Mystic

Chapter 21

Taryn woke up slumped against the wall, a quickly written and smudged letter to her estranged brother resting in her hand. Both Andre and Zeph were already up, dressed and ready to start the day.

"Did you sleep well?" Andre asked, fixing the cuff of his sleeve.

Taryn rubbed her eyes. "I guess so." She said, folding the letter as she stood up. "I'm going to head into town, there's something I need to deliver. Do you know if Lucien's men have arrived yet?"

"They came in a few hours ago. If Lucien is with them, he's here."

"Then I should get going."

"We'll join you soon." Andre said. "The more of us there is, the quicker we can go through the guards."

The three ventured down the stairs and out of the inn. Taryn held the letter tightly in her hand.

"Start looking around, I'll take the town square. Come get me if you find anything."

Andre and Zeph nodded and the three split up.

Taryn rushed through the crowd of new people, keeping her head low. She checked the faces of the guards, recognizing only a few of them. She turned corners and tried to get a look at as many people as she could. She turned a corner and ran into someone, knocking them to the ground.

She brushed her hair out of her face. It was the messenger boy.

"Here," She said, sticking out her hand. He gladly took it and she hoisted him onto his feet.

"Thank you," He said.

Taryn glanced down at the letter in her other hand. "I need to deliver something, could you do that for me?"

"Of course."

She handed him the letter. "It needs to be taken to the castle. It's for the Crown Prince."

The boy nodded. "May I ask why?"

She paused. "Tell him it's from an old friend."

The boy turned to leave but she grabbed onto his shoulder, stopping him.

"Yes?" He asked.

She sighed, reaching into her bag to pull out the sack of coins that was his. "I believe this is yours."

The boy stared at it for a moment before looking back up at her. "I think you should keep it, your highness."

Taryn didn't have the time to hide her surprise, yet she still pretended to not know what he was talking about. "I'm sorry, I'm not--"

He cut her off. "I've seen the prince, he doesn't have a lot of friends. I also know that you look a lot like him. Besides, I've already been reimbursed."

Taryn was dumbfounded. If this kid had already managed to figure out who she was, who else could find out who she really was. While he was here, she had to ask one more question. "Is Lucien with these guards?"

"I'm sorry, I don't know. No one has seen him, but it's possible he's trying to keep a low profile. He is practically the king."

Taryn didn't like that thought, but she didn't say anything.

The boy nodded and waved her goodbye before he headed down the street. Taryn stood there for a moment, dumbfounded, the money sitting in her hand. She shook her head, remembering that any of these guards might recognize her. She kept walking, trying to keep a low profile as she scanned the crowd. Still, nothing.

She turned a corner when she locked eye contact with him. Mattias was standing as proud and tall as always. Taryn froze in her place, her instincts telling her to run, yet she stood still.