Page 75 of The Iron Hex

Eira stood, tears welling in her eyes. The rest of the townsfolk had drawn closer, standing around Eira in a semicircle. Hugo and Evangeline walked toward her, Hugo touching the small of Eira’s back, a subtle gesture that let her know he was there.

“I’m so sorry,” Eira said to the girl’s grandmother. “You were right to bring her here.”

“It’s not you that needs to apologize, I know what the soldier with you did here. I heard all about it.” The woman’s wrinkled eyes cut to Hugo on a fierce glare.

“She’s right,” he said, shoulders slumped.

Eira looked at the townsfolk, anger blossoming on their faces as they remembered Hugo from all those years ago. The men from the tavern the day before were among them, the group’s anger fueling theirs further.

“What I did was unforgivable,” he continued. “I don’t expect any of you to forgive me for what I did under the Iron Empire’s fist.”

“We should kill you,” one man spit, causing Eira’s heart to race. They didn’t understand; he wasn’t that man anymore.

“I wouldn’t blame you. But I think it would be better to have me fix what I did. I can’t bring your loved ones back, but I can destroy the ones who forced me to do it,” Hugo said, voice laced with so much guilt and shame, but resolute.

“For what? Another Iron Empire to rise?” another man huffed angrily.

“No,” Evangeline said, hesitating as the heads of the townsfolk swiveled as one away from Hugo. She locked eyes with Eira, worry and concern and something else in them as she decided what to say. “For the rightful queen to take the throne.”

Every gaze turned to her, shock on their faces as they processed what she’d said. “What?” the group murmured, confusion and anger and something like excitement building in the air.

Evangeline came forward, and Eira watched the olive-skinned woman transform into royalty with each step she took toward the furious crowd. An echo of recognition ran through Eira’s mind before hiding behind the locked door of memories in her head. “The Iron Empire did not succeed in destroying my family,” Evangeline explained, her voice carrying and ringing clearly over the crowd. “And I intend to return Astra to its true glory, and bring safety back to everyone.” The air stilled as Evangeline’s words hung in the silence, gathering weight. Every single person in the crowd looked like they’d seen a ghost.

It started with one man dropping to one knee, and beforeEira knew it the townsfolk were all kneeling, Evangeline standing at the center of them.

“This hasn’t happened in a while,” the princess muttered through the side of her mouth to Eira.

The townsfolk stood, one by one, watching the three of them. Hugo grasped Eira’s hand, his thumb running nervously over her sensitive palm.

One of the men, just as tall as Hugo and somehow broader, stepped forward and jabbed him in the chest with a thick finger.

“Walk with the weight of what you did, the minute you forgive yourself is the minute you excuse it.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Hugo said, unblinking and unflinching, taking every ounce of what he deserved. “I’ll never forgive myself for what happened here.”

The older woman spoke up. “Where are you going?”

“To Luwha,” Eira answered, and she could feel Hugo glaring daggers at the back of her head, as if she still needed to worry about telling these people where they were going.

“That’s a long, cold ride. Take the blankets and the rations off the horses the knights rode in on,” Catrina, the barmaid, said as she pushed through the growing crowd.

“Are you sure?” Eira asked.

“It’s one less thing we need to clean up.” She brushed her hands as she assessed the crowd around them. Something about the way this woman acted made her seem like the quiet leader of this town.

“We’ll handle this,” Hugo said, gesturing to the bodies.

“No,” Catrina said. “Let us handle our own town. We know where to put the bodies.”

Eira looked at her, wondering for the first time if they had been rebelling in their own way these past three years. About how many people there may be rebelling across Astra, in their own quiet or not so quiet ways. A little girl, still bright with magic, even in a town like this... it gave Eira hope.

“Thank you,” Eira said, placing her hand on Catrina’s shoulder.

“I would say the same to you, but you brought danger to my town, so... fuck off,” she said, smiling and patting Eira’s cheek.

Eira laughed, heartily and from the depths of her chest. It felt like relief, and something else... hope. “Fair,” Eira answered as she turned away, looking back briefly. “Protect the witches you have left. We’re going to need them.”

Catrina nodded as Eira walked to Arthur, Hugo taking supplies from horses the knights had ridden into town on before darting into one of the few shops in the small town. It was at least a four-day ride to Luwha, with few taverns between here and there; they needed to be prepared.