Heart's Revenge [On Hold]

Ch. 10: A Chance

Naqam carefully avoided Lady Adira's gaze, sitting uncomfortably at the dining room table as they ate what he really hoped wasn't his last meal. He hadn't even known Hatter had a dining room. It was tucked away in the back of the Real Worlder's house, and had the stuffy air of only being used when occasion called for it. Naqam didn't believe that there had been that many occasions. 

He hunched down a little, scarfing down the tender, baked chicken and mixed vegetables the Jack had made. Naqam grudging admitted that the meal had been prepared with care, and tasted delicious. Not that he had eaten badly here with just Hatter. But his diet seemed to mostly consist of food that were either grilled or pan-fried, and Naqam was thankful for the change.

Hatter sat quietly at the head of the table, gazing thoughtfully down at his own plate. 

Naqam wished that someone would say something. Or, at the very least, that he could throw his fork through Adira's eye to stop her from glaring at him.

When he'd eaten everything on his plate, he looked at Hatter, and Adira made a  small scoffing sound. Naqam grit his teeth, but kept his eyes on the Real Worlder. Finally Hatter looked up, and met the Ace's gaze for a long moment. Then, he nodded his head toward the door, and Naqam sighed with relief.

He left the room quickly, before Hatter had the chance to give him any chores. Naqam washed his plate sloppily, almost throwing the dish into the drying rack before he flew out the front door, letting it slam behind him.

He stood out in the front yard, looking north to find the moons peeking over the edge of the horizon. The full darkness around him now would soon be brightened. He needed to hurry.

Naqam ran toward the barn, opened the door which made the horses whinny, then slammed it shut again.

Not bothering to sit, he yanked his boots off, balancing on one foot at a time. He wasn't taking any risks. Not with Lady Adira here.

Naqam walked silently back to the house, bare feet avoiding snappable sticks and moving easily in the cool, damp grass. He reached the corner of the house and stopped, closing his eyes. When he was certain that his breathing was sufficiently slow and quiet, he edged himself toward the window he had noted the position of while they were eating.

It was cracked open just a bit, trying to entice any small breeze into the stuffy room.

Moving even more slowly, he crouched down near the window, resting his back gradually against the log walls. The sturdy wood didn't so much as creak, which Naqam appreciated.

He watched the moonlight start to play in the rustling leaves, making them flicker silver and green as he listened.

"We've missed having you around, Mad," Adira said.

He pursed his lips, rolling his eyes. Hatter was not one of those court fools who pranced around in fancy clothes. Why would she think he'd like to be at court? Naqam frowned. Where had that thought come from?

He brushed it off as a result of watching for five days how the man operated.

"I've got a lot to do around here, Addy. I can't up and leave every couple weeks. You know that."

"I do," she agreed. "Tarian's slightly less forgiving."

There was a pause where Hatter sighed. Adira continued, "We all just feel like you're drawing farther and farther away, Mad. We just want to know why."

There was no answer, and Naqam wished he could risk peeking into the window. He wanted to know what look Hatter was giving Adira. Maybe if he could see the Real Worlder's reaction, he'd be able to decipher this conversation. Its content had caught him completely off guard since he'd assumed that Lady Adira was here to talk about him.