Reap (The Harvest Saga Book 1) (19 page)

I closed my eyes. He was right, but it didn’t matter.
Two different worlds
. “Crew. You have to leave tonight. We...can’t be.”

“I do have to leave. Come with me!”

“I can’t. My life is here. My home and my friends, the only life I’ve ever known. Besides, it’s not allowed.”

“I can make this happen. Please. Come. You would be so happy.
We
would be happy”

“In Cotton? How can it be so different than Orchard? Anyway, I’ll never be granted permission to leave. It’s unheard of.”

“Don’t. Please, don’t make me do this.” His face contorted as though he was in pain. Fumbling around in his suit jacket’s inside pocket, he pulled out a large circle of silver. It looked as if someone had bent a small, silver metal tube into a perfect circle.

“Make you do what? What is that?” It was completely smooth, about a quarter of an inch thick and looked large enough to almost fit on my head.
How did that fit in his pocket?

“May I at least have one last hug?” he asked, somberly. “I have something for you. Something to remember me by.”

I looked at Ky, who nodded, but kept his eyes trained on Crew. Releasing Ky’s hands, I stepped toward him and he wrapped his arms around me and held me tightly. Before I could pull away, his breath brushed my ear. “I’m sorry it had to be this way.” Before I knew it, he clamped the cold, polished metal around my neck. A loud sizzle sound came from the area of the back of my neck. I felt for the clasp but it disappeared under my fingertips, melting into the metal, making one smooth ring. I felt frantically for it again, but the cold ring was fused solid. I had no idea how to get it off. While searching, my fingertips could feel an etching. I tried to lift the metal and suck in my chin, but the ring sat flush against my skin and I couldn’t see it. “Abigail Blue Kelley, I hereby claim you as my intended. My infinite. The right given to me by the glorious Greater Kingdom of Olympus.”

“Olympus?” I mouthed.

“I am Crew Alexander Cole, Crown Prince of Olympus. And I claim this woman as my future bride.”

I looked at Kyan who clenched his jaw and fists menacingly. His upper lip trembled in rage. I prayed he didn’t hit Crew. Crew? The Crown Prince of Olympus? A Greater? I couldn’t breathe. I pulled hard against the collar that now proclaimed me as his intended. I tugged and strained but there was no fault in this metal. No chink in the armor. The clasp had disappeared, somehow, by some Greater magic or technology. And, I had once again become a pawn in the Greater’s game. As if I’d ever actually escaped it. I’d been a part of it since birth. All Lessers had.

Three soldiers appeared from behind
the stage, wearing black from head to toe in nearly skintight uniforms. All wore the weird tinted glasses. Greater soldiers were in the village. This was bad. One positioned himself next to Kyan and immediately escorted him from the stage, none too gently. The other two found my elbows and half-forced, half-helped me descend the steps and cross the village square.

Crew walked ahead with a fierce determination. The path was wide enough for four people and was the only one that led to the train depot. Tears bit at the back of my eyes. I hated crying. It showed weakness. But, that was exactly what I wanted to do right now. I wanted to run away from here. Put as much distance between myself and Crew as possible. He was a liar and a Greater. My enemy. And, I’d allowed myself to trust him, to love him. That was what hurt the most. I’d been such a fool.

Wrapping my arms around myself, I tried to keep up with the long strides and fast pace set by Crew and the Greater guards. I’d only seen them once. Two years ago, several guards came by train to collect information during a mandatory census. The Greaters wanted to know who owned each dwelling, how many adults and children resided in each one, current pregnancies, the number of males versus females in the village, their assigned jobs, etc. They asked all sorts of questions. Lulu had told me it was common and happened every ten years or so, but her forced smiles and knuckle cracking told a different tale.

We crested the large hill and began our descent. I gripped the strange fabric of my dress’s skirt for dear life, hoping that it would somehow steady me; body and mind. My heart beat furiously and I felt sick, as if a millstone lay in my stomach, heavy and cold. Glancing behind me, the trees along the line of the forest waved in the wind, a macabre goodbye. Their bony, bare fingers mocked me.

