Bow and Sparrow

CH 25

Today was the day. The day I go home.

When I woke, the memory of Rylan's lips on my neck, my shoulder, my back lingered on my skin. I stretched my arms over my head, blinking the sleep from my eyes and-

The bed was cold.

"Rylan?"

Only silence answered me. I frowned, sitting upright and pulling the covers up over my chest. Darkness crept in the corners of the room, no sign of anyone other than me. I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and pulled my tunic over my head. I shuffled to the door and peeked my head around the doorway of the bedroom.

"Ry- Oh."

Rylan didn't look up from the paper clutched in his white-knuckled hands. His clothes were wrinkled like he had been sitting in the chair for hours. A single candle on the table flickered weakly, casting dark shadows over his face.

"What's happened?"

I wasn't prepared for the look of anger in his bloodshot eyes when he finally looked up. Anger directed at me. He lacked his usual precision and grace when tossed the paper towards me and it fluttered facedown on the table.

"What is it?" I asked, staring at the paper. I gulped past the rising dread.

"Read it."

I stepped forward hesitantly, eyeing the letter as if it were a viper ready to strike. I took it in my shaking hands. The neat handwriting burned itself into my unwavering vision as I started to read.

To Captain Rylan Fields.

I have happened upon some disturbing news as of late. Only a few days past, we discovered a group of young Verdanan girls wandering alone in the Atlua Forest near our borders. They told they were lost after having escaped a terrible fate to which they are reluctant to speak. They were brought back to base-

"They're safe?" I breathed, collapsing into the chair next to Rylan. The strength in my legs left me as relief flooded my senses. But the look on Rylan's face told me to keep reading.

They were brought back to base for questioning where they spoke a troubling truth.

It seems they are missing one of their own. Her name is Noreena Phillips, daughter of General Edward Phillips of Verdana. I presume you've heard of him.

I am led to believe this girl to be dangerous to our country if allowed to roam freely. Keep your eyes out for anything suspicious. I have sent word to nearby camps to remain vigilant.

Steadfast and True,

Lieutenant Ansley Euclid

The color leached from my face. I jumped from my chair, throwing the letter down. My eyes burned a hole into my name on the paper and I wished it would catch fire. It was signed with a flourish, such a casually cruel way to seal my fate.

"You lied to me." Rylan watched me with his chin resting on his steepled fingers. It wasn't a question. I couldn't deny it. How could I when the truth was so blatantly obvious?

"What would you expect me to do?" I huffed, throwing my hands up. "It was dangerous enough out there. But here, I would have been killed or taken prisoner. Although, I expect that's what's going to happen now, isn't it?"

"I don't know." Rylan ran his hands through his hair in frustration as he kicked his chair back. He started pacing the length of the room. He stopped, staring at me curiously. "Are you? Dangerous?"

"To you? No, nor your country." My eyebrows shot upwards, but he still looked unconvinced. "If I were, it's pretty lucky that I even ended up here, don't you think?"

"Then why did you hide the letter?"

"What are you talking about?" I had been so distracted by the cursed letter that I didn't even notice the envelope it came in until now. The familiar red wax seal had been broken and I remembered the messenger boy and the stack of papers he had knocked over. I pinched the bridge of my nose. I had stashed the envelope in my haste, but I didn't know the contents. It had still been sealed. If I had known, I would have done something else with it other than hide it in a stack of papers that Rylan would inevitably find. I told Rylan as much.

That finally knocked some sense into him as the lines in his face smoothed satisfyingly.

"So what happens now?" I asked. I still couldn't read the expression on Rylan's face and that worried me. Would he put his duty to his country over me? Did I expect him to?

"Nori. Noreena." Rylan tried my true name, I never planned to tell him the truth. It was better if he didn't know. But I couldn't deny how perfect it sounded when he said it. His expression hardened.

"I could still go home." Even as the words left my mouth, a knot formed in my chest. The thought of leaving Rylan with this mess-

"We can't do that." Rylan shook his head. "They'll be searching for you, if they haven't started already."

"You could send a letter, telling everyone I'm not a threat." But even I knew that they wouldn't believe it.

"No. That won't work." Rylan bent over, tightening the laces on his boots and combing through his mused hair with his fingers. "I'll think up a plan then come back for you."

"Hold on," I rushed after Rylan who was already waiting at the door. "So you're just going to leave me here while you think of some brilliant master plan?"

Rylan nodded, which only drove my voice up nearly an octave. "Don't you think it would be better if we thought of something together?"

"Anders will look after you." Rylan stated, ignoring me.

"Anders?"

"He's waiting outside." At the look of confusion on my face, Rylan reluctantly explained. "It was just a precaution."

Confusion turned to understanding which quickly morphed into anger as I marched after Rylan. I was determined to follow him -how dare he try to control my fate, just like everyone else- when from the side, Anders stepped into my path. I glared at him and though his face went a little pale, he did not move. I scowled, furious, at Rylan's retreating back.

_____

I paced by the door and waited. Waited, sat at the long table, fingers drumming against the wood and toes tapping on the floor. Waited, perched on the side of the bed, hands folded in my lap and legs crossed. Waited, too long for Rylan to return.

Rushing to the bedroom, I grabbed one of Rylan's knapsacks and started filling it with extra clothes. I'm sure he won't miss them. I'll have to travel light and fast. The only thing I didn't have was food. Maybe I could sneak into the dining hall before I left.

I slung the pack over my shoulder, knocking the pillows off of the bed in the process. A glint of metal flashed and a folded piece of paper fell from the bed.

I knelt, grasping the small knife that I had kept hidden for so long. I couldn't remember exactly when I had stopped tucking it into my boot everyday, but I did that now. The familiar pressure of the handle pressed against my calf gave me courage.

I unfolded the paper and ran my hands over the markings of the map, lingering over the unmarked pocket of land where Dast would be. I hugged the map against my chest, directly over my beating heart before putting it in the front pouch of the knapsack. I'm coming.

Muffled voices came from outside. I rushed into the other room at the same moment the fabric door snapped open. But it wasn't Rylan that stepped through.

"Who are you?"