by Vicky Savage
I peer around the tree. Blackthorn is kneeling at the lake’s edge. He has stripped off his tunic and is splashing water on his face and shoulders. With each movement, his smooth skin ripples across the muscles of his back. When he’s finished washing, he rakes his hands through his hair, picks up his things, and turns toward me.
My heart nearly catapults out of my throat. God he’s gorgeous! More striking even than my overactive imagination had remembered. Water beads down the skin of his bare chest and arms. My eyes follow the trail of droplets as they travel down his ripped abdomen to the top of his riding pants. My knees turn to spaghetti.
A pink scar from the injury to his arm is visible, and I notice a few other long-healed disfigurements along his torso, but they only make his body more interesting. His face is almost completely healed now, with only faint traces of bruising. He smiles and strides to my tree. I have to remind myself to breathe.
“Are you ready to be civil now?” he asks.
I nod.
“Will you walk with me while we talk?”
I lower my eyes, “I think you’d better put some clothes on too, Chief Blackthorn. If you want my full attention, that is.”
He raises an eyebrow, laughing his wonderful laugh. “Princess, the way you speak. I’ve never met anyone quite like you. You are very direct.” He slips his shirt on over his head.
“I guess I am.” I laugh too. “Is that a bad thing?”
“No, not bad. It just throws me off balance sometimes.” He leaves his armor and his sword near the carriage. We tell Ralston we’re going for a walk. Always the mother hen, he warns us to be back before dark, and cautions us to keep an eye out for patrols.
Blackthorn and I walk along a footpath that follows the perimeter of the lake. He seems reluctant to speak, so I ask him a question to get the ball rolling.
“Did you have any problems getting back to Unicoi after you left the palace?”
“No. No problems on our journey. Ralston’s friend Lorelei attended to everything. She brought our horses, as well as food and fresh clothing. Her people had a secure tunnel which we used to get out of Domerica. She took a great risk in helping us.”
He stops for a moment and gazes across the lake at the small, rocky waterfall shimmering in the afternoon light. “It’s so beautiful here. I do love this land. The silver light illuminates everything from within.” He turns to me. “Even you are glowing.”
My face warms at his comment because I know that if I’m glowing, it has more to do with his sudden appearance than any effect of the lighting.
“It is uniquely impressive,” I agree, realizing it must be very different for him living inside a mountain. “Do you have any natural light in Unicoi?”
“None at all. But the lighting technicians have become very good at recreating a feeling of daylight inside. The technology improves every year.” He turns back to the path, and we continue our walk. “In any event, I owe you, Ralston, and Lady Lorelei a great debt of gratitude for rescuing me from my own stupidity. My father was not quite so understanding when I reached home.”
“Yeah, parents can be that way. What did he do?”
“The details aren’t important. It is enough to say that I have never felt so ashamed or humbled in all my life. He is enormously disappointed in me, and justifiably so. I know he still loves me no matter how asinine I have acted, but I must walk a long road to make things right again.” A flicker of pain passes across his face, quickly replaced by a sad smile.
“Your eye is healing nicely,” I say, reaching up and touching my fingertip to the small scar on his cheek. He flinches slightly.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Does it hurt?”
“No.” He runs his own fingertips along the small cut. “It’s just that when you touch me, I feel a… jolt.”
“Oh that.” I look down at my feet, suddenly shy.
“Do you feel it too?”
“I do,” I admit quietly. We walk in silence again, my hand unconsciously fingering the woven silver chain at my neck.
“I’m glad you are wearing the necklace I left for you,” he says
“Yes, thank you. It’s lovely. You know you didn’t have to do that.”
He stops and his eyes find mine. “I want you to have it. It has very special meaning for me. It is good to know that it is with you now, Princess.”
“I thought you weren’t going to call me Princess anymore.”
“I beg your pardon, lady.” He bows formally. “And I would appreciate it if you would not call me Chief. I’m not really a chief yet. People use it to acknowledge my assumed future status.”
“But you will be chief one day, right?”
He grins. “Unless your mother succeeds in having me hanged or reeducated.”
“So, is being chief just like being king?”
“No. It’s not like a king. In Unicoi, the chief has certain powers, but a council elected by the people makes most of the laws and policies. The chief steps in if they cannot agree.”
“Oh, kind of like a democracy?’
He arches an eyebrow. “Has Ralston been teaching you government?”
“Not today!” I tell him about the art lessons, but skip the part about fencing. “So, if not Chief, what do people call you?” I ask.
“My friends call me Ryder and my enemies—well they have many names for me, none of which shall be repeated here. I would be honored if you would call me Ryder.”
