Pariah (The New Covenant Series) (22 page)

My head bobbed on my shoulders as I fought to keep it up. The
women looked at me with guarded eyes. The men placed me on a cot in the corner of the room and told the women that I was to be prepared immediately and that they would await me outside the door.
Prepared? Prepared for what?

The ladies cautiously approach
ed. I croaked out a request for water but have no idea if they gave me any. I just recall waking up, clean, in a dark-blue gown, fitted around the bust and its fabric then falling lithely over my hips and on to the floor. My body and hair had been washed. A growl erupted from my stomach.

“Here is some bread, dear,” said an
older woman as she hesitantly smiled down at me. She helped me sit up and handed me a small cup of water as well. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, she slowly took me in. “You look lovely. Master Altair will be pleased.”
Master Altair? Had I landed in some alternate weird universe? I mean, I know that Faric explained how he had slaughtered the council and took power, but Master Altair? Please.

The door burst open. Matthi
as entered. His hair was pulled back into a small braid. He walked over to me as I bit into the bread and took a sip of water. His eyes were wide, and he almost seemed afraid of me. I lunged forward at him, and he jerked backward in response. I couldn’t help but giggle.

He cocked his head to the
side and then chuckled with his deep voice. “Think you’re funny, chosen one?”

I just smiled sweetly through m
y closed lips, still chewing my bread. After swallowing, I looked at him and said, “Why so afraid of me, Matthias? I don’t bite.”

“Are you sure of that?” He laughed, still nervous.

“Quite,” I assured him.

His smile dropped. “Master Alt
air has requested your presence in the courtroom.”

My heart rammed my chest. “Courtroom?” I squeaked.

“Yes. It appears that Faric has requested the release of several prisoners in exchange for your return. The request shall be heard immediately, and Altair has requested that you attend the hearing.”

I nodded and stood u
p, brushing breadcrumbs from my midnight-blue gown. “Do I need to bind you, or will you behave, Solara?” he asked, raising his brows. He expected an honest answer.

I decided to give him one.
“I won’t resist. Take me to the courtroom please.” He stood, looking at my eyes for a moment and then placed his hand on the small of my back, ushering me toward a flight of stairs. We traveled up two floors and came into a hallway lined with crimson carpet. Guards stood outside a tall set of wooden doors. As they opened the doors for us, I could hear voices, but as Matthias ushered me in, all noise ceased. The old saying ‘you could hear a pin drop’ repeated itself in my head over and over, as we strolled through the parting crowd. I could see Faric to the left ahead of me. His eyes met mine, and he popped the knuckles of both of his hands.

“Solara, how nice of you to join us,” said Alta
ir as we approached him. I cringed at the sound of his voice. He sat behind a large wooden desk, feet crossed and propped upon it, fingers intertwined behind his head.
Cocky jerk.
He motioned for Matthias to bring me forward. Matthias seated me next to Altair, who had removed his feet from the desk and sat up straight, looking at me as though I were his next meal. The hunger in his eyes was intense, and my stomach revolted, sending vomit to the back of my throat. I hated it when he looked at me like that. Truthfully, I hated it when he looked at me at all. I fixed my gaze into the crowd, refusing to look over at him. He snickered. I flinched as he barked, “Bring in the prisoners.”

A set of doors swung open on the left side of the room, and
guards walked Annette, Rachel, Wesley, and then Lillian into the room and in front of Altair’s desk. In front of me. They were forced to their knees. Their eyes lit up when they saw me but confusion set in when they took in my eyes. Annette looked very weak. She bobbed back and forth, trying to stay upright. The others were younger and stronger and had survived the dungeons thus far.

“Faric,”
said Altair, “state your case.” Faric stood up and walked toward Altair’s desk. “Master Altair,” he started. I was already sick.
Master Altair. How disgusting.
“I have returned Solara to you. In exchange, I ask that you please free the prisoners in front of you, placing them into my custody, sir.”

