by Amanda Fleet
The three of us parted as Faran turned towards the State Rooms and Orian and I headed down the hallway that led to the Courtyard Garden. Orian offered his arm to me but I eschewed it.
“Why is Faran being even more protective about you than normal?” he asked as we walked down the main pathway through the gardens. The sun warmed my skin, and the borders buzzed with flying insects.
“Your father thinks there’s a long list of people who want me dead and that them all vying to be the one to rid The Realm of me will unify them.”
He snorted. “Faran won’t let them cough in your vicinity. I’m surprised he consented to you walking with me.”
“Why? Do you want to stab me too?”
His eyes filled with mischief. “No. You know how I feel about you.”
I increased the gap between us. “I’m married, Orian. And your feelings were never reciprocated.”
We reached a junction and strolled down one of the side paths, next to the fruit trees trained against the walls. I studied the fruits. Apples? Something very similar, anyway.
“Are you choosing to stay with him because you love him? Or are you merely being political?” said Orian, clasping his hands behind his back as he walked.
“My business. Not yours. Whether I love him or not, we’re married.”
He snorted. “You’re as political as Lady Morgan. You know she’s making a play for me, having lost my brother to you?”
I gave him a side-eye. “You and Morgan always look as thick as thieves. Are you sure you mind her making a play for you?”
He scowled. “She’s understandably upset at playing second choice to you. I’m equally upset at playing second choice to my brother. Perhaps we just find comfort in shared frustrations. Have you let Faran screw you yet?”
My mouth fell open. “That’s definitely not your business!”
He smirked. “Aeron, he’s not a patient man and Morgan is just waiting for the chance to usurp you.”
“You’re making the assumption that he wants her.” I sat on the bench we’d reached. Was this what he’d needed to talk to me about so badly?
“He wanted her ten days ago.” Orian settled next to me, his leg pressed against mine.
I moved away purposefully. “Maybe. But as you’ve already said, she’s his second choice.”
“Morgan says Faran’s a very physical man. If you’re not meeting his needs, don’t be surprised if he fills them elsewhere. Morgan would drop her knickers for anyone who could get her closer to her ambitions. If that also happens to undermine your position, even better. There are few discreet options for Faran if you’re not giving him what he needs, and Lady Morgan and he are no strangers.”
“And you? Is Lady Morgan dropping her knickers for you too? You two do seem inseparable.”
“She still believes she’ll have Faran.”
I shook my head. “She’s delusional.”
“Perhaps.”
Time was ticking away. If all Orian wanted to chat about was Morgan’s quest to get Faran back, he could forget it. I had things to do; places to go. “What do you want, Orian? Why have you dragged me out to talk to me?”
He drew a deep breath, gazing at me. “I want you to be happy. If you can tell me you’re blissfully happy with my brother, then I’ll be content.”
“I’ll be happier when Aegyir is defeated.”
“Happier? Or just dead?”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” I crossed my arms.
He turned to face me. “You’ve never been stupid. You must know that even if Father doesn’t sacrifice you up to Aegyir to buy time to get the rest of the Guardians into formation, Aegyir will seek you out for his revenge.”
I caught sight of Faran emerging into the courtyard and smiled. Lady Morgan was with him, both her arms linked through his as if she was staking a claim on him and my smile evaporated. They didn’t walk towards us but headed down a side path to sit under a tree, just off the main thoroughfare, heads bent together. A stab of jealousy pierced my solar plexus.
“Can we go to the labyrinth? I need to talk to you alone,” said Orian.
I turned back to him, my mind still on how close Faran was sitting to Morgan. “Why?”
He dropped his voice to barely a whisper. “I need to talk to you about something that’s probably technically treasonous.”
My attention snapped on at the word ‘treasonous’. “Should the wife of the Elected Successor listen to something technically treasonous?”
He pushed his bottom lip out, his eyes clear. “Yes, when it’s about her safety and would be to her advantage. Walk with me?”
