Page 75 of Emylia

A concoction of herbs carried on the breeze; the earthy yet sweet aroma of willow bark used for pain relief. Devil’s claw, which also had a subtle woodsy smell. Then there were the more potent herbs like tea tree, which was great for infections, or thyme, which could be used for coughs, or congestion.

The copious hours listening to my father and uncle retelling their ‘battle’ days and defense strategies, were invaluable. Having prior knowledge of where my uncle would position his guards, made it easy to slip in and out of blind spots without getting caught.

Pressing myself hard against the wall, I kept close to the building until I made my way around to the window, which was conveniently set at my eye-level.

The window was cracked ajar, open enough so the voices inside carried to me with ease.

“Ari,” I heard my uncle say softly.

I sneaked a peek through the sheer curtains, watching my mother step forward and examine the injured man’s wounds. Afraid I would be caught, I retreated to the shadows, hoping I wasn’t too late to hear crucial information.

The man lay on the clean bed and looked just as bad as when I had seen him in the town square. Although he still looked rough, the pain appeared more manageable now–my mother must’ve already started healing him.

“Can you tell us what happened?” my mother asked with a gentleness I envied.

The man gave a watery cough, but answered, “We had our scouts surrounding us north, south, and west. The mountains barricade us from the east, so we didn’t bother having many sentries on that side.” Another coughing fit rocked through his body before he continued. “Not a murmur of warning was heard before we were under attack as if we had no sentries at all. It was like they appeared from thin air. One second, there was no one, the next, everyone was slaughtered.”

There was a question in the man’s voice as if he had no idea how the army had been eviscerated.

“I was lucky; I must’ve passed out after I was wounded, and they thought I was dead. When I awoke, the army was gone.”

“Is there any way to tell which way they retreated?” my uncle asked.

His voice was somber. “No, but I walked south from Mera, and I didn’t see anyone between there and here.”

So absorbed in the conversation inside that I didn’t sense another presence until a hand pressed firmly against my mouth, blocking any sound from escaping.

My eyes snapped to the glacial depths of Maalikai’s eyes, barely visible from the candlelight shining from inside the building.

He towered above me, his obsidian hair falling over his eyes, shadowing their depths. “What do you think you’re doing?” he growled through gritted teeth.

I lifted my head in defiance, my eyes scorching his, unafraid of his wrath, even though he had me pinned. I wasn’t sure what was worse–the icy wood at my back, or the sinful press of muscle against me, so taut it felt like a punishment.

One I wasn’t entirely mad about.

It was madding–feeling this much of him and not being able to do a damn thing about it. The way my body responded, just from his nearness, the weight of him pressed against me–was its own kind of betrayal. A surrender I hadn’t agreed to.

Slowly, he released my mouth so I could answer.

“Finding out what the fuck is going on since no one is going to tell me,” I hissed back, careful not to raise my voice above a whisper.

“This is your grand plan? Sneak off by yourself where you can easily get yourself killed or caught?”

My eyes narrowed. “You assume I would be killed.”

“Or caught,” he added. Without warning, a glacial blade pressed against the base of my throat. “See how easy it is for me to break through your defenses?”

I raised one single brow and moved without warning. “See how easy it is for me to break through yours,” I spat back.

His eyes dropped between us, where my hand tightly grasped a blade that was pressed uncomfortably close to a region I assumed he would love to stay intact.

His lips twitched as though he was trying hard not to smile. “Touche.”

“I’d rather be a warrior who defies the rules than a girl who cannot fight.” My words were coated in a layer of venom that prickled goosebumps along my skin.

“Am I interrupting?” I almost jumped at the soft sound of Sebastian’s voice.

A wave of guilt spread through me so quickly that my limbs filled with ice. Somehow, I’d forgotten all about Sebastian.

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