, and tossed it, sending it bouncing on his bed. He took the hint and laid himself down, picking at the fluffy loaf. I combined chunks of cheese and bread together, holding in my moans of delight. Once I’d nearly consumed it all, I stopped mid-chew and extended the last of the cheese across the aisle between us. He took it, but didn’t let his stare linger.

“Thanks,” he said, sounding defeated. My chest cracked open a little.

“I need to get my sister back,” I said, hardly loud enough to be heard.

“I know,” he said softly.

With that, I turned over on my side, despite the soreness in my muscles, and closed my eyes.

Nicholas stood before me on the grassy knoll on a summer’s day. The wind ruffled his exquisite golden hair that glowed in the midday light. Seeing him erased all my burdens, and I ran to him. My bare feet dented the plush green grass, and my clean summer dress billowed in the breeze. The smile on my face would have rivaled the brightness of the sun. I continued running, step after step, never seeming to make it any closer. I thought he’d been smiling. I’d been able to see the joy in his eyes even if his lips remained straight.

Then clouds formed, crowding out the light. Shadows fell off the planes of his face, his expression unchanging. Any joy drained from him, and instead, those sparkling blue eyes looked at me with anger and disdain. I halted, a streak of lightning flashing across the deepening purple and gray skies.

Thunder cracked so loudly it shook my bones, and in an instant he was on me. That familiar tree pressed against my back, only this time, he pinned me there with no affection.

“I’ll show you what happens when you cross me,” he snarled.

Another bolt of lightning, and suddenly Alejo, Gregory, Dee, and the others from that meeting hung from the executioner’s rope in the distance.

True terror like I’d never known consumed me. He’d discovered I’d been willing to help them, to remove him from the throne by assassination. My eyes snapped back to him, and he was now fully cloaked in his night gear. My heart cried. “Chol, no. I wouldn’t do that to you. I love you!” A rumbling rain swept over the land, howling wind blocking out my pleas, my confession.

Guards appeared on either side, hauling me to the platform in Waterview’s square. The cherub-faced counselor read from a scroll. It took a moment to hear what he read, but then I recognized it. Obsequies. The hollowed faces in the crowd stared at me with malice, and I spotted Melody and Kenzie among them.

I called out, begging for help, to speak up on my behalf, but they remained silent. The rains continued down, and the guards forced me to my knees. I hit the wooden boards with a thunk, and I looked up to see the sharp edge of an axe hovering—

“Nora.”

I sat upright with a gasp, the air chilling against my slick skin. Nicholas quickly adjusted, leaning beside the cot. “You’re alright, it was just a nightmare.”

My lungs worked to catch the air they desperately needed, and it took me a moment to recognize my surroundings. We weren’t in South Harbor, or even technically Highcrest. We were among dissenters from Windguard, in hopes of finding my sister.

Remembering didn’t calm my racing nerves. His warm hand caressed my back, but I winced at the touch. Moments ago, his face, full of fury and resentment, stared at me and sentenced me to death.

He recoiled immediately.

---