The Phoenix People

Chapter Eighteen

We left the hideout alongside the council, which I gathered was fairly unusual by Melody's uncharacteristic air of nervousness.

On our way out, Robin caught up with us. "Oak and Dove are going to live aboveground!" she blurted, obviously thrilled.

Melody laughed in shocked delight and hugged her friend. "Who are they assigning to guard the entrance to this place, then?"

"Don't know, don't care," Robin replied dismissively. "All I know is that my child doesn't have to spend any more of her life underground because of me!"

Melody's grin widened; I had to admit, Robin's joy was infectious. "I'm happy for you," I told her quietly.

Robin turned a genuine smile to me. "Thank you, princess."

For some reason, being addressed with my title didn't feel as natural as it had a mere day ago.

*

After leaving the hideout, we were hustled into August's wagon. The air was silent and filled with tension as we rattled over potholes and warped stone. This time, Melody didn't sit with her husband but instead cowered in the back with the rest of us - although I caught her shooting him several longing glances.

Soon, the cart drew to a stop. When August rounded the wagon and opened the back, I discovered that we were inside stables. Pungent odors immediately invaded my nose.

The council left the cart and retrieved horses quickly. I hesitated, unsure of what to do or where to go.

"Alexia," Melody hissed, gesturing me over. She pointed to a brown horse in the stall in front of her.

"She's a spirited mare," Melody murmured as I opened the door. "Three years old and has won her fair share of prizes."

I saw that the horse was already saddled and bridled. So someone working at the stables had connections with the Phoenix People - it made me feel better to know that we weren't stealing the horses.

"What's her name?" I queried, stroking the animal's neck. She regarded me with one large, brown eye, the other turned away from me.

"Officially, she's entered as Rebirth. The stablehands just call her Dawn, though."

Rebirth. Dawn. In a way, the words were synonyms. Stepping on an overturned bucket, I made sure that the mare's saddle was tightly fastened on her back. Satisfied, I returned to the ground and led Dawn out of the stables through a back door, following the council. Melody followed me, Annamarie assisting her in leading their stallion.

The back exit opened into a wild meadow outside of town. I glanced back at the city nervously.

"No guards patrol out here," Anna called up to me softly. "Even if they did, this stable is where most of the Lowborn racing horses are held. They would likely assume we were exercising or training them."

She didn't seem to realize that if the guards had ever visited the palace, they would easily be able to recognize me, and would almost certainly be able to after I had just disappeared like I did.

We all easily mounted our steeds. I wasn't lying when I had said I was proficient at horseback riding. Besides reading, it was my favorite past time in the castle.

The council spurred their horses into a gallop and I followed suit, bent low over Dawn and relishing the familiar, soothing feeling.

Anna whooped behind me and I glanced back to see one of her arms wrapped around Melody's slim waist, the other held up in a triumphant fist. I laughed and urged my horse to run even faster.

We were soon in the woods and were forced to slow to a quick trot due to the multitude of trees, both felled and upright. I stroked Dawn's neck affectionately, remembering my own palace horses nostalgically.

I was excited, but a little apprehensive as well. Would I receive the same callous treatment that I had at the first Phoenix People hideout, or would the fact that I was arriving with the council pacify the suspicious Lowborns?

We leaped over many boulders and felled logs, forging deeper into the woods. There was no conversation - just the small sounds our horses were making and the natural noises of the forest surrounding us.

Finally, the council members drew to a halt, silently signaling to the rest of us to stop as well. The woman who had spoken to me whistled shrilly, a sound that I could never hope to imitate.

Within seconds, the still forest around us sprang to life.

Rope ladders lowered from the thick treetops. Previously invisible trapdoors opened in the lush forest floor. Doors situated in massive tree trunks swung open either silently or with small creaks.

Lowborns also began to appear. The leaves of the trees rustled, alerting me to those climbing down the rope ladders or moving about far above us. Confused faces popped out of the holes in the ground. Curious families watched us from the now-open tree trunks, holding back their children protectively.

We were in the center of the perfectly disguised Phoenix People headquarters.

A boy no older than I was emerged and waited for us to dismount our horses before taking several of their reins in his hands and leading them into the woods. He had soon returned for the others.

I was curious as to where and why they kept the horses here - wouldn't they soon be missed at the stables? - but my thoughts were interrupted by a  woman stepping forward to greet us. I couldn't help but stare at her. She was by far the strangest woman - or person, for that matter - that I had ever seen.

She was wearing a plain red dress with a fairly intact bodice and sleeves. The skirt, however, was so ripped and patchy that she was wearing baggy men's trousers underneath to preserve her modesty. Her black hair was unevenly cut a bit above her shoulders - it seemed as though a blind man had been handed a knife and pointed in the direction of her skull.

Despite all of this, she still possessed her own strange beauty. Her features were so delicate that, at a glance, they could have been mistaken for Highborn features. A smattering of light freckles spread over her nose and part of her cheekbones. She regarded us with a blank expression and a dreamy half smile on her face.

"Hi, hi, hi!" she suddenly shrieked, making me flinch. "Oh, so glad you're here! So, so glad."

My brow furrowed. Who was this strange woman, and more importantly, was she ill in the head?

"Are Theo and George here yet?" the councilwoman inquired gently.

"Yes, uh-huh, oh, absolutely," the lady replied, rapid-fire. "Up, up, up!" She grinned and pointed to the rope ladder she had used to reach us.

"Are they in your house?"

"Yes, ooh, yes!" The woman wriggled and hopped, clapping her hands like an overgrown child. "Come on!" she added impatiently, as if she had been waiting for us to begin moving forever. Warily, I followed the council members up the ladder and knew that Anna and Melody were doing the same below me.

What had I gotten myself into by coming here?