11

  KIDNAP

  “He’s not here? Where did he go?”

  Elsa was seated in front of the counter at the inn. She’d arrived just a moment earlier hoping to talk to Adam. Despite all her attempts to push thoughts of him from her mind, to focus on more important things like the abductions, the rot in the kingdom, or training the new recruits assigned to the district, she couldn’t. She wanted to talk to him first, to see if everything was alright between them, and to apologize for the lack of consideration she’d shown at that warehouse. Elsa wasn’t good at things like this, but she felt it was necessary to try this time. She didn’t want him to have any resentment or ill-feelings toward her. But learning he’d left the inn had sharply deflated her determination.

  “He didn’t say,” Katryn replied with a simple shrug. “We were talking, then I went into the kitchen to help mother, when I came back he was gone. He owes an apology.”

  He left, just like that? Elsa’s brows twisted in thought. It was almost evening, where could he be? Where could he have gone? The cathedral? The Adventurer’s Guild? To meet that woman who he’d said he wanted to help? That last thought came with a sharp pang of jealousy, but she smothered it quickly. There was a chance it was just a woman he wanted to genuinely help, but even if there was more to it than simply helping, it was none of her business. She shouldn’t be having feelings like jealousy, she had no claim. If Adam wanted to be with a woman, she had no right whatsoever to stop him… she had none.

  How did he even meet this woman in the first place? Where?

  Elsa shook her head to clear the thoughts. They were valid questions, of course, Adam hadn’t been here long enough for someone to know him well and ask for help, but she knew it was her jealousy driving the questions, not a sudden security concern.

  “Has it been long?” she asked in a controlled voice.

  Katryn didn’t respond for a moment as she tilted her head to think. “A little bit,” she said and leaned forward on the counter. “Ms. Elsa, is there any trouble? Can I help?”

  Elsa released a quiet breath. She needed to calm down, there was no reason to be so desperate as to panic Katryn. Still though, her offer to help told everything about the girl’s character. She didn’t even understand what might be happening, but she’d offered to help without hesitation. It was such things that had endeared her to the girl. She and her mother were the only people besides her father who might know her, truly know her, and they both had a knack for worrying about her, constantly asking if she was eating well, sleeping, or working too hard. It was like having a stern mother and a little sister, but she couldn’t say it was a bad experience. If anything, she might even like it a little.

  When she’d first interfered to save the inn, Elsa couldn’t have guessed it would turn out like this. All she’d wanted to do was help a mother and daughter she’d heard about in passing, but that had led to a closeness between the three of them, one that she’d resisted at first, preferring to keep to herself. It had taken Elsa a long time to open up to them, to trust them a fair bit, more than anyone except her adopted father. The timing of her father’s retirement and departure from the city might have also helped forge their bond, as it was the first time she’d ever been on her own. No, it was the second time.

  The first had been when her parents were killed…

  “No, there’s no trouble, Kat,” Elsa responded calmly to settle any concern she might have. “I just wanted to talk to him, that’s all. It’s nothing very important.”

  Katryn gave a brief nod then shifted back. “It’ll be supper soon, you should stay for a meal and wait for him. I’m sure he’ll be back before long. He already missed lunch.”

  Elsa heard the plea in Katryn’s voice. She knew the suggestion had hidden motives, it was more to get her to stay so they could talk than to simply wait for Adam. Still, it was no trouble for her at all. She currently didn’t have much to do; there were no new leads to follow in their search for the Blood Crows’ leader and to find the abducted children, and as she’d told Elliot earlier, there’d be fighting soon, just not now. The only other thing she could be doing right now was training the new recruits, but she’d given them a day off. She had a lot of spare time today. There was no reason she couldn’t stay for supper.

  “Alright, I’m already here, waiting wouldn’t be a problem,” Elsa said with a gentle smile and immediately saw Katryn’s face light up with joy. That was the right choice.

  “That’s great! Shall I get you something to drink? Mead, maybe?”

  Elsa gave her a small, embarrassed smile. Aside from wine, that was all she allowed herself to drink. The taste of ale didn’t agree with her even a little bit, and she might be the only adult in the entire kingdom who could say that. “Yes, that would be fine.”

