Chapter Twelve: What we forbid

Baila

I was anxious.

It was not a new feeling neither was it uncommon to me. In fact, I could not remember ever going more than a week in my life without the usual feeling of anxiety gnawing at my chest and causing me to sweat like the sun was right above my head.

I paced the room, biting my nails as I waited for Sara to come to me. I had a vague idea of what the consequences of both I and Sara’s actions were. I understood Nolan’s anger but still, I hoped he would be lenient with Sara.

I could still feel the discomfort I had endured when Aaron walked me to my room minutes ago. He had not said a word to me which was normal but what wasn’t normal was the tension in his stance, the way his jaw ticked with worry and annoyance every time I tripped on the way back to the castle and the fact that he had not glared at me like he usually did. I found it strange and disorienting.

I shook my head.

Aaron’s strange behavior was not important at the moment. My pressing concern was Sara and Nolan’s anger.

My bedroom door swung open and I stiffened, staring at the man who walked into the room. His head was bowed, his hair was unruly like he had run his hand through it a few too many ties. I watched in silence as he closed the door behind him. Nolan pulled a chair from the table in my room and took a seat facing the bed.

He nodded towards the bed and I got the unsaid command. He wanted me to sit. I sat.

Choking silence filled the room as he held me captive with his blue eyes. I held the eye contact, fearful of what would happen if I broke it even for a second.

“When you first came here, I ignored all the rules for your sake,” he begun.

I opened my mouth to speak but Nolan held up a finger, silencing me. I pursed my lips, breaking eye contact and looking away from him. My cheeks burned.

“I did not probe further when you gave me your flimsy excuse for coming over the wall, for trespassing into my territory. Even when I knew that every word you said was a lie, I did not probe.”

My heart lurched against her ribs. Could he know? Had the high king finally sent out letters, demanding for my head?

“I know exactly what you are and yet I have never……not once called you out. I have feigned ignorance so your stay here is comfortable. I took you in out of the kindness of my heart, nothing more. You’re like an infection. Befriending my friends, leading them astray, leading them wayward.”

“Sara is not wayward,” I whispered in Sara’s defence. Sara was everything good and I loved that about her. She was not wayward or a bad person and what we had both done was not wrong. It was a simple swim in the lake.

“You defend her the same way she defended you,” he shook his head. “Did you cast a spell on Sara too?”

I gasped, surprised. There he went, accusing me of spell casting again.

“Sara too?” I asked.” Have I cast a spell on someone else?”

Nolan’s eyes went wide. He looked like he had said something he was not supposed to. I could not figure out what. He stood to his feet, pushing the chair backwards. It hit the wall with so much force that it broke into a million pieces. I flinched at the sound of splintering wood.

Nolan was more than angry. He was enraged.

“As of today, you will stay in your room. Far away from Sara. You will not leave this room until I say so. Your meals will be brought here along with any other thing you might need. I have stationed two guards outside your door. They’ve been ordered to cut you down if you so much as step an inch close to the door. I will not hesitate to kill you. You are an intruder, you are a witch and the first thing I should have done when you came over that wall was order your execution but I did not and it was a fool’s mistake, one I will not repeat again. So for your own sake, I advise you stay here while I decide what next to with you.” he ranted, storming towards the door.

Nolan paused. “If you’re foolish enough to step out,” he breathed, pushing the door open so I could see two armed guards standing outside my room. “my guards will be waiting to kill you,”

He slammed the door shut on his way out. I trembled as I collapsed into one of the chairs at my table. I needed to run. I needed to leave. He had no knowledge of what I had done and he was already threatening death. What would he do to me if he came to know?

A knock on my door was followed by a petite maid carrying a tray of food which she hurriedly set before me. I used this as my chance to find out if Sara was fine.

“Do you know the healer?” I questioned.

The maid bit her lip, avoiding my stare as she arranged the food on the table. Had Nolan ordered the servants to be silent around me as well? I would not be surprised if he had.

“Please……”

”I know Sara.” the maid replied, plopping into the wooden chair across me. “She has not returned from the tavern. I doubt she will be back soon,”

“You’re comfortable for a maid,” I observed. The maid had leaned back in the chair and crossed her leg. Her initial innocent facade had vanished.

“I knew it the moment I walked in. Those rumours of you being Sara’s dancer friend from some far away village are lies. You’re a witch,”

I swallowed, tapping my foot beneath the table. “What do you want?” I asked.

“I am Samani. My grandmother was a witch too but I did not inherit her gift,” the maid explained, pouring herself a goblet of wine and gulping it down in one go. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and smiled. “It breaks me into countless pieces to see witches pursued and slaughtered. You are my people after all. Which is why I have come to offer advice. You should enter the bride trials, win and become Queen of Northwood. If you do this, witches….we’ll be untouchable,”

I almost laughed. There was no way in the seven hells that I would ever willingly marry Nolan. I could not stand him. Not anymore and eternity with him would be the end of my world. Besides, I doubted I would win. Nolan would kill me if I entered the bride trial.

“I am grateful for your counsel but I think I’ll remain faithful to the unmarried life,” I shrugged.

Samani nodded, rising to her feet. “I have offered great advice. I’m curious to see what you will do with it. This is not the end,”

I laughed this time. “The only important thing to me is staying alive,”

“I know,” Samani replied. “Sara is at the Rogers tavern. You can jump out the window. There’s a really tall tree outside. From here on, you’ll fear for more than your life,”

My heart fluttered in my chest at Samani’s words. Samani spoke like an elderly woman who had passed away three years ago in next to my home. She had been my closest friend but there was one thing about her the witches feared.

She was a seer

And so was Samani.