CROSSROADS- Shattered Trust

 The cobbled path leading to the inn felt more like a gauntlet than cobblestones under Amara's weary feet. Every muscle sang with a dull throb, a mere echo of the storm raging within her. Days, she had been gone for days, a prisoner within the very walls that promised refuge. Now, the once welcoming inn felt like a ghost, its familiarity tinged with uncertainty.

 Pushing open the familiar oak door, Amara stumbled towards the bed, collapsing onto it like a felled tree, the accumulated exhaustion overwhelming her. Sleep, when it finally came, was a restless thing, filled with the echoes of betrayal and a gnawing sense of unease. A few hours later, a jarring rap at the door shattered the uneasy peace.

 Cautiously, Amara cracked the door open, a sliver revealing Bain's face. Relief warred over her but that wasn't reflected on Bain's face.

"Amara!" His voice betrayed a mix of relief and something tenser. "Seems things didn't go as planned looking at your face! So, what exactly happened for you to disappear for days without a single word."

Letting him in, Amara sank onto a nearby stool. "I…" she began, her voice rough from disuse, "I was captured. Kearl… wasn't the solution I'd hoped for."

The annoyance that flickered across Bain's face morphed into something akin to frustration. "Well, be glad you're out. Impressive escape, by the way," he said, his tone clipped. "Though…" he trailed off, "looks like I got stuck holding the bag on this one."

His words stung. It seems he was more concerned about the inconvenience of her capture rather than her well-being'?' But before she could voice her thoughts, Bain continued, his voice returning to its brisk efficiency.

"Regardless," he said, "we can't stay here. The palace guards will likely be on the lookout. So, what's our next move?"

"Honestly," Amara admitted, her voice barely a whisper, "I don't know." She rubbed her temples, the weight of the situation pressing down on her. "Things got messier than anticipated, making even my backup plan – Duchess Elara – seem… obsolete." With the royal family involved, it will indeed be near impossible for Elara to help after weighting the possible price to pay.

A frown etched itself onto Bain's face. Duchess Elara was indeed a powerful ally, and losing her support was a significant setback but was that all there was to his worried face? The silence grew heavy, filled with unspoken questions and a growing sense of distrust.

The journey back to Skyer Duchy was an embroidery of tension. Amara, still recovering both physically and emotionally, found herself constantly scrutinizing Bain's every move. His once easygoing demeanor had shifted, replaced by a guardedness that mirrored her own. Their conversations felt stilted, with each word punctuated by unspoken doubts.

As they neared the familiar borders of the duchy, a cold dread coiled in Amara's stomach. What awaited her there? Will she be able to get in and out unnoticed? But more importantly, was Kylea safe and sound?

 Their arrival at the territory was met with a chilling silence. Bain finally broke the silence by excusing himself, saying he had stuff to take from his house before they set back out, and telling her to wait at the tavern. Amara, weary from the journey and wary of his sudden urgency, reluctantly agreed.

 Left to her own devices, she entered the labyrinthine halls of the Duchy, each step heavier than the previous as she walked to the familiar tavern. A gnawing unease gnawed at her. With a heavy heart, she pushed open the door.

The tavern, bustling with life at night, felt strangely empty during the day. Morwen, behind the bar, looked up, her face etched with a mixture of concern and worry.

"Ayra," Morwen greeted, her voice laced with concern. "Welcome back. Seeing you here means…?"

"Kylea…" Amara eagerly followed the question hanging heavy in the air.

 Morwen sighed, a long, weary sigh that spoke volumes. " She's not here anymore, Kylea left shortly after recovering." her voice trailed off, a flicker of something akin to exasperation crossing her eyes.

 Disappointment gnawed at Amara as she paced the confines of Kylea's room at the tavern. The lingering warmth of Kylea's presence only amplified the emptiness of the space now. She replayed their last conversation in her mind, searching for any hidden clues, any sign of where Kylea might have gone.

Suddenly, the door creaked open, revealing Morwen's tense face. Her usually warm demeanor was replaced by a mixture of anger and worry.

"Ayra...?!" Morwen began, her voice tight with barely concealed emotion, "I… I thought you were already gone. What's the meaning behind your presence here?"

Amara stopped pacing, her brow furrowing in confusion. "Gone? But… Kylea? Where is she?"

Morwen hesitated, a flicker of frustration crossing her eyes. "But she's not here, child. Ah! She did leave a message saying she had an errand to run, but…" Morwen's voice trailed off, a slight tremor creeping in.

"But what?" Amara pressed, her apprehension growing. "Did she say anything about where she was going? or when she'd be back?"

Morwen shook her head, her gaze flickering to the window as if expecting someone to burst in at any moment. "No, nothing specific. Just that she needed to handle something… a loose end, she called it."

 Amara felt a cold dread pool in her stomach. "A loose end?" What loose end? And why hadn't Kylea confided in her? A seed of doubt, planted earlier by Bain's cryptic behavior, began to sprout in her mind. Could something have happened to Kylea? Was she in danger? or did she get caught by Edgar?

Seeing Amara's worried and hesitant face woke the frustration that had been simmering on Morwen's face., "If you couldn't trust me, why leave her here in the first place?" she said, her voice rising slightly.

Amara flinched at the accusation, stung by the implication of betrayal. "Morwen," she began, her voice calm despite the rising storm within her. "Believe me, I… I do trust. But things… they've gotten quite complicated. I can't explain everything, but I need to find Kylea. She might be in trouble."

Morwen's gaze softened, replaced by a deep concern for both Amara and Kylea. "Trouble? What kind of trouble?" she asked, her voice dropping back to a hushed whisper.

 Amara hesitated, unsure how much she could reveal without putting herself at Morwen's mercy. She decided to focus on what they did know. "Kylea and I were target by an unknown assassin; the source of the poison you cured." she confided, recounting notes of what happened that night while avoiding what shouldn't be said.

 Morwen listened keenly, her eyes widening with each new detail. "Now, she's missing with no clues to her whereabouts, what do you think?" as she finished a flicker of amazement crossed Morwen's face.

"T-that's quite the ordeal to get out of…" she murmured. Then with slight hesitation she added, "Now that you mention this, there have been whispers… rumors of suspicious individuals, roaming the underground of this kingdom lately."

Amara felt a surge of hope. Could this be a 'loose end' to get closer to the truth? The truth of her brother' ambitions? Or the dealings behind her current predicament? But then, a chilling thought struck her.

"What kind of individual exactly, Morwen?" Amara pressed; her voice laced with dawning horror.

 Morwen met her gaze, a mixture of curiosity and concern hardening her features. "I don't know for sure… 'Ayra'? But whoever they are, they're a dangerous group. Not the type to go after simple… maids and servants? But I'm not so interested your identity, just warning you they're a group that not even house Skyer can handle alone."

The weight of this realization settled heavily on Amara's shoulders. Fear gnawed at her, but it was eclipsed by a fierce determination to find Kylea. They were in this together, and Amara wouldn't rest until she knew her friend was safe.

However, their conversation was abruptly cut short as the tavern door burst open with a bang. A contingent of Skyer Duchy guards, their faces grim, marched in, led by none other than Amara's stepmother, Ophelia.

"Amara Skyer," Ophelia's voice dripped with icy disdain, "you are under arrest for treason and endangering the security of the Duchy."

Amara stared at them, her mind reeling. Treason? How could they accuse her of such a thing? A flicker of movement caught her eye. Bain stood behind Ophelia and the guards, a pitiful look playing on his face.