Cursed

by Casey Odell

  “Does it work?”

  He shrugged his shoulders and dropped his arm limply at his side. “Who knows? I’m not really sure I believe in luck.”

  “How can you not believe in luck?”

  “And you do?”

  “Of course I do. I wouldn’t be here without it. The only reason I escaped the centaur that night was luck. I was lucky you found me that night and didn’t kill me, and I was lucky that this thing saved me from being devoured.” She held her bandaged hand up in the air.

  Farron smiled. “No offense, Claire, but I think that you are the unluckiest person I’ve ever met.”

  “And you wonder why I’m immune to your charm.” She splashed him with water, leaned back against the rock, and started to run her fingers through her wet hair before it knotted up. She was feeling tired already.

  Farron chuckled lightly, and put a hand on the stone behind her, leaning in close. “Maybe you’re just too stubborn, Claire.” He tilted her chin up to face him before his mouth found hers in an urgent press of the lips.

  Claire froze, her heart leaping up to her throat. It happened so suddenly she wasn’t sure how to react. What was going on?

  After a moment, he drew back slightly, his hand rested on her neck, while his thumb caressed her cheek lightly. Her breath ceased, preventing any words from escaping her lips. Not that she knew what to say at the moment anyway.

  Slowly, he started to lean in again, but stopped, his lips just above hers, breath heavy.

  She waited, unmoving, from shock, fear…and curiosity. Her stomach clenched tight instead of the usual butterflies at a time like this. His lips met hers again, unexpectedly soft and tender and…nice. She tilted her head to the side slightly, letting her body relax little by little.

  Then, in a preposterous, unthinking move, she raised her bandaged hand and brushed her exposed fingers across his cheek, losing herself in the moment. Even though she thought he was the last person she’d wanted to kiss, she inexplicably found herself wanting more.

  There was so much longing, so much passion in such a light kiss, she wondered what it would be like if she were to completely give in. But just as the thought struggled through her head, he pulled back again, bringing her back to her senses. Or at least half of them. How did he do that? Was there something in the water?

  There was a growing haze fogging up her mind. Half of her wanted to scream out, to tell herself she was crazy, while the other half just wanted to pounce on him. And even though she wanted to listen to the former, she was desperately losing to the latter.

  “It seems you’re not so immune after all, Claire.”

  Her eyes watched as his lips formed into his famous grin. Who knew the elf was such a good kisser? Who knew that she would ever think that? Much less admit to it… Although, he had saved her life multiple times, and if anything, the hero at least deserved a kiss. Or two…or three.

  “Shut up,” she breathed as she wound her arms around his neck and drew him down to her. Her lips hovered hesitantly in front of his, not really sure what she was doing, or why she wanted to. But she did want to, overwhelmingly so. It felt good when he kissed her, but she wasn’t really sure why. Perhaps it was because it freed her mind, providing a much needed distraction, or she liked the feeling of being wanted after Bren had crushed her heart, or maybe-- and this was the most frightening of them all-- maybe she just liked it. She kissed him lightly, closing her eyes to explore the sensation to the fullest, giving into the latter. To see just how far down his kisses could pull her.

  His hands wandered lightly over her waist, the sensation dulled through the cloth wrapped around her midriff. For all his arrogance, he was surprisingly hesitant, careful, as if he were holding himself back. Or maybe he was finally nervous.

  But, that thought was shattered when he wrapped his arms tight around her waist and pulled her close, picking her up slightly.

  A sharp pain stabbed through her side and she pulled back, gasping. She put her hands on his shoulders to push back from him.

  “Sorry, I forgot about that.” A slight smile mixed with worry on his face. He set her down, his grip loosening.

  The pain helped to clear the haze a little. A slow burn started to spread through her body, all the way up to her cheeks. Just what in the world was she doing anyway?

  His hands started to tug on the bandage at her waist. He leaned down and pressed a soft, almost tender, kiss on her shoulder.