I glanced towards Faran, my guts clenching, wondering what had happened to his meeting with his father. And why I was so jealous of him sitting with Morgan.
“Oh, he’s too busy to notice,” said Orian snidely. “Let’s talk in the labyrinth?”
We talked about nothing until we were at the centre of the labyrinth. The cool gloom had been chased away by the bright skies today, and the light made the water in the fountain sparkle.
I rested my back on the fountain, keeping my distance from him. “So what is it that you need to talk to me about?”
He leaned next to me. “What do you remember about us?”
“Nothing much,” I lied. I could remember exactly how much of a treacherous, back-stabbing shit he was. “Faran and Lilja have told me some things.”
“We were supposed to get married. It was arranged. I was Elected Successor. And then you and Faran returned from a training camp declaring your love and insisting that you would be together.” He raked long fingers through his hair. “At the next election, he took over as Elected Successor. He was married to a powerful family while I was single. That won him votes. He says he chose you for love, but he didn’t.”
This didn’t mesh with how Faran had been to me or with what I remembered. I said nothing. What was his ploy here? He seemed genuinely upset and hurt. If I hadn’t remembered so much of my life with Faran, I might have believed Orian’s version.
“If Aegyir attacks, my father will put you in the first line of defence.”
“I know.”
“You’ll die. My father’s happy at the prospect. Faran? He’ll move on to Morgan. Me? I don’t want you to die.” His voice cracked. “We need more intelligence on where Aegyir is and why he hasn’t attacked The Realm yet. How strong is he? Has he amassed an army that could overthrow The Realm?” His gaze shifted to the high hedges of the labyrinth for a moment. “Do you think Faran and the others will find any of that out? None of them speak the language of Outside.”
“You are speaking against your father.” Did he know what I was planning?
He ignored my comment. “If Aegyir attacks, with or without an army, we may not prevail. We need more information and none of the three going Outside will get it.”
I scrutinised him. “Let me guess, you think I should go and get the information?”
“Yes. If we wait, you’ll be killed by Aegyir. Maybe everyone will be. But you could leave, find out where Aegyir is and how strong he is and be back before Faran’s mission is scheduled to go. I’m due to be on Traitor’s Gate this morning. Delay the mission until I’m on the gate.” He picked up my hand and rubbed the space where my absent finger should have been. I tried to pull away, but he held me firmly.
I stared at him, trying to work him out. My guts told me not to trust him as far as I could spit, but my head saw that he was offering me a way to leave The Realm without getting arrested. What did he gain from me leaving?
“Why are you saying this?” I asked. “Are you trying to make me commit treason? Get your brother’s judgement over me questioned so that you can be Elected Successor again?”
He exhaled angrily. “Do you know how hard it is for me to see you married to him when I don’t think he loves you? Oh, he’ll make it work, assuming Father doesn’t succeed in either getting you assassinated before Aegyir attacks or in throwing you in Aegyir’s path
when he comes, but Faran doesn’t love you. Not the way I do.”
“What do you mean, ‘succeed’?” I narrowed my eyes.
He bit his lips. “Why do you think their sentence was so mild? They were obeying orders.”
The part of me that’d never been very good with authority billowed up. If I wasn’t killed on the orders of my father-in-law, I’d be offered up to a murderous demon as a delaying tactic. If Lord Eredan was going to find a way to have me hanged, assassinated or sacrificed, I might as well disobey his orders and find out what Aegyir was up to. I could at least forewarn Faran and hopefully stop him getting slaughtered.
Orian stroked the stump on my hand again, his shoulders sagging. “I don’t want to see The Realm destroyed. I know what Lilja and Steen have seen. I could hardly claim to weep over the demise of my brother, but even I must acknowledge that his loss would be a major blow to The Realm.” He paused, staring at the ground. When he spoke again, tension strained his voice. “If Aegyir had his strength, and Lord Sondan’s and Cerewen’s… we’d never be able to beat him. Even if you find out that Aegyir has an army of minions ready to fight for him, at least we’d know. With the difference in how time runs, you could be gone and back before anyone missed you.”