  Katryn grinned knowingly and turned toward the low shelves. “Of course, ale is too bitter and mead is just right. I remember,” she said in a soft, teasing voice.

  “I don’t believe I’ve ever said something like that,” Elsa said.

  Katryn grabbed a bottle from the shelf and set down a mug on the counter, then she uncorked and poured the honeyed drink carefully. “You didn’t need to.”

  Elsa picked up the mug as Katryn slid it toward her with that crafty smile. The girl could read people too well, it was like a gift. With a slight shake of her head, she took a sip of the drink, then set the mug back down on the counter. “Thank you, Kat.”

  Katryn propped her elbows on the counter and rested her chin on her palms, a smile spread on her lips as she stared with open interest. “You’re welcome,” she said.

  “By the way, where’s Yara? I haven’t seen her,” Elsa said.

  Katryn nodded toward the stairs. “She’s tired, I had to force her to take a little rest,” she said. “But she’ll be down once the inn starts to pick up and things get busy.”

  Elsa looked around the inn for a brief moment. It was nearly empty, with only a few patrons locked in conversations or passed out over the table. But it should be getting lively soon with evening drawing near. In the past, Elsa had worried that her presence at the inn might negatively affect the business, she’d believed no one would feel comfortable having a drink or even talking loosely beside a Gold-Rank knight. But all those worries proved to be unfounded, if anything it seemed her presence had helped greatly, giving the inn a level of visibility and prestige no other inn in the area had, or so Katryn had told her.

  “And you?” Elsa asked as she returned her gaze to Katryn. “How have you been? I know we haven’t talked as much as we used to these past few days.”

  They’d spoken the night before, after the ambush at the warehouse, but Elsa didn’t really consider that a meaningful conversation. It had mostly been fun, lighthearted teasing from Katryn aimed at Yara as they’d skirted around the attack knowing she wouldn’t say much about it. Elsa had tried to stay engaged, but she’d been worried about Adam almost the entire time. He’d seemed completely distant, so dark…

  “I’m just fine,” Katryn said in a light voice, then let out a breath. “A little tired, but fine. And I understand that you’ve been busy, you can’t just leave your duties to come keep me company. It’s also been busy around the inn, so I have my hands full.”

  Elsa tilted her head as she stared at the girl. “Busy?” she asked.

  Katryn gave a nod and lifted her elbows from the counter, then stood straighter. “I had to show Adam around, then teach him how to use some tools,” she said as a thoughtful frown crossed her face. “He’s clever, but at the same time he doesn’t seem to know much.”

  “Ah, you’ve noticed, too. He’s strange in that way,” Elsa said.

  “He said teleportation magic brought him here, where is he from?”

  Elsa was a little surprised Adam had told her about the teleportation magic that had brought him here. It was Divine magic—far beyond the reach of humans—and the sort of thing that would attract no end of attention from those scholarly types. Then again, he likely knew nothing about Divine magic, just like he knew nothing about most other things, and saw no reason to keep his experience a guarded secret. Besides, even if he hadn’t told her, she probably would have put the pieces together eventually. Maybe not the entire truth, but enough to know for certain that he wasn’t simply a traveler from another kingdom.

  Elsa found it a little comforting that she wasn’t the only one wondering about where he came from. Talking to him sometimes felt like talking to a child completely ignorant of the world, it was as if he’d fallen straight from the sky, but that wasn’t possible. She wanted to know the truth about him more than she’d ever wanted to know anything. She might’ve decided to stop searching for that ‘America Sea-attle,’ he’d mentioned as she was getting nowhere, but that didn’t mean she’d dropped all her questions.

  Still, as she’d told Elliot earlier, the only way to know the truth about him was if he chose to tell them. A dark corner of her mind had brought up the idea of torture, but besides not knowing how he had survived the forest, or whether something was protecting him, the thought of hurting him made her chest physically ache. She would sooner bite off her own fingers, and the strength of that instinct surprised even her. Where had it come from?

  Elsa cleared her throat. “He says he’s from a place called ‘America Sea-attle,’” she replied at last. “Did he tell you anything more? Anything besides the teleportation magic?”

  Katryn shook her head. “No, he doesn’t say a lot about himself,” she said.

  “I see,” Elsa said with a nod. “Do you two get on well?”

