Haven (War of the Princes) (17 page)

It was difficult to decide if this thing was cute or creepy, but I decided it won more points toward the latter.

Turning around, I stepped back a few paces, looking for Dylan. He could tell me what it was, and whether it was dangerous. I was about to ask him about the little black critter, but when I glanced back, it was gone. The orange chalk drawing looked brighter in the sunny absence of my shadow. No little lizard sat beside it.

I shrugged inwardly, and continued to follow my guide.

           
Dylan led me farther through town, pausing here and there to show me the window of a favorite shop, or to tell an amusing story from his childhood. The townspeople didn’t pay me much notice and went on buying, selling, browsing and working as I guessed they would any other day.

           
When we passed by a small group of girls around my age, I noticed a difference. Dylan’s hand was on my back to usher me through a small crowd that had gathered for the marketplace’s morning sales, and it didn’t go unnoticed by the girls. If jealousy were something physical, it would have hit me in the face.

           
We came upon the town square next, and I saw two impressive sights. One was a clock tower with no face. I could see wrought iron numbers, hands, and all of the gears in motion behind them. The clock tower came with a standard belfry and birds perched atop its highest point.

The second was an elephant helping a group of farmers with a heavy load. I hadn’t expected to see one so closely. It was huge, with a pair of tusks framing its long trunk. I’ll admit, I was afraid. I had always thought elephants were just storybook creatures, but here was the second one I’d seen. It took a few moments for Dylan to understand what had me so transfixed.

“Don’t worry,” he said, happy to offer a comforting arm about my shoulders. “They’re friendly. Gently trained from birth. I’m surprised you’ve never seen one, but then again, you never have told me where you’re from.”

“You’re right. I’d never seen one until I was brought here,” I countered, refusing to answer his question.

“Katelyn,” he sighed, leading me to a building that was clearly a stable. “I don’t want it to be this way. I don’t want you to feel like a prisoner.”

“But that’s what I am,” I said, frustrated. “I appreciate what you’re doing, I really do. But if I’m not a prisoner, just let me go.”

He looked around uncomfortably and then led me into the stables. It was a broad structure with a wide center path between two sides of large stalls. Horse faces peeked out of their windows as we came to sit on a bench inside.

“I’m doing as much as I can. You need to know that,” he said, and there was honesty in his eyes.

“I do,” I admitted quietly. I couldn’t look at him. It was going to make me blush and that would have been embarrassing.

A boy of about twelve walked out of the tack room to speak with Dylan. He was too shy to look directly at me, so he spoke in hushed tones to Dylan alone.

“No,” Dylan said with an air of command in his voice. “I’ve already told you, the
new
saddles. We’ll not settle for any less. You’ve already been paid, now fetch them.”

When the boy ran off to carry out his orders, I looked at Dylan’s handsome face and wondered what it was he found so interesting about me. The girls I had seen earlier seemed familiar with him and jealous of me. Was he merely preoccupied with me because I was someone new?

Glancing at him tentatively, I wondered these things when he leaned closer and brushed a lock of hair behind my ear.

“You’re beautiful,” he said with the faintest of smiles.

I was about as ready for that statement as I was to slip and fall off the diving board in swim class last year.

Flushing, I told him exactly what I thought of him. “You’re used to getting your way.”

He didn’t flinch. “Maybe I am.”

“I’m not impressed,” I said, hoping I sounded confident, and not as flustered as I actually felt.

That
did
get his attention. It must not have been something he was used to hearing from a girl. His brows knit together and his expression grew serious.

He rose from the bench, paced before me, and turned finally to say, “When we return, you will not only have a pair of night goggles, but you will be granted freedom of the keep. I can’t give you access to
all
of the keep’s chambers, or to the outside, but you may come and go among any of the areas that I’ve showed you.”

My hope doubled. Free access within the keep meant that I could better plan and execute my escape. I knew that Dylan was trying to improve my view of him, but he just didn’t understand that nothing but being released would help me. Nothing else mattered.

“You don’t have to say thank you,” he told me. “Just come for a ride with me today.”

As if on cue, the stable boy returned, leading two healthy, saddled horses. Neither of them were the palomino I saw him ride on the evening of my capture. Like those horses, so different than the stocky breeds of Haven Valley, these two were tall and lean. They were long-legged and muscular, with square noses and large, intelligent eyes. One was a flashy piebald and the other a steel gray.

Before I could say a word, a group of children ran into the stables in a flourish of giggles and shouting. They were a range of ages, with the eldest looking around ten years old and the youngest, five.

“
Cale
, Megan,” Dylan called two of them by name. “Don’t bring them in here to play. You know the rules.”

The stable boy gave them a stern nod. He was only a bit older than them, but took his job very seriously.

The children didn’t pay attention. They were already distracted by something more interesting: me.

“Whose she?” one little girl squeaked.

“I’ve never seen her before,” one of the older boys declared.

“Everyone, this is Katelyn. She’s a guest of mine, so don’t be rude,” Dylan said sternly. “Now run off and play before the stable master catches you here. Go on.”

“Bye,” I said, smiling after them as they took turns waving at me and shouting at the others to hurry up. The smallest one stumbled onto his knees, but got right up and trundled after the others.

Dylan ignored the children as if they had never entered. In his hand, he held the lead of the gray gelding and led him forward to me. “This is
Florian
. He’s yours. Whenever we have time to come out and ride that is. I’m afraid that can’t be without my supervision, for now.”

