Page 45 of Fear the Flames
“My lady, are you alright?” Eagor inquires across the table. I must say, he’s been very pleasant over the past week.
“I’m fine,” I force a smile and clasp my clammy hands on my dress. “I’d like to retire early tonight if that’s alright with you.”
“Of course. Let the servants know if you need anything,” Eagor smiles. Valia eyes him from the side, but I’m not about to get in between the spouses and question what’s going on there.
Saskia stands next to me, “I’ll escort Her Majesty back to her room.”
She loops her arm through mine, and both of us step into the hall, leaving the chatter of the dinner behind us. She’s only slightly taller than me, so it’s easy for us to keep in step with one another. Three guards trail us; they always stay far enough to give us privacy but close enough to step in should anything happen.
“Those dinners are going to kill me from boredom one day,” I groan.
“Trust me, I fully agree. They’re better now that you’re here. I can’t convince Cayden or Ryder to go with me unless they absolutely must be there,” Saskia says. My heart flips in my chest when she mentions Cayden. I’m already on edge from seeing the eyes.
“Why do you have to go to those dinners if they don’t have to?” They’re all part of the army; if they don’t have to go, then she should also get a free pass.
“I’m the Head of Intelligence of the Vareveth Army; it seems like a bad move to let politicians that affect the army congregate without me present. They put the government first, and I put the army first. We need both for Vareveth to survive, and I speak for one of those sides. Cayden and Ryder used to come with me, but they have their own duties to attend given the rising tension between here and Imirath,” Saskia informs me.
“Please tell me the dinners will die down,” I plead. She makes it sound like they take place regularly.
Saskia lets out a soft laugh. “They’ll die down. They’re only taking place as often as they are because of how long the treaty meetings are taking. I’ll be back at the border and far away from all of that soon enough,” she waves her free hand over her shoulder.
My heart sinks at the thought of being here without Saskia, but Cayden did say I’ll be going to the border eventually. Maybe Saskia and I can travel there together. I’m intrigued to see what it looks like after seeing their headquarters. We slip into my room, and she lets out a big yawn before sinking into one of the couches by the fire. She collects her box braids in her hands and flings them over the back of the couch while settling in. The sunset orange gown she wears compliments her complexion and curves beautifully.
My eyes flick toward the closed door between mine and Cayden’s rooms. I haven’t asked Saskia or Ryder about Cayden, and they haven’t told me anything. Sometimes I feel like they have a bet between the two of them to estimate when I’ll crack—which is right now.
“So, um…” I take a seat on the couch across from Saskia, who already looks at me with playful eyes while dragging her finger over the gold beads that line her bodice. Wonderful, I’m off to a great start. “I was just wondering if you’ve seen Cayden?”
Her lips tilt upward, “I have.” She knows exactly what she’s doing.
“Good.” I pat my hands on my thighs. Her dark eyes plow into me from across the coffee table, imploring me to say more. “How is he?”
“Fine,” she shrugs, once again giving me nothing. “You could write him a letter. Hand it off to one of the servants, and he’ll get it tonight or tomorrow morning depending on when they do the mail run.”
I pause and meet her eyes, “Would he want a letter from me?”
“Yes.” Normally, she’s a complete chatterbox, butnowis the time she chooses to make me talk.
“Has he said that?”
“He doesn’t have to.” She points two fingers toward her eyes. “I see everything,” she whispers dramatically while getting to her feet, her gown pooling around her ankles. “I’ll leave you to your letter writing, but I’d write soon so that the servants get it before it’s too late.”
"How do you know he wants to hear from me?”
Her laughter filters throughout the room as she walks toward my door. “Goodnight,” she calls out in a singsong tone before shutting the door behind her, leaving me with my thoughts.
No, no, I’m not going to overthink. If I start overthinking, then I’ll keep myself awake until the sun peaks over the mountains while trying to figure out if I should use a period or a comma. I grab a piece of paper from my vanity drawer along with a quill and ink pot.
Cayden,
If an assassin has strangled you in your bath, can you please let me know? I need to figure out if I’ll have to seek out someone else to complete my future endeavors.
Elowen.
Oh gods, I’ve lost my mind. I think I’ve gone insane. But that doesn’t stop my feet from carrying my insane self to my door and turning the knob with the sealed letter in my hand. It’s just a letter. People write them all the time.
“This is for Commander Veles.” I smile at the servant at the end of the hall.
“I’ll get it sent right away, Queen Elowen.” The boy smiles before turning down the hall with a basket of linen on his arm. What have I done? He’s probably not even going to answer.
