Beautiful Beast

Chapter 30

ARAWN

Bristly whiskers tickle my cheek, and I push the muzzle away. "Not now, Hector. Let me sleep."

Sleep?

With a start, my eyes fly open, and I push myself up. Desperately, I scan my surroundings for Kalista, but she is nowhere to be seen. I scramble to my feet and rub the sore muscles at the back of my neck.

What happened? I remember walking through the garden with Kalista and then she gave me the rose and kissed me and... That's all. After that, there is nothing.

"Why did she do this?" I look to Hector who is casually nibbling at the bark of a tree, but of course, he pays me no heed. He is saddled, and it appears as if the saddlebags have been filled with items.

I stride to the saddles bags and fling one of them open. It holds a flask of water, a few strips of dried deer meat, and a set of clean clothing. Irritatedly, I stalk to the other side. My sword and crossbow hang here as well, but before arming myself, I open the second saddlebag. I curse under my breath at its contents. It holds my violin, the enchanted rose that Kalista gave me, and the mirror. It is the last item that startles me most. Kalista would only give me the mirror if she no longer needed it, and there is only one reason why she would not need it.

Hastily, I untie Hector's reins and lift myself into the saddle. My eyes search the forest for the thickest part, but everything looks the same. I circle Hector about and mentally will the forest to open a path for me. Something is different. For a second time, I turn Hector about and this time, I can feel it. It is the magic. In the heart of the forest, it is like a thick fog that sweeps through the trees, but here, only wisps of it remain.

She brought me to the outskirts—as far away from the palace as possible.

Squeezing Hector's sides, I urge him into the trees. Only a short distance away from where I woke up, I notice a season—a real season rather than one of the four timeless seasons of the enchanted forest. It looks to be the first month of summer which means I have been away from home for at least two months. By now, they must be wondering where I am. But I cannot go back to them yet. This awful curse must be dealt with first.

We wander about for some time, but it is not long before I am sure we have returned to the place where we began. I growl in frustration and try again. This time, after a short while, I catch sight of a flash of colour between the green leaves. Cautiously, I approach, but before I am able to determine what it is, two men burst from the foliage. They hold crossbows and one of them shouts, "Halt. State your name and purpose."

At his impertinent tone, my spine instantly straightens, and my face pulls into a strict expression. "On whose authority do you demand this?" To my surprise, they wear Ventura uniforms. Did my father send them to find me? It seems strange that they are Ventura soldiers and do not recognize their own prince.

"By the authority of King Stefan," barks one of the soldiers.

At a slight touch of my heels, Hector prances menacingly and in response, the soldiers fidget. "And I am Arawn Stefan Braedor, Prince of Ventura, Duke of Kenton."

Both men become slack-jawed and their eyes grow wide, taking in my clothing, my expression, the sword positioned at my hip, and Hector's fiery demeanour. They see a prince because that is what I want them to see. It is strange how easy it was to recover this role. I thought perhaps it would take time to assume my status again, but I suppose there are things you never forget. And in this, I am starkly reminded of Kalista. Is this not what she does? She wears her robes of nobility when she has need of them as well, but that is not who she is.