  “Fare,” she whispered, her resolve faltering already. “This is strange.”

  “I rather like it.” His lips brushed against her skin as he talked.

  She squeezed her eyes closed, trying to concentrate.

  “Why did you save me?”

  He turned his head, nuzzling just under her ear. “I think I’ve made it quite clear.” His breath was hot on her neck, sending chills throughout her body.

  Unsuccessful, his hands left her waist. A moment later she felt the press of cool metal against her skin as he slipped a blade underneath the bandage. Claire froze, afraid to move as he slowly cut at the fabric. Did he always carry a weapon? More importantly, where in the world had he hidden the thing?

  “But when did?”

  “Does it really matter?” He knelt down to unwrap the bandage, the blade disappearing again.

  “Why didn’t you..?”

  “Would you have listened?” He peered up at her and she looked away. “You were always looking somewhere else, Claire.”

  Her hands gripped the rock behind her, the sharp edges digging into palms. The air felt cool against her skin as it was revealed for the first time in days. She’d been too afraid to take it off before, afraid to see the damage. Her breath escaped her in a rush as his hands slid up her sides to rest just below her ribs. He leaned his forehead lightly against her stomach.

  “When I saw you that night, on the floor in that cave, just lying there,” he let out a long sigh, “I thought you were dead, Claire.” His grip tightened. “Please don’t do that again.”

  “I’ll try not to,” she squeezed out. Claire gasped when she felt his fingers lightly graze over the scar on her side, followed by his lips. Quickly, she buried her face in her hands to hide her rapidly increasing embarrassment. It was all just too much.

  She could feel his looming presence once again as he stood up. Taking her wrists in his hands, he gently pried them away from her face.

  “If I could free your mind of him, I would. I cringed every time he touched you. I wanted to scream every time he kissed you. I could kill him for what he’s done to you.” He leaned down, his forehead against hers, hands framing her face. “I know you haven’t thought much of me--”

  “Wait, Fare.” She covered his mouth with a hand. All this time…all this time he’d hidden his feelings for her. Or had she really been too blind? No, not blind, unwilling to see. Deep down, she knew they were there. Hints, glimpses, thinly veiled confessions. True feelings, not fake ones. And she had a hunch she was about to be terribly unlucky. Unknowingly, she had captured the elf’s heart and was terrified that he’d try to do the same with her, terrified that, without her realizing it, he had already started to. “This…it’s too...I don’t know.”

  His face started to fall, his grip loosening. Her eyes concentrated on his mouth as she removed her fingers.

  “But, I don’t hate it either.” Oh gosh, why didn’t she? She should have been running for the hills, but she found herself increasingly drawn to him, wanting to be pulled down, to forget about her problems and the world around her.

  Before he could say anything, Sarah’s voice rang out in the distance, calling her name and coming dangerously close to stumbling across a startling scene.

  Claire froze, her eyes going wide. She covered Farron’s mouth with her hand again and gave him a pleading look. She really didn’t want Sarah to discover the elf there with her. Then the girl would really hate her.

  She wriggled out of his grip and made her way along the edge of the lagoon, across t
he boulders, taking extra care not to fall into the water. She rushed over to her robe, picked it up and slipped it on.

  Farron’s touch still burned on her skin; her lips still tingled. She blushed once again and looked back at the elf in question. He leaned back against the rocky wall with his eyes closed. Sarah called out to her again and she hurried up the stone steps to meet the girl. It would have been embarrassing enough to try to explain his presence, let alone what happened. She was still trying to figure that last one out herself.

  30

  Claire covered a long, almost exaggerated yawn as she walked down the dim hallway, dressed in a pair of dark brown slacks and an olive green wrap around shirt donated by one of the staff. It seemed only her boots had been salvageable.

