Undesirable

Sneak Peek: A Knife's Edge

The Lower Tier is freezing. With every step our horses take, the frost that lingers in the air sinks deeper into my bones, nipping my skin like vultures picking apart a rotting carcass. I can't help but shiver against Valeria's body as we ride along the road, a fact she has found very amusing since we first set off. She keeps teasing me, asking 'has Kanan scared you so much that you're literally quaking in your sandals', before bursting into another fit of laughter. It's easy for her to make jokes, every inch of her body is drenched in furs and leather, whilst I'm stuck with this stupid frilly gown. It boiled me up on the Higher Tier, but on the Lower I'd have to wear hundreds to even come close to a similar temperature. I'd prefer it if fright from Kanan was the reason for my shivering. It would be easier to control.

"How far to the settlement?" I ask, my words transforming into white mist as they pass my lips. Even my voice is jittering from the cold temperature.

"I didn't think you'd be so eager to slum it with the Resistance, Lady Pernice?" Valeria chirps, her smirk evident in her voice. "Are we no longer the disease you first thought us to be?"

Oh no, they are still as chaotic as they've always been, I won't change my mind about that. However, I'm hoping when we reach their settlement, they will have food and clothes to spare, as well as somewhere I can have a wash. Three days of running, trekking through a village of ash, and being chased around tunnels by a murderous prince didn't exactly leave you clean. Plus, the dirt irritated the burn on my arm from the acid rain. The quicker I can get it clean, the less likely I am to get an infection.

"It should only take us another hour," Kel informs me, shooting a warning glare across to his friend. Valeria rolls her eyes in response.

"How did you know where we were going to be?" Cesare, sat behind Kel, questions them. The cold doesn't seem to bother him as much it does me, but this isn't his first visit down here, so it won't have been such a shock to the system.

"Matteo sent word ahead of you. He said which exit you'd be at and told us to come to your rescue," Kel replies. "Looks like we got there just in time too. How long were you trapped there for?"

"Not too long," Cesare informs them, "we just managed to escape Kanan before you arrived." The thought of what could have happened if they hadn't saved us when they did makes me feel nauseous, and images of Kanan's torture methods flash in my mind like fireworks. He would have made it as drawn out and painful as possible, relishing in every scream and squirm, enjoying every second of it. We'd beg him to kill us, but that would only encourage him to keep us alive longer. He truly is the monster that the stories painted him out to be.

"He's not so tough now that the Resistance has chased him off." Valeria laughs. She wouldn't be so arrogant if she ever met him face to face. We may have escaped him this time, but I'm not so eager to cross paths with him again soon. "So, Lady Pernice, what happened to change your mind about joining the Resistance?"

Answering for me, Cesare interjects, "Savanna isn't joining us, she just needs a place to stay."

"She's freeloading, then," Valeria scoffs.

"No, she's my wife. Where I live, she lives," He states. That's the second time Cesare's used the term without it being an introduction. Even Valeria and Kel look surprised by the sincerity behind his words, as if they hold meaning to him. It's a marriage of convenience to us, of course, but Matteo's claims start playing in my mind. 'No matter how one-sided the marriage may be'. Cesare is just looking out for me, I'm sure, but I can't help but wonder what Matteo was alluding to.

"Does Freyja know we're here?" He continues, abruptly changing the subject.

"I wouldn't be shocked if she's getting ready to throw you a parade," Kel says, stifling a small laugh. "Through, I don't think she will be expecting your wife to be with you."

"And just when I thought things were getting boring down here," Valeria snarls.

"You said Matteo sent word," Cesare states.

"He did, but he only mentioned you," Valeria answers, her amused expression burning brighter. "I guess he didn't want to spoil the surprise."

Surprise? Does anyone on the settlement know about me? I find it hard to believe Valeria has kept the news of Cesare's marriage a secret. This may only be the second time we've met, but she doesn't seem like the type of person who would do something out of the kindness of her heart. So, there has to be another reason for her to keep her mouth shut.

"Why does everyone keep saying I'm going to cause trouble?" I ask, hoping at least one of them will tell me the truth.

Kel replies, "Don't let Valeria bother you, she just likes to wind people up." Not giving me the answer that I wanted.

"But Matteo said it too," I add, refusing to back down so easily. "If there is something you're not telling me, don't you think it would be better for me to know now, instead of walking in blind?" My mistrust for the Resistance hadn't stopped me from agreeing to go to the settlement, so they must know that there is very little that will get me to change my mind now. They destroyed my father's life, after all. If I could look past that, I can look past anything.

"There is nothing to tell, Savanna," Cesare insists. "I promise."

I want to trust him, but over the past couple of months, he hasn't shown me he's entirely trustworthy. He's always hiding something, keeping information out of sight, in hope that I will never find out. Every instinct in my body is telling me this situation is the same and I'm about to walk into a den of lions, unarmed and unprotected, with no way out.

May the gods watch over me, as it seems that nobody else will.