by J. E. Taylor
“What are you doing here?” I hissed.
Zach stepped back and pointed at his chest.
“Yes, you. If my mother finds you here...” I glanced over the fields and woodlands. I didn't have the foggiest idea of what she would do. Although if there was any truth to what my instincts were raging, he wouldn't last the day.
“I made sure no one was in the area,” he said and held up another roll of rope. “It still isn't long enough, but it gets us closer to getting you out.”
I did another scan of the area, then wrapped part of my messy braid around the hook and dropped the rest.
Zach climbed up quickly and placed the rope under the bed with the other roll. “One more roll like that, and we should have enough.” He wiped his hands on his thighs and reached for me.
I was stuck in place with no way to sidestep him until my braid was freed from the hook. He kissed me, pressing me against the wall in a way that made me shiver.
“You need to go,” I whispered under his lips.
He pulled away, searching my eyes.
“Let her come.”
My eyes widened, and my heart picked up, throbbing in my chest. I shook my head. “No. Please. I have no idea what she is capable of.”
“Neither do I, and I really don't like you being at her mercy.” He reached out and hauled my hair inside, unhooking it from the clasp before turning to me again. “If the stories are true, you aren't safe.”
“My mother would never hurt me,” I said, almost as a reflex, but after the words flowed from my tongue, I wondered if that was the truth. If she killed to lock me up in this tower, would she be mad enough to kill her golden goose? The question haunted me.
I crossed to what remained of the pie and offered Zach one of the forks. He dug into the soft, sweet apples with me.
When we finished, he collected the pie plate and the forks and washed them for me. That simple gesture made me smile. In all the years my mother had been coming and eating meals with me, she never once lifted a finger to help, beyond bringing the food with her.
He wiped his hands and turned towards me. “Are you sure?”
“Am I sure about what?” I totally lost track of the conversation with my view of him doing the dishes.
“That she won't hurt you.”
I took a breath. My gaze landed on the eternal flame that would burn until the life bled out of her. I finally nodded. “I'm not sure that whole folk lore that you spun was the truth.”
He chewed on his lower lip. “Do you still want to escape this tower?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
The tension in his face released and he smiled. “Good, because I have no idea how I'd get you out of here if you refused to leave.”
I cocked my head and narrowed my eyes.
“I'm not built to stay locked up in a place like this forever,” he said while twirling his finger around. “It's nice and comfortable and all, but I would miss the adventure out there.” He pointed out the window. “You are going to love the world.”
Longing to be free scraped at my skin. I sighed. “If that story isn't true, my leaving is going to upset my mother.”
“If it is true, it's going to drive her into a state of fury,” he countered. “Either way, you need to assume she is the most dangerous animal in the woods.”
I crossed my arms. “She's not an animal.”
“Either she is a heartless enchantress or she's a mother scorned.”
His point hit home. “Anger or disappointment. Great.” I turned and flopped facedown on the bed. Regardless of what my gut was telling me, the choices of her reaction stank.
The bed dipped, and I turned towards Zach. He settled on the edge and started running his fingers through the front of my hair, stopping as he approached the braided strands before starting the slow stroke again. Each time his fingers touched my skin, that force field would awaken, and it would slip away as his fingers lost contact.
We both seemed mesmerized by the flow of it. When his gaze returned to mine, I sucked in my breath, suddenly not at all relaxed. Not with my entire being tingling with his proximity to me.
He licked his lips, and his fingertips ran down the side of my face to my ear. His light touch tickled as he traced the outside of my ear, and it positively burned as he ran it down the side of my neck.
“I think I need to go,” he said, his voice husky and deep.
I lifted onto my elbows, and his gaze dropped from my eyes to the front of my dress.
He stood. “I have to go,” he said and crossed towards the window. He started to climb onto the sill but stopped and turned back to me. He looked at the snaking river of my hair and let out a strained laugh. “I need you to be able to get out.”
I stood, gathering my locks and went to him.
His gaze softened as he cupped my cheek. “If I stay, I will do something neither of us are ready for.”
As much as I wanted to explore what he was insinuating, I couldn't help the worry that bit at my heels. I tossed my hair out the window.
He descended with ease and waved as he sauntered off into the woods.
I collected my hair and then took a seat at the table, cracking the book that I was reading when Zach had tricked me. It was hard to believe two days had gone by since he first came to my window. I shook thoughts of him out of my mind and focused on the words on the page of the manuscript.
Chapter 6
My mother called up. I glanced up from the book, folding the corner of the page to keep my place. I was almost finished devouring the new story and a little irritated that I had to stop reading to assist her climb to my fortress.
“Still reading?” my mother asked as she pointed to the book on the table.
I nodded, trying to figure out what exact question to ask to expose the cracks in her story. “I think it’s time you tell me what happened the night my father died.”
A crevice appeared between her eyes as she glanced between the half read book and me. “There was a fire,” she started and licked her lips. “And you know the rest.”
“How did the fire start? And how did you make it out with me?”
