The Kingdom of Secrets and Ruin
Chapter 25

Dalliah

The stew bought for me by Ruairi sits in my stomach like lead, I barely taste it over the roaring of my pulse and the bitterness of the cider. I know what it is to be hungry and poor now, so even if it isn’t ideal, I force myself to finish it all. Who knows when the next time I eat will be?

Staying here, I realise, isn’t an option anymore. Even if he was kind enough to give me his room. The last room, you know, the one dangerously close to being our room. No that is a path I do not have the time or energy to go down just now.

Just thinking about the look he gave me while processing the news is enough to redden my cheeks. I mean, I’ve read enough books to know what goes on with men and women behind closed doors, only I have no intention of finding out first-hand.

I’m grateful he shut that down, that he didn’t want me that way because now it means I can escape this. Whoever Tedric is, one of his lords I think, could contact him at any moment giving my lie away and for the life of me I can’t think of an explanation that doesn’t end in punishment.

From weeks of listening to gossip in the servant’s hall, I’ve heard tales of people trying to leave the castle before without serving notice. Apparently, my father would remove their hands, claiming they were stealing what was his labour by right. If that’s what he’d do, I’d bet it’s tame in comparison to the Red King.

In the room i’m guided to, I make quick work of taking one of the throws from the bed and wrapping it tightly around my shoulders as if to mimic a cloak. If I’m to stay out there tonight, I’ll need some way of keeping warm and I almost falter in my plan, if it weren’t for the thought of Nameless.

He’ll still be out there, wandering, hunting and maybe looking for me. The idea has me decided. There’s no way I could lead him here when there’s the chance of danger.

Nobody looks up as I make my way back down the stairs and out the front door. The smell of stale beer and batches of lamb stew is quickly replaced with the sharp sting of sea salt and surprisingly I find myself preferring the latter.

The wind has picked up a lot more in comparison to earlier, so I scrunch up my shoulders as I walk to try and take some of the cold from my neck. Growing up I was always frustrated with my thick curly hair, but right now I couldn’t love it more, as it’s doing a fair job of keeping my head warm.

I start calling his name towards the edge of town, closest to the water. Thinking that maybe I’ll be able to work my way in, and as the night grows colder I’ll then be more sheltered. Only I failed to realise until now how large this place is, and the edge in question doesn’t seem to end.

Not many things seem to respond to the whispered yells of ‘Nameless’ but I do come across a few drunkards, more of those ruthless seagulls and a cat that unfortunately isn’t my own.

My fingers are numb from clutching the throw tightly around myself and I still have no idea what I’ll actually do when I find him. Maybe hide out somewhere, sharing his warmth and hitching a ride with some of the local fishermen when dawn gets closer?

Enquiring about how to board a larger ship is something I have yet to tackle, but even just making my way to another place is better than staying here with the threat of Ruairi lurking.

How long will it be before he realises I’m gone? Hopefully, I’ve got until morning but it seems that my luck has taken a turn.

A larger pier than the one I saw before is to my right as I make my way past the last stretch of buildings on this outer ring of town. My teeth are chattering violently at this point and the hope of finding my furry friend is dwindling quickly.

“Nameless!” My voice is hoarse as I speak and through the wind, I doubt anyone could hear me even if they were standing by my side.

I close my eyes in exasperation, wondering if losing a hand is worth the price of a warm bed after all, when a yawl behind me snaps them back open. Dark brown fur, the colour of chocolate peppered with white patches comes into my vision and for a second it’s blurred from the tears of relief that come to me.

“You scared me!” I accuse half-heartedly as I lean down to pick him up.

His fur is almost as cold as my skin as he nestles in but I wouldn’t care if he were a block of ice, just so long as I have him and know that he’s okay.

“Let’s find some shelter,” I coo aloud to soothe us both as I walk. The joy of finding him has given me a second wind it seems and I feel less hopeless in my mission to make it through the night.

The sky is clear above us and the moon shines down on the uneven ground beneath my feet. I barely had time to appreciate its beauty before but now I have the opportunity to glance up every now and again. It’s hard to believe that it’s the same moon I’d see back at the castle, and for a moment I’m so transfixed that I don’t see the rat until Nameless does.

For the second time today, he leaps out of my arms and after the poor creature that shouldn’t have crossed our path. I shout after him, telling him to come back but it’s no use and I have no choice but to follow after.

Cold air is trapped under my throw as I fling my arms to the side while I run. It’s not a strength of mine, it’s fair to say, and my lungs scream at me to stop and slow down. The two animals make their way towards the pier, the last place I want to be just now and with every step on top of it, I feel the wet wood threatening to slip me up.

The tide has made its way in closer, waves crashing against the sand with more passion than I expected, and I fear for what will happen if we’re not careful.

They’re already at the end by the time I get to the middle of the pier, and through the darkness, I can make out the leap each of them makes onto one of the tiny boats. I can’t express how thankful I am for the fact that he made the jump safely.

Knowing that they have nowhere to go now, I allow my legs to slow down, to approach the terrain more carefully and more importantly catch my breath. As I get closer I can hear their squabbling over the sounds of the waves and it surprises me to find them still playing this out. But right now is so not the time, we should be resting to get ready for tomorrow, not fighting.

“Nameless come up here now,” I yell, using the sternest voice I have in my arsenal, but it doesn’t work and he barely looks up from his prey.

“I mean it, don’t make me come down there.” I threaten, only to receive a similar response. “Fine!”

I mutter angrily to myself as I reach over to grab one of the wooden spikes poking up from the floor of the pier. The rope of the boat is tied securely around it and my legs shake as I position myself to leap over the small gap.

Only as I make my jump, a gust of wind knocks into me, pushing back some of the momentum I needed and rather than landing right in the middle like I anticipated, I slip on the edge of the boat and fall to the freezing waters.

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