I tripped over a rock and the guards who flanked me caught me and hauled me upright before I hit the ground.

“Put her in my car,” Crew ordered harshly.

The two guards grabbed my elbows and all but dragged me around the back of the train and inside a shiny metal car, the insignia of Olympus proudly embossed upon the silver vessel. An “O” halfway filled with what looked like water or waves shone back at me. In the right upper corner, sat the sun, its beams striking the waves at the horizon below in various places. Two small birds flew happily off into the sunlight. Unfortunately, I was not one of those free, happy birds. I was being caged, a pet claimed to entertain a Greater. The guards exited and stood outside the doors. If I thought I’d been in prison in the village, I was wrong. Dead wrong.

I stepped into the car. Everything inside was white—walls, floor, ceiling, décor- everything. To the left, sat a small white circular table with two, short, unpigmented plastic chairs. The design of the furniture flowed in smooth lines. There were curves. No harsh lines to be found anywhere. If it had been made of wood, everything would have been angular. But this plastic flowed sensually, like the hips of a woman. There was a small couch to the right, upholstered in thick white fabric, over the back of which lay a white fur. The fur was soft and thick as I ran my hands over and under it. In front of the couch was an oval table, made of the same white plastic. It sat only a couple of feet off the ground.

A large bed took up the back half of the train car. The ghostly, ashen headboard had a symbol carved into it and the footboard was carved to match. Touching the footboard post, I found that it was made of wood. The bumpy wood grains dotted across my fingertips as I ran them over it. It’d been white washed. The symbol was an “O” much like the one on the outside of the train car, but it was what lay within that letter that scared me. An apple, stalk of wheat, twig with cotton on it, what looked like a chunk of coal, stalk of corn, bunch of grapes, and several other things fill the letter, all overflowing from a traditional weaved cornucopia. And, then I saw it. In small letters, stretched across the top curve read: “May the Harvest be Bountiful.”

I knew the Greaters always took an interest in our production. They relied on us to produce their food and raw materials, so I even understood their oversight. But, this was strange. Why was it carved on the head and foot boards of Crew’s bed? On the bed of the Crown Prince of Olympus? Why did the crown prince have anything to do with the harvest of the Lesser villages? Why would he bother himself with us at all?

The door of the car opened automatically as Crew strode in. He stood rigidly on the other end of the car. His black suit and hair contrast dramatically with the stark, sterility surrounding him, surrounding us. I looked down at the teal dress that I was wearing. The dress he gave me. I thought he was a Lesser, someone who cared about me, if nothing more. My teeth ground together, the sound echoing into my ears. He stared at me, lips pressed into a tight grimace.

When he moved toward me, I flinched back. I didn’t want him to touch me. Silently he put his hands out as if in defeat and moved toward the couch, taking a seat. Rubbing his palms along his thighs, he blew out a breath. Time stilled. 
Is he ever going to speak?

“You’re a liar.” There. I would start.

He looked at me. “That is fair.”

I scoffed. “Are you really the
Crown Prince
of Olympus?”

“Yes.”

“I didn’t even know that they had a prince. Or a King. I thought they had a council, that the leadership in the Lesser villages mirrored those of the Greater cities.” My hands were slick with sweat, which I tried to wipe off on the tainted gown.

“There is a council. My father consults them on all matters. He values their opinions. He’s known and trusted most of them for years. But, my father is king and all decisions ultimately lie with him. Though he rarely goes against their advice.”

“Why did you put this thing on me?” My fingers moved over the cool metal around my throat. “I feel like an animal.”

“In Olympus, it is an honor to wear your husband, or intended’s ring.”

“This isn’t a ring. It’s a collar.” My voice rises.

“It is a ring. It’s just worn around the throat.”

I moved it around, again searching for a clasp, some way to remove it. “Can I take it off?”

“No.”

“Never?” I squeaked.