I sighed. “The trick will be getting away from Faran. He’s sticking to me like glue.”
“I’ll get him away from you. Just be ready.”
A movement at the entrance to the central space made us both look up. Faran strolled through and stopped abruptly, his gaze locked on our hands. I pulled my hand free.
“Why are you both hiding in the labyrinth?” said Faran, his expression hard.
“We’re not hiding. I’m trying not to get assassinated and Orian was keeping me company.”
“Well, as I’m here now, you have no need for his company.” Faran’s face darkened, and he turned to his brother. “Mother wants you.”
Orian brushed his hand against mine, levered himself away from the fountain and bowed. Faran’s gaze drilled into his back as he left. “What did he want?”
I peered into the water of the fountain, leaning on my arms. “He wonders if the attempt on my life was ordered by your father.”
“And do you wonder that?” He moved to mimic my position and rolled his head to look at me.
“I think it’d probably be treason for me to say it.”
He laughed lightly. “Yes. It would be. What else did Orian want?”
“Nothing much. He wanted to know if I was happy with you and if I’d screwed you yet. Then he said that you weren’t all that patient, and that Morgan was just waiting to usurp me.”
Surprise flashed across Faran’s face. “What did you say?”
“That it was none of his business, and that I’d be happier when Aegyir was defeated.”
Faran laughed. “What else did he want?”
“To tell me he thought that both you and your father hope I’ll die in the battle with Aegyir, leaving you honourably free to marry Morgan.”
“Possibly father’s hope. Quite certainly not mine.” He slid his arm around my shoulders. “You can’t believe I would be happy to see you killed?”
“I thought you were meeting your father, but saw you with Morgan. What did she want?”
He pinched his nose. “To talk to me about her cousin’s wedding. She saw me as I was leaving Father.”
I swirled the water, making the patterns of light and dark kaleidoscope, then turned so that my back rested against the stonework. Faran’s arm dropped to curl around my waist and he bit his lip. “I know you’re planning to leave.”
Should I tell him? No. He’d never let me out of his sight, whatever distraction Orian planned.
I tucked my hand against his hip. “I can’t lie to you. But I don’t see how I can leave. As you pointed out last night, there are guards and Guardians on every portal.”
“Come back to our rooms? Stay with me until I have to go?”
“So you can keep an eye on me?”
He squeezed me. “So I can spend some time with you.”
***
I checked the time when we got to our rooms. I probably only had about fifty minutes before Faran and the others would be ready to go Outside. That would give me a couple of days Outside if I could go soon. I scooted to the bathroom and splashed some water on my face, then joined Faran again, sitting on the sofa and curling my legs up under me.
“What do you want to do until I have to go, my lady?” Faran had a raunchy look in his eyes, but was going to be disappointed.
“Well, I need to give you a map of the area I drew to help you work out where you are when you get Outside.”
“Oh.”
I fetched him the map and talked him through it – where he’d emerge when he crossed the portal, how to get into town from there, where I thought Aegyir might be, relative to the town and the portal.
Eventually, he took the map off me. “This is helpful and I am grateful for it. But I don’t want to spend my last half hour talking about it. Come here.”
He pulled me into his arms, cuddling me close. If Orian managed to get Faran away, and I made it Outside, these might indeed be our last few minutes together – there was no guarantee I would make it back. I slipped my hand under his jacket, the heat of his back against my palm, and breathed deep lungfuls of him – warm skin, leather, the spicy soap from the shower. He felt so familiar to me.
“God, you smell good!”
He tipped his head back, laughing. “I smell good? Okay.”
I moved my other hand up to rub his neck, eliciting a light groan from him that melted me. Just as he was about to kiss me, there was a brisk rap on the outer door.
