The Book of Glass

Cowardly (18)

"Search the cabin!"

    Cassius pressed the cloth he had been given by Aila to his wound and pressed himself further into the shadows of a corner. There was a window nearby where he could see a soldier getting off his horse. He waited for the front door of the cabin to creak open before moving toward the window.

    It wasn't a long drop to the ground, but he had to stifle a yell in the landing. By the time he recovered, he looked up to see Ingrid eyeing the horse from the tree line. Acting fast, he grabbed the reins of the horse and smiled.

    Ingrid hurried forward and tried to yank them away from him but Cassius held tight. Finally, she gave up and held up her hand. "I don't have time for this. Move, or you burn."

    "I'm afraid not, Miss Briar."

    The woman's face changed drastically. Caught off guard, Cassius pushed her hand in another direction and painfully lifted himself onto the horse. Briar pulled herself up with him, "Just go!"

    Behind him, Cassius could hear the yell of the man in charge of searching for them, and then the blaze of fire cut through. If she was good for anything, it was that.

    He flicked the reins and they flew off into the wood, opposite the direction of Evander and his men. Cassius expected Briar to say something, but she didn't. She let him guide the horse back into the woods, deeper and deeper until the horse could barely make its way through the undergrowth.

    "This is far enough. I can walk from here."

    "Walk where?" Ingrid asked.

    "Anywhere. My goal is to get outside the Jynwood and from there, avoid Evander. I assume you have a similar goal. You let me ride this far away from all of the action." Cassius looked the woman up and down. Now that he had realized the connection, he couldn't seem to unsee the similarities between the three people. He couldn't seem to wrap his mind around the fact that he stumbled across the one thing Evander never talked about.

    "I'm not running away like you are, coward."

    "I'm not sure about that. It kind of seems your forte from what I can tell."

    Briar pursed her lips and moved closer to him. "You know nothing about me."

    "I know you and Emory look a lot alike. And I know Evander was very angry when he found out that she had been harmed. What I don't know is why you aren't running back to save your daughter."

    Briar sighed and poked his chest. "My daughter is out of my hands now. She has Rosalind to protect her. I know she won't be hurt." Then she spun around and grabbed the reins of the horse again.

    "I'm afraid Rosalind's eyes are going to be focused on the Daughter."

    "Like I said, you know nothing."

    Cassius rolled his eyes but watched as Ingrid pulled herself onto the horse again. As she was trying to turn around, Cassius called out. "I have wondered, though, who it was in the castle that made the poor decision of sleeping with Evander's daughter behind his back. I'm sure he paid a dear price." Briar shot daggers at the young man. "Come on, who was it? Stable hand? Servant? It wouldn't have been so hush hush if he weren't deplorable."

    Briar broke and shouted. "He was a great man!"

    "Still attached I see."

    "You're a terrible commander. Blind, just like the rest of them." Briar began turning the horse around to leave. "You had the Daughter of Rosalind tied up and in your grasp and you never even realized."