Altair looked over the fou
r bent in front of him and then stood up. I jerked forward in my seat. He looked down at me, and his eyes caught on my back. He moved to my side, his beady gaze boring holes into the tattoo design. His cold fingers slid over my skin as he traced the portions of the mark left visible by my dress. He bent down to my ear, and I cringed as I felt his warm breath on my neck. “Interesting turn of events, chosen one.” He laughed.

I trained my gaze on him, a
nd he slightly jerked backward. Undoubtedly, my gaze had freaked him out. I knew he had been told of the changes of my outward appearance, but seeing them himself must have been different than he’d anticipated. Suddenly, I decided I liked my eyes. I liked anything about me that freaked Altair out.

My eyes met Wesley’s. My b
reath went out of me. It seemed like forever since I’d seen him. He voluntarily drank the potion and fell into deep slumber to keep me safe. Lillian looked completely terrified as did Rachel.

“What do you think, Solara? Y
ou are, after all, the chosen.” He spat.

I didn’t hesitate. “Let them go,
Altair. You have me. You don’t need them anymore.”

His laugh echoed throughou
t the hollow room. “I have you? I have
you
?” he screamed. “Yes, Solara. I have you. You would be wise to remember that. Try to escape, and I will have you and everyone you love killed. Understood?” he fumed, towering over me.

I nodded. “Now”—he turn
ed toward my family—“what to do with you?” He went around to the front of the desk and paced slowly back and forth, apparently in thought.

Faric looked at me, apprehension dripping fro
m his features. His eyes were clouded, dark, and dangerous. “Master Altair,” offered Faric, “I will remove them from the kingdom if it pleases you of course.”

Altair stopped pacing and walke
d over to Faric. “Yes. It would please me. You may take them from the kingdom. They are banished. However, I have unfinished business with your brother, the trader. Where is he?”

Faric looked Altair in the eye
and said, “I don’t know. He had abandoned the girl. I found her in a cave, Master Altair.”

Altair looked at him sternly.
“Well, find him, return him to me immediately, or you will suffer his fate as well. Understood?”

“Yes, Master Altair. I understan
d. I swear to return my brother to you at once. I will find him, sir.” Faric shifted on his feet.

“Very well,” Altair strolled over to the prisoners once more.

He grabbed a knife from his boot and stood behind Wesley. My heart clenched.
No. Don’t hurt him.

“Altair!” I yelled. “Don’t.
You have me. Please. Don’t hurt him. You have
me
!” I yelled frantically, moving from behind the desk. His eyes locked on mine, and his upper lip snarled. He grabbed Wesley by the hair, yanking him back. His hands were bound behind his back. I locked on Wesley’s green eyes as I ran toward him. But with one quick swipe, Altair opened this throat.

Blood flowed like a crimson riv
er down his chest, soaking into his clothes and puddled in the floor below him. He gurgled, and his eyes fluttered. “No!” I sobbed, grabbing him as Altair released his hair. “No. Wesley! No!” I screamed. His green eyes fluttered.

“I’m so sorry, Wesley. I’m so
sorry!” Hot tears streaked down my face. My body heaved in sorrow. He tried to say something but couldn’t. I saw the life flow out of his emerald eyes as they clouded over, and he stilled. The blood still poured from him as his soul slipped away.

I couldn’t hear anything. I
grabbed him and held him to my chest. “No. No. No. No. No.” I repeated over and over. I wasn’t sure if I was speaking aloud or not. I just knew that my heart had broken. Wesley died. Wesley died because of me. He died because of me. Because he was married to me. Because he loved me. Because I loved him. Because he was family. It was my fault.

I rocked his lifeless body back and forth. I finally looked up, and
through bleary eyes saw Lillian curled in a ball a few feet away, covering her face, rocking herself back and forth.

A guard grabbed her. “No. Lillia
n. No! Let her go!” I screamed, my voice ragged. He shoved Lil toward Faric. Annette was ushered past us as well, tears flowing down her face as her eyes met mine. She mouthed, “I’m sorry.”

