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Frayne wasn’t sure at what point he had woken or even why he had walked so far from the others, but something had pulled at him. He had dreamed of a woman, someone he didn’t know, and he wasn’t sure why the idea of her had woken him or caused him to want to leave them.
Now he was bent over Nelda, his arms around her to contain her fire and try to protect her in some way from the soldiers surrounding her. Although, why he’d thought that would help he wasn’t sure—nor why he’d known she wouldn’t burn him. But he had known it with everything he had. And no one had stopped him. It was as though they hadn’t seen him approach.
As the heat had shimmered above her, he had walked through the middle of them just as calmly as if he were walking through the forest with his father and brother. At first he had thought it was the torches, but at the sound of the swords being drawn in unison he became more certain she was the source.
He looked up now, fearful as to what might happen, and met the eyes of the old man as he waved the soldiers back. Nelda shivered beneath him, balled against the ground despite his arms around her. He couldn’t explain what it was about her that compelled him to help her.
“Stand down,” the cardinal said when the soldiers didn’t seem to move fast enough.
Frayne looked around then, taking in the sheer number of them. He must have lost his mind, yet he knew it was what needed to be done. Heath groaned behind him, and Frayne turned to see him pushed down to the ground. His heart was beating too fast. He didn’t know how he could save them both. Grace had been pushed down beside Heath, but she gave him a small smile as though she trusted him to keep them safe. Frayne had no idea how he could even keep himself safe in this.
“Stand down,” the cardinal repeated.
“Your Grace?” asked someone outside of Frayne’s field of vision.
The cardinal’s face clearly said he was not to be questioned. Despite wanting to check on his brother, Frayne kept his focus on the man. He turned a curious look at Frayne.
“She is your mother?” he asked.
Frayne nodded, tightening his hold on Nelda.
The cardinal squatted down, an interesting action for a man of his age. He moved his head to the side as he looked between Frayne and Nelda. He motioned closer a man who held out a torch.
“I’ve seen this face before,” the cardinal said. “Who is your father?”
“A farmer,” Frayne said. He knew his father wasn’t his father, yet he had been the man to raise him and, despite it all, Frayne still thought of him that way. In fact, he still thought of the woman who had raised him as his mother. He loved them both and wouldn’t endanger them, yet he felt a closeness to this woman he still couldn’t fully explain.
“Where did a little witch meet a farmer?” the cardinal asked, a cruel edge to his voice.
“In the castle,” Frayne whispered.
The cardinal looked at Nelda, reaching for her face. And despite wanting to swat his hand away, Frayne allowed the man to do as he wanted.
“Nelda Graewyth,” he said, the smirk widening. “I have longed to find you.”
Frayne closed his arms around Nelda, pulling her closer to his chest as though he could keep her safe. But he knew this man was going to kill her no matter what he thought he could maybe do. He couldn’t fight off the king’s soldiers, not this many.
“You are brothers?” the cardinal asked, looking beyond him.
Frayne nodded, although he wasn’t sure if that would put Heath in more danger or keep him safer. He wanted to glance at Heath again. But Nelda was reaching out a hand toward the cardinal, and swords clacked again. The cardinal put his hand up again, and the movement stopped from both Nelda and the soldiers.
“What are you?” she whispered.
“Stronger than your brother,” the cardinal said.
Nelda pulled against Frayne then, as though she was going to attack. Swords were drawn as the cardinal stepped back. She stopped, but Frayne could feel her taught and rigid in his arms. And despite his attempts to pull her back, he couldn’t make her move.
“Mother,” he whispered. She sagged, turning to him with sadness, and he thought she would cry. “Enough,” he continued.
She leant into him then, not as a mother would but as a friend, her weight on his shoulder. He held her close, his focus again on the cardinal as he ran a hand over her long, dark hair. He hadn’t noticed it before. Despite the situation, she had maintained her headdress of the sisters of the Goddess, and even now she still appeared as a sister to him.
Did the cardinal know Nelda, or did he know Frayne? For he was staring at Frayne, not Nelda. Did he see something of Frayne’s parents in him? If he were to walk into the castle, would they know him? Would it matter? Heath had said he couldn’t tell. But even if he did, he was the prince who had burned to death at his birth by the hands of the woman he was wrapped around.
He was lost. He wanted to protect them, but he didn’t think he would be able to save himself in this.
One of the soldiers made a move towards him, but the cardinal was quick to raise his hand again, and the simple movement was enough to halt his movement.
