“No one on this godforsaken island cares what your name is, and you best remember that.” He shook his head, curled a finger around a loose strand of my midnight hair, and then tapped me on the forehead. “Think before you act. The next time you kick someone, make certain he won’t kick you back.”
“You didn’t kick me back,” I said through gritted teeth.
“No, I didn’t,” he murmured. “And I’m not the worst this forest has to offer.”
There it was. The truth I’d known but he hadn’t confirmed. There were others out there in the trees, just like Yuto. And if he were to be believed, they were far worse than he was. An unsettling thought. He’d captured me to become a pawn in his own game. If any of the others found me, what would they do?
Kill me? Or something far worse?
“Out of the frying pan and into the fire,” I muttered beneath my breath.
My stomach let out a growl in response to my words. It had been a very long time since I’d had more than scraps. Gnawing hunger had become a constant companion, almost to the point where I’d been able to ignore it. But the hunger became insistent now, demanding to be fed.
Yuto frowned and glanced down at my belly. “When was the last time you ate?”
“A proper meal?” I asked. “Three days ago.”
His lips flatlined. “Mortals cannot survive without food. We must remedy this immediately.”
More questions sprang to my lips, but this time, I swallowed them down. If he planned on getting me some food, I didn’t want to antagonize him. Just in case he decided to use my hunger as a weapon. For some food, I could be quiet. I mean, temporarily, of course.
“How many nuts do you have left?” I asked, glancing at the pack he’d dumped onto the ground.
His lips stretched into an eerie smile. “You’ll be eating far more than nuts tonight.”
I opened my mouth to make a retort, but no sound came out. For once, I couldn’t conjure any words. Yuto took the rope and placed it gently in Cleatus’s mouth, and then disappeared into the woods without another word. My gaze stayed locked on the winding path as the darkness crept in around me.
Narrowing my eyes, I glanced at Cleatus. “He just left me here.”
No answer, not that I expected one.
“Listen, I know you’re not a horse, but you’re very horse-like, right? Fancy giving me a way out of here?” I asked. “We could go galloping off into the sunset? Go somewhere far away from here?”
Silence.
With a shrug, I reached out to grab the rope out of the horse’s mouth, but he jerked away from me before my fingers could make contact. Frowning, I tried grabbing the saddle. The horse trotted backward and dragged me along with him. My feet tumbled out from beneath me, and I plopped heavily onto the dirt. Ouch.
“So, you’re smarter than a regular horse, huh?” I asked. “Think we could make a deal then? I’ll do something for you. Whatever you want. All you have to do is get me away from the dragonlord.”
The horse snorted, and then turned away, putting his rear end right in front of my eyes. His golden tail flicked into my face, stinging my cheek.
“Alright.” I said, swatting him away. “Point taken. You’re not helping me get out of here.”
Cleatus neighed, stomped his foot, and then settled into silence. Without any other options, I spread out on the ground to stare up at the sunset sky, and waited for Yuto’s return. My stomach rumbled once more. At least I would get to eat?
Yuto returned just as the sun disappeared over the horizon. The orange-streaked sky melted into black, transforming the trees into looming shadowy sentinels. They squatted menacingly all around me just waiting to strike. Or maybe that was all the other prisoners Yuto had warned me about.
He stomped into the clearing, a rabbit slung over one shoulder and a bundle of firewood on the other. After he settled down beside me, he got to work. Soon, a fire blazed before us, and the cooking meat sent aromatic tendrils of smoke into the air.
Yuto plopped a stone with a flat top just before me, and then tossed some of the meat on top of it, along with a heel of bread. “Eat.”
That was the only thing he’d uttered since returning to the clearing. Annoying, but…who was I to argue when it came to food? Eagerly, I dug in. The meat was tender and juicy, and the bread was full of aromatic spices and crispy seeds. It was all I could do not to moan out loud as I hastily chewed bit after bit, my hunger transforming into a ravenous beast.
Yuto popped a small chunk of bread into his mouth and lifted his brows. “I have never seen a female eat with so much gusto. At least not a mortal one. I thought you all were very taken by the idea of manners and charm.”
“We are,” I said around a mouthful of food. “But I am not a lady.”
He chuckled. “Lady means something very different from where I come from.”
“Do tell.” I nodded when he held out another chunk of bread.
He draped his arm over his knee and watched me with hawkish eyes. “Ladies are not so prim and proper in the realm of the dragons. They are ferocious. They feast upon the blood of their enemies.”
My chewing slowed. “The blood.”
He cracked a grin. “I’m joking, little métoikos. No feasting on blood. But they are not proper. Not what you would consider proper.”
“Sounds like a completely different world,” I said.
“It is.” He grabbed the final batch of meat from the fire and divided it evenly between us, before throwing his portion to his horse. “And you will be seeing it one day, Aradia Galatas. Because that’s where I plan for you to take me.”
5
Yuto
Aradia Galatas was pure trouble. I’d never met a mortal with so little concern for her own life. One day, her recklessness was going to get her killed. It was up to me to keep her safe until she could help me return to Pira. And then I would deliver her straight into the hands of her prince.
The little thief.
I watched her eat with feverish abandon. Her long dark hair cascaded around her shoulders, and her teal dress hung in tatters around her curvy frame. With a haunted look in her eyes, she sank her teeth into the bread as if she hadn’t eaten in years. She cared little for manners either. It was a wonder she’d survived in the mortal realm for as long as she had. I’d heard stories of how they treated their females. If they did not procreate or listen to their husbands, they would be cast aside into the streets. Forced to become beggars.
Of course, Aradia was a thief. Had she been forced to steal in order to survive?
My stomach turned. It wouldn’t matter if she had. Thieves deserved whatever they got.
“Why did you steal from your prince, Aradia Galatas?” I asked, even if her answer would make no difference to my opinion of her.
She took a swig of the canteen I’d given her. “You really keep harping on about the thieving.” She set down the canteen. “So, I’ll ask you this. Why does anyone steal anything? Money.”
“Money is not the only reason some steal. Some steal for power.”
Her brows scrunched together. “I don’t think stealing a few necklaces will gain anyone any semblance of power.”