Page 292 of The Daughters of Avalon
We are not aligned.
Tears pricked at her eyes as his words needled her heart, far, far more painfully than did any of the brambles she’d slept near. He’d kissed her good-bye, perhaps forever, and now it seemed that instead of saving her, he’d given her over to be murdered for the good of the realm?
Marcella claimed she was taking Rhiannon to her sisters—or at least, this was what Rhiannon had presumed. Only now that she considered it,no onehad ever said they were taking her to Warkworth.Had they?
Nay.
Marcella had merely said she’d been tasked to “remove” Rhiannon from Blackwood, and yes, perhaps to keep her safe, but only so long as she didn’t deem Rhiannon a threat to the Realm…
By the by, before you think to judge me… consider that before we are done, one of you—either you or your sisters—will put a blade through your mother’s heart.
Therefore, you are no better than a huntsman.
Either you will spill Morwen’s blood, else she’ll spill yours, and for the good of the realm… I am prepared to slay you all.
Frustrated, Rhiannon turned on her pallet, peering into the treetops. By now, the fire had long since died, and she was cold, but she hadn’t the wherewithal to cast a warming spell. Her teeth chattered viciously, perhaps more from nerves than from the chill. Every time Marcella or Jack turned in their beds, disturbing bracken, it made her heart leap painfully against her ribs.
She was afraid, she realized.
Terrified.
Perhaps for the first time in her life.
During these past few days, Marcella had managed to strip Rhiannon of her pride. She gave her a true glimpse of her own vulnerability. Rhiannon wasn’t anyone’s savior, nor anyone’s protector. She was merely a woman, surrounded by uncertainty, who missed her husband… desperately.
Using her cloak for a blanket and her arm for a pillow, she tossed and turned, doing her best to avoid brambles. Alas, the more she fidgeted, the more they clawed at her, even as worry pricked at her belly.
She could leave, she realized.
Now, whilst they were still sleeping…
Like her sisters, she was a child of the forests. She might have a chance alone. She didn’t know precisely where Warkworth was, but she knew it was north and close to the sea. She also knew how to gauge direction by the position of the sun. Whatever she didn’t have in her saddlebag, she could forage from the land.
She didn’t need these paladins…
Unfortunately, the horses were weary from so many long days. Like Rhiannon, they hadn’t rested properly since leaving Blackwood, and if she left now, her poor horse would pay the price of her impetuosity.
So, then, she could travel afoot… concealing herself withmagik, though Marcella was adewine. She would know what signs to look for.
Anyway, Marcella would have use of the horses, and she also knew precisely where Rhiannon was going. Doubtless, they would pursue her till caught.
Going back wasn’t very wise either. Although they’d managed to slip away, by now, Morwen was no doubt in pursuit. She would push her band to their limits to make up for lost time.
Nay, in the end, it simply wouldn’t be wise to waste more time trying to escape a woman who, according to her own word, had been assigned to protect her. Shemustbelieve that Cael would never put her in the hands of a mercenary who meant to kill her. And yet, she lay there, confused by all she’d learned—one shocking revelation after another from the instant she’d left Blackwood.
Sylph…
Her mother was Sylph.
How was this even possible?
Sylphkindwere beings Rhiannon had only ever heard of in legend—children of the Gods, so they said, formed of moon dust and spirit, ethereal as air. Said to beskyspeakers, they were able to communicate with creatures of the air—and this perhaps rang true, though it was unfathomable.
Moreover, how was it that something purported to be so exquisitely lovely could be so base?
By all accounts theSylphkindwere lauded to be creatures of beauty and love… untouched by the guile or greed of men.
They were said to be so fiercely beautiful that to look into the eyes of a Sylph could, in fact, blind like the sun.