“He is to be protected,” the cardinal said, but his look was calculating. Whether or not the cardinal thought he knew who Frayne was, he didn’t think the man would keep him safe. In fact, if he had worked out who Frayne was, he would more likely use him. Frayne had no idea what relationship this man had with the king or queen.
“We will move now,” the cardinal said, walking through the throng of soldiers.
Before Frayne could wonder at whether they would be left alone, several soldiers stepped forward and dragged him and Nelda to their feet. Despite her strong hold on his sleeve and his attempts to keep hold of her, they were separated. Heath made a noise behind him, but he couldn’t turn enough to see what was going on. And then he was being marched forward between two men.
“Heath,” Nelda called out, although she didn’t sound as distressed as Frayne was sure he felt. “Just allow them to lead,” she said.
“Yes, Mother,” Heath returned, and Frayne bit down on his lip. Heath would trust him and take his lead. But he had the niggling feeling that, although they were moving in the direction they should be, he was putting his brother in more danger and should have sent him home.
“Is this your sister?” a soldier asked, but Frayne couldn’t see who it might be. Nor could he hear Heath’s response, assuming the man had been asking Heath. A sharp nudge to the ribs made him look around. “Sister?” the man asked again, closer behind Frayne than he realised.
“Yes,” he said.
“One witch produces another,” the soldier said.
“And despite the culling, more are born,” another said, something like anger in his voice, as though they could come from anywhere.
“Keep a sword at her throat,” another said. Frayne had lost sight of everyone and couldn’t guess at the direction it had come from. He wondered if they were doing the same with Nelda.
He was tired. It had been a long night, and they’d had little sleep over the preceding days. He wondered if Heath now regretted heading out after a woman they’d known nothing about. Frayne would have followed her anywhere.
“Are you unharmed, Mother?” he asked, trying to keep his voice level and be heard above the sound of the soldier’s armour clanking. They weren’t travelling with the intention of keeping their presence a secret.
“I am,” Nelda returned. She sounded tired, and he wondered if she had slept at all.
They continued to move at a fast pace, more dragged than directed along the narrow roadways through the forest. There were times Frayne thought he saw a distant light, but they were fleeting, and he wasn’t sure whether he did see something or just wanted to.
“Rest,” a voice called ahead, and for the first time in what seemed like hours, their pace slowed and they were able to stop.
Frayne looked through the soldiers but could only see Grace, and then she was standing beside him. “Are you unharmed?” he asked, patting her down as though he wasn’t sure.
She smiled, although she looked even more exhausted than he felt. And she was grubby from head to toe. He wondered at the time they had taken to wash and change at the inn before the fire. The benefits of the short visit were now lost. She nodded slowly as he rested his hands on her shoulders.
“Have you seen the others?” he asked, looking over her head.
“They will keep us separated,” she replied, her voice low. He realised then just how close the soldiers still stood.
“You haven’t seen Mother?” he asked.
One of the soldiers snickered as she shook her head.
“What of the little one?” he asked, which sparked some murmuring around him. She smiled up at him again as she shook her head once.
“She is here,” he whispered.
“You are so much more than I thought possible,” Grace replied. Before he could think about it, he pulled her close against his chest and she clung to him in return. “The best brother I could ask for.”
He laughed softly at the idea. But despite only having known this young woman for a short time, he felt a connection to her. She might have sensed something about him, something he was only just aware of himself. No matter what they had taught him, he knew he needed these women no matter what was to come. If they survived the night.
“You need to rest,” he whispered, sitting down on the ground where he stood and pulling her down with him. It was rocky, but she sat down beside him without complaint and leant into his side. He wrapped an arm around her. As she closed her eyes, he could only hope that she would get some rest. And that he could keep her safe from the cardinal and the soldiers around her.
He looked through the armoured legs around him, wondering at the man and what he thought he would gain by such actions. They were surrounded at all times. Soldiers came and relieved those around them one at a time, so that they could eat or drink or whatever they needed, but Frayne was never able to see beyond the armour to where the others might be.
He closed his eyes and leaned his head on Grace’s. He took a deep breath and knew that they were headed in the direction he had thought they needed to go. Whether it would be a different reception, arriving with the cardinal and the soldiers, than if they had arrived on their own, he wasn’t sure. He also knew that Heath and Nelda were close, although not close enough, and the child they had discussed when they’d first saved Grace also travelled with them.
He tried not to sigh. He had no idea why he knew these things. He had always just known what he was to do—and whether that was because of who he was or who his sister might have been, he had no idea.