AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I really didn’t see the river. From where I was sitting, I couldn’t see the ravine at all.” I speak over my shoulder, making my way back toward the fire with Loric in tow. “This place is nothing like I envisioned. I only went outside one day a year for all of five minutes and never outside the castle garden. Everything I know about this realm comes from stories or because I was taught it in theory. I was trying to use that tofigure out where we are. Had you just told me, I wouldn’t have run.”
“And when you figured it out? What then? I highly doubt you planned to gloat.”
“Yes, actually…” I weigh my head side to side. “I was proud that I didn’t need you to figure it out.” Reaching the campfire, I take a seat in the same place I woke up and Loric resumes his spot across from me. “If you need more proof, I figured it out by noticing where the moss grows and which way the plants lean. I knew if the tree bark was wet, water was near, and the side of the tree would point to where I could find it, and since the trees are mostly brown, it’s not salt water. It’s fresh water.”
“You learned all of that from stories?”
“I learned it from Asmo and M—” I freeze mid-sentence, remembering something Meg told me years ago. She warned me that if I ever made it out, no one could know of my affiliation with her. It’d make me a target.
“And?” Loric prods.
“And my mother. The two of them taught me everything I know.” Meg might not have been my biological mother, but she was as close as it gets to one, and it helps that they start with the same letter.
Loric snorts as if I’ve told a joke. “You could’ve just opened your eyes.”
“Excuse me, but can you see the water from here?” I cross my arms, looking in the general direction of the river and back to him.
“Yes.” He dips his hand into a canvas pouch and pops another berry into his mouth.
“Why don’t you come down to my level and try again.”
Loric rolls his eyes. “If I do it, will you let me eat my berries in peace?”
I nod and he comes to sit next to me on the ground. Loric glances toward the river, but I swat at his arm.
“At my height,” I command, and he reluctantly scrunches his shoulders to bring his head level with mine.
“Fine, but I still don’t trust you. There are too many coincidences, and even if you’re not a part of it, something tells me Asmodeus is.”
“Asmo panicked. The only motive he had for threatening you, is to make sure I stayed alive.” I pluck the sack of berries out of his hand, and to my delight, Loric doesn’t stop me. Stealing a handful for myself, I toss the bag back into his lap.
“First of all, I would’ve given you some had you asked. Secondly, I don’t think you know Asmodeus as well as you think you do.” He steals a berry out of my palm instead of getting another from the bag.
“I’ve known him my entire life.” Even as I say it out loud, I sense the uncertainty settling deeper inside me.How well do I know him?There are things he didn’t tell me, and I’d be stupid to think there wasn’t more. I just wish I could ask him… Surely, there’s an explanation. Although, the smart thing to do would be to make peace never knowing. I might never get the answers I want, or worse, they might be answers that could change everything.
“If you knew Asmodeus, you’d know I was the one who taught him how to find his way through the forests.”
I never considered that… Asmo must’ve known Loric well enough to trust him with me, but what made them hate each other? The way Asmo looked at Loric is stuck in my mind, the hatred that tainted the air on the mountain... They had a falling out and if I’m going to survive this, I’m going to need to know why.
“Come on. The others are back.” Loric snatches his cloak off the ground and stands. For a moment, he eyes me, then slowly,he offers a hand. As soon as I’m on my feet, he doesn’t waste a second taking it back.
“Where? I don’t see anyone?” I spin in a tight circle, finding nothing but trees and low-growing brush.
“Yeah, well, you didn’t see the river either.”
The air catches in my throat. “You said you didn’t see it from where I was.”
“I lied.”
“Asshole,” I breathe, looking toward the river and knowing for a fact that I can’t see the ravine even from a standing position. There’s no way he could…right?
Chapter 6
Calamity
“Absolutely not.” I halt as the horses and Loric’s friends come into view. “There’s no way I’m getting on one of thosethings.”
“First of all, they’re called horses. Secondly, you don’t have a choice. If it means strapping your body to its back, I will.” Loric nudges me forward, wordlessly commanding me to keep moving.