“Oh, what now?” I moved out of Faran’s arms, my heart racing. Was this Orian’s diversion? Half of me hoped it was, but the other half of me was filled with apprehension. Aegyir was strong. Could I find him and survive? A memory of the sword against my wrist at our last encounter chilled me. I’d been lucky to only lose a finger.
“Yes!” Faran snapped, settling his hands against my hips and glaring at the door.
A young lad came in, wide-eyed with trepidation. “Elected Successor. Lady Alix wishes to see you.”
“Now?”
“Yes.”
Faran sighed. “Okay.” He squeezed me briefly. “I’ll be back as soon as I can. Don’t go anywhere.”
I waited until his footsteps faded, and then packed my bag with a couple of tops, clean socks and knickers, my wallet – which still contained a bit of Outside money and my ATM card – and all the knives from Faran’s drawer. I took my communications button off and hid it in the top drawer of the desk. I debated leaving him a note but decided against it. He might feel duty-bound to tell his father before I got back. My only regret was not being able to pack some food.
I slung my bag over my shoulder and hastened out of our rooms. How long would it take Faran to get to his mother’s and back to our rooms? Five minutes? Ten at most. Even if he followed me Outside the moment he realised I’d gone, that would give me a five hour head start Outside. Would that be enough?
Just before the turn that would take me to Traitor’s Gate, I stopped. What if Orian had been setting me up? I’d get to Traitor’s Gate, there’d be no sign of him and I’d be arrested. I retraced my steps until I reached the hallway leading towards the Hidden Gate, having to resist the temptation to break into a run. After a series of twists and turns, I could see the portal. Only one guard and one Guardian stood there. I had two choices. Try to distract them – unlikely – or brazen it out. I didn’t fancy the latter option much, either.
Boots approached, and I ducked into a niche in the corridor. Both of the watch left the portal and stood about ten feet from me, sharing a salacious tale and laughing quietly. I recognised Cenan as the Guardian. They walked slightly further from the portal, still joking, and I spotted my chance to nip behind them. I tiptoed down the hallway to the portal, drew in a deep breath and walked straight at the wall,
praying that I would emerge on the other side and not bounce noisily back into the hall with a broken nose.
As I passed through the portal, my entire body felt peculiar – as if it was being stretched like elastic before pinging back to shape. It lasted for only a fraction of a second, and then I was clinging to a narrow ledge, rain lashing my face.
I was back Outside.
21
The thick, velvety dark of pre-dawn surrounded me, with no sign of the sun arriving any time soon. The cold bit hard and I rubbed my hands together, lamenting the lack of gloves. I inched down the narrow ledge so that I could squash into a niche out of the rain and take stock. I’d been away for eight months. The last time I’d been seen Outside, I’d been getting dragged against my will up the track to the other portal. I was still officially a missing person, and this was meant to be a stealth mission – out and back as quickly as possible, having found out where, and how strong Aegyir was. Being taken to a police station and grilled about where I’d been for the last eight months wouldn’t be helpful.
I peered at my surroundings. The lights of my hometown twinkled in the distance and the intermittent car headlights pinpointed the roads. It was about an hour’s walk to the rock face where I’d lost a finger.
I peered down. Lilja hadn’t been kidding about the precipitous path down from here. Would my leather-soled Guardian boots have enough grip, or would I tumble to my death?
I leaned back again. Had I made a really, really stupid mistake? Me leaving had been expressly forbidden by Lord Eredan. Would intelligence on Aegyir and his state of readiness for attack save me when I returned? If I returned. I’d been in The Realm four days and it wasn’t home, however familiar Faran was beginning to feel.
I closed my eyes. Home was where Finn was.
Nowhere.
I fingered the line of holes in my ear and fluffed my short hair. I was Reagan Bennett, with a birth certificate to prove it. I drank beer, rode a motorbike and belonged out here where the air was fresh and crisp, not in some near-hermetically sealed city. Out here I could eat what I wanted, when I wanted, with whoever I wanted.