  “Well, enough,” Katryn answered, then hesitated, her hands drifting to the edge of the counter as she folded them on top of the wood. “Ms. Elsa… can I ask something?” She leaned forward, just slightly. “What is he to you? You seem to care a lot about him?”

  Elsa swallowed past a thick lump in her throat, trying to keep her expression neutral as her heart pounded in fear that Katryn had seen through her, seen her inner turmoil, seen the shameful secret she was carrying deep inside her chest. Had she been too obvious? She usually kept her feelings tightly contained. No one could say she was expressive. But Adam had come along. Why did everything involving him seem to always shatter her composure and leave her so utterly weak? Elsa hated it. What would Katryn think if she knew she was going to pieces over a boy that was her own age, a boy she barely even knew.

  Elsa didn’t want to feel this way. If she could, she would’ve crushed these emotions the first time she felt it. But she couldn’t, she had no experience dealing with anything like this, no guide for what to do or say, and that unfamiliarity scared her.

  “What brought this on?” Elsa asked, her voice tight as she tried to sound normal.

  Katryn lifted her shoulders in a simple shrug. “You’ve asked a lot of questions about him, and you came here today to see him, not me or mother,” she explained.

  Elsa straightened in the seat and cleared her throat. “You’re reading too deeply into things,” she said in a feigned dismissive tone. “I only wanted to be sure that he was settling in properly. He’s… a person of interest. Keeping eyes on him is the least I can do.”

  Katryn stared at her for a moment. Elsa was sure the girl knew she was lying through her teeth, but instead of pressing her more or exposing the lie, Katryn smiled, and it wasn’t her usual mischievous or teasing smile. If anything, it looked forced… pained.

  “I see,” she whispered. “That’s a relief, then.”

  Confused, Elsa’s brow pressed together. “Relief?” she asked quietly.

  Katryn swept back wisps of long dark hair from her face and her eyes briefly darted toward the far wall. “I think I might like him, and I think he feels the same.”

  Elsa’s jaw clenched before she could stop it and her breath caught in a shallow hitch, but she quickly suppressed the shocked reaction, forced her shoulders to remain still, forced her gaze not to flicker. “Oh,” she muttered. It was the only thing she could think to say.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  “I don’t want mother know this, but we’ve been spending nights together.”

  The words hit Elsa with the force of an anvil and this time, she couldn’t stop herself from reacting even stronger. Her fingers clenched tighter around the mug until it began to creak, and for one long terrifying moment, she thought she might actually crush it, or fling it away. But thankfully she didn’t do either. Somehow, through sheer discipline from years of brutal training, she kept the mug planted on the counter without shifting.

  Her gaze didn’t move from Katryn and she forced it to remain cool, composed, even though her every instinct was to scream, at Katryn, at herself, at the situation, even at Adam himself. “Together?” she managed to say in a low, almost silent voice.

  Katryn blinked, then looked away as her cheeks warmed in a shy blush, “I know it’s sudden,” she continued. “And it isn’t… well, it isn’t serious yet, but I do care about him a lot, and he does for me as well. I wanted… I just wanted to be honest with you.”

  Elsa forced her fingers to unclench from the mug, then she slid her hands under the counter to hide her loss of control. Her breath felt quick, and her chest felt tight, like a band was slowly being wound around her ribs. Nights? Together? Adam had spent nights with her and they liked each other? A storm of emotions crashed through her at the mere thought, jealousy, resentment, a sharp pang of loss, and it threatened to shatter what little composure she had left as her fingers curled into tight fists under the counter.

  Elsa tried to force down the surging feelings, reminding herself that she had no claim to him whatsoever. Hadn’t she just told herself that she had no right to stop him if he wanted to be with a woman, whether it be Katryn or the other woman he’d mentioned? Adam was free to choose, free to spend nights with whomever, with as many women that would have him. It should be none of her concern. None at all. He wasn’t hers. But still, it hurt so much.

  It hurt in a way she didn’t even know was possible.

  Elsa drew in a slow breath to steady herself, then she looked back to Katryn and she sharply noticed something, something in her eyes as it flickered away, as if she didn’t want to look at her. Was it guilt? Why? Had it all been a lie? A joke? A part of her deeply hoped that was the case. It would sting, but she would forgive it in time.

