Page 19 of If The Crown Fits
“In some cases,” I admitted. “But that’s only for a few minutes. Most men will trust you for a few minutes if you pretend to be sweet enough.”
Rhen stopped walking. “Would that be all? We need to get back on the road.”
“Not quite.”
Rhen let out a sigh before we continued.
“I know Lance trusts you and everything, but I’m not sure you know what you’re up against in this part of the woods.”
“I take it you’re referring to the rumours of bandits that have been going around for some time.”
I grabbed him by the arm, making him stop. “They’re not rumours, Rhen, believe me. I know these people and they will slaughter you if they have to, and not even just if they have to, sometimes just for fun.”
He pulled free and kept walking. “What exactly are you trying to tell me?”
I squared my shoulders and followed him. “I’m asking you to give me a weapon so I can defend myself if we were to run into them.”
Rhen actually laughed. “You don’t seriously expect me to fall for that? For all I know, you’ll kill me in my sleep with my own knife.”
I frowned. “So you just expect me to sit there and get butchered by them?”
“Nobody is getting butchered, trust me.”
“Trust you? You threw me in a prison cell!”
“Because I had orders to follow, and now I have orders to get you to Woodsbrook Manor so you can follow through on Prince Lance’s plans. Do you honestly think I would risk my own head? You and I both know the prince will kill my company and me if something happens to you. So you can rest assured you will be safe. Now get back in your carriage and focus on your lessons with Cordelia.”
“Okay, fine.” I pretended to give up. “I suppose you’re right. You have a lot riding on this as well and I’m sure you know what you’re doing.”
“Thank you. Now let’s go.” With that, he walked past me, heading for the others. I waited a few seconds before taking the knife I had stolen off him out from behind my back. I smiled and tucked it away. He was right. Men will trust you if you pretend to trust them.
With that being said, he was also wrong... very, very wrong. It must have been only about an hour after I had fallen asleepthat night when the screaming started. It was pitch-black, and just as I managed to grab the handle of Rhen’s knife, I was dragged out of the tent.
Outside was chaos, with horses running about and soldiers fighting off the bandits. I had known this would happen, had warned Rhen about it. Cordelia screamed as she tried to get away from one of the men. I ran towards her, knife in hand, but I was pulled from the forest floor and onto a horse. “Got one!” the rider shouted. “You can be sold for a pretty penny with a face like that.” The man’s breath was foul, and he had the unmistakable paint of the Baruk clan on his arms.
I tried to fight the rider, but managed to dig my heel into the horse’s ribs, sending him surging forwards. He fought to hold onto my wrists and even got a blow to my face. But after much struggle, I jabbed his side with the knife and he let out a shout of pain.
Before I could push off the man, a branch hit my neck and shoulders, causing me to lose my balance. I hit the ground hard and groaned as I saw the horse running away into the distance.
I slowly stood up and the forest became quiet once more. The horse, the bandit and my knife were gone and I could only hear the sound of crickets. I turned abruptly, trying to remember from which direction we had come, but the adrenaline and the loud beating of my heart made it difficult to think clearly. That was close, too close.
And there it was, faintly in the distance: firelight. Not from our camp, but someone else’s. In my long white shift, I started walking through the woods, focusing on the light and listening for any danger that might surround me.
I stalked as quietly as possible on my bare feet.
Without warning, a screeching bird emerged from the trees, wings flapping wildly. A shriek escaped me and I flailed my arms around for a moment. Once I was certain the bird was gone, Iswallowed hard, breathed even harder. And then I scowled for letting myself get scared by a stupid bird. The surprise of it had me on edge as I continued.
The campfire had been much further than I thought. By the time I reached it, roots and branches had cut me. My bare feet were covered in dirt, not that I minded this as much. But there was a cool breeze sailing around the air, a true characteristic of a dark night in the forest. The whisper of it against my skin formed goosebumps and my mind took me back to other stories I had heard growing up. Not ones of rival clans, but of other things lurking in the night.
Things that the mere thought of kept me awake as a young girl.
I eyed the small crowd sleeping around the fire. They were all men, but nothing about them stood out to tell me what kind of men they were, exactly. One of the horses, tied to the tree behind me, stirred. I motioned for it to keep quiet with my finger, as if it could understand me.
I scanned the group again. The one closest to me was snoring and, despite my moving closer, didn’t show any signs of waking up. I spotted a small dagger sticking out from the satchel his head rested on, like on a pillow.
Without much thought, I crouched down and reached towards the blade with my fingertips. I smiled at my accomplishment once I stood back up with the dagger in my hands. At least now I had a weapon again. It was one of the most important rules of being a thief, after all — never be unarmed. This way, I could observe them from the shelter of the trees until morning and see if they could help me. Or I could start finding my way back.
After weighing my options, I decided it would be best to try to find what was left of our travelling party as soon as possible. If they were all dead, I hoped for Lance’s sake he had a plan B,because I had no idea where I was going. I had never entered this part of the forest. And the events of tonight only served to prove why I’d been warned as a child about the dangers of these woods.
