Page 75 of The Prince and His Stolen Throne
I frownedand looked back at his reflection. Of everything he could have said, I hadn’t expected a sincere apology. Evil never apologized. “What?”
“Master said,” he paused, and it was the first time I’d seen Wilde truly uncertain. “I thought you were prepared for this outcome. Your mission is to bring the royal champions to the lair. Allowing the patrols to capture them would hasten the process.”
I didn’t need him to remind me of my mission. The knowledge of it was a needle jammed into my brain, a sharp, constant pain I could never escape. “That’s not how I want to complete it,” I whispered.
The silence dragged out for several long seconds. “Do you know where the others went? Let me help you find them.”
“So you can send more guards after them?”
“I don’t like knowing you’re alone in the forest.”
After the stunt he’d pulled with the patrols, I didn’t trust him with our meetup location. “Guide me to Traumstead and I’ll find them from there.”
“Alright,” he agreed. “I’ll put directions on the mirror. It’ll lead you to an inn that’s relatively intact. I’ll meet you there.”
I groaned. “No, Wilde, I don’t want to—”
“We should talk in person.”
Part of me wondered if he wanted an excuse to kiss—not that I was in the mood to humor him. The rest understood from his serious expression that it was important. Maybe he needed to say something he didn’t want the old man to overhear? “Fine, I’ll meet you there.”
He nodded, satisfied, and disappeared from the reflection. A few seconds later, a red heart appeared at the top of the mirror.
“Very funny.”
He didn’t return to comment.
I pushed myself to my feet and a black arrow appeared at the bottom of the mirror, pointing in the opposite direction of the heart. I turned in a circle, watching the arrow turn with me, until we both pointed toward the heart.
I couldn’t watch the mirror-compass and walk at the same time without tripping over a dozen roots, so I closed the compact and stuffed it into my pack. If I got lost, I could consult it again, but for now I would walk straight.
As I walked, I considered what secrets Wilde might be hiding from his master.
After a couple of wrong turns, I finally reached the edge of the city. The first building I came across looked like a giant hill of ivy. The straight walls and sloped roof helped it maintain a rough house shape even as foliage swallowed the rest of it. There were no visible doors or windows, and the inside was probably as green as the outside. It wouldn’t provide a good shelter for anyone.
Wilde mentioned an inn. What state is that in now?
I pulled the mirror out to check the markings. Originally, the arrow had remained at the bottom edge, only twisting and turning as I changed directions. It had moved toward the center of the mirror as I neared my destination. The inn was probably on the edge of the city, somewhere that would see a lot of traffic.
Up ahead, trees encircled another house, twisting around it and themselves. The faded blue paint of the front door peeked through the gaps in the trunks. A shiver went down my spine as I thought of the homeowners being trapped inside while the curse spread through the city.
No, they had time to leave, even if they couldn’t take their possessions with them. The trees didn’t appear fully grown out of thin air. They just grew extra fast.
It must have been hard to leave their home behind. How many years had they owned it? Had it been in the family for generations, or was it a newlywed couple who’d claimed a space for themselves?
I wish I was really here to break the curse.What would the old man do if he heard my thoughts? What wouldWildedo? How committed was he to this plot, and how much of it was him just following the old man’s orders?
As I walked, the buildings grew taller and closer together. Some had trees sprouting from the inside, branches punched through broken windows. Others were smothered in vegetation. One looked like a giant bird’s nest, with large branches intricately woven around it.
In the heart of the curse, the trees stretched endlessly into the sky. Some of their trunks were as wide as the houses, as if they were centuries old. They grew close together, making it difficult to see around them. City hall should have been a bright, white beacon drawing everyone’s eye to the city center. I couldn’t even see it from here.
After a while, I noticed a pattern. A few buildings were clustered together, then there would be a large gap filled with trees, and then more buildings. The gaps must be the other streets, which meant I’d probably found one of the main roads.
“This forest is fucking creepy.” The low, growled words warned me of the next patrol before I saw them.
Ducking down one of the old side streets, I pressed my back against the building and listened carefully to their approach.
Thwack—the dull thump of flesh against flesh. “Shut up,” another voice hissed, their words only distinguishable because they were toofucking close. “They’ll hear you.”