She placed her backpack on the table and wiped her hands on her shirt. “I don't know. It all happened so fast. Your father handed you to me and told me to run. I did, thinking he was right behind me.” She said all of this in a deadpan tone that told me nothing while staring at the floor. Finally, she raised her eyes to me. “He wasn't, and I had you in my arms. I couldn't go back into that inferno.”
“How did you find this place?”
Her eyebrows rose, and she shrugged.
“How did you even get up here?”
She cocked her head. “What's gotten into you?”
“You've never told me anything beyond that my father died in a fire and I'm curious.”
Her gaze landed on the book. “What exactly is that story about?”
“It's a romance novel, Mother,” I said, rolling my eyes. The lack of her answering scratched my skin like a dozen sharp knives. “And you are avoiding my questions.”
She crossed her arms. “I'm not avoiding them. I just don't remember. It just was. Why are you asking all these questions? Did something happen while I was gone?”
I glanced outside. “Why hasn't anyone ever come by besides you? I can see lanterns on the other hills at night, so I don't understand why no one has ever come calling.”
Her mouth popped open and her eyes widened. “Someone happened by, didn't they?”
I shook my head.
“Look at me, Danae.”
I forced my gaze to hers and kept her stare. I had to force my muscles from fidgeting.
“Did you see someone?”
I bit my lip.
“It's okay, I just want to know what you saw,” she said, taking my hands.
“I didn't see anything,” I said, but my voice squeaked. I cursed my honest nature, wishing I could spin a lie as good as she could.
Her eyebrow rose. “It
's not like you to lie to me.”
I closed my eyes and hung my head. “I saw someone in the woods. He seemed to be lost, and when he came upon the tower, he called up until I told him to go away.”
“Did he?”
“Did he what?”
“Did he go away?”
I nodded and met her gaze. “He went in the direction of the hills.” I had told the truth about our first encounter. I just hoped she wouldn't push for more information.
Her features smoothed out. “That's it?”
“Yes, and I got to thinking about why that man was the only one who stumbled upon this tower.”
She studied me. “That answers my questions about the lantern lights in the distance, but why do you keep asking about your father?”
I looked beyond her at the window and shrugged trying to think of something reasonable. All I could think of was the timbre of his voice and the way he kissed. “He sang a song...” I snapped my mouth closed and met her gaze, hoping she would miss my slip-up.
“Does this man have a name?”
I hesitated and then shook my head.
Her eyes narrowed.
I must have hesitated a little too long. “He said he was a prince,” I mumbled.
“A prince?” She leaned her head back and laughed. “Princes are known to break hearts, young lady. Or have you learned nothing from your love stories?” She waved at my expansive collection of books.
I glanced over my shoulder at my collection. None of them had prepared me for the intense connection that had hit when Zach touched me. I craved it as much as I craved food.
“What else did this so-called prince tell you?” She crossed her arms.
“He asked if there was a way into this tower. I told him there wasn't and sent him on his way.” I turned back to her.
“So why all the questions about your father?” she asked again.
“What happened before the fire?” I asked. “All you have ever told me about is the fire. You have never told me about anything else. What was life like in the palace? What was it like to give birth to me? Was the pregnancy hard, or was it easy?”
Her eyebrows arched. She opened her mouth to speak, but her gaze fell to the book again. “What exactly is in that book?” She marched over, opened to the page I had marked, and scanned the prior pages and a couple after.
The warning bells in my brain started clanging.
She turned back to me, and I cocked my head, waiting.
“Look, it was painful and messy, and I just don't like talking about it,” she said.
“What did you and Father like to do before you had me?”
She glanced out the window as if searching for the right words. “We rode a lot and hunted in the woods.” She studied my hair. “It looks like your braid could use tightening.”
“I will be sure to re-braid my hair later. Right now I want to hear more about Father.” I sat down on the edge of the bed, waiting.
She pressed her lips together and ran her hands through her hair. “I would prefer to let the past stay in the past,” she said. “It hurts to talk about him.”
This was the same song and dance I always got when the subject turned to him. “So how many other light bringers are out there?” I nodded my head towards the window.
Her eyes narrowed. “Why?”
“Because the song he sang was about the last light bringer.” My voice rose, louder than I had intended it.
“My dear, it was just a song,” my mother said.
I waited for her to answer.
“Too many, and they are all suffering,” she snarled.
The candles flickered as a light breeze swirled through my home.
I cocked my head and drew my brows together.
“Did the prince tell you otherwise?” she asked.
“No.”
She blinked and then sighed. “It sounds like you were taken by the prince,” she said. “And I'm sure he seemed like a nice man, but I wouldn't rely on him to come back if I were you. He will break your heart.”
“I don't expect him to come back,” I said, hoping she would buy it. When she nodded, I exhaled. The blood rushed to my head, and I crossed to the backpack on the table, curious for a distraction to curb the growing aggravation burning my skin. The more she talked, the more I believed in the lore and doubted all her good deeds.