“He’s amazing,” I said honestly. I’d never dreamed of seeing a creature so perfect, let alone being given one.

By way of introduction, I let
Florian
snuff my hand and take in my scent before I attempted to pat him on the neck.

“He’s silver, like your eyes,” Dylan grinned.

I should have known that was his reason for picking this particular animal.

“You don’t quit do you?” I asked in astonishment of his brazen flirtations.

“Not until I win,” he told me. I believed him.

“And what do you think you’ll be winning?” I demanded. To compound my statement, I hoisted myself up into the saddle and looked down at him.

He kept hold of my reins. “Maybe satisfaction. Maybe you.” He swung up into his saddle and flashed me another charming grin.

He didn’t give me my reins until we had ridden down to an area of the shore that was blocked on all sides by buildings, some of which sat half on land and half in the bay. He picked a narrow path that led to a long stretch of beach. Out on the water, one side of Breakwater Keep faced us. I remembered seeing the opposite view from the medical waiting room.

It was easy to comprehend why he chose this beach. It was long, blocked in, and beautiful. If I rode to escape, I’d be forced to slow down on the trail back into town where he could easily overtake me.

I spent a moment enjoying the sight of the ocean and breathing in the salty air. Little fishing boats dotted the calm bay water, with a few larger steam vessels maneuvering toward the main harbor for docking. The warmth of the sun and the coolness of the sea breeze were a perfect complement.

Florian
stamped his hoof impatiently in the sand.

“What do you think?” Dylan asked, handing me my reins.

“I think this is a fast horse.”

“He is.”

“Faster than yours,” I said, wheeling
Florian
around Dylan’s mount. The gelding was acutely sensitive to the slightest command. It was a sharp contrast to my dad’s lazy ponies.

“Not likely,” Dylan grinned. There was a glint in his eye that told me he was ready for the challenge.

I’m not sure what signaled the race, but something invisible had passed between us and we both laid our heels to our horses and shot down the beach like arrows.

I almost lost my breath when
Florian
leaped into action. Each stride was numbingly powerful and I quickly crouched, focusing on balance as I gave him his head and the freedom of a full gallop.

I’d never moved so fast in my entire life. My hair was blasted back as we ran, with my orange scarf whipping behind like a long flag. The battering wind pounded into my lungs and my heart was alive with the thrill of raw speed. It felt like I was flying, and in a way, we were. For each beat that
Florian’s
hooves pounded into the sand, they rose again together, leaving us airborne for just a second before they fell again.

I didn’t realize that I was smiling the entire time until Dylan pulled into the lead, laughing.

For the span of that race, I forgot where I was, who I was with, and how I got there. All I knew was excitement and exhilaration.

I only wish things could have remained so simple.

Chapter 17: One Open Door

           
Dylan kept his word. Not only was a pair of night goggles promptly delivered, but my door was left unlocked and mostly unguarded. I could tell that the maids were checking in on me and that the guards only feigned disinterest when I passed them. The moment I was alone and unobserved, I hastily made for the medical wing of Breakwater Keep.

It was sunset and everything outside was golden. The scent of brine wafted in on the evening breeze, streaming through the keep’s many windows. Most of the doctors would have resigned for the night by now. At the very least, they’d be eating dinner. Young Lord Axton was occupied with meetings about balancing the trade tax with other towns, which he described as “mind-numbingly dull.”

           
It was just as well. I was tired of him complaining about my wanting to see Rune.

           
Finding the medical corridor was easy, and when I hastily pushed open the doors that led to the central waiting room, it was empty just as I’d hoped. Two voices were muffled by the door of another patient’s room. One was authoritative, clearly a doctor. Lucky for me, the conversation didn’t end.

           
Successful in my covert quest, I strode triumphantly forward… until I reached his door. All courage fled me. I faltered and found myself standing there blankly. All of my fears waved their flags at me, vying for my attention. What if Dylan and the others were right? What if he wasn’t who I thought he was?

           
In the end, my mind was made up: I couldn’t forget the person I met in the cave. Stories weren’t going to frighten me off. He was my friend and I had precious few of those in the Outside. Before I could talk myself out of it, I marched right into his room.

           
The last thing I expected was to physically run into another doctor. I stumbled backward, blurting apologies at the person I had collided with, but when I looked up, it wasn’t one of the doctors I was looking at. It was Rune. He was awake and on his feet.

           
The collision wasn’t the only thing that made me lose my breath. I’d forgotten how tall he was, and in the light, I could finally see just how blue his eyes were in contrast with his warm brown skin.

He wasn’t immune to surprise either. His mouth dropped open ever so slightly and, sounding as though he didn’t believe what he was seeing, he said one word.

“Katelyn…”

“Hi,” I returned, awkwardly.

He looked worlds better than before, but still wore his arm in a bandaged sling. Now that his strength had returned, there was a sharp, alert quality in him that wasn’t there before. The powerful surge of relief I felt at seeing him awake and well was stronger than I thought it’d be.

“I thought I dreamed you,” Rune said. I could see the puzzlement plain on his face.

His words struck a familiar chord. “First I’m a ghost and now I’m a dream? When is it going to sink in that I’m a
tangible
human being?” I grabbed his good arm for emphasis.

When he didn’t respond, I let go, feeling strange for having made physical contact. Playfulness faded from me. He wasn’t even smiling.