“Annette. No. Lil!” I screamed, rocking Wesley, running my
fingers through his hair. Rachel was being held by two guards. She jumped and bucked to get free without success. Her tearstained face was tortured. She screamed Wesley’s name, grabbing for him through the air as they dragged her toward the door, toward Faric.

“Rachel! I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry, Rachel. Faric, take care
of them. Please. Take care of them.” He nodded and grabbed

Rachel away from the guard
s and the doors slammed shut. I kissed Wesley’s cold lips and whispered, “I’m so sorry, Wes, I’m sorry. It’s my fault. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” I rocked him back and forth.

My hands and body and clothes were soaked
with his blood. I wanted to go back in time to say something to save him, to kill Altair before he killed Wesley—my teacher, my husband, my friend, my family. I was jerked away from him, and his body slumped to the stone below, his hair soaking with the pooled blood beneath him. His once lively emerald eyes, glazed and cloudy, looked toward heaven. I prayed he had already entered the gates.

I
was immediately dragged back
to my room, kicking and screaming. The same women prepared yet another hot bath, removing the boiling water from over the fireplace and dumping it into the half-filled bathtub. The guards exited, no doubt, standing outside. I was disrobed and guided into the tub. I was numb. Body, mind and soul. Numb.

My hair and body were washed.
The remnants of Wesley’s blood stained my bathwater pink and then red. I was dried and placed in a long-sleeved, floor-length yellow cotton gown. I walked to the cot and covered myself in its blankets and cried until I slept, praying for Faric’s strength and the safety of my friends.

I woke with a start in t
he night. Something had clanged just outside my door—metal on metal. I sat up and threw the covers back, grabbing the only thing nearby that I could wield against them, a held up a wrought iron candlestick. It could totally be a club. I heard a key turn in the metal lock of my door and positioned myself behind the door. A dark silhouette slowly stepped into my room. I couldn’t tell who it was. Male or female. But I figured it was probably more foe than friend. I raised the candlestick and prepared to swing it at the head of the intruder until he turned around.

“Matthias?” I said, lowering the
candlestick slightly. “Why are you here?”

“I’m going to take you to Faric, but we
must leave quickly. Here”—he thrust a gray wool cape toward me—“wear this. It will help cloak you. You look like a flower.”

“What? Thanks,” I muttered,
throwing the cape on. I kept my grip on the candlestick and pulled the hood over my head.

“Faric and I are friends. He explained everything last night.

Altair is a mad man. I know you are the chosen. So we need to get you to safety,” he said as if asking a question. His light brown eyes illuminated against his dark skin and cloak.

I nodded. He bunched the cot
’s blankets and pillows to look as if someone were sleeping in them and then locked the door behind us. Enveloping my hand in his, he led me down stairways, through hidden passages that lay behind enormous draperies, down narrow corridors, and into a basement of sorts. He lifted a wooden door in the floor ahead of us and stepped down before me to keep the door open as I ducked under and stepped down into the darkness of an underground tunnel.

We ran through tunnels, twist
ing and turning in the earth. I imagined the hill of the ant with its passageways weaved through the ground with precision. Emerging in the forest near a huge glistening lake just before dawn, a horse awaited us.
Wait, one horse?
Reading my face, Matthias winced and explained that it was his own, and he only had one. To take another would have drawn too much attention. He explained that the strong stallion could handle our weight without any problem. I brushed my fingers through his caramel mane in apology for the extra weight he would have to carry. Matthias climbed onto the stallion’s back and held out his hand, helping me up. I sat in front of him. He grabbed the reins around me and led the horse forward, around the lake, and further into the forest ahead.

It was almost dark when
we stopped. A river rushed past nearby and several large moss-covered boulders dotted the valley floor. We decided to camp in the middle of five megaliths, hoping they, along with our campfire, would deter forest animals. I gathered firewood from nearby trees, and Matthias grabbed some food from his bag. He made our fire in silence and then began to prepare our meal. He split amongst us fresh rolls, a pear, some jerky and a lemon pastry. We ate in silence.

