Scars of Alera

4.

"Mr Marule." I take a step back and lean against the well, placing a hand over my heart. "My goodness, you frightened me."

Mr Marule tilts his head to the side, his wavy locks falling across his face as his mouth stretches into a grin – the kind of grin that would make any girl weak at the knees. "I told you to call me Will."

I scan him warily. It doesn't feel right to call him by his first name. He is from the Palace, he is above me in status and I do not know him. To call him anything other than Mr Marule seems informal and disrespectful.

"Okay..." I swallow the nerves in my stomach. "...Will."

His eyes flicker.

"There it is," I furrow my brows. "Your eyes they did that...that thing again."

He's staring at me with an even gaze and a raised eyebrow. He is the same way he was that afternoon – charming and confident, a combination that the men in Adaymos can't seem to get right. It sets me on edge. Something about this man isn't right; he's too charming to be safe.

"What thing?" He asks, like he has no idea what I'm talking about.

I bite my lip. "What were you doing outside the gates?"

Mr Marule's composure doesn't change, he just tilts his head to the side. "What were you doing creeping around the village after dark?"

"I..." Heat rushes to my cheeks, but I don't have to answer because a giggle echoes off the walls around us – Krista's giggle. Mr Marule's eyes dart towards the sound faster than I thought possible. "I asked you first."

"You're spying on Mr Toledano," He murmurs. I flush a deep red.

"He's my sister's suitor." I brush my hands on my dress, embarrassed to have been caught spying by Mr Marule. "But that woman isn't my sister."

"Ah." He raises an eyebrow. "Mr Toledano is not a faithful man. For some reason, that doesn't surprise me."

I feel the urge to return his smile; there's something so contagious about it, something that makes it feel hard not to replicate. But this is my sister's suitor, the man she is supposed to be with for the rest of her life. I should not be smiling.

"Why were you outside the gates?" I ask again.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He speaks with such confidence that had I not just seen him, I would believe him. He offers me a hand. "May I escort you home?"

I look down at his hand, stretching out from his dark sleeves. His velvety skin is free of any marks – everything about this man seems perfect and untouched. It makes me think of the scars running up my left arm. What would he think? Would he curl away in disgust?

"Miss Thelene?" he repeats when I don't respond.

"I –" I clutch my hands behind my back.

Part of me wants to take his hand, to experience the feeling of our skin making contact, to see if I'd imagined it the first time. But the other part of me is afraid of this man and his flickering eyes, charming smile, and burning touch.

I lift my chin. "I think I can manage on my own, thank you, Mr Marule."

I turn away, distancing myself from this man who makes me want to move closer. Mr Marule was outside the gates, I watched him leap over the wall and then watched him act like he didn't know what I was talking about. Something isn't right.

"Miss Thelene," he says. I pause to look at him over my shoulder.

His eyes flicker again as he looks at me, my heart skips a beat – and it isn't from fear, though it probably should be.