Page 27 of Forbidden Obsession
Lemossin is approximately a twelve days’ ride in this direction, assuming the horses stay healthy and the weather holds out. It would be faster if we pushed, but I could never do that to my best girl, and I get the sense Falen wouldn’t do that to his horse either.
Part of me, a tiny part, is excited about the journey. I can’t help it. Weeks of discovering what’s around the next bend, with my only responsibilities being to take care of Magna, Falen, and myself. No neighbors asking for favors, no roofs to be shingled, no stalls to be mucked out, and no Vander to get on my last nerve.
But…
No Jindal either.
My good mood is dashed a bit every time that thought circles around. I miss him already, and it’s only been half a day. Saying good-bye was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.
Early this morning, he woke me before the sun with his soft lips on my neck, kissing a line just below my ear to my collarbone. And then kissing much lower. A pleasant way to wake up, indeed, but tinged with sadness as we both knew it would be our last time for quite a while.
Worry danced in his big orange eyes as he clutched my hands for the last time. “Be safe. No matter what. Take good care of yourself, and come home to me as quick as you can.”
I squeezed his hands and brought them to my chest. “Promise.”
We kissed good-bye then Jindal was left to stand with Bird while Falen and I mounted up and rode off.
I must have looked over my shoulder a hundred times before he disappeared into the distance.
My anger only grows. Anger at the queen, at her entire royal court, at all her advisors and their selfish demands on my time. On my very name. But I push the intrusive feeling aside. It’s a beautiful day. Falen is a friendly companion and a man I’m looking forward to getting to know. I won’t waste this journey on negative thoughts when there’s as much to be enjoyed as there is to be upset about.
Falen rides ahead of me, sitting upon his chestnut gelding, aptly named Chestnut. He and Magna seem to get on well, so that’s good, as they’ll be in each other’s company for the better part of the month.
Since the roadway is now wide enough to ride abreast, I urge Magna ahead until Falen and I are side by side.
“Nice view, isn’t it?” The land stretches out before us, an endless sea of greens, purples, blues, and oranges, all woven like a tapestry across the rolling hills and flat fields between them.
We take in the sight, both of us slack-jawed in awe of nature’s beauty. A variety of flowers grow as tall as a man with blooms wide as Samuin pumpkins. Their sweet fragrance travels on the breeze.
“It sure is. I’ve been this way before, but it never gets old.”
I point to a patch of the giant flowers and the circle of shade beneath them. “Shall we stop for lunch?”
“In a bit, if you can wait. There’s a farm up ahead with a trough for traveling horses. We can stop there.”
I nod, and we grow silent as Magna and Chestnut amble downhill toward the farm. Jindal packed a huge saddlebag of food for us, courtesy of Bessa, and my stomach is rumbling just thinking about what’s inside.
It takes no more than a half hour to reach the little farmstead. True to Falen’s word, the place provides water for the horses and a shady place to rest and graze a bit while we eat. I dismount and look around.
A young man comes out to check on us. Human, his brown hair shorn rather short. A smattering of freckles crosses his nose and cheeks. His grin is a friendly one. We chat with him about the weather. Then he nods in the direction of the royal capital. “You two headed for Lemossin?”
“How did you know?” asks Falen, smiling.
“Two mixlings traveling in that direction.” He gestures toward the southern horizon. “Must be about that wicked pledge.”
Suspicion curdles in my gut, and I knit my brows. “Wicked?”
If I’m feeling suspicious, then by the look on his face, Falen is doubly so.
“Aye.” The farmer shrugs. “Asking rural folk to travel sunstrides across the country in the middle of planting season? All to sign some silly piece of parchment? It sounds right wicked if you ask me. What about the crops?”
I don’t disagree, but at the same time, a sigh of relief escapes my lips. For a moment, I thought maybe he knew something I didn’t. Something worse or sinister. Something truly wicked.
“Have there been many of us so far?” asks Falen. “Headed south?”
“Not too many, I reckon. A few. Definitely more than usual for this time of year, for sure.”
I gather the saddlebag of Bessa’s treats from Magna’s back and nod toward the little wooden table nearby. “Join us for lunch? It’s the least we can do to thank you for your hospitality.”
