Page 3 of Courting the Fae Captain
It was like a thousand sharp blades sliced into my skin as I hit the water. Not from the fall itself, though that alone might have killed a mortal, but from the frigid temperatures that raked over my skin like knives through butter. The breath fled my lungs as death wrapped icy fingers around my throat, hoping to claim me for herself. An involuntary gasp had me swallowing water, and then I was drowning, thrashing uselessly while all coherent thought left my brain. I sank deeper below the surface, my arms slowing as the cold made my limbs feel like stone and my head feel like pins were pricking every inch of me. Panic quickened my heart, my pulse racing against time as I dropped. But this couldn’t be it. I was a good swimmer.I had spent much of my youth by the seaside to avoid my father. Cold water wouldnotspell my end.
It took everything I had to collect myself and kick for the surface, to keep moving before I became a frozen husk at the bottom of the river. Just as well that it was too early in the winter for ice to have claimed the waterways, else my body would have been a broken, bloody puddle across the surface. Not that it made any difference if I couldn’t get out of the water.
My muscles groaned, protesting every kick or slice of an arm through the water. It was dark down there—so very dark until a dazzling bolt lit the way. Thunder continued to roar as I broke the surface, gasping and clawing for purchase.Brindere, God of the Elements and Good Fortune, must have been looking out for me. I hadn’t had the time to calculate the jump from the wall into the water, so I knew luck had to have been on my side to make it to the river. It had been a risk, but one that paid off. One that was better than the alternative.
My head was still coming to terms with the fact that Declan had fired at me. My father’s blood dog had fucking fired at me like I was an enemy of the realm or an animal in need of a merciful end. If I ever made it out of here alive and saw him again, he’d have worse things to face than a scorned wife.
The rage I felt roaring through my system at the thought of Declan won out ever so slightly against the cold seizing my bones. It was enough to spur me to the riverbank, scrabbling for purchase against slippery vines or gauges in the ground—anything to help my exhausted body onto land. I’d barely made it onto firm ground, crawling and turning onto my back as I heaved and hacked wretchedly, when a sound rivalling even the thunder broke the night.
It was a horn, long and mournful, sounding my doom. The river current had taken me down only a short way, so that I was still able to glare up at the balcony where I’d fallen from.I searched for my opponents, expecting to see Declan with another arrow knocked. To my surprise, he was gone, likely having scurried off to warn my father of my disobedience and escape. But Melania … she stood there still, her hair a bright red banner blowing in the wind. I knew she was smiling, still plotting her little power schemes while I lay with my tail between my legs. I imagined she wanted me to flee, wanted to hear of my death on the run. With me gone, Melania would have nothing to worry about after all. She’d continue clinging to Declan and receiving whatever benefits he bestowed on her in turn. Honestly, a part of me couldn’t blame her. Life was tough for female Fae. Unfairly so.
My gaze shifted from Melania as braziers flickered to life inside the keep’s many windows, along with the odd shout of a guard. They knew. And they were coming. Fae were a vicious company to keep. Mithrian Fae were another league altogether … Especially when on the hunt. And what does one take to sniff out the prey?
Baying rent through the night, and my blood, though still slow and sluggish in my veins, drained from my already white cheeks. Speaking of bloodhounds … With wide eyes and a galloping heart, I returned my gaze to the balcony and searched the rampart for Melania one more time, who, in her cruel enjoyment, was still standing in the torrential rain. My heart quickened as she smirked wickedly and mouthed a single mocking word,“Run.”
I turned, forcing my heavy boots to move and my weighted legs to propel me onwards. I was sodden and barely clinging to life, each step a too-heavy footfall in the mud. Good thing I was a stubborn ass, because curling up and letting the cold claim me was altogether too tempting right now.But if the Rite wasn’t enough to get me running, it was the thought of those dogs ripping me to shreds should Declan find me first. Hounds wereloyal creatures, and those howling from the keep followed his every whim. Death by dog was not on my to-do list for tonight either.
The woods were a twenty-metre dash across the field. Any other night, I might have thanked the rain for erasing my steps, but the ground was sludgy, sucking my soles up greedily as I fought to make my way to the darkness. Excited yips and howls burned my ears. Too slow. Too slow and feeble.
Move, Aeris!
My lungs burned, every breath a broken rasp as I hauled myself to the trees. I could climb them and lose the guards. But then, that wouldn’t work. The dogs would catch my scent, and I’d be surrounded. And that’s not accounting for any Spell Weavers and their dark magic. No choice but to keep moving. And I wasn’t entirely without some tools of survival.
The maze of trees was a blur as I bypassed gnarled roots and thorny bushes, aiming for a familiar tree that was half-bent with age and the weight of its boughs. In its depths, nestled in a large hole that had once been the home of an indignant barn owl, was a satchel. I had buried it in anticipation of this day, adding stolen supplies day by day for when I would leave long before the Rite. But my father had taken measures to keep me close and out of trouble. The closer that day came, he’d doubled the guard and lumped me with lessons from multiple tutors to keep me too busy to leave when I’d originally planned. I’d had to dose my last tutor’s tea with a sleeping draught to get away, and that tincture’s effects would not last long.
