by Kaylin Lee
~
“I don’t care what she told you. The guards stay outside. That’s the rule.” The stone-faced Tiger clan guard stood between us and the massive Tiger compound, crossing his tanned, heavily-muscled arms over his chest.
The Wasp Queen’s face flickered, but then a calm smile graced her lips. “I understand completely. Thank you, sir.” She reached out and patted the guard’s arm, then waved at the five hulking Wasp clan guards that hovered behind us. “You heard the man. Wait in the coach.” She gestured toward me. “Surely my maidservant will be permitted to accompany me? For the sake of decency!” She smiled, softening her sharp words.
“Fine,” he said gruffly. “Inside, then, and don’t tarry. They’re waiting for you.”
The Wasp’s smile grew brittle, but she only nodded politely and slipped past him into the compound. I followed at her heels. Could the guard see the guilt on my face? I supposed not, or he would never have let me in.
We strode through the Tiger courtyard, weaving between groups of guards performing synchronized training exercises. Did they always have so many guards at their compound? I’d never been to the Tiger villas before. All I knew was what Master Oliver had taught me—the Tiger clan was one of the most powerful clans in Draicia, second only to the Wolves, and in constant rivalry with all the other clans, especially the Wolves. What was the Wasp Queen doing, waltzing into the Tiger compound on her own with no protection except for me?
We passed through the arched entryway of the largest villa and entered a large room filled with the scent of wood smoke and male voices. Uniformed guards packed the room. I could barely see through the crowd to the grand spiral staircase, high windows, and ornate, mage-craft decorations that covered the walls. My throat itched to cough at the scent of so much wood smoke, sweat, and leather inside the stifling villa, but I didn’t want to draw any more attention. The guards closest to the entrance noticed us and grew quiet, watching us warily. I kept my hands tense and ready at my sides.
A male servant in a simple black suit waved to get our attention, then turned and marched up the staircase. We followed in silence. The light at the top of the stairs was dim, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that we were walking straight in to the mouth of a large, hungry beast.
At the top of the stairs, we followed the servant around corners, passing through rooms with polished, wooden floors, arched windows, and luxurious leather and wood furnishings. The wood smoke followed us, at odds with the elegant décor. Finally, we halted in a dim hallway outside a set of carved, wooden doors. The servant knocked once, then opened the doors. The Wasp Queen marched inside, and I followed. She paused, just inside the door, and I barely avoided hitting her. She sank into a deep curtsy, and I copied her as best I could, hoping that was the right thing for a maidservant to do.
“Rise,” said a soft, papery voice from across the room.
Behind us, the door shut with an ominous thud.
From the corner of my eye, I saw the Wasp rise from her curtsy, and I did the same. I squinted in the bright, white light gleaming through the windows facing us. Between us and the windows stood a long, rough-hewn wooden table and five dark shapes seated in tall chairs, their backs to the windows. Then, my eyes adjusted.
Three men and two women, clad in close-fitting black armor, watched us with narrowed eyes. Their faces were painted with black, white, and orange markings—the infamous Tiger clan war paint. They were ready for battle.
After a painfully long moment of silence, during which the sound of my own breathing echoed in my ears, the woman seated at the center of the table spoke. “You’ve got nerve to demand an audience on such a day.” Her quiet, thin voice was at odds with her fierce face paint and sharp-edged armor.
I darted a glance at the Wasp. She’d demanded an audience with the Tigers just after murdering the leader of their greatest rival? Just what was she planning? An alliance, I fervently hoped. Not a betrayal. Not a massacre.
“Not nerve, dear friends.” The Wasp’s back was iron-stiff, but her voice was sweet as honey. “Faith. In your leadership. And shared concern for our city.”
A male voice from the far side of the table gave a hoarse scoffing noise, and the Wasp’s shoulders tensed almost imperceptibly.
The woman at the center spoke again. “And what is your concern?”
The Wasp Queen took a small, mincing step toward the table. That step was the wrong choice if she meant to convey peace. Even I could see the Tiger leaders tense at her movement. Too bad they were worried about the wrong woman.
