Eldon had always known the soldiers loved to celebrate anything with alcohol and a feast. He'd wanted no part of it, but Aaron had insisted he at least stayed until everyone was too drunk to care. Leanne had sneaked away at some point to let Elouise know about this. When she returned, Eldon stayed by her side and watched the chaos unfold. Leanne helped herself to a bit of everything. It smelled like so much roast and sweat that Eldon lost his appetite after a few bites.
When he started to understand less of what the soldiers were saying, he figured now was the time to leave. Leanne kept a few of them distracted by telling jests, and Eldon slipped out of the barracks.
He ran to fetch Snow and rode her out to the fields, spotting Elouise where he knew she'd be.
Elouise sat on a blue, pink, and yellow quilt laid out on the grass with a closed basket next to her. Eldon hurried off Snow and led her to the tree where he told her to stay. Then he made his way to the blanket. Elouise patted the spot in front of her, and he eagerly sat down.
"I know you must've eaten plenty with the soldiers," she began, grabbing the basket and placing it in-between them. "But I heard they did not provide many sweets, and I couldn't resist one final surprise." She removed the basket's woven lid and encouraged Eldon to look inside.
The smell alone made him forget his earlier disgust. He saw different kinds of sweet bread and a bowl of fresh strawberries that almost made him drool. She told him to dig in, and he shamelessly did.
Some of the breads were still warm and soft, and he hummed in delight when he tasted vanilla. The strawberries were practically gone by the time he took a break. He then asked Elouise why she wasn't eating any.
"I helped the baker with these," she answered. "And... I rewarded myself afterwards. Believe me, I had to restrain myself from touching these while I was waiting for you to arrive. These were made specifically for you."
His lips twitched at that. He wanted to thank her. Then his tongue became tied as she stared back at him with her big and beautiful eyes.
"So," she broke the silence. "How was the celebration?"
"Uh, it was..." he thought back to earlier in the night when Annaliese ended up trying to sing on top of a table. Booker was left speechless in the crowd.
"It was good," Eldon replied, shrugging his right shoulder.
"Well, now that you are knighted, we can begin planning our trip." Elouise reached behind her, retrieving Beatrice's map. She moved the basket aside and laid out the map in front of them.
With the help of her light magic, Eldon studied the map carefully.
"It's gonna be dangerous," he concluded.
Elouise groaned. "We've had this conversation before, Eldon."
"I know..." he looked up. "Are you sure? Really sure?"
"Beatrice was the savior before me. If this gives me the opportunity to know about her journey, her decisions, and what exactly happened during her time, then yes. I have never been more certain about anything."
You will both have to be determined and committed, the voice had told him.
Eldon swallowed hard. "There's somethin' I gotta tell you 'bout."
Elouise's expression softened as he started describing the voice he heard and everything it said to him.
"This happened in front of the ash"—she stopped herself, realization dawning over her face.
YOU ARE READING
A Guardian's Fate (Book #2)
Fantasy(BOOK #2 in the Secrets of Aristol series.) It's almost been three months since Elouise's birthday. Although she's kept herself distracted by Beatrice's past, she's left with more questions. Perhaps she isn't concentrating hard enough. After all, sh...