“Done. Now that we have that out of the way, why are you here, Ryder?”
“Let’s walk,” he says, and we continue down the path. “I have been to see your father.”
“My father?” I say, surprised.
“Yes, I needed to apologize to him for my treatment of you. I have known him since I was a boy. He has always dealt fairly with my father and my people. I owed him better.”
“That must have been an interesting conversation. What did he say?”
“He said he was troubled by my actions, but understood my motivations. I asked his permission to come to you, to speak with you about something.”
“Oh yeah? About what?”
He’s silent for a time, collecting his thoughts. When he finally speaks his voice is strained. “I have come to ask something of you, something I have no right to ask.”
“What is it?” My brain starts shuffling the possibilities.
“I would like you to visit my country. To meet the Unicoi people, and my father, and to see first-hand why I am dedicated to saving our people.”
That’s not what I expected. “But why? Why me? What good will it do?”
“Jaden I don’t know you well, or at all really. I know of your reputation for helping others, and I sense something in you—an openness, a kindness—that leads me to hope you will not let a whole nation of innocent people die if you can do something about it.”
I stop in the middle of the path. “But what can I possibly do? I don’t have any power over these things.”
“Come, sit for a minute.” He leads me to a crude wooden bench at the edge of the path. We sit facing each other, our knees nearly touching. It’s awkward for me to be this close to him. I have a physical reaction to this guy that I can’t control. My pulse races and my temperature shoots up a few degrees. It’s uncomfortable, like some kind of itch I can’t quite scratch. I try to listen to what he’s saying but it’s hard to focus on his words.
“You can come to Unicoi and draw your own conclusions,” he says. “Should you decide to help us, you can speak to the queen. She will listen to you. Unicoi has much to offer your country. We’ve tried to tell your mother about our progressive agricultural methods and our advances in medicine and technology, but she does not believe us. She refuses to come and see for herself.”
“She’s just afraid that the disease spreading through Unicoi is contagious,” I tell him. “She’s worried about protecting her own people.”
“That is what she says publicly, but I believe her real motivations may be something a
ltogether different.”
“What do you mean?”
“I believe she fears our culture will infect her people. She does not approve of our views on government and religion.”
“Don’t the Unicoi belong to the Church of the Chosen?”
“The Unicoi believe in many paths to God. A variety of faiths are practiced in Unicoi. Mainly the ones practiced by our ancestors before the Great Disaster. The COC teaches that those who fled to the domes are the ‘chosen ones.’ Some argue that excludes the Unicoi and others living outside the domes.”
This is news to me.
“What the queen fails to recognize is that we would be powerful allies for Domerica. We could coexist peacefully, while sharing our many great advances with the Domerican people.” Conviction burns in his eyes as he speaks.
“Ryder, honestly, I’ve already tried to talk to my mother about this. She’s still a little prickly about you trying to kidnap me. She won’t even discuss it with me.”
“I understand. But consider that it might make a difference if you have been to Unicoi, met with the people, and witnessed the technological advances, as well as the realities of the disease. You could explain it to her from first-hand observation.”
He leans in toward me, and I have to swallow my heart. It’s thrilling to hear him speak with such passion, but his sensuous mouth makes me think of things… well, completely unrelated to the subject matter, so I stare at my hands as he continues.
“You can persuade her. I know you can.”
I glance at him briefly, lowering my eyes again. “Listen Ryder, your plan will never work. The chance that my mother will allow me to visit Unicoi is less than zero, and I’d never be able to sneak out of the country without her consent. You don’t understand—I’m guarded 24/7. Ralston and I were able to slip away today, but that’s not likely to happen again.”
“I have thought about that,” he says, “and I think I have a solution. You can arrange a visit to your father at the Enclave. Wall’s Edge is at the dome’s western-most border. Unicoi is only three hours from there through the tunnels. We have many tunnels still undiscovered by your mother’s soldiers. I will meet you at the Enclave and escort you to Unicoi myself. You can spend a day, maybe two, and I will deliver you safely back to your father.”
I look up in surprise. “You spoke with my father about this and he agreed?”
“He gave me permission to ask you. He said it is entirely your decision. He trusts your judgment completely.” Ryder lifts my hand. The buzz of electrical current flows through my arm. I draw in a breath and turn away from him again.
“Please look at me,” he says. I do. Big mistake. His eyes are so crystal blue that I want to dive inside them and lose myself in him.
“Won’t you at least consider it?”
“Do you even know how stunning you are?” I blurt out.
His face falls, and he drops my hand. “Are you mocking me?” he says, an edge of irritation in his voice.
