Waiting

Part Four

The most dangerous

Woman of all

Is the one who refuses

To rely on your sword

To save her

Because she carries

Her own.

— R.H. Sin

          I am very nearly scared to death as I step out of my house.

          Yesterday was a blur of activity after having reconnected with Vee. When her young brother and father had come tearing out of the shop, given new orders by the general to supply the kingdom's army with a cache of new weapons, she pressed the dagger I had struggled for into my palm and shooed me back to the slums. I made it a quick trip, unfoundedly afraid that I would be caught. When I reached home, my family ate burnt sticky buns in silence. I had slipped out after that to help one of our neighbors reset his traps to catch game for the next day; when I was promised a share of the meat, I happily returned home to slip silently under the covers and wait for the sun to rise.

          It's barely morning, streaks of sunlight just beginning to slash through the trees. I slip from the house as normal. I narrowly avoid tripping and falling on my face when I set my gaze on the street.

          The soldier is here.

          I work to appear nonchalant; an act that I am sure is not going to win me a prize in Ventralli anytime soon. What in the crabgrass is he doing here?

          I can do nothing but walk toward him. He cranes his neck to look at me over his shoulder and I hate his guts. When I pass him over and keep making my way toward the village and Vee, he doesn't hesitate before he beings to follow. I resist rolling my eyes and gouging his from his head, determined to act like the proper kingdom lady I grew up learning how to be and not the dumpster girl from the slums.

          I quickly realize that I can't let him follow me to my destination. My meeting with Vee would seem too salacious. Especially if someone is keeping an eye on me – specifically – and would be interested to hear that I am reuniting with the daughter of the kingdom's wealthiest citizen.

          I halt when I reach the middle of the bridge. The soldier is either not paying attention or doesn't care enough that he slams into my back. I hear him muttering curses under his breath. My lips form the sweetest smile I can muster, and I turn to look at him.

          "Trouble, sir?"

          He stares me down. I shrug. It's not my fault he's being an utter scoundrel, waiting for me outside of my house and following so closely. He seems to be regaining his composure just enough to let his jaw relax.

          "I hope you're staying out of trouble." He says.

          I raise my eyebrows. "Well that wouldn't be any fun."

          "Always the same bored little noble girl, title or no. How did the usurping not beat that out of you?"

          His words don't catch me be surprise. I've already surmised that if he knows my name, he must know close to everything about my life of years past. His faux interest is lackluster; he must have been hired by someone to keep an eye on me.

          And though I can easily grasp this notion, I cannot wrap my head around why someone wants me watched so closely. I've been expelled from the village for three years; why now?