The pack contained fish wrapped in paper to keep them fresh, and a dozen different fruits to go with the seafood. “Thank you,” I said and dumped the contents onto the table.
“I need one of those fish to bargain with at the market tomorrow.”
I put one back in the bag and handed it to her.
She slipped it on her back and nodded towards the window. “I should be going, but before I do, I need to trim your ends.” She picked up the tail end of my braid and held it within the backpack. She cut right below the last band holding the braid together. Heavy metal banged together in the backpack, and then she closed the bag and shouldered it as she waited for me to toss my hair over the windowsill.
I watched her go, waving when she turned. Then, I trudged over to the food and collected it all to prepare the fish to be cooked this evening. Until then, I had a book to finish and a growing hope for Zach to come calling again.
Chapter 7
I finished both books by the next evening between bouts of pacing and staring out the window. Zach hadn't come back. Neither had my mother. I sat at the table picking at the last piece of cooked fish until I finally dumped it out the window, disgusted at my lack of appetite.
I tossed the dish in the sink and crawled into bed. Darkness washed over me in waves of doubt.
Doubt in my mother.
Doubt in Zach.
Doubt in general raked over my skin, leaving me exposed.
I shivered and wrapped the covers around me tighter.
Questions floated through my mind as if they had a life of their own, sucking my strength from my bones. Days went by before my mother returned with a bag full of food and more books.
But Zach hadn't come back. Darkness threatened to overtake me, keeping my tongue silent and my mood sullen. Even the books did not carry me away from this bitter feeling coating everything around me.
Weeks went by without Zach. I began to suspect all of his stories and promises were indeed a ruse as my mother had tried to tell me, and that the only one who truly cared for me was my mother.
“May I braid your hair?” my mother asked, pulling me out of my thoughts.
I nodded.
She undid the frayed braid and brushed my hair until it shined in the darkening room. With delicate hands as light as feathers, she braided my hair into one continuous braid. Layers fell softly over my head and tightened at the nape of my neck. I didn’t think I had ever seen her braid my hair this way before.
I smiled at the results as she tied the end of my braid and cut the ends into a blunt line. The hair fell into her bag with the familiar tink of metal on metal.
“There, that looks much better,” she said. She wrapped her arms around me and kissed my cheek. “I know you have been down, but hopefully the new books I brought this time will brighten your disposition.” She gathered her things. “I will be heading back to the market, so I won’t be here tomorrow. I will try to make it back the day after, but just in case, you have enough food to last the rest of the week.”
I pressed my lips together against the disappointment. Her visits had kept the darkness from wrapping itself around my heart. But I understood. She had brought me enough food to last a few days.
I let her down my newly formed braid and hauled it back inside after she trudged off into the woods. I watched until long after she disappeared, then went to turn.
“Danae,” a raspy voice whispered.
My heart leapt into my throat. I glanced down. My breath locked in my chest at the sight of the bruised man glancing up at me. His skin was sullen and his clothing ripped and ragged, but I would recognize those green eyes a
nywhere.
I dropped my hair down, and he started at the long braid then stooped and put a ring of rope over his head, stumbling under the weight of it. His hand landed on the tower, and he dipped his head to his chest. He stood still for far too long.
“Zach?”
He looked up at me. Tears shone on his cheeks. “I don’t know if I have the strength.”
I took a deep breath. “Tie the end of my hair around your waist.”
His eyebrows rose. “You can’t pull me up.”
I wrapped my hair around the hook. “We will never know until we try.”
He stared up at me and then slowly tied the end of my hair around him.
“Let me try to climb,” he said.
When my hands gripped my braid at the top, and his hands held my hair at the bottom, the current between us ignited. That silver flash in his eyes glowed. Energy surged. He ascended my hair until he reached out and took my hand in his. I helped him in the window and pulled my hair back inside.
Zach crashed to the floor.
I turned to him, crouching next to his battered body. His breathing thinned to a raspy whine.
“I didn’t think I’d ever see you again,” he said, and his eyes fluttered closed and his exhale wheezed. His chest stopped moving.
My heart thundered. I placed my hands on his chest. Nothing happened. No spark of energy between us. Nothing. Hot panic filled my blood. I leaned down and placed my lips to his. He didn’t kiss back. He didn’t even respond to my touch. The bones under my hands shifted, and I pulled my hands away in horror.
“Zach!” I yelled, and a tear escaped, dropping down onto his forehead.
Light bloomed from the tearstain, cascading over his bruises, wiping them away, leaving only unblemished skin. More tears fell as my heart cracked.
When the light traveled to his chest, his eyes flew open. He took a great breath. His body arched with sparks and his hands flew to my cheeks, pulling me to his lips. He kissed me like a drowning man’s first gasp for air. The flow of power encompassed me as I chased death from his bones.
He groaned in my mouth as scraping sounds filled his form and all the shattered bones mended. The sensation passed from him to me as my light bringer magic saturated both of us, wiping out any evidence of the darkness within us.