“Concern for the safety of our clans and our leaders, of course. Last night, poor Rodolfo was murdered in the middle of a crowded ballroom, in his own home, in cold blood.” She took another small step forward, then held out her hands in a pacifying, pleading pose that contradicted her tense muscles. “If even the Wolves can’t protect their own patriarch, should the other clans be concerned as well?” Another small step. “And what of the culprit? Has any clan come forward to claim his murder?”
The man on the far right leaned forward. “No one yet.” He smiled thinly, his lips stretching in a hungry mockery of a true smile. “The safety of the Wolf clan should be the least of your concerns. Rest assured, all will be set right in your beloved city soon.”
I shivered at the obvious threat in his tone. They were ready for war—ready to absorb the Wolf clan into their own, if I had to guess. They’d be unstoppable, by far the most powerful clan in the city. There’d be nothing to stop them taking over the Wasps next.
The Wasp Queen stopped moving forward at the man’s words, and stood still for a long, strange moment. Then her shoulders relaxed, as though she’d just released a long breath. “I thought as much. Rapunzel,” she said, her voice ringing out in the silent room. “Kill them all. Now.”
The command washed over me, giving me the courage that had deserted me the moment we walked into the Tiger compound. Then I bounded forward and dove across the table.
Within moments, three Tigers were gone, and I faced the remaining two—a man and a woman. Their eyes were wide, set in the dull orange paint across their faces. They backed up, sharp swords at the ready, as I advanced. I wanted to be as far from the swords as possible, but the Wasp’s command allowed me no outlet for the sake of my own safety. I’d get close enough to kill them or die trying.
I stepped closer. I hated this magic. I hated this Touch. Why had I been given this horrible curse?
The man struck out wildly with his sword. I dodged to the side, only to take the woman’s sword in the shoulder. I darted away, wishing I could howl at the pain, but the Wasp’s command silenced me. Hot tears slid down my cheeks, but still, I advanced.
“Rapunzel! Rapunzel! Cease this instant!” The woman who’d struck me spoke, her voice shaking.
I didn’t respond. Her command meant nothing, even though she’d heard the Wasp speak my True Name and was now trying to use it against me. A True Name could only be given, not taken. No doubt the woman was too frightened to think clearly at this point.
Their backs hit the red brick wall by the windows, and the man charged me with a scream, his face contorting as he rushed toward me with his sword raised. My body responded by continuing to advance as though the sword wasn’t even there.
I darted forward just as he reached me and put my hands around his neck since the rest of his body was protected by armor. He swung the sword toward my back, striking sharply, but I held on. The wound on my back burned, and he lifted his sword to strike again. Before he could swing, he crumpled to the floor.
The remaining Tiger woman pressed her back against the wall and thrust her sword out between us. “You’re a monster,” she said. “A thing of evil, pure evil.” Spittle flew from her mouth as she spoke, and her orange face paint dripped down her cheeks along with rivulets of sweat.
I could neither agree nor disagree, my voice dry and forbidden from use. I only advanced.
She lifted her sword to strike, and I used the opportun
ity to dart forward, close to her body. My hand shot up to her neck. I held on as she brought the sword down onto my shoulder once, twice, three times. I was too close for a deep cut, but even the shallow cuts burned painfully. Hot blood soaked my dress. I dropped my hand as she crumpled to the ground.
The Wasp came to stand beside me, her form oddly blurry. Why was the room swaying so violently?
“Time to go. Rapunzel, follow me.” She threw out her arm in a quick motion, and the window beside me shattered outward in an explosion of glass shards, pummeled by her magic. Then she ran and leapt through the window, and I followed, my sluggish, dazed body helpless to disobey.
~
The drop injured my ankle. The Wasp had used her powers to cushion her own fall, but she must have forgotten about me because I slammed to the ground like a pile of bricks. The Wasp raced through the compound. The True Name command forced me to press on, limping along on the twisted ankle that refused to fully bear my weight.
Miraculously, we reached a side entrance before the alarm sounded. We sped away in her armored fomecoach, packed in amongst the waiting guards, as alarm bells clanged.
