Page 26 of If The Crown Fits
The moment the door closed behind us, I whirled around. “Your wife? What exactly do you think you’re doing? I am not sharing a room with you.”
“It’s for your own protection.” He started taking off his weapons and placing them on a small table. I noticed the sword with a jewel at the hilt again. The craftsmanship reallywas something. And with the thief’s mind I possessed, I could only imagine what something like that would be worth. What appeared to be the dagger I tried to steal, and a hunting knife or two, accompanied the sword. The man was well equipped.
“What protection? I don’t need you to protect me. After all, I amyourhostage.”
“You’re a woman... actually, a girl, practically. You’re not safe in here alone. Even if you locked your door, you might not be the only one with a key. Who knows who might have come tovisityou!”
I crossed my arms in annoyance. “How dare you insult me like that? And I will have you know that I’m perfectly capable of defending myself.” He had no idea just how capable I could be.
There were cups and a bottle of ale on a cabinet. Alcott started pouring himself a cup. “It was not an insult and normally I would have left, but since you’re proving to be more stubborn than a mare in heat, I might stay just to annoy you.” He sat down on a chair at the small table, grinning like a fool. I merely gawked, flabbergasted. He might just have been the most repulsive male I had ever had the misfortune to meet in my entire life. Which was saying a lot.
“So first you kidnap me and now you want to protect my honour? Well, aren’t you just a hero.”
Alcott took a sip of his drink and then his emerald eyes met mine, burning with certain intensity.
“My men are soldiers who have been trained their whole lives to protect themselves and others. They are prepared for any kind of attack, and suddenly a woman appears out of nowhere in the middle of the night in only her shift and manages to steal a dagger from one of my most trusted men without him even waking. Do you have any idea what that would take? Seems a bit suspicious, doesn’t it?”
“No. It only proves that I don’t need you to protect me and that you are simply the most paranoid person in Everness. I am not a threat to you and I demand you let me go at once.”
He might have had a point, but I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of agreeing with him. But he had admitted something — they were soldiers, then. The question was, what kind of soldiers? They could be a team of scouts, sent out to inform Prince Cai. Alcott put his cup down before walking over to me.
“I’m going to ask you one last time: who are you and what were you doing stealing daggers off strangers in the middle of the night?”
I was surprised by how much I wanted to hurt him then. To shove him away from me. Was it because his eyes were boring into my own in a way that almost made my skin crawl? And not in a bad way. I lifted my chin, keeping my plan in mind.
“I’ve told you once and I will tell you again — I’m nobody important,” I stated. “I’m just the daughter of an aristocrat who was travelling through the woods to meet up with her family in their summer home. We were attacked by bandits who tried to kidnap me, but I escaped and got lost. That’s when I stumbled upon you and your men.”
“So why didn’t you ask for help?”
“How was I to know that you weren’t just as bad as the bandits? That you wouldn’t keep me for ransom? I thought I could watch you for a while to see if I could trust you.”
Not my best work, but better than nothing.
“Is that really true?” he asked.
“Yes.”
Alcott’s smirk was unnerving. “I don’t believe you.”
My mouth fell slightly open when a knock came at the door. Alcott opened it, said something that resembled thanksand turned towards me. In his hands was a bundle of clothes, whichhe tossed to me. “Get dressed. I’ll be back soon.” And then he closed the door behind him. I stood in silence for a few seconds before unfolding the clothes.
Alcott didn’t lock the door, but I didn’t leave the room.
The windows couldn’t open and I had a feeling that I wouldn’t be able to get past all of them downstairs. At least not while they were awake or sober. That being said, any good thief knew that patience was more than a virtue. It was a trick all on its own, for the longer you waited, the more rewarding it became.
I pretended to fall asleep on the bed, though I didn’t dare get under the covers. I would rather sleep on the forest floor. When Alcott returned he took a blanket and made himself comfortable on the floor, next to the bed. I listened to his breathing until it became even and I knew he had fallen asleep. I reached under the pillow, pulled out the dagger I had got from the market and clutched it tightly.
I placed one foot on the floor and then the other before standing up slowly, though no matter how quiet I tried to be, the bed still made an awful squeaking noise, and I cringed.
Alcott didn’t move. I studied him carefully to see if his breathing pattern changed. He had a lock of blond hair resting over his forehead. There were no movements underneath his eyelids. Letting out a small sigh of relief, I stepped over his body. The door was so close, I could smell my freedom.
I was halfway through taking my next step when a hand wrapped around my ankle and pulled me to the floor. A sound of surprise escaped me and I toppled over, my joints protesting at the impact on the wooden floorboards.
I turned, ready to swing a blow, but Alcott was above me, reaching to pin me down.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
I kicked at his leg and pulled his wrist, causing him to lose balance and making it all the easier for me to roll him over and press my dagger to his throat.
