Page 53 of The Curse of Golden Blood
"Just... trust me, please? As you always do?"
Relief softened her features. "Always." She hugged me once, a brief but tight squeeze, then drew back. "If they're hurting you—"
"They're not." I kept my voice gentle, but firm. It was easier, sometimes, to pretend that this was a world without magic or cruelty, that violence and fear weren't always waiting somewhere just around the corner. "They're just...teaching me."
"If they hurt you, tell me. Tell someone. Do you understand?"
I nodded. "When the time comes, you'll be first to know."
Pelbie nodded, then her expression shifted, a little spark lighting in her tired eyes. “Oh—look what I got.”
She leaned over the side of the bed, rummaging through the small chest tucked there, and came up with a small leather pouch. She loosened the drawstring and tipped the contents into her palm — a set of dice, each one carved from smoky quartz, the pips filled with a dull gold resin.
My brows rose. “How in the realms did you get those?”
Her mouth curved in the faintest smile. “From… a friend.”
I narrowed my eyes. “A friend?”
Her smile widened just enough to be suspicious. “Brond.”
My jaw dropped. “Pelbie.”
“What?” she said, feigning innocence far too poorly to be believable. “He’s nice. And he’s good at carving.”
"Pelbie," I groaned, pinching the bridge of my nose.
She shrugged, the picture of angelic defiance. "It was a gift."
"A gift that will get you both into trouble."
She gave me a flat look. "Oh please. You’re the troublemaker, Miralyte. It’s clear as day that you’re in trouble.."
"Me? How am I in trouble?" I feigned innocence.
"Because," she said, pointing at the door, "there is a fae outside who has been following you for two weeks. And you look awful!"
I scowled. "It's for my... safety."
She folded her arms, and her eyes narrowed. "Mira, is there something you want to tell me?"
"Yes, actually. Did you know that there's a secret tunnel hidden in the west hall, the one with all the portraits?"
"No." She didn't look impressed.
"Well, there is. And—"
"We're not escaping, Mira," she cut me off. "It's impossible."
"You don't know that."
"There's a hundred guards on these walls. A thousand, probably. We have no weapons, and we don't even know how to get back home."
"We'll find a way. We'll figure it out."
"No, we won't. Even if we got past the guards and the wards and the sentries, and we made it back through the portal, how would we hide? How would we keep my family safe?"
I opened my mouth, then closed it. Pelbie was right. Even if we went back, we’d end up with a lifetime of running; and it would be hard on her family.
