Curse Breaker (2)

25

It only takes an hour for my legs to go numb, another for the pain from the unfamiliar position upon horseback to dissipate completely. After that I stop counting. Lei does not relent, pushing the heaving horse faster as we gallop through the trees.

My arms weaken but I don't dare let go, my stomach lurching with each stride. The charcoal sky cloaks us in darkness as Lei comes to a stop, not even the moon piercing through the thick clouds. Killian slows to a trot till he reaches us. Horseback, his hair windswept and cheeks tinged pink from the cold, the sight of it makes my heart skip a beat.

"She's tiring," Lei says, patting the horse's neck. "We should take a break."

Killian nods just as Casimir and Cadence arrive. He elegantly leaps down from the horse, leading it forward with a gentle hand. The horse follows his every direction.

I gaze around the clearing. Tall cliffs climb high into the clouds above, an opening below giving way to the cave we stopped in on our way here when it was just me, Killian and Lei. I clamber down from the horse, much less elegantly than Killian and Lei, and step towards Casimir, who is helping Cadence down.

"You guys okay?"

Cadence says nothing, swatting Casimir's hands away from her the second her feet are on the ground again. Casimir nods, unbothered by her attitude. The Cadence I used to know would've wanted nothing more than to ride horseback with Casimir.

"We should go inside."

"I'm not going anywhere," she huffs.

"Cadence, come on, it isn't safe out in the open."

She turns away, her eyebrows furrowing. If I didn't know exactly how she was feeling, I might get frustrated. I sigh, moving into the cave myself. Lei has already started a fire, the warm glow stretching towards me even before I reach the end where the two of them sit.

Cadence's voice carries down the passage towards us, echoing off the cave walls. "Let go of me, Casimir!"

They appear around the corner, Casimir holding her arm and dragging her forward. She spots us, fear crawling back into her gaze at the sight of Lei. She digs her heels into the ground more, but its no use, Casimir is a lot stronger. She looks to me instead, eyes welling with tears.

"Make them take me home," she begs, "they've kidnapped me."

"It was for your own safety, Cadence," Cas says.

"I want to go home!"

"You think those guards would've let you live if we'd left you there?" Lei says, patience waning. "They would've killed you, or worse, used you as leverage to get Freya. And trust me, that'd be worse than death."

Cadence narrows her eyes, filled to the brim with tears. Eventually, her shoulders slump in resignation and she steps away from Casimir, crawling into the corner of the cave and tugging her knees to her chin.

My heart surges, and I briefly consider joining her. But as soon as I take a step towards her, I see Raven's dented head, Cadence's bloodied dress, and I'm not so sure I can talk to Cadence without blurting something out.

I move over to the fire instead, settling next to Casimir. "What happened?" I ask. "In Veymaw?"

Casimir exchanges a glance with Lei. "We took the horses and then I tried to take Cadence back home. Ereon had already sent his guards to look for you two since the carriage went missing." He shakes his head. "I knew we couldn't leave her there; they'd kill her. I should've known she'd kick up a fuss when we tried to leave with her."

I don't blame her. Unlike us, she doesn't understand the threat Ereon's men pose toward her, even after the attack. She's simply another one brainwashed by the messages we're fed--that Ereon protects us from savage outsiders. That we owe him. I used to believe the same. I would've done the same in her position.