  But no, Katryn wouldn’t lie about something like this, not when Adam could expose the lie. Then what was it? Suddenly, a thought struck her, a thought that made her chest tighten even more. Was it on purpose? Was Katryn telling her all this on purpose? To hurt her? It made no sense. Elsa couldn’t understand why Katryn, the girl whom she taken as her little sister, would want to hurt her? What could she possibly gain from it?

  Nothing like this had ever happened before…

  Katryn had always been careful with her words, with her gestures. Some dismissed her as an overly cheerful girl with little awareness, but Elsa knew her better. Katryn noticed almost everything, and had likely noticed she’d lied about why she cared about Adam, that was why it made no sense she would do something like this. Elsa knew the girl had caught on to her budding feelings for Adam, so even if she and Adam had truly been together, she wouldn’t tell her this way, without any care for how she might feel about it. Katryn wasn’t cruel. She wasn’t vindictive. She wasn’t the type of person to seek other people’s pain for her own amusement. And yet, the thought had planted itself into her mind.

  Katryn was trying to hurt her purposely…

  Elsa knew well that people changed, especially when it involved things like love or wealth. Was that what was happening? If so, she could understand it, even if it still hurt deeply. She never could’ve imagined that Katryn would wish to cause her pain. But perhaps that was her own fault. She should’ve expected it. People were always people in the end.

  “I see,” Elsa finally, in a soft careful voice. “I understand.”

  Katryn looked away for a brief moment, then returned her gaze hesitantly, her hands digging into the pocket of her apron. “Ms. Elsa, I don’t—”

  Elsa lifted a hand to cut her off. “It’s fine, Katryn. What or who you choose is none of my concern. I won’t breathe a word to Yara. I only… hope that it brings you joy.”

  Yara came down the stairs then, and their conversation faded naturally. Her arrival signaled the start of the evening bustle, and Katryn quickly slipped back into her duties of wiping dirty mugs, greeting patrons, and moving from table to table to take orders.

  Elsa stayed where she was on the stool, still deep in thought. She was more hurt by what she’d realized about Katryn than anything involving Adam. But perhaps it was all for the best. Maybe it was a final lesson she needed to learn about people, and maybe she could also begin to let go of the thought she shouldn’t have had about a boy in the first place.

  Yes, it was probably for the best…

  ***

  Shit. Shit. Shit.

  Adam had stopped walking and his heart pounded loudly inside his chest as his gaze remained fixed on the damaged warehouse just ahead, or rather, at the figure standing close to the entrance, a man encased in golden armor with a red cape flowing at his back.

  It was a Gold-Rank knight. The man was slender and tall, with dark hair and a neatly trimmed beard. He was the second Gold-Rank Adam had seen, and he looked completely ordinary, not as fearsome as he had imagined them to be; even Elsa had seemed somewhat intimidating the first time they’d met. But the man looked normal, friendly, a little like one of his professors at college, just an average guy you could see at a bar anywhere. Still, after the bloody carnage he’d seen Elsa—a fellow Gold-Rank—unleash last night, he knew the man’s appearance was most likely deceptive and he shouldn’t even try to get close.

  Not until he figured out why the man was here at least…

  Without even thinking, Adam moved hastily behind the corner of a small, crumbling building and pressed himself against the wall. He didn’t know what he expected to happen here, but whatever it was, he had to see, and this seemed like a decent place to hide. There were other knights with the Gold-Rank, five Bronze-Ranks and three Silver-Ranks, that was a lot. He was lucky none of them had spotted him as they’d been too interested in the damage done to the warehouse. Was that why they were here? To investigate?

  Adam watched them for a while. They didn’t do anything, just stood there observing the warehouse and exchanging a few quiet words. Then the Gold-Rank said something and the two Silver-Ranks went inside. Adam was too far away to catch any of it, but if he had to guess, the Gold-Rank had ordered them to search the place. Couldn’t he have gone in as well? Probably one of those types who expected his lessers to handle everything.

  Elsa seemed the complete opposite, she expected to be there for everything and help out if needed. He recalled how he’d followed her to meet Elliot, when even their ambushers had expected only Elliot to arrive. Adam supposed Gold-Ranks knights came in different colors and shades. He wasn’t sure why he’d assumed they would act the same, be all about their duty. Some things here were just like on Earth, he had to keep that in mind.

