Page 69 of Arrows and Gems
“It happened while I was gone,” she explained. “I didn’t have the chance.”
Cap’s eyebrows twitched toward each other. “He didn’t wait for your return?”
Helena hesitated. She didn’t want to give the wrong impression about Axel or her history, but she also didn’t want to betray her identity. Cap might not want the responsibility of a runaway princess.
“I was…hidden away against my will when I was thirteen,” she slowly said. “My family thought I was dead. My brother didn’t know hecouldwait.”
Instead of responding, Cap tilted his head, looking up and to the left as if her comments triggered a memory. Helena fidgeted with the reins, hoping word of her awakening hadn’t reached Amitié before he left the royal guard.
Soon after, they took a break for lunch. Helena suspected her ankle could have handled the dismount, but she didn’t protest when Cap offered his hands to lift her down like normal. She liked the feel of his solid shoulders under her hands. Also, silly though it seemed, his large hands wrapped around her waist made her feel...safe. Cared for.
She couldn’t let that go before she had to.
Once she was securely on her feet, Helena began to limp past him so she could help Rouge unpack their rations. Cap brushed her arm with his gloved fingers, letting them trail down to her elbow before dropping away.
She turned to face him. He watched her steadily with those serious, hazel eyes of his. “I’m sorry to hear you were kidnapped as a child. And sorry that you re-experienced that trauma on my watch.”
“It’s all right, Cap. My capture wasn’t your fault.” She gave him a reassuring smile. “You rescued me, and it didn’t even take twelve hours. That’s a great improvement over twelve—”
She cut herself off. Cap, watching her with that calm but sad expression, finished, “Years?”
Helena tried to hide her gulp. “Yes,” she agreed. “But enough about me.” She brushed past him, turning to speak over her shoulder. “I’m curious how you came to lead a band of outlaws in the woods after training for the royal guard. Did you wake up one day and think, ‘Guarding a bunch of royals is boring; I’d rather fight for justice on my own terms’?”
He crouched next to her while she dug through the pack of dishes. “The story of each person here is their own to tell,” he quietly replied. “I will not reveal what they wish to keep tothemselves.”
“I was asking about you,” she said with a pointed look. “You keep collecting pieces of my history. I would like to know more about the man who currently has control over my life.”
He pulled his chin back. “I don’t have control—”
“Relax, Cap; I’m not accusing you of anything.” She resisted the impulse to nudge him with her elbow. “I only meant that we’re stuck together for the foreseeable future. Which I do not mind, but it would be nice to know more about your past.”
While he seemed to consider this, Jean-haut plopped down next to them. “For me, it started the day King Antoine was murdered.”
“How so?” Helena asked. “I thought it was Prince Raphael that General Valentin accused. Or are you preparing to tell me that you’re the party responsible?” she joked.
He shook his head with a half-smile and contorted his hands in his lap. “No, I’m fairly certain that would be the General.” His head turned to the south as his eyes began to glaze over. “I was the one who warned the prince to flee.”
Her eyes widened. “You know him? Come to think of it, Alanna said something about that.” A mischievous smile spread across her face. “What’s he like, this prince that General Valentin has convinced the kingdom is a murderer?”
Jean-haut didn’t answer, but when she looked back at him, she suspected it was because he hadn’t heard her.
“Why do you want to know? Planning to become a princess?” Cap asked with a disdainful tilt to his lips.
“Of course not; I hate princes. And noblemen,” she replied absently, watching the forester. “Is he all right?”
“He’s searching the plants on the forest floor for a suitable camping spot,” Cap calmly replied. “Due to the size of our group, he needs to look while we can still change course. But the farther away he is, the more magic and concentration herequires. He likely can’t hear us right now.”
“So not something to do unless he’s certain of his safety,” she mused, still watching him with a critical eye. Come to think of it, he had been rather distant during meals the last week.
“He puts his life in our hands every time,” Cap softly agreed.
Pulling her attention from the magic-user and his trance, Helena took a stack of bowls out of the sack and handed them to Cap. He calmly held out his other hand for the next batch.
“Jean-haut shared his story.” She grabbed the last stack of bowls and struggled to her feet. “What’s yours?”
“You aren’t letting this go, are you?” Cap sighed as he followed her around the group to pass out the dishes.
“Think of me as a dog with a bone,” she grinned.