“So how did you know? Or when did you know?” he asked.

I cleared my throat. “Well, I didn’t know until after the reveal. Faric, or who I thought was Faric, showed up at my and Wesley’s house and told us he needed to get me to safety because I was the chosen.” I explained how he had manipulated the calendars and the reveal happened a day sooner than it should have, buying me time to escape before I was marked. I explained how Riven had impersonated Faric, how I had been marked by both heaven and hell, and that it was not near as pretty as my tattoo looked. It was hell. Both portions of the mark were hell, painfully and mercilessly given.

contemplated my explanat
ion for a while. “Your eyes are neat.” He smiled.

“I thought they were weird, bu
t when they freaked Altair out, I think I fell in love with them.” I smiled and laughed at the thought. He laughed with me.

“They definitely freake
d him out”—he laughed—“but they freaked me out too. You scared the crap out of me!”

“I know,” I said, smiling with
satisfaction as I bit into the luscious lemon goodness.

Matthias stood up and dusted
off his pants. He turned to me, the smile fading fast from his face and said, “Solara, I’m really sorry about Wesley. I knew Altair was a monster, but I didn’t know he would do that. I wish I could’ve snuck the others out, but I had to make sure you were safe and could escape. I was told you were the chosen, and I knew it was my duty under God to protect you.” With that, he turned and walked away. My lids were unable to contain their flood, and tears splashed down my face. It wasn’t Matthias’s fault that Wesley was dead. It was mine.

I cried for my friend. My
husband. I remembered how sweet his smile was, how he played his cello so hauntingly perfect and his dimple and his beautiful green eyes. I remembered how he asked for permission to apply for my hand, how I’d agreed to the same and prayed he would be awarded it and how relieved and happy I was to marry him. Had I loved him the way he deserved?

No. I wasn’t
in
love with him yet, though I did feel confident that my love for him would grow in time. I think he felt the same. Attraction was definitely not a problem for us. Recalling our wedding night, I blushed and brushed away more tears. His touch had been so gentle. He was so selfless, drinking the elixir to put himself into a sleep, a vulnerable sleep. One that Altair, being the snake he is, undoubtedly took advantage of. It made me sick.

How would I ever be able
to face Rachel? They’d probably arrived at Jacob and Ruth’s house by now. I wasn’t sure how much further we would travel, but I would undoubtedly be looking at her light brown eyes and strawberry blonde hair soon. I was so afraid that all the bubbly, bouncy energy that was Rachel had been extinguished. I buried my face in my hands.

What about Lillian? W
hat would she think? She was so afraid. She shook and huddled into herself and rocked back and forth like a scared child—tiny and afraid. Her once light blonde hair was dingy and matted, her clothing torn, dirt smudged on her elfin face. Would she be crushed by the weight of Riven’s deception? Did she love her husband? Had she romanticized him in her mind? Was she thankful that he’d ridden into the kingdom and saved her? Her knight in shining armor.

Annette looked broken wobbling on the cold st
one floor in front of Altair. Her body was weakened and her spirit was broken. How would one mend such deep rooted wounds? Where would I even start? Was it my place? Would Riven and Faric hate me—Ladybug who had taken Annette from them in their childhood? I curled up between the gnarled roots of an oak tree and fell asleep, tears streaming over my temple into my hair.

I was walking along a beautiful wide path in a colorful fall wood. Rainbow leaves fell all around me. A brook sang nearby. Birds chirped as they migrated south in search of receding warmth.

I smiled and spun around in sw
irling, falling leaves. I heard footsteps approaching and turned to see Wesley walking toward me with one hand in his pocket. The other ran back through his brown wavy hair. His green eyes sparkled with life just as I remembered them. He smiled and my heart leapt. The ice around it melted instantly. “Wes!” I shouted. “You’re alive!”