I leaned my head against the side of the coach as blood gushed from the wounds on my shoulder and back. The inside of the coach turned fuzzy, and nausea rocked my stomach as we bumped along the pothole-ridden streets. A nervous noise came from one of the guards, and I peered at him from the corner of my eye, too tired to lift my head.
“My lady, will they not attack us next?” A handsome guard sitting beside the Wasp Queen wiped sweat from his upper lip.
Instead of punishing his impudence, she smiled indulgently, her eyes bright with a strange energy, a smile gracing her lips.
The coach darkened, its inhabitants turning into deep, wavy shadows. I blinked. Was I losing consciousness? I strained to stay awake to hear her answer.
“Not to worry, Lars. There are so many factions in the Tiger clan, they will rip themselves apart before they ever—”
The blackness that had been threatening my vision took over, and I heard nothing more.
~
My bed was soft and luxurious against my wounded back. Too comfortable. Where was the pain?
I tried to sit up, but my muscles didn’t obey. Was this it—the end? Merciful freedom from pain as I finally departed from this nightmare life?
A pair of crinkling green eyes hovered in my mind’s eye. I wasn’t ready. Oh, I wasn’t ready at all. I wanted more time! Why must I die now, having only just met Darien?
Then I relaxed. Perhaps that was just it. I’d met him. I’d known his kindness and the softness of his caring touch. It was enough. I could die now that I’d felt the heaven of a gentle hand on mine. I pressed the memory of that touch into my mind. I’d cling to it in my final moments, and it would be enough. It had to be.
But the end didn’t come. I floated on a cool, tingling cloud for hours. Why did my back and shoulder feel so good?
Then a new pain entered my awareness, a dull throbbing at my ankle. Why? Wasn’t I supposed to lose consciousness of pain as my life faded away? My body was not cooperating. The pain grew worse by the moment. I tried to go back to the sleepy, tingly cloud, but it only retreated further and further away.
Then something sharp came into my mind, coiling tightly around me like a stiff wire. I jolted into a sitting position and then cringed against the bright light in the tower. I had to tend my wounds. Where was the salve? I had to do it now. I’d wasted too much time already.
I rolled out of bed and landed on my injured ankle. I gave a cry of pain, and a pair of strong hands went to my sides, lifting me off my feet.
“Back in bed,” said a terse male voice. Darien. He’d stayed.
I forced my eyes to focus on him, and gradually, his image became visible. Then I pulled back and put my weight on my good foot. “I must tend my wounds. Now.”
“I already—”
Why was he still talking? I tried to shove him out of my way, but he didn’t budge. I dove around him and hobbled across the room to the canvas bag of food where I’d left the healing salve. I dug through it, tossing food to the floor in the process, but found no tin of salve.
I lurched toward Darien. “What have you done with it? Give me the salve. Now!”
He held up one placating hand, then drew a small tin from his pocket. There. Finally. I yanked it from his hand, stripped down to my slip, and searched my back for the sword wounds. Nothing. No pain. Not even raised skin. “What … what happened? I don’t understand.”
My wounds were completely healed. My ankle was bound in a crude splint. The urgency of the command finally left me, and I relaxed at last. I’d never gone so long without obeying a command from the Wasp before. Who knew how long I’d been unconscious?
She’d slapped me awake in the fomecoach when we arrived at the Wasp compound, and then she commanded me to follow her to my tower and to tend my own wounds when I got inside. But I’d collapsed immediately upon reaching the windowsill. Darien had no doubt saved my life.
I looked for Darien and realized he’d turned his back to me. He was standing with stiff shoulders, his fists clenched at his sides. “As I’ve been trying to tell you, I already tended your wounds.”
Humiliation burned its way across my face. I threw my dress back on over my slip, hobbled past him to my bed, and drew the covers over my body. “Thank you,” I whispered. You saved my life, I wanted to say, but the lump in my throat was too large for me to speak.
Hot tears streamed out of my eyes and pooled on my pillow. I’d just stripped my dress off in front of Darien as though he wasn’t even there. I’d been helpless to resist a command that wasn’t even necessary. What did he think of me?
