Page 37 of Wicked Thieves
“Fifteen. I was little more than a guard then, not a Watchman.”
“He basically fought like one, though,” Adan said.
“Aeric is the main reason so many Vedrans have managedto escape the pyre over the years, Anya. He has been helping keep many of us safe through his cunning and careful planning. It was all his idea from the start. All as a way to be able to get to the book.”
Anelize felt herself at a loss for words.
Seventy days he’d come and gone, trying to gain all their trust. A boy by all accounts standing out in the freezing cold, being cast out by the Vedrans again and again for the title he held as a Watchman. Yet he did not give up.
Unlike Anelize, who did not know what her place among them was, Aeric had set out to make one for himself. They all had. They had not allowed themselves to become diminished.
“I merely sought to find a way to put an end to senseless suffering. I wasn’t always successful,” he murmured as he drummed his fingers over the table.
Henry crossed his arms. “History has a strange, cruel way of repeating itself. What is important is that we do not make the same mistakes as those who came before us. Trying is better than giving up entirely.”
He looked at her when he said those words, and she felt them strike true.
Anelize had felt that some part of her was missing all these years. A connection she had never felt before, to her people and their torrid history. She had always heard the stories from her father, told as a way to warn her away from attempting to conjure and being discovered. Never anything more than that. Magda hadn’t cared when she’d been born without any power whatsoever. Like her father, Magda had retreated to the city long ago to live out her life amongst the rest of the Madacians. Perhaps because she too strived for an easier life.
How would any of them ever come to obtain such a life?Was such a thing possible to begin with for Vedrans and Madacians to live in peace together? For a hopeful such as Enid, she would probably say yes. Anelize just wasn’t sure of anything anymore.
As they finished having their dinner and Henry cleared away their plates, Anelize stood from her chair to head off to bed. But not before she turned to face them all. She looked to the leader of the rebels when she said with conviction. “I’ll go. To the forest. I wish to know all that I can, if you’ll show me the way.”
Adan arched a brow in question as he and Idris exchange a glance, but it was Aeric who granted her a sharp, haunted smile as he interlaced his fingers. “As you wish.”
15
Aknock came at her door the next evening.
Zara smiled softly at her when Anelize opened it to let her in, noticing that she was holding a bundle of clothes in her arms.
“I thought it a good idea to bring these to you. Where you’ll be going it won’t be exactly prudent to wear skirts that can easily be caught,” Zara said as she set the clothes down on the bed.
“Thank you,” Anelize murmured, walking to the bed to pick up a wool tunic and undershirt. She eyed the knitted scarf, black cloak, leather pants. All meant to ward off the cold. All entirely new to her.
“You’ll get used to the pants,” Zara said when she followed her gaze. “I find they are much more comfortable than heavy skirts.”
Anelize quickly changed out of her dress and donned the clothes she’d been given. Finding that it would take some getting used to when the leggings became like a second skin around her legs and thighs. The heat, however, was trapped within them almost instantly, and based on where they were headed tonight, she couldn’t say she hated it.
Zara stepped forward as she reached for the scarf and slid it over her shoulders, slowly wrapping it around her. Anelize held perfectly still, somewhat taken aback by the kind gestureand the affection in the woman’s gaze as she regarded her. Living with Magda had taken any sort of affection she might have felt before, now leaving her stunned as a result when the most fleeting touches of kindness were directed at her.
Zara’s voice was soft as she said, “I heard about what happened in the stables with Adan.”
Anelize blew out a breath. “It would seem everyone heard it. I don’t believe it would be wise if we continued. Perhaps someone else should take up the responsibility of teaching me. I’m quite certain Adan’s dislike is wholly justified. I am practically useless when it comes down to what anevitcan do.”
“None of that,” Zara said as she finished adjusting the scarf and settled it over her shoulder. It was a soft dark red fabric, reminding her of the color of blood. “Adan and Idris have a torrid past full of much loss. They each have their ways of coming to terms with what happened to them as young boys. Aeric as well. Idris is kind and loves to make light of situations, for it’s the only way he knows—I think it is because he’d rather do so than admit when he’s truly hurting. Whereas Adan’s hurt is used as a shield, one that is ruthless and impenetrable. He will never let anyone use it against him, nor should he.”
Curiosity got the best of her as she followed Zara to the door, asking before she could think better of it, “And what of Aeric?”
Zara paused before glancing over her shoulder. “I don’t believe Aeric’s pain has come to an end. That may be the most difficult reality he has yet to accept.”
Before Anelize could ask what Zara meant, she opened the door and led her down the hall. The sound of voices speaking in hushed tones below reached her as they turned to make their way down the stairs.
Idris and Adan both stood leaning against the wooden pillars by the door, their arms crossed as they spoke to each other. Henry had also decided to accompany them tonight, his worry palpable. Aeric stood beside them, wearing dark leathers beneath his black cloak and a sword sheathed at his side. They all wore weapons, she realized. If that wasn’t a bad omen for where they were about to venture to, she didn’t know what was.
When the men heard them descending the stairs, they all looked to her.
Idris blew out a whistle which made her falter a step, shooting him a confused glance. Adan pushed off the pillar with his usual scowl and looked away, as if the mere sight of her was fury inducing.
