Page 14 of The Promise Born
“What?”
“How long will it take?
“The tournament is in a month.” He nodded. “After it is done, this will be over.”
I left him waiting as I weighed his request against what I needed for myself. What could I ask for as a bargain for staying? Simply going back to living in obscurity didn’t seem like enough. I needed more than that.
“There has to be something you want.” He offered before I could even form the words to ask. “Whatever it takes to make this work, I’ll make it happen.”
“I want to leave.” My heart ached a bit, but that was what I truly needed. An escape.
“What?” he scoffed. “I mean, yes. I will send you home.”
“I don’t mean back to my home.” I corrected him. “That’s not good enough. I need to leave Saldann for good. Can you help me do that?”
“Why?” I frowned. “What are you running from?”
“That isn’t your concern.” I scrunched my nose at him. “That is the condition for me to stay here and help you fool your mother.”
He stared into my eyes, looking for some glimmer that my stare would betray my secrecy before agreeing. “Okay, yes. I can help you. Where would you want to go?”
“Aghon.” I thought of the land of the orcs. It would be the best place for me. Far enough away from Saldann that no one would think to look for me there. It would also allow me room to let my dragon free.
“You want to live with the orcs?” He frowned in judgement of my choice.
“Is that a problem? Why does it matter to you where I live?”
“Fine. I can make that happen.” He agreed. “That’s a fair exchange.”
“Promise it.” I squinted at him and pointed to his chest. “A real promise.”
“Is my word alone not good enough?”
“After what you just pulled?” I crossed my arms. “No. It isn’t good enough.”
“Fine,” he sighed. He lifted his finger, and it shifted to dragon claw. He then opened his shirt and dragged the nail across his chest. “I promise to uphold my end of this bargain. I will personally escort you away from Saldann to the land of the Orcs when our deal is done, where I will leave you to live free and in peace. As you wish.”
I couldn’t believe he’d actually done the dragon’s promise. This wasbinding.
If he didn’t keep up his end of the deal, his lie would form into a poison. One that would wrap around and strangle his heart until he died. I peered into Asante’s eyes, the silence heavy between us as I waited for some betraying tremor. Some subtle shift to reveal his true intentions.
A sharp, loud rap on the door shattered our eye contact, making us both jump.
“Come in.” Asante called out and when the door opened, the pest entered.
Domin, the annoying man who clearly hated me, eyed the fresh scar on the prince’s chest.
“Sir, there is something that requires your attention.” He glanced at me, then back to the prince. “Queen Toci requests your presence.”
“What is it?” Asante asked.
Domin looked at me again, a slight tremor in his hands betraying his reluctance to speak before me.
“You can say it. It’s fine.”
“An injury with one of the trainees.” He paused. “And a problem with the trolls at the borders.”
“They’re here again?”