“No! No, I’m sorry. That was totally inappropriate.” I stand, throwing my hands into the air. “Arrgh! It’s just that you’ve got me so confused. I don’t want to lie to my mother. It’s important to me not to hurt her. Besides, I’m not sure that going to Unicoi is the right thing to do anyway.”
According to Ralston, my accidental presence in this world has already thrown the whole future of the planet into question. Who knows what my going to Unicoi might do?
“The way the queen chooses to deal with Unicoi is her call, not mine,” I say. “I shouldn’t be interfering at all. It’s really none of my concern.”
He responds quietly, “People are suffering and dying. How can that not be your concern? My people believe that all of creation is connected—the pain of one is the pain of all; the honor of one is the honor of all. Whatever we do affects everything in the universe.”
“See what I mean?” I stretch my arms out wide. “See what you do? This is the whole problem. I’m trying to be practical and you go all Yoda on me. You sit there looking the way you look—how am I supposed to refuse you?”
He stands to face me. “I respect that you do not wish to deceive your mother. That is what makes it so difficult to ask it of you. But I want to make things right… with you, with my father, and with my people. I am convinced that if you see with your own eyes what I am fighting for, you will understand what I was attempting to accomplish by holding you against your will. If my father sees that you have forgiven me, that you trust me enough to make this enormous concession, perhaps he will not look at me with such hurt in his eyes.”
I shake my head. “Look, Ryder, I want to help you. I really do. But I’m not convinced it’ll work.”
“Perhaps it will not, but won’t you try? At the very least, I am certain that I can convince you that the Unicoi deserve life as much as any other humans do. One day you will be Queen of Domerica. If any of us are left at that time, I know you will help us.” He smiles sadly. “Will you at least sleep on it and give me your answer tomorrow? I’m staying in the village tonight. I will meet you here again tomorrow, if you are able to come. If not, send Ralston with your answer.”
My heart leaps at the prospect of seeing him again tomorrow, but hanging around Domerica doesn’t sound like a good idea for Blackthorn. “Whoa, Ryder, are you sure it’s safe for you to stay in the village? I mean, it’s well known that you’re wanted by the Crown, and you don’t exactly blend in with the rest of the villagers.”
“True, but Lady Lorelei has agreed to put me up. I will be safe with her.”
“Lorelei? You’re staying with Lady Lorelei?” Beautiful Lorelei? My stomach clenches at the thought of him spending the night with her.
“Yes. She’s your cousin isn’t she?”
“Distant cousin. We’re not close.”
“It sounds as though you do not care for her.”
“Of course I do. It’s just that she’s so… well, she’s just so… pretty.”
He laughs, and I feel a little stupid.
“I hardly think that’s grounds for disliking someone. If it were, you wouldn’t have a single friend.”
“Ha, ha. I’m serious, Blackthorn. Just be careful, wherever you stay, because I don’t want to have to come to your rescue again.”
“Very well, my lady,” he says, bowing, “I shall endeavor to stay out of harm’s way for your sake.”
“And I will endeavor to meet you in person tomorrow to give you my answer. Just don’t be upset with me if I decide I can’t go to Unicoi.”
“I could not be upset with you—not after everything you have already risked for me.”
We walk along the path without speaking for a time, but I know I need to clear the air about something.
“Hey Ryder.”
“Yes?”
“You know back there… what I said about you being so gorgeous and all, well I didn’t mean to insult you, especially when you were spilling your guts to me.”
He stops and looks at me, his expression indecipherable. I’m pretty sure I’m about to seriously embarrass myself again, but I plow ahead anyway.
“It’s just that meeting you was so… unexpected. You kidnapped me, but I couldn’t hate you for it. After Ralston and I helped you escape, I was sure I’d never see you again. Even so, I’ve spent an incredible amount of time over the past two weeks wondering what it would be like to kiss you.”
Lowering his eyes he says, “Jaden, I must tell you something.”
Uh-oh. That doesn’t sound like good news. I hold up my hands. “No. No, Ryder, you really don’t have to explain anything to me. I mean I realize you might have a girlfriend, or you may not find me in the least bit attractive, so it’s all right. Really. You don’t have to say anything.” God, what an idiot I am! I can’t stop blithering on.
He touches a finger to my lips. “Shh,” he says softly. “This is something that concerns you.”
“Me?”
“Yes. I told you we have met before. I know you do
not remember, but I will never forget. It was the first time I ever saw green eyes.”
“What? Really?”
“Yes. You must know that no one in Unicoi possesses green eyes?”
“No green eyes? How can that be?”
“Well, I’m certain a few original settlers must have had green eyes, but over time they have ceased to exist in our society. Whether it is the lack of natural light, or simple genetics, I do not know.”
