Threatened [W&W Book 2]

Chapter 45

Though every day in the king's prison was excruciatingly long, this morning dragged on and on worse than ever.  Anya paced around her little cell over and over.  She thought about writing a letter to her brother and sister, but she did not have the heart to in her current mood.

There was a window above the stairs, and through it Anya tried to gauge how late it was.  Surely it was already midday.  Was he dead yet?  Was everyone safe?

Anya threw herself on the cot and forced herself to count everything that she could see, the bars, the rocks of the walls, the cracks in the floor.  She tried not to think.

The door opened at the top of the stairs.  "Anya."

It was just as her dream.  She sat bolt upright on the cot.

A guard that Anya had only seen several times before stood before her.  "Miss Anya.  We are to inform you that the Earl of Farhaven's punishment has been observed."

"What?" Anya asked foolishly.  Why was he telling her this?

"We were ordered to inform you."

"He's really dead?" she asked.

"Indeed," the guard agreed, and he spun on his heels and walked down the stairs.

Anya sat on the floor and held her head in her hands.  It seemed too good to be true.  She was free.

* * * * *

Anya's evening meal was brought to her by the shuffling Walter.  He set down her food as he always did and pushed it to her.  "Didn't get back until just a minute ago.  Ye know how the city is during a famous killing."

Anya nodded.  She had never seen such a thing, but could imagine.

"Led that scoundrel up to the block and the executioner took his head off with one swipe.  Masterfully done.  I saw his head roll with my own eyes."

"Thank you for telling me, Walter," she said.  She did not relish the image in her mind, but she was relieved.

"Lots of talk about who'll be inheriting all his lands now.  Some say it'll be a cousin, some say the king'll decide."

Anya could not care less about what happened to everything Thorne left behind, but she appreciated that Walter at least spoke to her so she encouraged him with a smile.

"Oh, and ye've got a letter," Walter said, and handed it to her.

"Thanks," Anya said.

"No problem, lass."  Walter hobbled down the stairs.

Anya opened her letter.  The food would wait.

Dear Anya,

I sent this to you with Lord Wildwood and Jim.  They've got something to do in the capital and I don't know what it is.  Maybe it's something to do with you.  Jim does tell us some things, but not everything, maybe because he thinks we're just little children.

Damani has been a bother lately, more than normal.  He's been tagging around after Jim or Sir Thomas or any other wizard he can find because he thinks that he's going to learn wizardry now.  I don't mind the magic part, of course, but he's threatening to turn me into a newt.  I told him off, but he won't listen to me and it is terribly annoying.  Could you tell him to behave in your next letter?  And he still won't eat his carrots.

I tried to get him to write to you but he was too busy hanging around the stables and the horses.  He says he wants to work with magic and horses when he's older, like Mister Allendale.  Did you know that he's married to chef?  And she told me that they have two grown up children who live far away.  Anyway, I told Damani that I didn't think he could, and he pulled my hair and I didn't speak to him for the rest of the day.  He was mad because of what I said I think, but it was true.