Page 61 of Spirit Trials
Sensing that he’s done with this conversation, I ask what I’ve been wanting to. “Can I ask you something?” He tenses but gives me a nod. “Why do the banished live so awfully?” His entire demeanor relaxes, making me wonder what he thought I was going to ask. “They live in such poor conditions. Why don’t they hunt? Why don’t they make better homes for themselves. I’m not trying to judge, but our village is way better off than they are, and we literally live in the middle of nowhere.”
“They’re not allowed to hunt on the king’s lands, nor are they allowed to cut down trees or use any other resources on the king’s lands.” I stare at him in shock. “How do they survive?”
He shrugs. “You’ll have to ask them.”
“Your dad is an awful person.”
He doesn’t try to deny it. I stand up and push my chair in. “We’re going to have to do something about him.”
His eyes snap to mine. “No,weare not. My dad is a force you don’t want to reckon with.”
We’ll see. “I’m going to head to my room. I’ll see you in the morning bright and early so we can get going.”
I don’t sleep well for what’s left of the night, though I should be exhausted. I can’t shake the emotion from everything I saw tonight—the absolute need of the banished, their terrible homes, their lack of security and food. It angers me all over again. I have no idea what I’m going to do about it, but I know I’m going to do something! That’s for sure.
I’m dressed and ready to go a few hours later. I pace the entryway until Rysden comes down. “Did you sleep at all?” he asks.
“Nope. Let’s go.” He doesn’t say a word as we head out the front door. I walk ahead of him to the stables. “Which one can I ride?”
“Now you’re asking?” I bite my tongue, so I don’t say something I’ll regret. I really need to go get my friends, and if this is the only way I’m going to be able to do it, then I need to hold my peace, so Rysden won’t refuse to take me. “You’re riding with me.”
“Seriously? Rysden, I know how to ride!”So much for biting my tongue.
“I know you do, but I don’t trust you. You either ride with me, or we stay here. That’s my offer; take it or leave it.”
I bite my tongue hard enough, it draws blood. “Fine.” I march over to his horse and pull myself up and over easily. I wait quietly while he does whatever it is he’s doing.
But then I can’t take it anymore. “What in the whole wide world are you doing?”
He lifts an eyebrow. “You need to develop patience.”
One, two, three, four...
He smirks, as if he knows exactly how crazy he’s making me. Before I can throw something at him, he adds, “I’m waiting for the guys.”
I scowl. “Do you not go anywhere by yourself?”
He doesn’t answer, and I’m back to waiting again. I hate waiting. “You know, I would’ve thought you’d be really good at patience seeing as you need heaps of it to be a good hunter.”
I cock my head. “How do you know I’m a good hunter?”
A smirk graces his lips, and my eyes dart there for just a moment. A stupid move. “I know you can hunt, Farrah. You can do a lot of things...pretty much whatever you set your mind to.” He says all this without looking at me; he’s working with some kind of leather strap.
“Was that a compliment?” I ask in shock.
“Can somebody please tell me why we’re leaving so early?” Lox asks, entering the stable. I look over at him and see his mussed hair and can’t help my grin, especially when I meet Rysden’s gaze and see he’s just as amused.
“I forgot how much you love mornings, Lox,” I say with a grin.
Hector and Jamik both show up a few minutes later, and then we all mount up. Jamik brings an extra horse that I’m assuming is for my friends. We begin the ride through the city, and I take it in on this early morning. It’s so different than at night. The sun makes everything bright and cheerful. I watch as people begin their daily chores and start their day. There are only a fewpeddlers in the market area, but I know that won’t last for long. I let my eyes enjoy the sights as I take in the smells. If I wasn’t in such a hurry to find my friends and make sure they’re okay after the craziness of last night, I would almost ask to stop to just absorb it all. Life here in the city is vastly different than life in a village. There’s a kind of charm; I’ll have to admit.
When we get to the gates, the guards wave Rysden and his men through the huge double doors. Thankfully, Rysden picks up the pace. As much as I hate not being on my own horse, I can’t help but enjoy riding Noctis, Rysden’s horse. He’s fast and strong and a joy to ride, not that I’d tell Rysden that. He pulls on the reins long before we reach the area where the banished live. “What are you doing?” I ask. “Why are you slowing down?”
“Jamik’s going to scout it out for us,” Rysden says.
“It’s fine,” I start to say.
“Farrah, we won’t be welcome. I killed one of theirs last night.” I swallow hard as memories come flooding back. “The only way we are going to do this is if you stay with me the entire time.” I nod. “I need a verbal agreement, Farrah.”
