Never Let You Fall (The Prophecy of Tyalbrook) (29 page)

“I want you to wrap yourself around me as they pull us up, okay? I’m going to use my legs to keep us off of the wall, so you just hang onto me, got it?”

I gladly wrapped my arms around his neck and he lifted me up, allowing me to wrap my legs around his waist. His hands were holding on to my rear, keeping me in place. I searched the dark for his face and wished I could see his eyes.

Cillian called down to ask if we were ready, and after a moment Xander called back up that we were. Right before they started to tug, he let go of one of my arms and touched my shoulder, gliding up my neck to my face.

His lips touched mine briefly and he whispered, “That’s why I threw the orb up,” and he gently kissed me again.

“Last time?” I questioned, sadly aware that as soon as we reached the top, everything would change. I felt his head nod affirmatively against my forehead.

Throwing caution to the wind I practically growled at him, “Then let’s make it a good one.” Sinking my lips into his, I immediately opened my mouth to welcome his invasion. His fingers dug into my bottom, and his other hand fisted into my hair as our kiss got deep and fast.

I felt like I was starving, and his mouth, his
affection
was the only thing that would give me sustenance. I wanted every part of him, and knowing that in a few seconds I would lose it made me desperate.

“Please don’t push me away, Xander,” I begged, licking his lips. “We can figure something out! We’ll put up a front, pretend for them. Don’t push me out, though!” I pleaded; biting on his bottom lip lightly before pulling on it and sucking it.

The rope began to tighten around our ribs and he pulled back. “Stop, please!” His voice was ragged. He let go of me and helped maneuver us closer to the wall.

“I can’t stop…just promise me you won’t give up on us.” I was coiled around him as tightly as I could get; partially to keep me from hitting the wall, and partially because I didn’t want to part from him.

I felt him kick off from the wall as we were pulled up, and I was suddenly desperate to hear him promise me that he wouldn’t give up on us. I decided to play dirty. “You’ll never let me fall. That’s your promise, right?” I hissed into his ear.

“Skye…”

“No, Xander! Promise me! Promise me that you’ll always protect me and be there for me and love me.” I choked the last two words out and buried my head in his shoulder.

“I do promise you all of those things and more, Skye. Don’t make this harder on me than it already is. I’m letting you go for now because I have to -
not
because I want to.”

He kissed my head and as I leaned my head back to speak with him more, he shushed me. “Almost there,” he called out, warning me that we were too close to the top to talk freely. He then whispered softly, almost too soft for me to hear, “I love you Skye. Be brave, Princess.”

And that was my wake up call. Be brave. I took a few deep breaths and blinked the tears out of my eyes. It was time for me to be brave. To be the Princess. If I could do that, then maybe my future wasn’t set in stone, and I could actually choose what I wanted it to be. Be brave. I chanted those two words in my head as strong hands pulled us out of the pit and lightly set us on the ground.

Pulling away as much as the rope would allow, I lifted my head from Xander and gazed upon those who had just helped us. I saw about fifteen men and probably as many horses around us. The men, with the exception of those who had helped with the rope, were down on the ground on one knee. They were bowing down to me.

Their Princess.

Be brave.

TWENTY THREE - TRUST

Skye

My breath caught as I watched the men beside us slowly sink down and bow their heads. With my head turned away from the crowd, I blinked away the tears that began to cloud my vision while Xander untied us from the rope.

One man in particular stood and nodded at Xander before holding out his hand. Xander reached out his own hand and they shook; assessing each other.

This was Cillian. I was starting to think there was something in the water there. I hadn’t met an unattractive person from Tyalbrook yet. Cillian was predictably tall and broad shouldered, and in the low light I could see that he had strong facial features, much like Xander. His blond hair hung to his shoulders, and he smoothed it back as he bowed his head to me again before speaking.

“Princess, my name is Cillian. We are glad to see you returned to Tyalbrook uninjured, your Highness.”

I tried to smile politely and forced myself to choke back any retorts at being called ‘your Highness’. That was going to take some getting used to.

“Thank you, Cillian. Thank you for your help.” I nodded to the pit in the ground and spoke in my most authoritative voice.

Xander stood beside me and I could see his eyes wander over the other men, taking them in. They were all still bowing. Selene made her way through a few men and executed a slight curtsy. I gathered that now that we were in the presence of others, it was time to adopt my royal persona and allow others to treat me as such.

“Are you all right, Princess? Can I see the cut on your head?” Selene questioned. She came closer and stared at my head. “I can’t see well, but it looks like the gash has stopped bleeding.”

“I’m alright Selene, thank you.”

She stepped back and after another moment of silence, Xander stepped up and took charge.

“The Princess is cold, tired and I imagine hungry. How far is the village?”

Cillian motioned behind him and his men came back to their feet. “Of course, I have a horse for each of you. It is about an hour from here. We have a prepared cottage waiting for you.”

“Thank you.” Xander held out his arm for me to take, and we followed Cillian to our horses.

Looking at the large beasts I was instantly overcome with fear - I had never ridden a horse! The one before me was beautiful; mostly white with a few black markings. His mane was long and waved in the wind, and he whinnied at us as we stepped closer.