  Not being able to sleep for most of the night had its consequences. The elf would have to pay. She couldn’t get him out of her mind. Why did he have to go and do all that anyway? Her mind was already a mess with everything else going on. A shiver ran through her body as she remembered their little swim the day before. She was just as confused by her own reaction, and after mulling over it for the entirety of the night she still couldn’t come to terms with it. It wasn’t until late last night that she finally decided to shelve the problem. She’d just have to deal with it when she saw him. Tell him that she was delusional. That she swallowed too much water. Or her favorite: exploring the benefits of self-torture.

  A smile crept its way across her lips as she stretched her arms out around her. Most of the bruises and aches had amazingly faded, and although she was still a little stiff, she finally felt more like herself than she had in days. Or was that weeks? She really wasn’t sure how much time had passed since she ran away from Rodem. In any case, she was finally better, except for the bandage still wrapped around her right forearm. She still wasn’t quite ready to see the damage that had been done by the General’s blade.

  Tired of seeing her tiny room, she’d decided to explore. This time she turned right down the hallway. A small circular room stood before her, similar to the one at the other end of the hall. A bouquet of fresh red flowers in a white vase sat atop a little round table in the middle. Open doors led to the outside, letting in the fresh air and sunshine and the occasion bird cry, followed by a pair of voices approaching rapidly.

  Her pulse jumped. She knew that voice and it was coming closer. Not ready to deal with her problem just yet, she took a deep breath and ducked behind a long green curtain framing the entrance to the hallway, pressing her back against the wall to keep in the shadows.

  “You seem to be in a pleasant mood today.” Maria’s voice came strolling in through the doors followed by silence, but she knew that cocky look was plastered on his face. “Has Sarah finally confessed her love for you?”

  “Maria, I’m not the type of person your daughter should get involved with.” There was a hint of amusement to the elf’s voice.

  Maria sighed. “Probably, but it would keep you out of trouble.”

  “I’m afraid trouble finds me.”

  Claire clenched her jaw to suppress her urge to protest. Was he talking about her? She peeked through an opening at the duo. A light grey shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbow was a refreshing change to his usual black get-up. Although grey may not have been too much of an improvement, it was still a step in the right direction. Maria’s deep burgundy dress contrasted beautifully against her light skin, making her freckles stand out even more.

  “I thought you quit that way of life,” Maria said.

  “I did.” The elf bent over the bouquet of flowers to smell them before he plucked one out of the vase. “But it’s catching up to me faster than I can think.”

  “You know you’ll always have a place here.” She took his hand in hers with a troubled look on her face. “I could help you, you know.”

  “You’ve been more than enough help already.” He handed her the flower.

  “It’s that girl, isn’t it?”

  He simply smiled and turned back to the table to pick another flower. Claire could feel the heat rise to her cheeks. It seemed Maria wasn’t a big fan of hers either.

  “I saw that strange mark on her hand.” She touched his arm, the look on her face a little more urgent. “You know I don’t usually ask, but is it worth it?”

  Farron paused, seemed to consider her question and then grinned. “We’ll see.” He straightened up and turned to the hallway across from Claire.

  Maria sighed and brought the single red flower up to her nose for a moment before she chased the elf down.

  Claire let out a long breath and collapsed back against the wall. It was relief they’d decided to go down the other hallway. If they hadn’t her presence would have easily been discovered, and eavesdropping was never a well-looked upon practice, no matter where you were from. She had gotten a little bit of a teaser about the elf’s past, though, however puzzling it still was. And foreboding. She wasn’t sure she liked the part that involved her.

  With another peek around the curtain to make sure they were gone, she sprinted towards the door to the outside. The sun shone brightly in the middle of the sky, its rays filtered through the broad canopy of green leaves overhead. She stopped on the balcony, tilted her head up, and closed her eyes to breathe in the warm fragrant air.

  Her hand found the handle of the new dagger strapped around her waist. She missed the familiarity of her mother’s. Now her only memento of home was the small circlet of metal that dangled around her left wrist. She shook her head to keep unnecessary thoughts from entering her mind and descended the stairs on the left to a dirt path that led into the sea of trees. A walk would do her good.