  The two Silver-Ranks came out after a moment and simply shook their heads.

  Were they looking for something? People?

  His question was answered soon as other figures began to arrive, several of them, about ten or thereabouts, clad in ugly mismatched armors and robes, they looked rough, like the same kind of people who had attacked him, Elsa, and Elliot last night, the sort of people a Gold-Rank knight had no business meeting. Yet, they continued to approach.

  The Gold-Rank knight didn’t look even mildly concerned, nothing in his demeanor suggested he was meeting people who might be a threat. His hands didn’t drop to the sword at his hip, his arms just remained calmly folded across his chest. None of the knights looked surprised either, only neutral, as if they’d been expecting this. Shit. Were they all involved in the child abductions? Elsa had warned there might be other knights, but a Gold-Rank knight? How fucking rotten was this kingdom? And why did he have such shit luck?

  Adam had expected to run into a few thugs, maybe corner one and squeeze out the information he needed. He hadn’t expected anything like this, not even close. It felt like he was watching a dirty cop meet with a gang, like how it happened in the movies, and he knew exactly how scenes like that ended for any witnesses that happened to be around.

  Shit. He was in danger here. Adam pulled back fully into cover, no longer daring to peek. His hands trembled slightly and his heart hammered so hard it felt like it might shatter his rib cage. He had half a mind to run, to get away immediately, but if they heard him he was dead. No, staying put was the only real option he had. He also needed to learn whatever he could, something—anything at all—he could take back to Elsa that might help.

  He would be fine, as long as he was quiet he would be fine…

  Adam stuck his head out again, only slightly, watching with a racing heartbeat. He noticed something right away, the way the rough-looking men slowed as they approached, how their eyes flicked toward the Gold-Rank before anyone attempted to speak. One of the men—bigger than the rest with something like a black spider tattoo on his clean-shaved head—stepped forward, almost hesitantly even though he towered over the knight. He was clearly the leader of the band, and he opened his mouth as if to offer greeting.

  For whatever reason, Adam noticed the Gold-Rank didn’t take kindly to the man’s greeting. He snapped something in a sharp, irritated tone, and the big man lowered his head in clear apology. Even from this distance, Adam could see the knight’s jaw tighten and his brows draw together, not in fear, but in annoyance, or even anger.

  Was their leader?

  Adam kept watching, and the longer he observed their exchange, especially the way the thugs lowered their heads, how they waited on the knight’s every word, the more certain he became that Gold-Rank held some kind of authority over the men. And he looked pissed about something. Adam wasn’t close enough to hear anything, but the posture of men being chewed out was obvious. Was this about the ambush? Or something else entirely?

  Whatever the case, he needed to tell Elsa immediately. He couldn’t do anything by himself, just being here already was a huge risk and that was enough on his part. Elsa could handle the rest, she’d know what to do. God, he wished phones existed in this world. He’d never wanted to fire off a text more in his life, or take a picture, a video, anything. It would have made things so much simpler. This was proof that could change everything.

  Just then, Adam noticed as one of the Silver-Ranks stepped close to the Gold-Rank and leaned in to whisper something in his ear. Adam didn’t try to guess what was said, but he saw the Gold-Rank’s head turn, just slightly, enough to listen close. Whatever was said, it seemed important as the Gold-Rank’s brows slowly drew together in a tight frown. When the Silver-Rank finally pulled back, the Gold-Rank stood still for a moment, as if in deep thought. Adam wondered about the news he’d received, but he should’ve guessed it...

  Suddenly, without warning, the Gold-Rank’s gaze snapped toward his hiding spot.

  Adam froze…

  For a heartbeat, his mind refused to process what had just happened. Maybe he was looking at something else, maybe something behind him, maybe—Adam didn’t get to even finish the thought. The Gold-Rank’s eyes narrowed, looking right toward the corner he hid in and their gaze met. Adam found himself staring into the deep purple color of the knight’s eyes and saw the sharp smile that spread on his face. Any remaining doubt vanished.

