Chapter 67
I didn’t answer.
She turned slightly in her saddle. “You two finally fuck or what?”
I halted my horse.
Amira stopped too, raising a brow.
“Do you have an off button?” I asked.
She leaned on the horn of her saddle. “I’ve been trying to provoke you all morning. Just checking if the bitch is still alive in there.”
“She is,” I said, tugging my reins. “She’s just bored.”
By noon, the sun was high and the guards had begun looking restless. One of them rode ahead to scout while the others whispered among themselves.
When the trees cleared into a small valley, we finally saw it- -a roadside tavern built like a squat little box with a crooked chimney and faded signage.
“Perfect,” Amira said. “I could use a drink.”
“I’m sure you could.”
Inside, the tavern was dim and smelled of ale and burnt meat. Rough wooden tables sat under old lanterns, and a few patrons glanced up as we walked in. None looked particularly welcoming.
One woman near the fireplace stared at me a little too long.
We took a table near the corner. The guards sat by the bar, keeping a watchful eye on the room. Amira signaled a passing waitress.
“Two drinks,” she said with a smile. “And whatever’s hot.”
“You didn’t even ask if I’m hungry,” I muttered.
Amira leaned in. “You don’t eat much anyway. Doesn’t really matter.”
I was about to reply when the older woman from the fireplace stood. She walked toward our table slowly, her boots clicking softly against the floor. Her face was lined, her hair white and tied in a braid over one shoulder. But her eyes… they were sharp for an old lady.
She stopped at the edge of our table and looked directly at me.
“You don’t belong here,” she said quietly.
I frowned. “Excuse me?”
“You’re not like the others. You smell like moonlight.”
Amira blinked. “Is that a compliment?”
The woman ignored her. “Be careful, girl,” she warned me. “The wolves here are not loyal.”
I opened my mouth, but she was already walking away, vanishing back into the shadows by the fire.
Amira snorted. “That was weird.”
I didn’t answer. Something about the woman’s words lodged deep in my chest.
The drinks came shortly after.
I didn’t drink mine right away. My stomach twisted with something that wasn’t hunger. Amira lifted her mug and took a long sip, sighing contentedly
“You’re not drinking?”
5:07 PM J
Chapter 67
“I’m not thirsty.”
She tilted her head. “You think it’s poisoned?”
“Wouldn’t put it past you.”
She rolled her eyes. “If I wanted you dead, you’d already be bleeding out.”
“Lovely.”
I stared down at my mug. The liquid inside was darker than it should’ve been. It didn’t smell like the usual brew. Something about it felt… wrong.
I leaned back, calling the waitress over.
“Yes, miss?”
“Who poured this?”
The waitress blinked. “Bartender.”
And who told him to?”
She hesitated. “A man. I thought he was with your group.”
My skin went cold. “What did he look like?”
“Tall. Hooded. Didn’t say much.”
That was enough.
I stood, and the waitress took the mug quickly, nodding and rushing off.
Amira looked unimpressed. “Overdramatic, much?”
i sat back down slowly, heart thudding. “Someone tried to poison me.”
Amira shrugged. “Welcome to the club.”
“You don’t care?”
“Of course I care. I just don’t panic over every little thing.”
“This wasn’t little.”
“Then maybe next time don’t piss off half the continent.”
I stood and walked to the bar. The guards were already talking to the bartender, who was pale and stammering.
“He gave me silver,” the man said. “Told me to make sure the girl drank it all.”
“What was in it?” I asked.
The man swallowed. “Taintroot.”
My blood went cold.
Taintroot was a slow poison. Not deadly unless taken in excess, but it made you weak. Sluggish. Vulnerable.
Perfect for someone traveling into dangerous territory.
I thanked him, turned on my heel, and walked straight back to Amira.
She looked up at me, bored, “Well?”
“Someone tried to make me weak.”
She smiled faintly. “And it failed?
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5:07 PM &
Chapter 67
“For now.”
“I would have wanted it
to
happen to you again.” Amira said with a dmile.
I frowned at her. “Were
you the
one who caused it?”
Amira rolled her eyes, tossing her cloak onto the table, “If I wanted you dead, you’d be dead, Liana. I’m not that sloppy.”
I snorted, “Oh, right. You’re so refined now. Throwing poisoned drinks in taverns like some noble assassin. And sorry you have always been sloppy.”
She shrugged, “We make mistakes. I have other ideas, missy. Not just poison. But you’re not worth the effort yet.”
I turned away from her, jaw tight. “You know, there’s something broken in you.”
She laughed. “And yet you keep following me around. Weird, isn’t it? We always find ourselves in the same situation.”
I didn’t respond.
I grabbed my satchel and left to collect the key for the make a point. make
room,
1, not
bothering to slam the door but making sure it shut hard enough to
The room she gave me had been nothing short of a rat–infested storage closet. Barely a window.
One thin blanket. Probably a dead rat in the wall.
I marched down the creaking stairs of the tavern, my boots tapping out sharp little notes of irritation.
“Can I help you, miss?” The tavern keeper looked up from polishing a glass.
“I need a room,” I said. “A real one. With a bed. And no fungus growing in the corners.”
He blinked, then nodded quickly. “Of course. Ten silver.”
I didn’t even hesitate. I slapped the coin on the counter and followed him down another corridor. This room had a small hearth, a decent window, and smelled like herbs, not mold. Much better.
I pushed the door close, took a long breath, and peeled off the outer layers of my clothes until I was down to just a simple shift. I sat on the edge of the bed, letting the silence fall over me.
And yet I still didn’t sleep.
The mattress was comfortable enough. The air was cool, not too cold. But my thoughts didn’t rest. Every time I shut my eyes, something stirred behind them–Brielle’s blood, Amira’s smug voice, the looming trip to the rebel lands.
I got up and walked to the window.
The moon was out.
Round. Full. Glowing softly through a thin veil of clouds.
I stared at it for a long time. Not thinking. Not doing anything. Just… existing.
And then, just at the edge of the courtyard below, I saw something move.
A shadow–two, actually.
I blinked. My room wasn’t supposed to have a view of the entrance, but from this angle, I could see part of the alley that curved around the tavern’s back wall.
Amira was there.
I stiffened
She stood beside someone cloaked, tall, and hooded. They were too close. Her hands moved with practiced grace as she handed him something–a folded letter, maybe. Or coins, I wasn’t sure
He said something. She nodded. Their voices were too quiet to hear, but their posture was tense. Not casual. Not friendly. Business.
3/4
5:07 PM
Chapter 67
Dangerous business.
I moved back from the window instinctively. I shouldn’t be watching this.
But I couldn’t stop.
Amira leaned in, her fingers grazing the man’s arm in a way that looked far too familiar. She whispered something into his ear.
He didn’t react.
Then she turned and walked away lik
e nothing had happened, pulling her cloak up again, disappearing back into the tavern through the side door.
The man stayed for a second longer.
Still,
Watching.
Not her.
Not
Up.
Toward my window.
B
