Page 17 of A Darkness So Sweet

ChapterSeven

MAIA

She’d never felt so exposed in her life. The shirt he’d given her revealed far more of her body than she’d ever shown to anyone. Not even her father had seen her bare legs since she’d been a child. And this beast had put her in a shirt that was hanging off her shoulders and then paraded her through an entire camp of terrifying trolls.

Maia supposed she should have known they wouldn’t reach the troll kingdom in a single day. But, she didn’t actually know where the trolls lived. No one did. Humans assumed that the trolls had homes. The rumors were that they dug underneath the ground to live, which was entirely possible. It made sense that they wouldn’t be living so close to the human homes.

Still, it hadn’t been her greatest worry with all the other things happening. With a throbbing wrist and an aching stomach, there were so many other things for her to think about. Walking into the campsite full of trolls, she was starkly reminded of that.

The trolls looked different in the dim light. Most of them were seated in front of their black tents, their long legs crossed as they rested on animal skins. She wasn’t sure what kind of animal had such glistening white fur, or how they kept each of the rugs so clean. It was as impressive as it was intimidating. Fires were built before each tent, all of them surrounded by what looked like crystals. The fire glinted in each of the pillars, reflecting light in prisms all around the ground.

The tents glistened in the dying light as well. She could just barely make out the golden stitches before her new husband thrust her in front of a pair of tents that were rather close together.

“This one is ours,” he grunted, shaking out his hand as though touching her had made him dirty. “Go inside.”

She hated how he ordered her around. Maia was her own person; she could make her own choices. What if she wanted to stay outside by the fire he was surely going to build? What if she wanted to look at the other trolls, ask questions, and try to get her bearings? They were married now, after all. If he didn’t kill her, then she would have to make this her home as well. He wasn’t even giving her a chance to do that.

Another troll came out of the other tent. Though it was hard for her to see him very clearly, she thought he was the one who had stood beside her husband at the wedding. Maia hadn’t been able to get a good look at him. All she knew was that his skin was a deep green.

He nodded at her, then gestured toward her husband. “You found her, I see.”

“Didn’t even attempt to run.”

Why did that sound like a derogatory statement? Her husband said it as though he was disappointed she hadn’t run, when she had been told to stay in the stream and wash!

Rubbing her hand up and down her arm, she decided to introduce herself before ducking into the tent. “My friends call me Maia.”

The green troll looked her up and down before his gaze flicked to her husband behind her.

This was her moment. All she had to say was,but actually, I’m not the princess.You have the wrong person.

But then her gaze caught on the weapons resting by the fire. The sharp edge of the axe leaning just beside the trolls glinted in the firelight. She looked farther, seeing the rest of the trolls all staring at them. Some of them were stroking the knives at their waists, some of them were even sharpening swords.

Not here, she told herself. Once she was alone with the man she’d somehow married, then she would tell them. So instead, she said nothing.

This troll’s tusks were larger than her husband’s by far. Even those seemed like weapons as her heart raced.

“Gunnar,” the green troll said. “You can call me Gunnar.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Gunnar.”

“Lovely wedding you had.”

“Thank you,” she whispered, trying so hard to be polite while also feeling as though she might topple over at any moment. “I didn’t have anything to do with it.”

But that wasn’t true, now was it? She’d been the one to bring the flowers. All the flowers that had hung over their heads, draped along the columns and bannisters that the trolls had walked by. She was the only one who had turned that entire room into a wonderland of brightly colored wisteria and hydrangeas dripping from every inch of cold gray stone.

Her husband snorted behind her. “Lovely? The only thing lovely about that room were the plants. And you can’t convince me any of the royals had a single thing to do with that.”

He’d likedx her flowers?

Cheeks burning, she rushed into the tent. It was dark inside, so all she could see was the shadowy outline of the interior. Strangely spacious for a tent, she could easily stand and walk fifteen paces from one end to the other. Her feet were immediately cushioned by plush rugs, as well. Maia curled her toes in them before groping for what looked like a few trunks. She could sit there and wait for him.

Primly, she sat her bottom down and held her aching wrist. A heartbeat now resided underneath the skin, likely prevented by the icy cold stream. Maia was only distracted from the pain for a few moments by the sheer size of the trunks, which left her feet dangling above the ground when she sat down. She would tell him everything, and she would make him listen.

Too much time had already passed. The moment they had exited the castle, she should have been begging him to let her go. All of this was a mistake. She was a foolish girl who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. All he had to do was look at her to believe her. She didn’t have a high blood content of elven magic. The last person in her family who had even a drop of elven blood had been centuries ago. It was why her only talent was with plants.

She’d just come right out with it. She’d tell him everything that she’d seen in the castle, and all the details he might need, then she’d beg to go home. Yes, she wasn’t entirely able to do that, considering they were married in the eyes of her kingdom. But maybe this would be a good thing.

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