CHAPTER 63 Stabbed by Your Date

Henrietta

The ground went out below me, and the entire world went dark.

I was suddenly in that room again. The one I'd spent six hours locked up in every time I was caught behaving poorly or questioning my parents. They knew what was best for me, and if I couldn't accept that, then I needed some alone time to think about it.

While the punishment room had been an unpleasant experience, it'd eventually become the gateway to my newfound freedom. I'd spent enough time there that I'd come to know every pebble and every divot … which meant one day, after years of scrabbling around in the dark, I'd found the escape tunnel. After that, I would sit against the cold stone wall, watching the door slowly close, then close my eyes and count to one hundred.

Just in case they came back and opened the door.

They never did.

Then I'd reach out and press a pebble-size stone on the floor, and the wall behind me would open up into a low passage. On my hands and knees, I'd crawl in the pitch-black hidden passage until I reached the end. I repeated a mantra in my head the entire time, over and over and over, reminding me to keep my eyes closed. To just keep crawling. To push up and open the wooden board that led into an abandoned storage shed.

After that, it was simply dressing up like a maid and pretending like I belonged. My perfectly respectable brown hair and brown eyes blended in well, and the freedom to explore the world outside of lessons or a dungeon was worth the … discomfort.

Now, all I could feel was the sense of pressure in my chest. My hands shook violently as I reached for Jacqueline … and my panic woke her up. Close your eyes, dearest,a motherly voice settled on my consciousness, blocking everything else out. Just swing my blade and kill them all. Cut down everything until the sun is on your face. I am here with—

"Ria?" A voice whispered in my ears, startling me. At the same time, something gently touched my cheek. It smelled like lavender oil and cotton and Keith. Arms wrapped around me and carried me close. I didn't let go of Jacqueline, who made a few protests about not being satisfied without tasting more blood. But she only grumbled and then went back to sleep.

I didn't know how long I remained like that. It was more than a hundred seconds. The notification tab let me know that I had important things to check … but I couldn't do anything but hold on and hope.

Eventually, Keith stopped flying and touched down. The world changed, and a cool breeze touched my cheeks. Sunshine pressed against my eyelids, letting me know that we'd made it out of the cave.

I wasn't immediately alright, but I was coming out of myself. I could feel the tears running down my cheeks. My eyes hurt, and my nose was stuffed. I tried to rub my face and realized that I was still holding Jacqueline.

Keith was talking to someone quietly, and then we were alone again. He sat down in a chair with me in his lap, something that made my cheeks burn to think about.

"Ria, we're here. You can open your eyes."

I looked up into a very scary face. Keith looked ready to kill someone. I leaned Jacqueline against the table and reached up to rub the crease between his eyebrows. It was better when he smiled at me.

"I'm sorry," I said simply. There wasn't much else I could say. My weakness had ruined a perfectly lovely date.

Keith grabbed my hand and sighed. "No, I'm sorry. I didn't bring an Escape Scroll, and it took me a while to beat the floor."

"With no help from me," I grumbled, fascinated with the way he was playing with my palm. He always did that, and it was always distracting.

We sat there awkwardly. He'd found us a tent with a carpet, two chairs, and a low table. It must have been a resting area in the market outside the dungeon.

We hadn't gotten to finish the delve because of me.

I resisted the urge to apologize again. The arms holding me weren't as strong as a knight's, but they were comfortable. I needed to get up and take my own seat soon … or even now. I thought about it, but I wasn't ready. In a moment of selfishness, I sniffled and pressed my face back against Keith's collarbone.

Keith sucked in a breath. "I'm going to need to move you."

I pushed away from him. It wasn't what I wanted to hear, but I was a burden, and of course I'd already overstepped. I stomped down on my growing need for someone to comfort me. As I was convincing myself to get up, Keith reached between us and unclipped his wing automaton straps. He had to shimmy a bit to get the contraption off each shoulder.

He sighed in relief as the wings fell onto the carpet behind his chair. He stretched his shoulders as best he could and then cracked his neck.

His arms wrapped back around me, and I sniffed again. It came out louder than I'd intended. He leaned close, touching our foreheads together.

"Henrietta, you are in so much trouble," he said, matter-of-factly.

"I'm sorry." My heart raced. I knew it; he was going to tell me I was a disappointment, that I'm not strong enough to—

"And," he continued, "I'm throwing you in our dungeon when we get home. You need more sessions with Rufus."

I put up both hands then and pushed him away. "You're not—Your shoulder! What happened?!"

Even through my barely recovered vision, I could see the stark red blood that matted his sleeve. A blade had cut through his clothing. I leaned closer and felt a wave of relief; there was only a nick in the flesh of his bicep.

"Someone," Keith whispered into my ear, dragging back my attention, "deals [Void Damage]. My greatest weakness."

I blushed. My father's spies had guessed that information, which was why my father had sent me into the dungeon to find Jacqueline. It was something I'd planned to mention to Keith someday. Today, actually. When we'd reached the top floor of the dungeon, and I could let loose.

It probably wasn't the best way to find out … being stabbed by your date.

"One more thing," Keith said, looking strangely intense. I braced myself. "Did you level up?"