“Xander, I would prefer to ride with you,” I requested, speaking softly. “I’m so tired that I’m not sure if I can hang onto a horse.”

I felt his forearm flex under my hand as we stood there. Cillian assessed me with a glance, and I wondered if he found his Princess lacking. I knew I should probably try to ride, but I just couldn’t make myself do it.

“My head is still pounding. I’m afraid I might pass out and fall,” I added, giving myself a good excuse.

“She will ride with me, Cillian. For safety,” Xander finally clarified firmly. I couldn’t help but notice the different tone in his voice since we had met Cillian. I could tell that he was trying to assert his dominance over the others, and I absently wondered what they thought.

Looking around at the other men, I noted that Xander looked to be younger than them all. Their faces were grim but pleasant; their clothing well worn.

After we were settled on our horses with Xander’s solid chest pressed pleasantly against my back, the group of men pulled up and surrounded us. They were providing a guard for me, forming a circle so that we were safely in the middle. Cillian rode up front and I could see him giving orders to the other men in the front line.

I leaned back and rested against Xander before speaking quietly to him. “What do you think of Cillian and the others?”

“I think he’s trustworthy,” he answered just as softly. “He looked me in the eye. I could tell that he wasn’t trying to show off any authority.”

His hand wrapped around my waist and pulled my bottom firmly up against his thighs and between his legs.

“How’s your head feeling?”

“It’s pounding still. I feel alright, though.”

Up ahead, Cillian pulled his horse back and looked over his shoulder at us. It looked as if he was waiting for us to catch up, and I felt Xander slide his hand away from my waist.

Once we were riding side by side, Xander and Cillian began to talk about the upcoming ride to the village, Sheridan. The gentle rock of the horse and the events of the day began to wear on me. I felt my head begin to fall forward, my eyes heavy. Their conversation was just a muffled blur as I kept nodding off.

“Lean into me Princess, and rest,” Xander’s sweet voice whispered. I needed no prodding. I was out before my head hit his shoulder.

The soft melody that filled my ears startled me. I knew I was sleeping on Xander’s lap, on a horse. So where was this music coming from? And why was it pitch black?

“There you are,” Griffin called, as a bright light blinded me up ahead. I walked towards the light and saw his silhouette standing there.

“Griffin? Where am I?” The light slowly began to dim and the black faded away to the same meadow as the last time I had seen Griffin. The Enchanted Forest.

Looking at the beautiful elf before me I questioned him, “Why do I keep seeing you in my dreams?”

His head cocked to the side and a grin swept over his face. I could see a knowing gleam in his eye. It reminded me of the boys back home. Boys with large egos who assumed you were spending your time away from them daydreaming about being with them again.

“Well, my Princess, I am flattered that you think of me so often,” he jested lightly, before bowing gracefully to me. “However, this is only the second time I have come to you willingly. This is a dream, but not really a dream. I am here with you, after all.”

“But…I had another dream, one with both you and Xander…it was a nightmare really.”

“That was an actual nightmare then,” added Griffin. “I wasn’t there. Perhaps it was a vision of the future?” he asked, his brow raised slightly.

“No!” I argued. It couldn’t be a vision. I didn’t want to imagine a day when what I had dreamed of would become reality.

“I beg your pardon then, Princess. It very well could have been a dream.” He stepped back and motioned for me to follow. “Although I don’t know how I would possibly have missed you if you really had been dreaming.”

“Excuse me?” I questioned; confused by his comment.

“Well, my sweet,” and he actually winked at me, “I am monitoring you, and every time you fall asleep I know. I’m keeping…”

“You’re what?!” I spat at him. “Why are you monitoring me?”

Griffin chuckled and stepped up to one of the large trees with swinging branches. Leaning his back against the trunk he fixed his gaze on mine. “Isn’t it obvious? I have a vested interest in keeping you safe, Princess.”

I tried not to gape at him as he spoke. “I’m keeping up with you in your dreams, because that’s the safest connection I can have with you right now. I assure you, our contact now is just as real as if I were there in person.”

Letting his comment about his “vested interest” slide for the moment, I concentrated on what he had said about my dreams being real. I took a measured step closer to him and thought of what to ask.

“So you’re telling me that if something were to happen to me in this dream, it would be real and would happen to me outside of it as well?”

“Yes, that is exactly what I am saying. I’m real Princess, and so are you. You look as if you’re sleeping to the outside world, but in actuality you are in another state, another reality.”

How perplexing. Was I getting any rest while I stood there with Griffin, or would I wake up tired still? If I were to die here, would I really die? If I were to kiss Griffin, would I like it?

“What the?” I mumbled as Griffin watched my face and smiled. Where had that come from?

Griffin held his arm out to me, bowed his head and requested a walk. I placed my fingers on his forearm and followed after him as we walked towards the sparkling lake again.

“You said you knew my mother once upon a time.”

His face darkened as he answered, “That’s right.”

“How old are you?”

“Didn’t anyone ever tell you that it isn’t polite to ask someone their age?” His voice was playful as he led me towards a bridge that spanned the right side of the lake.

“Well, not really. I mean, I didn’t know it applied to men, and certainly not to elves,” I teased.

I knew I was flirting, but I wanted answers - and if it took flirting - then so be it.