I opened the satchel quickly, giving a cursory glance over the contents. Water, dried food rations, a change of clothes, precious few potions and tinctures, and knives. Blades were not my forte, but I wasn’t entirely without knowledge on how to wield them. My Potions Master had been thorough in his teachings. Even if the old bastard wasn’t around any longer, I knew he’d be proudthat I was taking fate into my own hands. My chest seized. Another reason to leave. Another person to avenge.
Avadir had spent most of his elderly life mentoring me in the shadows. He had been more of a role model to me than my father ever was, until my dearest dad discovered us sparring one day, a forbidden activity. Avadir was quickly whisked away while the guards restrained me. My father had made me watch as four guards beat him bloody before my eyes. The sound of wet punches and crunching bones still haunted me to this day, as did the guilt. Were it not for Avadir taking me under his wing and tutoring me in all manner of things, even the ones against societal norms, he would still be here. That’s what a kind male reaped in this gods-awful court. What a good and courageous male received for daring to equip a female with knowledge and skills. As if treating a female as an equal was such a loathsome act.
The barking hounds sounded closer. If I didn’t make it out soon, the city guard would be alerted, and then the whole town would be on lockdown.Fuck. I took advantage of the canopy’s shelter and slipped out of my soaked clothes into dry, warm ones as quickly as my stiff, useless fingers would allow. It wouldn’t stave off hypothermia, but it was better than nothing. I felt the exhaustion set into my bones, and my vision became hazy as I blinked back flickering dots and darkening clouds. I’d heard what could happen if hypothermia set in. Already, sharp pain was forking down my veins and firing through my nerves.
I’d be lucky if I didn’t pass out within the hour. The potions I’d packed would be of no use, either. With that discomforting thought, I strapped on the knives and satchel and made haste, gritting my teeth with every painful jolt of my boots as they slapped against the mud.
There was an underground tunnel not far from here, ancient and tucked away beneath a hidden trapdoor. The passage woundbeneath the castle walls and deep into the sewerage system underneath the city proper, right up to the docks. Before long, they’d be checking every ship leaving the shore if they failed to capture me now. My only hope of getting off this coastline had a very small window, but I could still hide in the city for a time if that window closed. If I made it that far.
My legs slowed, my muscles so stiff with tension and exhaustion that I stumbled into a nearby tree, scraping my jaw as I fell. Stars exploded behind my eyes, and I rolled, pain racking my senses until I could barely make out the ground from the sky.
A long howl sounded nearby. Too close. Too fucking close.
With every inch of willpower left, I forced myself to half-crawl, half-run towards that trapdoor until I swept aside the leafy debris and clenched the frame of the door. It felt impossibly heavy in my current state, but I managed to swing it open just enough for me to slip inside. I’d never been so excited to see a dank, dark passage in my life.Freedom.It was so close now.
I began to climb into the hole when pain exploded in my calf. I screamed, shrill and too loud for my swimming head as my body splattered into the mud. The door slammed down, shutting off my means of escape. My eyes darted down to my leg, where a bolt was nestled snugly in the flesh. The blood from the wound sluiced down my pants and into the muddied water. Yet still I was determined to get through that door, wincing and shouting as I clawed at the frame, my energy wholly spent. I tried. Until the very end, I tried, but my body was done. I collapsed into the mud, staring at the lightning still forking the sky. Declan would arrive any moment, and then I’d meet my maker. If this was the show Ryvia put on before my death, at least I’d know I went out with a bang.
Declan’s dogs surrounded me, their jaws snapping, drool and saliva spitting as their gleaming teeth flashed before my face, but they remained restrained thanks to their training. One word from their master and I’d be torn to shreds, though. I blinked the rain out of my eyes as a male stood over me, casting a deeper shadow over me. My gaze travelled the legs, the strong frame, until finally I was looking into the face of my enemy.
Only, it wasn’t Declan who stared down at me with a murderous glint in his eyes as thunderous and steely as the sky, but my father. And in his hand, hanging loosely at his side, was the crossbow that ensured I would never dare to dream again.Then, everything went black.
CHAPTER THREE
‘A skilled herbalist is a fine friend to keep. A skilled herbalistandBlood Mage with healing magic? One couldn’t wish for better company when travelling treacherous roads.’
An Alchemist’s Guide to Herbal Remedies
“Isee I haven’t managed to wring the stubbornness out of you yet.” My father’s rich tone roused me from a state of sleep I was none too keen to wake from. Every aching muscle protested at the slightest movement, not to mention the shooting pain spearing up my leg from the arrow wound the asshole had inflicted.
But I was warm, and I was alive. No hypothermia and no confusion-addled brain. A few bleary blinks later, and I soon recognised the familiar trappings of my room through a curtain of matted golden strands hanging over my face.
Cream and gold accented dark wood furnishings that had been hand-carved by artisans much more talented than thiskeep deserved. My room had always been a haven for me, but in the last few years, it had felt more like a prison with my father watching my every move around the castle. It was a good thing that a hidden passage led to the chambers where I could practise my alchemy and hide if necessary. Father didn’t know about it, else he’d have destroyed all remnants of my happiness long ago. As it was, what remained was hanging on by a thread.