  The sound of a faraway bird singing teased at her ears as she made her way down the narrow trail. She combed her fingers through her hair and began to braid the long brown locks over her left shoulder, the process made a little more difficult with the bandage still on her right arm. The day was calm and peaceful and she reveled in every second of it.

  What would happen to her now? Where would she go? It seemed unlikely that they’d stay at this place for Aeron to find them. For that matter, she was stuck at Farron’s mercy once again. Although his intentions seemed good, could she really trust the elf? Or, more realistically, did she even have a choice?

  Suddenly, a hand grabbed her right arm and pulled her off the path to the side. Claire gasped, her heart threatening to escape her chest. Her hand automatically reached for the dagger at her side, but she stopped when she saw her would-be attacker.

  “Hey.” Farron beamed as he locked his hands behind her back to trap her in place. He leaned back against a fallen tree, bringing him down to eye level.

  Hadn’t he just been inside? How did he do that? Heat surged through her body and she looked away from the elf to hide her embarrassment. “Why do you do that?”

  “Do what, my lady?” He sounded amused already.

  “Shorten my lifespan.” She put her hands on his shoulders and began to push away.

  He chuckled softly; his grip tightened around her waist. “You’ve been rather hard to find lately.”

  It was true that she’d been avoiding him, even going so far as to eat dinner in her room. She just wasn’t sure how to act around him. Even now she felt awkward.

  “You know, eavesdropping isn’t very nice, Claire.”

  Claire looked at him finally, eyes wide in surprise. He knew? “I didn’t mean to…” Her throat tight, she looked down.

  “I guess I can forgive you this time.”

  The flower from earlier appeared before her and she looked back up at him. She took it tentatively. “Thank you.” She smelled it before examining the petals a little too closely. “And thank you for the dagger as well.” There-- she got that out of the way, at least.

  “Well, we can’t have you running around without any way to defend yourself. I believe I once heard someone say that a girl can’t always wait for a knight in shining armor to save her.” He grinned as his hand wandered bac
k to her waist again. “And it looks like they’ll run out of knights and armor at the rate you’re going. It’s a good thing I’m here.”

  Good old trusty anger started to simmer at the bottom of her stomach. Even now he teased her. “Well, if I’m such a burden to you…” She started to push away from him again.

  “Claire.” He slid his arms around her waist and pulled her closer to him. His face grew more serious. “Things might get a little hectic and there’s a lot that you don’t know yet…” He paused for a moment like he was searching for the right words. “And I know I haven’t given you much reason to trust me, but I’ll be here for you if you want me to be. I’m no knight in shining armor.” He took her hand in his, raised it to his mouth and kissed it, his lips light as a feather against her skin. He peered up at her, ice blue eyes as serious as day. “But I’ll protect you the best that I can.”

  Claire gulped and the annoyance inside her dissipated. Was this the fabled charm finally rising to the surface? It may not have been pretty or dressed up with fancy words, but it was quite possibly one of the sweetest things anyone had ever said to her; man, elf, or General.

  With a heartstring officially pulled, she leaned in and kissed him on the forehead. “Thank you.” The words barely escaped her throat in a whisper and were the only ones she could think of at the moment.

  He tilted his face up, his lips hovering close to hers.

  Claire hesitated, her breath coming out in short quivering bursts. She knew if she kissed him now there would be no turning back. He’d laid himself out on the line, exposing a chink in his impenetrable armor, and was leaving it up to her whether or not to pry it open. But could she give herself to someone else again? Did she even want to? She was still reeling from her last heartbreak, still trying to sort out her own feelings. Would he understand if she said no, or would he close up completely and leave her there? Too many questions swirled inside her head, tangling together in an almost indecipherable mess. She could feel him tense up the longer she waited, closing up, drawing away.