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My throat narrowed to the width of a hair. Dead or alive, I had no intention of being handed over to the high priest.
I turned toward the stables, only to bump straight into Thorsten. “What about my mule?”
“Shh. I want to hear this.” He leaned against a wooden post and flicked a finger at the priests, then let his baritone shatter through the village. “Who is this woman?”
Dozens of eyes shot to us, slowing the beat of my heart as if the organ didn’t dare another beat. What was I supposed to do? Wait? Tell Thorsten I had changed my mind yet again and to bring the mule? If I walked away now, everyone would stare at me even harder. Some might even grow suspicious. Who didn’t want fifty gold pieces?
“The woman’s name is Adelaide.” The priest’s shout hurtled my pulse into helpless panic. “Blue eyes and of bearing age, with crooked legs.”
A sigh of relief parted my lips, but only until a voice asked, “What color is her hair?”
“She is light of hair,” the priest said. “The woman comes from Hemdale, is a knowledgeable midwife, and likely travels with her elderly father.”
I stared down at the mud.
Still, I felt them, the few eyes that wandered over me as mumbles rippled through the rows of people like the foreboding whispers of a storm. No, I was just imagining those nervous pricks needling my skin, urging me to run. My legs were straight, and I was a fisher. A poor one, to be certain, but my hair was as black as tar.
Without consent, my eyes flicked to Rose.
She stared right back at me.
I offered a smile.
She didn’t smile back.
Instead, she rounded the merchant stand and leaned into her brother, Henry, letting whispers hush between them. He straightened his spine, shifting his balance from one leg to the other.
Don’t look at me.
Don’t look at me.
Don’t look—
His eyes captured mine.
My muscles tensed, and I turned toward Thorsten. “You know what? I’ve changed my mind. Bring the mule to my hut. Hurry, and I’ll give you the stone, along with all the coins in my purse.”
I didn’t hurry away.
I walked, slowly enough as not to seem in a hurry, but fast enough that the cold air brought tears to my eyes. Or perhaps it wasn’t the wind after all, but the pressure that pounded inside my skull. I wasn’t safe here anymore. My baby wasn’t safe.
Just then, the priest’s voice chased behind me. “This woman has wed the devil, the King of Flesh and Bone.” Groans of disgust resonated through the crowd, but it turned into the roar of chaos when he added, “It is believed that she carries the devil’s spawn in her belly. Find her, good people of Elderfalls. Find her or this woman will cast the world into eternal darkness.”
Chapter25
Ada
My heart slammed against my ribs.
I pressed a hand onto my belly, letting sheets of ice that had formed in the furrows crack beneath my steps as I hurried toward the hut. A sudden gust tore the scarf from my shoulders and when I turned to grab it, I saw them.
My heart stopped.
Henry followed me, staring at me from beneath the brim of his felt hat. Another man walked beside him, and Rose waddled not far behind. There was no way I could outrun two men—or fight them off should it come to that—but I wouldn’t let them harm my baby…
Oh god, my baby… my—
Why did everything spin?
