Page 56 of Demure
Sierra swore she could hear Aislan’s smirk even in the pitch black of the boulder interior. “Oh, right in the castle under my father’s nose. That’s actually the best part of all of this. He kicked me out, giving me a few hours to gather my things. Instead, I gathered a few guard uniforms, and now I live in the barracks with the rest of the guards.”
She remembered the night after the second ritual, when she had sworn she had seen Aodhan’s eyes but thought it was just because of the blood loss. “I knew I had seen you before.”
Aislan laughed. “I do my best to avoid Conlan, because he would know in an instant if he saw. But it turns out it's reasonably easy to get assigned to the dungeon and stable duty, as most guards prefer to be inside rather than dealing with the elements.”
Well, that explained how he knew about the dungeon door.
“Won’t they notice you are missing the next couple of days?”
“No. We get a certain amount of leave each year, so I am currently visiting my family as far as they know.”
Aislan stood from where he was sitting next to her, leaning toward the crevice in the boulder. “It’s almost time. Are you ready?”
Sierra nodded. “Yes, do I need to carry a pack?”
“No. If I left with two, that would be suspicious. So, I’ll carry the one pack we have for the both of us.”
Sierra rose to a standing position, only to grimace as the rocksdug into her feet. “You didn’t bring shoes by any chance, did you?”
Aislan groaned. “I forgot you were barefoot.”
Sierra wracked her brain for what they could possibly do about the no-shoe situation. While she wasn’t against going barefoot, she knew it would slow them down as she picked her way over rocks and other things on the ground. Plus, she had seen the forest on either side of the river. It hadn’t exactly seemed like a safe place for going barefoot.
“Let me feel your feet.”
Sierra agreed, and Aislan leaned down, feeling every side of her feet. Sierra realized he was taking a form of crude measurements.
“Alright, I have an idea. You stay here. I’ll be back soon.”
“Okay, be careful.”
“I will,” Aislan replied before slipping through the crevice and into the dark night.
Chapter Thirty-Two
It felt like hours later, even though it was more likely that only a few minutes had passed, when Aislan slipped back into the crevice in the boulder later that evening. He pressed two firm but delicate forms into Sierra’s hands, paired with a quick apology.
“There weren’t many options that would fit you. These are slippers, but they will protect your feet from the ground a little, at least.”
Sierra assured him it was alright as she slipped them on her feet. After the events of the last few days, the last thing she was going to complain about was the availability of suitable footwear for their midnight forest trek as fugitives.
Sierra began to rise to her feet, testing the shoes. While they weren’t the thickest, they would at least protect her from thorns and rocks as they traversed the forest, and they fit her well enough. She moved toward the crevice in the boulder, but Aislan stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.
“I have to warn you. Because we don’t eat animals here in Sidhe, they aren’t as scared of people as they are in your world, and it is likely we will see quite a few. Some of the breeds that existhere are large. Most of them are harmless. Unless I tell you, never run, as many of the harmful ones are motivated to give chase.”
Sierra gulped.
“In most cases, just stay still. Most of the species we encounter won’t hurt you.”
“But some will?” Sierra’s voice was shaking.
“Yes, but I will direct you in those situations. Most animals are just curious. While there are some predators, they must all be dealt with differently, and we don’t have time to go through all the ways to deal with them before we leave.”
Sierra felt cold fear seeping through her veins, but she knew that if she wanted to survive this world and rescue Aodhan, she didn’t have much choice. She quickly shook out her limbs and flexed her fingers, a tactic she had learned during her undergrad studies to quell test anxiety. Sure, this was much different than an anatomy test, but she hoped it would at least help settle her nerves a little.
“Are you ready?”
“Yes,” Sierra replied, and slipped out into the night. It was a dark night, the moon shrouded by clouds, and Sierra couldn’t see at all. “Is it always this dark?”
