Page 27 of Grim and Oro
Before, I had thought him lost. Killed in search of a sword I desperately need.
Now I consider the possibility that he betrayed me.
Did he portal here? Is he still alive? No ... or if he is, he’s nowhere near this castle. I would have seen him already. How far could he go, without the relic?
Anger surrounds me like a storm, completely at odds with her sunshine-like happiness, making her practicallyglowwith it. She’s still clutching the portaling device to her chest, like it’s a friend. Like it’s her most prized possession.
Her happiness is deeper than any I’ve ever felt. Right now, I linger in hers, tasting it, feeling it as if it’s my own. It’s light, and airy, andbright.
Interesting.
So, this is what her happiness feels like.
I ready myself to rip it away.
“Thank you for finding it for me,” I say from the darkness.
The joy withers. The relief quickly turns to dread.
I let my shadows fall.
She scuttles back, fear gripping her chest, not of me, but now, I realize, fear oflosing this relic.
Of course she’s afraid of losing it, I think. Her plans against me and my realm must require it.
“Please,” she says, her voice breaking on the word. “Don’t.”
She’s crying. I see those tears on her cheeks; I can feel her sadness like a storm around us both; I can feel that she hates herself for crying. Or maybe she just hates me.
I frown down at her.
Enough of this. I don’t care about her. I don’t care about herfeelings.
I reach down to rip the stolen device,my device, from her arms. She blinks, another tear escaping. I’m hit with another wave of soul-clenching sadness. Then something else:loneliness.
Memories thrust me back centuries. I remember a little boy clutching at a locked door handle. I remember sand in my shoes. I remember the joy of discovering the world outside my confines. I remember the rush offreedom.
Could this device ... not be part of a plan? Could it be her only escape from this room like a cage, not so different from my own? Could this ability be her only chance at life, just like it was for me?
I don’t know why, but just before I’m about to take it from her, I change my mind.
I don’t know why—
I let her have it.
Something is wrong with me.
I should have taken that relic with me, should have ripped it from her hands. Her tears and begging should have slipped right offme, just like the pleas for mercy I’ve ignored for centuries on the battlefield.
Instead, I let the Wildling keep it. I left. Like a fool. My portaling flair is our realm’s biggest defense. Our biggest advantage.
Nowanyonewho finds it could claim it. Especially since she’s a reckless idiot who managed to portal intomy own castle.
My pulse is racing. My thoughts are scattered. My hands won’t stop clenching. I’m not myself. This doesn’t make sense.
It must be her Wildling curse. A trick. Or a veiled enchantment.
But I didn’t sense either around her. Could she possibly be skilled enough to veil a curse? Does she ... have a curse at all?
