Page 9 of The Warlord's Princess
“Are you suggesting we stop breathing?” Amber says with a light chuckle. “Because that’s what it would take.”
“Just don’t go out of your way to interact with him,” Elena says.
“That’s easy for you to say,” I grumble.
Ignoring me, Elena asks Amber, “Did you travel far?”
“This place is hell,” Amber says, her voice trembling. “Pure and simple. The shore was a fantasy. A fever dream that is not real. We cannot survive without the men, and to think otherwise is folly.”
I see Meg nodding in agreement, which makes my hair stand on end, as she has also spent time in the wild.
For a moment, we’re silent as the weight of Amber’s words settles over us like a smothering fog.
Finally, Elena sighs, exhaling a long breath. “We will speak of this more, but now is not the time, and I would appreciate it if you did not talk to the others about what you’ve seen.”
Whatever hope I’d had when I came to Elena extinguishes as I realize I must continue to sleep in the proverbial lion’s den.
I’d hoped that life in this village would be easier than out by the shore, and for some, it will be.
But not for me.
“Are you going to give me trouble?” Elena directs a sharp gaze at Amber, who shrugs.
“I wasn’t thinking I would, but who knows what the future holds,” Amber returns.
“The men have welcomed us, for the most part, and it would be good for us not to look divided,” Elena says.
“Have they, now?” Amber mocks.
“I’m serious,” Elena snaps, her patience running thin as my thread. “Our survival depends on these men seeing us as worthy partners, and that won’t happen if we’re at each other’s throats.”
“The men might actually think more highly of us if we get a little angry with each other,” Amber offers with a devious smirk.
Elena’s jaw tics. She presses her eyes closed, growling out, “Don’t you dare!”
“Don’t worry about me.” Amber turns suddenly somber, and tears fill her eyes. “You know not what this island holds. We are anchored to these men.”
“Many of us have begun to accept it,” Elena insists.
“Because they don’t have a choice,” Amber reasons.
Sensing the growing despair, I add, “Perhaps you will feel better after you get cleaned up.”
“That’s not a bad idea,” Elena agrees. “And a trip to Kairi at the cleric’s hut might do you some good as well.”
Amber looks at her hands, which are caked with dirt. “A bath would feel good, but I’ll never feel truly clean again.”
I get up from my seat. “Let me take you to the cave we’ve claimed for bathing.”
3
ASHA
Once we’re outside, Amber puffs out her chest, looking as proud as she can while covered in mud and shabby, threadbare clothes.
Before we crashed, we were never friends, but there was no bad blood between us.
That all changed on the shores of Melgrim.
