The Gifted

Chapter Six: Trust

Flint's face fell as I told him everything that occurred since our encounter in the castle gardens.  I wasn't sure how to explain the situation without telling him I was the one that let the information go.  It made me nervous.  Would Flint still take me to my brother, or would he hold this against me?  However, Flint merely smiled at me. "If I hadn't of already considered that scenario and the consequences then I would have never told you anything in the first place."  I inwardly gave a sigh of relief.  

He turned to look over his shoulder at the other two men, "go get Kane and pack everything up and be quick about it.  We're leaving."  The man that had walked me here left through the trees, while the other started collecting the few supplies that were on the forest floor.  Directing his attention back to me, Flint leaned down and moved some of my hair away from my neck, letting out a small whistle.  Even in low light, I'm sure you could see the forming bruise that encircled my neck and the small cuts on my face.  I lightly slapped his hand away.  This man was acting all too familiar with me for us to have only met the other night.  He let out a small laugh, "those are some nice trophies you received.  Thankfully, they'll heal before we reach the base.  I rather not have your brother try to kill me because his little sister wasn't delivered in perfect condition."  

There was cursing as the person I assumed was Kane came storming out of the woods.  His dark brown hair was cropped short and he looked to be around the same age as Flint.  His bow was slung over his shoulder, an angry look on his face as he approached Flint.  "What the hell is this I hear about trackers?  I told you we needed to leave the area befo-" he stopped short as he noticed my presence.  My body stiffened, this was the other man from the gardens.  The archer with the pile of bodies.  My mind instantly went on alert, searching for any kind of threat from the man, body language, a look, anything that could hint at foul intentions.  

His eyes narrowed at me, "This is the girl from the castle.  What is she doing here?  Is this why we risked our necks and stayed here?  So you could rendezvous with a night companion of yours?" My face flushed with anger at his words.  If he thought I would allow him to talk about me like that, he was dangerously wrong.  I stepped forward, going to initiate a challenge, but Flint stepped slightly between Kane and I.

"This 'girl' is Evelyn and she will be coming back to base with us.  Thanks to working in the castle, she has a lot of beneficial information.  She will also be shown the greatest of respect while in our company."  Flint's voice was low, and his words had a hidden threat in them.  I noticed he didn't use my title or freely give my last name.  Granted, I didn't give my last name to the other man because, at the time, I wasn't sure who he was with.  However, Flint obviously knew a lot about my family and if James was with them why keep my name a secret?

"Fine, but he'll be hearing about this when we get back."  With one last angry glance at me, Kane stormed off, leaving Flint and I alone once more.  

There was a call from the other side of the clearing and I saw the man that originally went to get Kane struggling with something at the edge of the trees.  I quickly ran over to him as soon as I realized the problem, totally forgetting my rage towards Kane.  Apollo was jerking his head around, trying to get the man to let go of his reins.  He wasn't fond of strangers and especially wasn't fond of this one that had interrupted his snacking on a patch of grass. 

I quickly took hold of the reins and brought Apollos head down, stroking his face to calm him.  His hard breathing slowed and he started to push his face into my chest, wanting more scratches and attention.  "I found him on my way back.  Figured you'd want him considering where we're going." I smiled at the man and did a quick check to make sure Apollo was alright.  Relief flooded through me when my search for cuts or bumps came up empty.  He was now my last connection to the world I knew and to say I wasn't fond of him anyway would be shear blasphimy.