Page 27 of Lady Knight and the Thief

“No, Lass. It’s not. It’s the truth. The First Kings weren’t really the first, either,” he remarked, then grabbed his bow.

“Now I know you’re trying to deceive me.”

Torren shook his head at her, as if she had failed some test. “I’ll be back soon, Lass. Don’t leave the ring.”

“Why can’t I leave it now? You’ve never said it before.”

“We’re close enough to the Wylds now that you can never be sure what roams the woods. A pretty human like yourself is like the sweetest bait, dangling on a wire to many of my kind.”

Cypress gritted her teeth, but nodded nonetheless. Torren disappeared through the trees, and then she was alone again, resigned to build a fire and bake some of the quick rock bread that paired well with fresh game.

By the time she had mixed the milled grains and the last bit of butter she’d portioned since coming across a market a few daysback, Torren was once again stepping through the trees, carrying a smallish hare in his hand.

“That smells good,” He mumbled, seemingly to himself, as he placed the hare on one of the wide, flat stones near the edge of the tree ring. Torren worked in silence as he skinned and dressed the animal, while Cypress watched the rock breads cook, flipping them as necessary. When she was done, she retrieved the sachets of spices and herbs from the saddlebags to sprinkle over the meat before it went over the fire.

Cypress waited until the hare was impaled on the spit, roasting above the flames with herbs crackling and filling the small copse of trees with a heady aroma that made her stomach growl before she probed Torren for more information about the Wylds.

“So, clearly, my knowledge of the creatures and…peopleof the Wylds is somewhat lacking. Tell me everything I need to know.”

Torren huffed a laugh. “That’s a tall order, Lass.”

Cypress didn’t return the laugh, letting the crackle of the fire fill the silence instead.

“What do you want to know?” Torren asked after glancing at her over the flames.

“Everything. What is the hunt? What’s awakening? I can guarantee that no one within the keep knows that villages are being raided. I am in charge of Cade’s guard. If such a threat were out there, I would be the first to know. So, tell me what’s really happening out here, on the edges of the country.”

Torren narrowed his storm gray eyes. “I told you. The Wylds whisper that the Old Ones are awakening.”

“Which ones?”

He shook his head. “The things that have been sleeping in the Wylds are far older than any name humans have given them. The Old Ones once commanded the whole of Faerie, holding dominion over all life. The Hunt went on for an age, the winged hounds howled endlessly into the night as another soul wasclaimed by the Hunt. If the Old One wakes, the king will not be king for much longer.”

“And this scepter… keeps the old ones asleep?”

Torren rolled his neck, then rotated the spit before answering. “It will keep the Wylds safe.”

“That is not necessarily the same thing,” Cypress said, narrowing her eyes at him.

“If I keep the Wylds safe, so shall be the human lands,” Torren replied, the words rolling off his tongue in a practiced, measured cadence.

“How so?” Cypress challenged. “Won’t theOld Oneswant to reclaim their rule over all of us? Won’t the hunt cover the entire continent, not just be contained within the Wylds?”

“If I can make the Wylds safe for Faerie, none of the Old Ones will bother with the Humans,” he said, again avoiding directly answering the question.

Cypress let it drop for now, instead attacking a different angle. “Why are the Fair Folk emerging from the Wylds now?”

“Something has already awoken.”

Cypress narrowed her eyes. “Whatsomething?”

“Giants, and other things.”

“How am I to know you’re not lying?”

“I’m not the only liar here, Lass.”

“Then swear you’re not lying to me.”