Then again, why did I care? I wasn’t a woman. I was nothing but a monster, a weapon. I’d murdered five Tiger clansmen, and nearly killed myself in the process, all in obedience to the Wasp’s commands. The Tiger woman was right. I was a thing of pure evil. Perhaps Darien had been wrong to save my life.
I forced myself through the apologies. The woman with the papery voice. The man who’d charged me. The woman with the dripping face paint who’d told me I was a monster. “I’m sorry,” I whispered to each one, mouthing the words so Darien wouldn’t hear. “I’m so sorry. It’s not enough. It will never be enough. But I am.”
The ritual brought me no peace. Not that it ever did. Eventually the tears slowed, and I used the blanket to wipe my face.
My bed sagged as Darien’s heavy weight sank into it. I tensed. A tentative hand grazed my shoulder and then rested lightly on my arm.
“Zel, what happened?”
I couldn’t help it. Monster though I was, I wanted his comfort. I leaned back slightly, pressing into his hand, and he shocked me by edging closer behind me on top of the blanket. His body pressed against the length of my back and legs, his hand gently gripping my arm. His breath tickled the back of my neck. “Tell me.”
“She …” My voice was thick and hoarse, and the word was barely audible. “She made a move against the Tiger clan.”
I rubbed my fingers against the wrinkled, light-gray coverlet by my face. If I told him what I’d done, would he pull away? Was this the last gentle touch I’d ever experience? I let out a breath. If so, I’d face it head on, just like I faced my victims.
“I killed five of their leaders in a private meeting room. We escaped by jumping out of the window. That’s how I hurt my ankle. My mistress believes that there are so many factions within the Tiger clan, they will destroy themselves with infighting rather than take revenge against the Wasps.”
Instead of pulling away at the revelation, he drew closer, pulling me in to his body with the hand that remained on my arm. “And your wounds?”
His voice was soft, close to my ear. I drew in a shaky breath and then closed the gap between us so that my head was pressed against his shoulder where it rested on the bed. His rough beard rasped against my cheek.
“What happened?” he asked when
I didn’t answer.
“The Tiger leaders were armed with swords. They struck me as I approached them, but the Wasp’s command did not allow me to take refuge for my own protection. I fainted from blood loss in the fomecoach on the way back to the tower.” I shuddered at the memory, and he pulled me in tighter. “You saved my life. Thank you. I’m so glad you stayed. I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t.”
I kept my eyes shut as I spoke, my entire body tingling with awareness of his close embrace, the warmth of his hand burning my arm through the blanket that separated us.
Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore. I opened my eyes and twisted to face him, leaning back slightly so I could look into his somber green eyes.
He held his head up with one elbow, his face betraying no emotion or response to what I’d said.
“I have to—” I bit my lip. Was it my imagination, or did he lean closer? Why did he look so serious? “I have to ask why. Why did you stay? Why didn’t you—”
Before I could finish my question, his lips closed over mine. I froze. His kiss was warm, gentle, and persuasive. A thousand thoughts whirled in my head at once. My first kiss? Never had I dreamed anyone would ever want to—
I pushed him to his back, meeting his gentle kiss with my own urgent one. He made a strangled noise, rolled away, and stood, taking a step back away from the bed.
Oh, no. I sat up, gathering the covers around me, watching him as I waited for my breathing to slow. What had I been thinking? No doubt he just wanted to comfort me, and I’d practically assaulted him.
“Zel.” He took another step back from the bed.
I scowled, torn between shame and frustration. He was brave enough to touch a monster, and yet he feared to kiss me?
He ran a hand through his hair. “Zel,” he said again, his voice harsh. “Don’t look at me like that. I just— I wanted to show you why I stayed. I told you before … I don’t like to see anyone trapped. Well, it’s true. But that’s not the whole reason. I suppose I’m a selfish man because I hate to see you trapped most of all. You’re beautiful and strong and kind. You shouldn’t be here. You don’t belong here. And I stayed because I want to help you get out of here. More than that, I want … you.” His cheeks burned red as he spoke.