Page 64 of Crowned A Traitor
“Like fresh rain!” Lottie beamed as she pushed her head forwards, making them ear to ear.
“You don’t believe me?” Lottie frowned.
“Wolfgang!” Lottie called out. The sound of her voice echoed thanks to the sparse trees.
“Shhh Lottie, it’s okay. I believe you both.” Wolfgang heard Lottie cry out and stopped, but Klara waved him on telling him it was okay to continue. He lingered for a moment until Arthur joined his side.
“So not sad flowers?” Klara joked, and Lottie stuck her button nose high in the air.
“Nah. You’re too sweaty to smell like flowers,” Lottie snorted correcting her earlier statement. “But I like sweaty clouds,” Lottie said, dropping her head on Klara’s shoulder.
“With night about to fall, we have to make camp,” Arthur reasoned as the ground was incredibly thick with mud making every step twice as long and draining.
I should have just left a year ago, stolen jewels from the vault and taken my chances.Klara cursed herself as a sleeping Lottie stirred in her arms. If it hadn’t been for her heart, Klara would have been able to move twice as fast, but now she feared overexertion. Staring at the back of Wolfgang’s head made her question her abilities,why could I see through Lokey’s glamour but see nothing when I touch him?
Klara suppressed her magic for fear of being tracked, but when the Centaurs had gotten close, there wasn’t even a hint of warning from her core. The self-doubt knawed at her, but she had to ignore it if they were to press on.
Arthur and Wolfgang drop to their knees, and she did the same. Lottie’s weight threw her off balance and Klara gripped the bark of the tree beside her to balance herself.
“What is it now?” Klara grunted freeing her foot from the sinking mud.
“I can’t tell,” Wolfgang said, scanning the trees. They didn’t have the time to keep stopping.
What remained of the potion in their systems would only last so long, and then the Hounds would be upon them. Not wanting to waste time Klara scanned the trees letting her eyes flash to black.
Wolfgang stared at her eyes, his mouth agape. Klara didn’t have time to pan him off with an excuse. As she uncapped her magic, she felt it, but it was faint. She used just enough magic to sense that whatever was out there was more powerful than a Creature of Malum.
Klara eased Lottie from her back and moved away from the group letting her senses become clearer. Her hands grew heavy as they ached to reveal what was coming for them. She was about to touch the earth, but there they were, in plain sight.
The patrolling Fae emanated a bright sapphire aura as they emerged from the trees. Klara figured it must be a random patrol as they weren’t coming at them in formation. Instead, they wandered through the trees keeping a level distance between themselves. Klara eyed the weapons secured at their sides. They were tracking something, but they weren’t ready to engage. Klara started to back up slowly and signaled for Arthur and Wolfgang to do the same.
“I’m scared,” Lottie whispered as Klara helped her up onto her back. The potion wouldn’t be as potent after so long, and once the Fae got close enough, they would be able to sense them but not track them.
There was nowhere to hide, so they forced a retreat. “Move!” Klara mouthed to Wolfgang as a Fae turned towards them. Wolfgang nodded stiffly, and Arthur vanished into thin air,the benefits of being dead.
Klara noticed that even though the trees were few and far apart, the tops were dense clusters of interwoven branches. If they could climb, the Fae wouldn’t be able to see them amongst the thick leaves and branches. Klara wasn’t sure if the Fae would be able to sense them that high up in the clear air.
“Arthur,” Klara called quietly as Wolfgang stood one tree over keeping an eye on the approaching Fae. Arthur reappeared over her shoulder, and she pointed up the tree. Wolfgang and Arthur’s gaze followed hers to the top.
“We climb, they might not be able to sense us from there. Get to the top, and I’ll know if I’m able to sense you,” Klara said, handing Lottie to Arthur. With her unreliable powers, she hoped she would be able to protect them. She sensed their quiet doubt, and she saw the concern on their faces.
“Arthur is going to take you up and remember to be as quiet as a mouse,” Klara said, holding a finger to her lips and Lottie mimicked her action. Klara could see her small hand shaking. Before Klara could say go, they were gone.Another perk of being dead, being able to climb a fifty-foot tree without gaining a single splinter.
“Where are they going?” Wolfgang rushed to Klara as his sister evaporated before his eyes.
“She is safe up top, we can hide until the patrol passes.”
“How do you know that is going to work and then we are stuck in a damn tree?”
“There is no cover down here, and we can’t outrun them, Hell we could run into another patrol.”
“You want your sister safe or caged in a Fae prison?” Wolfgang’s jaw clenched. “If something happens to her.”
“Hold the angst and trust me,” Klara’s words came out as an order.
“The patrol is getting closer,” Wolfgang warned. If they found them, Klara would be sent straight back into the arms of those trying to kill her.
“Sense anything?” Wolfgang asked, and she felt no energy from above them. “No, the energy of the tree is masking them.”
