Page 84 of A Thieving Curse

She awoke after what felt like minutes to Peter gently shaking her shoulder, haloed by the faint golden glow of early dawn. Saliva trailed from the corner of her mouth, and she hurriedly wiped it away as she stood and looked around for Alex. Panic pushed away her grogginess when she didn’t see him. Wings rustled behind her, and she spun around.

Alex’s eyes glowed dimly. His black clothes, wings, horns, and hair melded with the shadows between the trees. The tension in her shoulders eased as relief rushed through her and she walked over to him. He gulped and looked away.

“I’ll hide in the trees,” he said quietly. “Then Peter and I will fly back tonight.”

“Good.” She bit her lip. “Alex—”

“Please. Just go.” He hung his head. “Please.”

Raelyn couldn’t leave him like that, with no closure; like a door left ajar on what might have been. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his torso. Alex stiffened as her arms tucked under his wings. He released a strangled sob, then held her.

She rested her cheek against his chest. “Thank you. For understanding. For being kind. For everything.” She leaned back and looked up into his face. “Goodbye, Alex.”

His red eyes glowed brighter. “Don’t make me say it.”

“Please. I…I need you to say goodbye.”

He sighed heavily. “Goodbye, Raelyn.” He pulled away and walked deeper into the trees. The sudden absence of his dragon heat left her cold.

Peter took her hand. “Come on. Let’s go.”

They shared a loaf of bread as they walked, although Raelyn struggled to eat. Her stomach was tight with sorrow at leaving Alexander and anxiety over what would happen when they reached the palace. What if she was too late? The thought was too much to bear, so she buried it.

It took two hours to reach the town that sprawled out in front of the huge Rethali palace. The royal borough of Hathlon was a maze of towering, crowded wattle and daub or stone buildings built at haphazard angles. As far as Raelyn could tell, only the road that ran through the town from the palace was paved. The town stunk, and people were everywhere. Some stared at them. Some surveyed her disheveled state with unconcealed disgust before turning away, but most didn’t even notice them. A five-story tall gray stone wall surrounded the castle on the other side of a deep moat. As they neared the drawbridge that led to the gate in the outer wall, Raelyn’s fraying nerves wound tighter.

Guards dressed in navy blue tunics over chainmail shirts stood on either side of the drawbridge where it met the cobblestone street, and all the townspeople gave the guards a wide berth. Their helms reflected the blinding sunlight, making Raelyn squint. The guards’ hands moved to their swords as she and Peter approached.

“Come no closer,” the guard on the right said. His lip curled up as he looked her over. “Get lost, beggar.”

Raelyn put on her most regal air and lifted her chin. “I am Princess Raelyn Argent of Eynlae. I demand to be taken to His Royal Excellency King Henry Carbrey without delay.”

After a beat, the soldiers howled with laughter. She hadn’t considered this possibility, and her heart sank. Her confidence dwindling, she resisted the urge to curl into Peter’s side.Gareth is waiting. You didn’t come this far to be stopped by guardsmen.

She squared her shoulders and took a step forward. The guards stopped laughing. “I have been captured, kept in a cave, threatened to be eaten by a dragon, wandered in the mountains, and traveled a long way. I will not be kept waiting by two common guards.” She looked down her nose at the one on the right. “I heard a rumor in town that my brother, Prince Gareth Argent, is in His Excellency’s custody. He can confirm my identity.”

The guards glanced at each other.

“Very well,” Raelyn snapped. “What are your names, so I can have you both discharged from the king’s service?”

The one on the left’s eyes bugged. The other soldier pointed at Peter. “If you’re the princess, who’s that?”

“I’m Patrick,” Peter lied smoothly. “I found her wandering in the foothills. Brought her here hoping to claim some kind of reward for services rendered to the crown.” He bowed.

The guard snorted. “If you’re lying, you’ll both be beheaded.”

“If you don’t take me to His Excellency the king right now, I’ll haveyoubeheaded.” Raelyn hated saying it. She absolutely would not have him beheaded. But she was desperate.

The guard fidgeted. “Both of you, follow me.”

They followed him across the drawbridge, under a heavy-looking portcullis, and between massive wooden double doors reinforced with steel. More soldiers stood at the far end of the drawbridge, just inside the doors. They looked at them and their guard curiously but didn’t stop them from entering.

Another, smaller wall stood several paces across from them, following the same curve as the outer wall. Shacks, shops, animal pens, and wagons filled the space between the walls. Men, women, and children rushed around in neat clothes in neutral colors. Her mouth fell open. All of these people were servants in the palace? The Eynlaean royal castle with its single wall suddenly seemed quaint, and Raelyn felt like a defenseless mouse walking into a cage. A servant rushed past, giving her a curious look. Raelyn shut her mouth and focused on looking regal, despite how exhausted she felt.

They passed beneath another guarded portcullis in the inner wall and entered a courtyard that screamed wealth. Four marble fountains of dolphins, fish, a mermaid, and an open oyster with a pearl the size of her head formed a semi-circle around a large, open area paved with limestone. An orchard of various fruit trees grew to their right, and a hedge maze on their left. And directly in front of them loomed a palace of red brick with innumerable chimneys and countless windows that seemed designed to intimidate.

Raelyn thought of Alexander, living here until he was nine, then spending the rest of his life in a cave. Her hands clenched, and she had to force them to relax. Several guards stood at the steps leading up to the iron-wrought doors of the palace. The guard from the drawbridge spoke quickly to one of them, who headed inside. Their escort turned back to them.

“He’ll be right back with someone who can help.”

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