  It was him, it was him, it was him…

  Adam jerked back behind the wall so hard dust rained down from the ceiling, heart almost leaping into his throat. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. They’d seen him. How? He’d been careful, he hadn’t made a sound. How did they know? Some kind of magic? No, he shoved the thoughts away. None of that mattered right now. He needed to get away as quickly as he could. Fuck. Fuck. He stopped thinking, he just moved. Panic detonated in his chest and he bolted back the way he’d come, no longer caring about keeping silent.

  All thoughts fled from Adam’s mind as he ran, faster than he’d ever run before, his legs launching him forward on pure instinct. He sprinted down the narrow alleys, his boots slamming against the dirt and cracked stone. His lungs slowly burned from the effort, but adrenaline shoved that pain aside. He didn’t look back. Didn’t dare look back.

  He just ran, cursing his luck as he did…

  Adam didn’t know how long he ran, seconds? Maybe minutes? He didn’t even know where he ran to, but staying wasn’t an option. The Worm, Elsa had told him yesterday that this place was dangerous, so he knew he couldn’t count on anyone coming to help. If some of the looks he’d received the other day were anything to go by, they’d much rather rob his corpse after he was dead than actually try to help him.

  He took a sharp turn around another building and stumbled slightly, but managed to keep himself upright. He pushed himself faster and faster. He’d never been religious, but he prayed to any god that would listen now, that they weren’t chasing after him, and if they were that he could lose them, that they didn’t have some tracking magic, that—

  He slammed into something solid. No, someone.

  It was like running into a wall made of hard steel. The impact rattled his bones and knocked the breath out of his lungs. Adam stumbled backward, slightly dazed, then looked up straight into the smiling face of the Gold-Rank knight. His stomach plunged instantly.

  He was so fucking screwed…

  The Gold-Rank knight looked down at him with keen interest, not angry, just a little surprised, maybe even impressed. Up close, the man no longer looked ordinary. There was something odd about his eyes, the deep purple color, it didn’t seem normal, or human. And there was a faint scar across his nose he hadn’t seen earlier. The man had a calm expression as he looked at him, no single trace of aggression, his face still holding that smile.

  That somehow made things worse.

  “You know, it’s not polite to spy on people,” the Gold-Rank said in a low, friendly voice that matched his appearance. “It’s a bad way to make a first impression.”

  With his heart hammering, Adam swallowed and his jaw tightened as he considered his options. Should he try to run again? No, that would be as pointless as trying to fight the man, and it might just make him angry. Should he beg? That probably wouldn’t save him after what he’d seen, plus the idea rubbed him the wrong way. He wasn’t so cowardly. The only idea he had was to try to talk his way out. That likely wouldn’t help, but still…

  “I wasn’t spying,” Adam replied, forcing his voice to stay calm. “There was a bit of commotion here last night, heard it all the way from my house, and I just assumed the knights had come to investigate today. I wanted to know what happened.”

  That was a weak excuse, it might even get him in trouble if they believed, but it was far better than the alternative.

  The man looked at him for a moment without saying anything, then suddenly burst out laughing, a full belly laughter, as though he’d said the funniest thing in the world. “Oh, that was good, really good. Might have even worked,” he said after he finally calmed down, his face still stretched with a smile. “I suspected you’d be a clever one, Adam.”

  Did he just say his name? Fuck. Fuck. He knew instantly that he couldn’t get out of this by talking. He recalled what Elsa had told him, how the King’s Hand had asked about him, whether he might have any connection to Arryn. For this knight to know his name, it meant he was one of the Hand’s people and they’d been watching him. Neither of that was truly surprising, but still, he felt his heart begin to pound faster inside his chest.

  When Elsa had warned him that he might be targeted because of what he knew, he’d expected an ambush. He’d even prepared for how he might be able to escape. But this was a random coincidence. Why was his luck so shit in this world? What was happening?

  “How do you know my name?” Adam asked, trying to stall.

  The knight tilted his head a little to the side. “We’ve had our eyes on you for awhile now, it was only a matter of time before we had an introduction,” he answered calmly.

  “I don’t understand,” Adam feigned confusion. “Why?”

  “Oh, it’s just a little matter,” the knight replied, seeming to enjoy their game as he folded his arms across his chest. “I’m sure I can help you remember.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking—”

  A sharp pain exploded at the back of Adam’s head and the world immediately went dark.