He grabbed my waist and spu
n me around. “No, Lara. I’m not alive. But I have something important to tell you. First, my death was not your fault. It was Altair’s, and he will pay for his deeds. Second, you are in danger. Wake up!”

I startled and looked around me in the darkness. The fire crackled in front of me. Matthias was asleep opposite me, the fire between us. Looking frantically around us, I saw nothing out of place.

Nothing dangerous, though dan
gerous and evil things loved to cloak themselves in darkness. They fed on the black like starved ravenous beasts. Then a low growl erupted from the trees just beyond Matthias. He stirred and rubbed his eyes. Another growl, low and guttural. He stumbled back toward me and pulled a long knife from his boot.
What is with all the boot knives?
“What was that?” he whispered.

I shrugged, wide-eyed, trying to
peer into the darkness. It was impossible with the campfire in our line of vision. Then a large tan paw stepped out of the shadow followed by another. Then we could both see it and both tried to climb back into the tree behind us. A cougar. It was a sleek tawny muscle, save for its green eyes and sharp white teeth licked by its pink tongue. It growled again, deep and menacing as it stalked forward.

We were trapped. Now
here to run. The animal had the advantage. It would be faster than we could possibly run. It could climb faster as well. My heart slammed angrily in my chest. Matthias extended the knife toward the stalking animal. It apparently did not appreciate the threat, releasing a menacing, guttural growl. It crept alongside the fire and began to crouch low to the ground. I knew what was coming and braced myself.

As the cat began to leap forward toward us, time seemed to slow.
I screamed and grabbed hold of Matthias, pushing him behind me. My scream was not my own. It sounded as though a thousand voices were screaming from my mouth. The giant feline twisted itself in midair and turned, grabbing claws full of dirt and ran as fast as it could away from us. Matthias, who had gripped his ears, turned to look at me. He shook, even his lips shook as he took me in. He backed away from me, and I let loose of him.

“What...what was that?” he stammered.

“I think it was a cougar, mountain lion, or whatever. Good grief,” I said, grabbing my chest to steady my heart and breath.

“Not the cat! Solara, what was that? You sounded demonic
or something. Did you hear yourself? Am I going crazy? Maybe I’m going crazy. Am I still dreaming?” He stood and started to rapidly pace back and forth in front of the fire.

“I heard it, and I don’t know, ok
ay. I don’t know what happened. I don’t know why I sounded like that, but I am glad I did, or we’d be kitty food for a big freaking cat, Matthias!” I yelled.

He calmed down and said, “Yes
. Okay. Thanks. I think. Sorry. Sorry, I yelled.” His pace slowed, and he raked his hands through his long hair. “I think we should get going.” As he uttered those words, the sky opened up, and the storm that Jacob and Ruth had warned us about crashed down upon us.

We wound through the dark
ness, soaked to the bone, into a thick section of forest. Thorns grabbed my cloak and dress, ripping into my flesh. I prayed Matthias knew the way, especially in the dark, in a storm such as this.

We stopped at dawn to rest
and feed the horse Matthias had ‘borrowed’. We ate our breakfast, which were apples and chunks of bread, as the rain steadily beat down, but the torrents stopped. My cloak and dress hung heavy and loose from my body. “How much farther?” I asked. “Not that I’m not enjoying your company.” I smiled, and he returned the favor. He didn’t seem freaked out by me anymore.

“Maybe another ten miles or so
. It’s hard for me to estimate. I know where they live, but it had been awhile since I’ve traveled it, especially by horse, and I’ve never traveled horseback with another.” He glanced up at me with those light brown eyes, and I could see gold flecks swimming in them. “What?”

“You caught me looking. You
r eyes are very unique. They’re stunning,” I admitted, feeling a bit bashful that I’d been gawking at his irises.

He laughed. “You’re one to t
alk! Your eyes are purple. Very purple. And do you realize that you smell of lavender? Maybe your eyes influence your scent!”