Page 44 of Tricky Princess
Ellea gave him a deadpan look. “What crap? I’m here to enjoy coffee and delicious muffins.”
“Muffins?” The other guard looked toward Farren, who waved her hand to direct them toward the muffins coated in crunchy sugar. They were delicious.
The other guard growled and stepped toward them, but Ellea magicked a stool right in front of his feet, causing him to trip. He growled as he righted himself and pointed a menacing finger toward her. “We know you’re still smuggling souls to the other territories.”
“Do you, now? Do you have any proof?”
They wouldn’t; Ellea had talked to those in the mortal territory first, and word quickly spread to not bring attention to yourself. If you wanted out, they had specific meeting times that were on an ever-changing rotation. It would take time, but until Ellea couldn’t find a better way to make things work, sneaking around at night would have to do. It had only been two nights, but they had been able to move eight mortals and four supernaturals. It wasn’t easy to figure out who should go where, but they were figuring it out as they went. If only they could combine the lands or not have some scary territory between them.
It was also cutting into her spying and training time. She and Florence had rotated these past nights, keeping an eye on Belias and his ilk. Cara and Duhne were helpful; they would rotate between using a portal to move souls from one location to the other. Just this morning, they had found older souls who had agreed to help the newcomers find their families or those they were looking for.
Both guards stared at her, and Ellea smiled. No, they could do nothing, not until they caught her in the act. Two men came in behind the guards, and they didn’t acknowledge the uncomfortable silence that seeped throughout the small shop. Farren cleared her throat and took their orders. Her delicate cough broke the nicer of the two out of the stare-down, and he dragged his partner out of the shop before he could say anything else.
Duhne let out a heavy sigh. “It’s only been two days and they are getting restless.”
Ellea hummed in agreement, but an idea was beginning to form. “Do you think we could convert some of the guards?”
He took a steadying breath, one she was beginning to identify as an “Ellea has a crazy idea and I’m going to have a heart attack” kind of breath. “It will be hard; most of the guards are funded by the lords more than the kings.”
“But the kings are, well, the rulers of this land.”
His nose crinkled. “Yes, but they have a direct line to the lords. They are there to protect and to prepare for war, but their day-to-day life is mostly spent in the lords’ lands.”
Ellea thought for a moment. The way the one guard had looked at the shopkeeper had her wondering if any others were friendly with the souls and wanted to see them happy just as much as she did. Did any of them want to do something more than simply serve those who fed them? She tucked the idea away. They had an old wolven to meet with before her afternoon training with Azzy.
“I don’t think Ellea’s learned much since she’s been here,” Florence said to Azzy, who watched their training. She parried Ellea’s attack, and the reverberation of the block vibrated to her tired hands. Florence easily redirected her weapon, pointing it at Ellea’s chest.
“I’ve learned plenty,” Ellea said through gritted teeth, taking a step back and readying her sword. Each lunge with her legs or swipe with her sword ached. Her whole body ached. She wasn’t getting enough sleep, but she had been learning, and she felt stronger. Right now, she felt taken off guard; never had she trained with both of them. It was either fighting with Florence or magic with Azzy.
“Why aren’t you using magic?” Azzy demanded as he circled them again.
Why wasn’t she using her magic?
The thought made her pause long enough for Florence to swipe her feet from under her. She landed with a pained thud on the floor; the demon’s sword was again pointing at her chest.
“You’re never this bad in training.”
She wasn’t. Even after a long night of spying, she would be ready in the morning to take her on. They fought, using daggers, swords, or even their bodies. Where Florence was light and graceful, Ellea was strong and fierce.
“I’m tired,” she said from the floor.
“Liar. You’re holding back.” The demon didn’t even bother helping her up, only looked to Azzy and added, “She isn’t strong enough.”
“Strong enough for what?”
Both of them ignored her as she stood.
“Why are you here, Ellea?” Azzy asked as if he wasn’t the one to drag her here in the first place. “What are you doing?”
“Filling your time until your sweet little prince gets here to save you from the evil demons,” Florence said in a voice Ellea hadn’t heard before.
Her power crackled under her skin. “No.”
“Filling the souls’ heads with promises, getting them thinking you’re actually going to do something. But when your prince comes home, will you leave them?”
Azzy stepped closer. He didn’t even react to Florence’s harsh words. “Why are you here, Ellea? What are you doing?”
The faces of those she’d smuggled to different territories flashed through her mind. The happy and free looks on their faces. Their smiles. Their relief at knowing that they were one step closer to peace, to being reunited with those they loved. They weren’t scared, they didn’t hesitate; they stepped into a new place, ready to take on the next step of their afterlife.
