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“I will. I’ll defeat him.” There’s no hesitation in his voice, and it’s not like a wish, but as if he was stating something obvious. “If it takes long, I don’t know…” He runs a hand over his curls, then stares at me. “After seven years, we can try to find another solution. It’s a promise. So don’t despair.”
Seven tiny years. All my youth tied to someone who hates me. Why despair? But the truth is that he’s trying to be nice, and maybe I should show some appreciation.
“Thank you.” I smile, and add, “For your words. For trying to put me at ease.”
The key word here is trying, right? I can’t say I’m looking forward to seven years of this, but at least if he’s cordial, it’s not going to be the most horrific thing in the world.
He nods. At the end of the day, he does have power over me. There’s no hope that I’ll ever charm him, but it would be stupid to keep opposing him. And then, I also need to uncover his secrets, figure out where he hides his treasure. I need to remain true to who I am, and to everything I strive for, and use this opportunity to fulfill my duty.
The carriage stops, and a thin layer of ice covers the windows before I have time to look. I shudder, still recalling my first encounter with him. “What’s happening?”
“I’ll have to blindfold you.”
“What if I say no?” It was just curiosity, but I realize it came out like a challenge.
Holding a strip of cloth, he blinks slowly and shrugs. “I could make you faint.”
I turn around. “Fine. Use the blindfold.”
Without touching me, he ties a soft velvety cloth around my eyes. I sense something different, something…
“Is it magic?” I ask.
“Indeed. You won’t be able to peek.”
I wonder if this is one of the stolen fae relics, but I don’t ask.
The door of the carriage then opens and closes, and I realize I’m alone and can’t see anything. Perhaps I should be glad he explained his motivations, so I don’t think he plans to leave me here. Well, he said he wasn’t going to feed me to the fish, but didn’t mention anything about setting fire to a carriage with me in it.
He’s talking outside, but I can’t hear what he’s saying, only that there’s someone else—a young man, it seems—and they are laughing. It’s probably the coachman, unless I somehow missed enchanted horses or something even stranger.
Unable to see anything, unsure what he’s planning, I feel suffocated and anxious, so I take a slow, deep breath. Nerves just make everything worse. Of course, if he plans to do something to me, being calm while magically blindfolded won’t help me much. Better than having a blurred mind.
The door near me then clicks open.
“Here,” he says. “Take my hand.”
I’m about to mention that I have no idea where it is, when I feel his fingers, gloved in some soft suede, touching mine.
“Wife, you’re trembling.” There’s mockery but also surprise in his tone. “What were you thinking? That I was going to throw you into a pit or something?”
I almost ask him if he means the Pit of Death, but hold my tongue just in time. I’ll never tell him about my dreams. Outside, I can hear the sound of rustling leaves and running water, so I know we’re near a forest and a river or stream.
“What’s with the gloves?” I ask, just because I found it odd.
I’m wondering if he’s wearing them under the rings or over them, or maybe if he took them all off. What an incredibly useful line of thought.
He has a warm chuckle. “You’re going to start telling me what to wear? A little early for that, wife.”
“I was just curious,” I mumble while getting out of the carriage. “I didn’t see the shadow ring.”
“You seem quite interested in fae jewelry.”
“Who wouldn’t be?”
He doesn’t reply, just makes me walk a few more steps, then, swiftly and firmly enough that it doesn’t even tickle, he holds my waist, lifts me, and sits me on a saddle with a backrest. I can smell the horse beneath me and feel it shifting, but I don’t like it that there’s nowhere to hold, that I can’t see anything, so I place my hands in the rest behind me.
Right as I do that, I feel something against my hand. His leg—no. Oh, no. This is a double saddle, and he’s taking the seat behind me. I can’t believe what I just grazed.
