A Court of Heart and Fealty | Rhysand

Chapter 3: The Bounty

Chapter 3: The Bounty

Galadriel was becoming antsy. It has been two weeks since Azriel had spoken to her and she had yet to hear any word from him regarding her situation. The longer she was left alone, the longer she had to dwell on the screw up of her actions. Azriel had left frustrated at her, she had ruined her ideal positioning within the Autumn Court and now she would have to build a new identity up from scratch or be forever considered an enemy of that court.

A knock came at her chamber door. Galadriel looked at the mirror in front of her where she had been sitting at the vanity and straightened her shoulders. "Come in." The door creaked open. Her grey eyes turned to it, shoulders sinking again at the sight of her friend. "Helion."

Helion's lips were even, and his composure was neat and refrained. A far sign from something good, she knew. "Sahra." He closed the door behind him. Galadriel turned in her seat, arm braced on the back spine of it.

"I do not like your tone," she muttered.

"Beron has made it public information of your betrayal. He's condemned you as a spy." She swallowed. "I am working to diffuse those rumours here in the Day Court but I'm lacking evidence to prove it."

"At least he can admit that he could not capture a simple handmaiden," Galadriel sighed, rolling her eyes. "Though I suppose upping my status to spy does work in his favour." Helion eased with her nonchalance but still, a weight sat on his shoulders that did not go amiss by her. "What else?"

"Would you like to know how much you're worth?"

Her mouth dropped open. "I'm worth? Does the bastard have a bounty on my head!?"

"Fifty-five thousand gold marks." He clicked his tongue, folding muscled arms over his chest. "Quite a fortune considering that you are not that notorious."

"So what is the plan?" Haughtily, Galadriel crossed her knees and folded her own arms over her stomach. "Hand me in, get the gold marks then help me escape? Because I could use that much money. It's more than I make in a decade."

"As enthralling as that plan seems, it might not be me that is handing you over." Her aura simmered at his lack of matching tone. Usually, it didn't take much. "The bounty extends to all courts. There is talk amongst my own of your presence here. I'm not certain how safe you will remain even with my protection."

"I can handle myself."

"Do you want to run that risk?" Helion loosened his arms and took another step forward as though the movement itself would put the pressure of his words further upon her. "I cannot guarantee you safety anymore. Not here."

Galadriel's dry lips parted. "I can't leave," she said.

It was against Azriel's orders. She quite literally, physically could not leave the Day Court. He didn't use the power of the bargain often, but when he did it was for good measure. As a youngling, barely twelve when he saved her, she had been not so much defiant, but a more bustling spirit. He would tell her one thing but she would go another way thinking that she knew better. The bargain happened after a particularly bad incident where her lesson was learnt, and she agreed to his terms. For her own protection, Azriel told her. The fact that he had used it now, after eighty years of trust without it, told her exactly how he felt about the entire situation. But Galadriel also didn't have anywhere else to go. The Dawn Court was closest, and Cauldron strike her down if she had to run to the Night Court. Stories of Hewn City sent a crawling sensation through her spine.

"I'm working on something," Helion assured her, though it did little to his efforts. "I will find you a place to hide until someone convinces him to end the search for his wife's poor handmaiden. I'm sure Amoise will speak highly in your favour."