The Forsaken King

“I know you’re not so closed-minded as to think I’m wrong.”

I halted and turned back around. “No, you’re exactly right. That’s what we should do. But I’ve spent the last twenty years fighting those monsters, while that motherfucker fucked his whores in my father’s study. I’m taking back Delacroix, and everyone else can be damned to eternal hell.”

Her entire body was still, with the exception of her eyes. They shifted back and forth between mine, bright with disappointment. “And what about me?” There was a bitterness to her voice, like ale that had sat out too long. “Am I down here too? Pissing on yetis and fending for my life?”

I hadn’t thought that far ahead.

“And what about other people like me? Sacrificial lambs? This doom just continues indefinitely? You take Delacroix from my father and the Kingdoms from King Rutherford, and then a decade later, someone does the same to you? The cycle just never ends?”

“I lost my kingdom once. I won’t let that happen again.”

Now she gave a slight shake of her head, looking at me in a way she never had before. She took her horse by the reins and walked around me. “You’re no better than he is.”

We slept together in the bedroll, but it wasn’t with the same affection as our other nights. She used me to stay warm, but she didn’t actually want me. I could feel it in the way she touched me, the way she kept her hands to herself rather than on my body.

After a long ride, the air became colder, saltier. A fog made visibility poor, and I took my directions based on instinct. The grass beneath the hooves of the horses turned to harder soil, and soon we were on rock.

“Where are we?” she called from behind me.

“The coast.” I tugged the reins, and we came to a walk as I approached the outpost. Now that it was close enough, I could make out the details, the earthy structure that blended well into the landscape. My fingers jammed into my mouth, I gave a loud whistle.

“Who are you whistling to?”

I dropped down from my horse and took her by the reins, and Ivory did the same behind me. We approached the dwelling, the details becoming clearer as we moved through the fog.

The gates opened.

“I didn’t even see it…” Ivory came to my side, her cheeks freckled with drops of moisture.

We guided our horses inside, and the doors closed behind us.

It was instantly warm, the cold air restricted to the exterior. Torches lit the walls, showing the stables.

Grayson, the commander of the outpost, came up the stairs and greeted me, dressed in a beige tunic and breeches. “You made it in one piece, Huntley.” He embraced me as he grasped my hand and gave it a squeeze. “Any trouble out there?”

“No.”

Grayson’s eyes shifted to Ivory next, and his stare lingered longer than it should. She hadn’t showered in days and she didn’t look her best, but nothing could hide the fairness of her cheeks, the intelligent twinkle in her eyes. “She’s not a Rune.”

“Long story. We need passage across the fold.”

His eyes shifted back to me. “You’re going back?”

“I must.”

“The winds are strong today. You’ll have to wait until tomorrow.”

“We need to rest anyway.”

“Then I’ll show you to your quarters.” He turned to the stairs.

“We require just one room.”

He turned back around, glanced at Ivory behind me, and then looked at me again with a ridiculous smile. He gave a wink, even though Ivory could see, and then walked off to prepare for our stay.

Ivory came to my side and gave a loud sigh. “Please tell me they have actual soft beds here.”

“No.”

“Ugh.”

“But it’s better than sleeping outside.”

“You got me there.”

We were escorted to our room a moment later, the same size as my cabin at the outpost. It was just four walls, a bed, and a bathtub. I knew she was more anxious than I was, so I let her fill the tub with hot water then slip under the surface.

From a chair in the corner, I watched, eating from the plate of hot food Grayson had delivered.

She didn’t touch hers. That was how uncomfortable she was.

She scrubbed her hair of oil then washed the dirt from her skin and underneath her fingernails. She focused only on herself, eventually resting the back of her neck against the tub to relax.

I enjoyed my food as I watched, appreciating the silence, appreciating the way we didn’t need to fill every quiet moment with words. It was different between us, though. There was an underlying tension that seemed permanent now.

When she was finally finished, she drained the tub and stepped out in her bare skin, drops of water hitting the stone floor. Her lithe body was fair like her cheeks, with perky tits, hair between her legs, and a flat stomach I’d kissed just like everywhere else.