21. Amber

Chapter twenty-one

Amber

E scape. Murder. Betrayal. Poison. Death.

Each word rang in my head with each step as I followed Eldrin through the palace, the reality of the situation sinking in. My eyes darted away from everyone we came across, worried they’d guess some secret just from looking at me. I could have stayed in my room and argued with him, insisting that he explain exactly what was going on before being willing to leave, but I had seen more than enough movies—nothing good came from a character dawdling when another warns them of impending doom.

Vanir had no intention of letting me live. I wish I could say I was surprised by this, but he didn’t exactly give me a warm fuzzy feeling. And he had a throne of skulls. I was surprised that Vanir was going through the elaborate subterfuge at all, something that I’d ask Eldrin about later. Once we were safe .

Well, at least I wouldn’t have to marry Vanir, nor would I have to perform the Little Leaf Jig for the whole judgmental court. There was always a bright side.

It was the bright side that I tried to focus on as I followed Eldrin through the crowded palace, staying unseen by staying in the open. I was dressed similarly to the other elves, in a gown of ochre lace that was accented with actual leaves and flowers. I had nothing on me that compared to Eldrin’s skull shoulder pads—were those real bone? Judging from the belts made of finger bones and hair accessories crafted from ribs that festooned the other elves, my being bereft of bones was Siliana’s choice. One that I appreciated.

We were just about to make it to the crowded hall, in order to slip out a side door and into the gardens, when a woman with an oddly tight voice called out “Eldrin! Come, visit with us.” Eldrin muttered curses under his breath, but he managed to look properly intrigued by our newcomer. As for me, I bit my lip and lowered by gaze. This was a time to let Eldrin speak and try to get us out of this.

The woman rushed towards us, an unfamiliar cyclone of leaves and gauze. She was pretty. Of course she was—she was an elf. She looked at me, her expression as friendly and welcoming as a day-old gas station burrito. And that was the kindest phrasing I could think of to describe her. A lot of elves didn’t like me, but most managed not to literally peer down their noses .

“Aren’t you going to introduce me to your…companion?” she asked, eying my entire body. I stiffened and affected a noncommittal smile. “I’ve heard so much about her that I just had to see for myself.”

“This is Lady Avalane,” Eldrin said to me.

“That’s it? That’s how you’re going to introduce me?” Lady Avalane asked. I could practically hear Eldrin’s teeth grind together.

“She is one of my family’s oldest friends,” Eldrin explained. “And they have been good friends to me in turn. But she lives some distance from court.” Ah—someone from a family that supported Eldrin, he was trying to say. That explained his manners...

“Yes, it pains me that we do not live closer. It seems that I missed a lot of interesting developments, until today.” She eyed me once more, and I suspected that she was sizing me up for something. Eldrin said he didn’t have any lovers here, but what about those who wanted to be? He was disgraced, but he was still a prince. A handsome prince. And if her family had its way, he would probably be king, right? Normally I would’ve been jealous, or vaguely insulted, but I had an execution to avoid—I wasn’t overly curious about this woman’s amorous adventures or ambitions.

“I need to escort Amber to the tree, but can I count on you to save me a dance?” Eldrin asked smoothly, though he had a tight smile .

“Of course. I shall look for you.” The woman beamed, her smile genuine. For once. They exchanged curt farewells, the woman giving a sensual wave as she walked away, saving one last glare for me.

“What was that about?” I asked quietly once we were walking again.

“Nothing.”

I raised an eyebrow.

“I mean it. I’m a prince. Sometimes people don’t care about what branch they graft themselves to, as long as it’s a royal one.”

“So, you and her, you’ve never…”

Eldrin chuckled grimly. “We are a long-lived race, and she has already survived two spouses. Trust me—that is a spouse I do not desire.” I didn’t doubt him. I could tell instantly he had no more interest in her than if she had been a gas station burrito, but still, I was curious.

“Keep talking,” he said softly. “It will make us more unremarkable.”

Talking? Um…

“So, what is this tree everyone talks about? Does it talk? Is it really just a shrine?” While some of this Siliana had told me already, the tree was the first thing that popped into my head.

“No. The one we were discussing just now is a very old tree. The oldest. We go there to pray. Well, there are a few such sites in the Woods, but in Great Glen, that’s what is meant by ‘the tree.’”

“You pray. To a tree.”

“Not the tree. The tree is connected to the heart of the Woods—technically they all are, but the oldest and largest trees have the strongest connections. There, we can use our magic to listen to the Woods, and its warnings.”

“Literally listen?”

Eldrin frowned. “No. It’s like…images, almost. Feelings.” And then Eldrin went on and on and on about trees, magic, connections, and how basically the tree was some sort of Mother Nature telephone? Regardless, it kept us talking until we moved away from people and into the garden, where we fell silent as we snuck down the side path once more, slipping through the gate where we plunged into the autumn wilderness.

My heart thrummed in my ears. If someone was pursuing us, I had no hope of hearing them over the sound of my blood pounding and footsteps crunching leaves on the dirt path. Eldrin held my hand as he guided me, gently maneuvering me over puddles and branches that obstructed our way. I kept looking behind us—as if my mere human senses could detect an elf in time.

“If caught,” Eldrin said quietly, “do not run. Do not scream. Our story is that I’m taking you for a walk before the dance begins. You were nervous, and I am helping you calm yourself. ”

“That’s true enough.”

He huffed in agreement. “That’s why I’m not taking steps to hide our path, yet. I’ll tell you when we need to run instead of trying to lie, and when we are going to have to watch where we step. But that time is not yet.”

“Will they believe us?”

He paused before answering. “I hope we won’t have to find out.”

Despite the gravity of the situation, I couldn’t help but admire the beauty of the Woods. The forest was the same as any other day, the morning sky clear and blue and the air temperate, just cool enough that I appreciated my cloak. A fresh breeze sailed through the branches, shaking another layer of leaves onto us. While the process of shedding leaves only took a few weeks in the human world, my understanding was that it could take months here for trees to lose all their leaves before spending a short time utterly bare.

“How much time do we have before they notice I’m gone? That we’re gone?”

Eldrin paused before answering, his steps measured. “At least an hour. Maybe three. This is a massive festival, and Vanir won’t expect us to leave in the middle of the day. Not when everyone knows you’ve been preparing for the dance, and expecting to ask a favor of him.”

“A three hours’ head start, from elves,” I muttered, shaking my head. Yep, trying to run from elves in the woods. From what I’ve seen, the elves moved in the forest like dolphins in water. And I was basically a goldfish. A small, fat goldfish.

“I know these trails,” Eldrin said confidently. “We have miles to gain on them before they even notice that we’re missing.”

“And then what? What are we going to do, even if we manage to hide from them?”

Eldrin didn’t answer, and merely continued striding through the path, my hand gripped in his.

“Eldrin?”

“I’ll explain it to you tonight,” he finally said, in a tone that made my stomach churn. “Once we can rest.”