Page 40 of Deadwood
“All Amosite is good for is thievery!” a woman shouted, her thick accent clinging to every word.
“Filthy thieves!” a young child with blonde hair bellowed.
My eyes darted between each irate citizen before turning to the king and queen. They stood there with nothing more than pitiful looks on their faces.
I looked back down at the paper, my stomach tightening. “Amosite and Torbernite have come to a union,” I continued.
Before I could get another word out, something hit me in the hip. I took a step back to steady myself, glancing down to find a bright red stain on the garnet fabric.
The shouts grew louder as people began chucking various fruits and vegetables our way. It wasn’t long before the guards were in front of me, shielding me from the worst of it as they ushered Lander and me off the stage.
“My lady, are you injured?” a guard asked hurriedly as the others formed a half circle behind the two of us, blocking the barrage of foods.
I wasn’t sure if I was injured.
Was the red simply residue from a tomato?
The hit hadn’t hurt, but pain was such a familiar feeling to me that perhaps my mind didn’t register it at the same time as my body.
“My lady,” he said again, but I barely heard him, his voice nearly blending in with the shouts around us.
There were so many noises. So many angry people. So many colors and stones and buildings.
Our footsteps hurried down the path to an awaiting carriage. Was their hatred aimed at me? Or my father? What could he have done to cause these people to be so angry?
“Auria,” Lander said, interrupting the echo in my mind. His hand was on my shoulder, his gaze narrowed on me. He must’ve seen my eyes working to focus themselves. “They need to know if you’re hurt.”
With a glance at my dress, I knew now that I wasn’t. Yet though I wasn’t physically injured, my emotions were a mess. To have food thrown at us… It was beyond embarrassing. But most of all, shameful. I didn’t want these people to hate us—to hateme.
I shook my head, words still unable to form on my tongue as nausea built.
“She’s okay,” Lander relayed to the guard.
He was standing beside us as the others had their backs to us now, watching to make sure none of the mayhem followed.
“You need to get in the carriage, my lady,” the guard said as he opened the door.
I stepped up, my hands fisted in my food-stained skirt. I situated myself on the bench as Lander sat across from me. The guard closed the door, and in seconds, we were moving.
“Won’t they follow us to where we’re staying?” I asked, finally able to think clearly enough for logic to seep back in.
“I presume we’ll depart Sulphur tonight,” Lander replied.
I swallowed, the jostling of the carriage leaving a sour taste in my mouth. “But the guards need rest.”
Lander peeked out the curtain. “They’re trained for far worse than some flying rotten food and no sleep, Auria.”
My eyes fell to the stain of red and the seeds splattered throughout. Would it truly be so tragic had it been my blood and not the juice of a fruit?
I ran a finger through the pulp. “If they’re not well off, why would they waste all this food only to humiliate us?”
“I don’t believe it’s food they have a shortage of here,” Lander said.
I wiped the juice off my finger, looking at him. He was barely stained with the remains of a blueberry or two on his shirt. “Is that why they called Amosite thieves?”
His forehead creased. “You truly don’t know?”
“No. And that’s what frustrates me the most out of all of this. My father sent me out here with no knowledge on any of what’s going on, and I’m expected to act like I know everything. How am I to serve as a face of peace between Amosite and these kingdoms if I don’t even know what goes on behind closed doors?”