“It must stay on until we are joined. But most women display theirs proudly for the duration of the marriage.”

Duration of the marriage? “How long do marriages last in Olympus?”

He laughed lightly and looked up at me. “Marriages last as long as the couples in them do. Same as they do here.”

“Stop laughing at me. I don’t want to wear this. I want you to take it off. Now!”

His smile faded. Blinking, he matter-of-fact answered, “I will not.”

“You won’t? You’re going to force me to marry you? Do you think that forcing my hand and making me miserable will make for a happy marriage?”

“No. But I will
not
stand for the alternative.”

“Kyan?”

He ticked his head back as if I’d slapped him. “Kyan? Kyan is a pawn and he doesn’t even know it. My father is going to place him in the Council. He will nudge him and use him as he does all of the others.”

“Your father said he couldn’t be placed in the Council unless he was married.”

Crew looked away from me and clears his throat.

“He is being married, as we speak.”

“Excuse me!” I yelled.

He jumped to his feet, strode quickly across the car and stood in front of me. “You will remember who it is that you are addressing!”

“Oh, that’s right! The Crown Prince, the liar who gained my trust so he could manipulate me. You speak of your father using people. You’re no better.” My hands shook uncontrollably, as did my voice now. “And Kyan won’t be moved around like some piece in whatever sick game your father is playing. And, there is
no way
he’ll marry Paige or anyone else right now.” I stood my ground in front of him, praying that I didn’t hit him or kick him in his junk.

“I am better. But here are the facts, Abigail. I love you,” he raised his hand to stop me from interrupting and I snapped my mouth closed, huffing and crossing my arms. “I do. I love you. I think I fell in love with you the moment I saw you. You were being harassed by Zander. I wanted to have him dragged away and tortured, just for touching you, for intimidating you. I wanted...
I
wanted to kill him. With my bare hands.” He looks down at his palms, which he held out facing him. “Kyan will be married tonight. My father will see to it. The ceremony is probably already over. Did Kyan ever want to marry Paige?”

His eyebrows raise, in expectation of my answer. “No.”

“Don’t you find it strange that Kyan accepted her as his betrothed for so long? It was all planned. You got in the way of those plans.”

“I... Your father asked me to marry Ky just tonight at the Festival!”

“He wanted you out of the way.” His voice rose.

“Whose way? What way?”

“Mine.”

“I don’t understand.” I shook my head.

“Preston was his pawn for a long time. When he told my father about Zander’s infatuation with you, my father told him to make it happen. That’s why they came on so strong.”

Oh my gosh.
My stomach hit the floor. I grabbed hold of my abdomen. “Lulu?”

Crew slowly nodded. “She got in their way.”

“But he saved me that day. And then he sent for Mr. Guthrie.”

He shook his head. “He had to act like it was all Preston. Preston took the fall for everything. Then, to keep peace in the village, he called for Healer Guthrie to attend to you. If you had died, there would have been an uprising. I’m sure of it, and so was he. To stop that from happening, he saved you.”

“Then, he asked me to marry Kyan to keep me away from you?”

“Yes. But also to calm the villagers. So much had happened that they were sure to rebel. I’m sorry.”

I moved backwards until the post of the footboard brushed my back.
I get it.
“He didn’t want his son to marry a Lesser.”

Crew blew out a breath. “Yes. I was supposed to choose an intended upon my arrival back to Olympus, after the harvest. Although, I’m not sure—”

“Why did you stop the wedding? Why not just let me marry Kyan and go find a Greater, make daddy proud?”

“Because I love you. I want you to be my forever.”

I blew out a pent up breath. “Crew, what’s going to happen? Your father is not going to take what you did tonight in stride. You stood up to him in front of the entire village.”

He laughed harshly. “You forgot the part where I exposed myself and him. But it won’t matter now anyway.” My eyes met his. “You aren’t going to like what I have to say.”

I rolled my eyes. “What else could you possibly say to surprise me?”

He shifted his feet and swallowed thickly. “We aren’t here to harvest apples.”