“I’m sorry,” Hawke said, and I nodded. “I truly am. It’s a miracle you survived.”
“The gods protected me. That’s what the Queen told me. That I was Chosen. I came to learn later that it was one of the reasons the Queen had begged my mother and father not to leave the safety of the capital. That…that if the Dark One became aware of the Maiden being unprotected, he’d send the Craven after me. He wanted me dead then, but apparently, he wants me alive now.” I laughed, and it hurt a little.
“What happened to your family is not your fault, and there could be any number of reasons for why they attacked that village.” He dragged a hand through his hair, pushing the now-dry strands back from his forehead. “What else do you remember?”
“No one…no one in that inn knew how to fight. Not my parents, none of the women, or even the men. They all relied on the handful of guards.” I rubbed my fingers together. “If my parents knew how to defend themselves, they could’ve survived. It might’ve been just a small chance, but one nonetheless.”
Understanding flickered across Hawke’s face. “And you want that chance.”
I nodded. “I won’t…I refuse to be helpless.”
“No one should be.”
Blowing out a little breath, I stilled my fingers. “You saw what happened tonight. They reached the top of the Rise. If one makes it over, more will follow. No Rise is impenetrable, and even if it were, mortals come back from outside the Rise cursed. It happens more than people realize. At any moment, that curse could spread in this city. If I’m going down—”
“You’ll go down fighting,” he finished for me.
I nodded.
“Like I said, you’re very brave.”
“I don’t think it’s bravery.” I returned to staring at my hands. “I think it’s…fear.”
“Fear and bravery are often one and the same. It either makes you a warrior or a coward. The only difference is the person it resides inside.”
My gaze lifted to him in stunned silence. It took me a moment to formulate a response. “You sound so many years older than what you appear.”
“Only half of the time,” he said. “You saved lives tonight, Princess.”
I ignored the nickname. “But many died.”
“Too many,” he agreed. “The Craven are a never-ending plague.”
Letting my head rest against the back of the chair, I wiggled my toes toward the fire. “As long as an Atlantian lives, there will be Craven.”
“That is what they say,” he said, and when I glanced back at him, a muscle flexed along his jaw as he stared at the dwindling fire. “You said that more come back from outside the Rise cursed than people realize. How do you know that?”
I opened my mouth. Dammit. How would I know that?
“I’ve heard rumors.”
Shit.
His gaze slid to me. “It’s not spoken about a lot, and when it is, it’s only whispered.”
Unease stirred. “You’re going to need to be more detailed.”
“I’ve heard that the child of the gods has helped those who are cursed,” he said, and I tensed. “That she has aided them, given them death with dignity.”
I didn’t know if I should be relieved that was all he’d heard and that he hadn’t brought up my gift. But the fact that he, someone who hadn’t been in the city all that long, had heard such rumors wasn’t exactly reassuring.
If Vikter found out that Hawke had heard such a thing, he would not be happy. Then again, I doubted if Vikter would allow me to assist him after the last time anyway.
“Who has said such things?” I asked.
“A few of the guards,” he told me, and my stomach sank even further. “I didn’t believe them at first, to be honest.”
I schooled my features. “Well, you should’ve stuck with your initial reaction. They’re mistaken if they think I would commit outright treason against the Crown.”
His gaze flickered over my face. “Didn’t I just tell you that I was a good judge of character?”
“So?”
“So, I know you’re lying,” he replied. I wondered what exactly made him believe that it was me the guards had been talking about. “And I understand why you would. Those men speak of you with such awe that before I even met you, I half expected you to be a child of the gods. They would never report you.”
“That may be the case, but you heard them talking about it. Others could hear them, as well.”
“Perhaps I should be clearer in what I said about hearing rumors. They were actually speaking to me,” he clarified. “Since I too have helped those who are cursed die with dignity. I did so in the capital and do so here, as well.”
My lips parted as my stomach steadied, but my heart flipped and flopped around like a fish out of water.
“Those who come back cursed have already given all for the kingdom. Being treated as anything other than the heroes they are, and being dragged in front of the public to be murdered is the last thing they or their families should have to go through.”
I didn’t know what to say as I stared at him. He was speaking my own thoughts, and I knew there were others out there who believed the same. Obviously. But to know that he was willing to risk high treason to do what was right…
“I’ve kept you up long enough.”
I arched a brow. “That is all you have to say about me being on the Rise?”
“I ask only one thing of you.” He rose, and I prepared for him to tell me to stay away from the Rise. I’d probably tell him I would. Of course, I wouldn’t, and I didn’t think he’d believe me. “The next time you go out, wear better shoes and thicker clothing. Those slippers are likely to be the death of you, and that dress…the death of me.”
Chapter 18
Hawke hadn’t reported my presence, but he did tell someone.
I discovered that when I woke up only a few hours after he’d left and went to see if Vikter was up for training. There wasn’t a single part of me that was surprised to find him waiting for me and more than ready to get physical. I’d wanted to talk to him about what had happened with the Craven reaching the top of the Rise.
Vikter wanted to talk about what Hawke had told him. Apparently, after he’d left my room, he went straight to Vikter. I wasn’t exactly mad about that. Mostly just annoyed with Hawke feeling the need to tell Vikter anything. But it confirmed that Hawke figured Vikter would be aware of my presence on the Rise, or at the very least, not surprised or angered by it.
Hawke had miscalculated the whole not-being-angered part.
Vikter frowned as he prowled around me, eyeing my stance. He was checking to make sure my legs were braced, and my feet were planted shoulder-width apart. “You shouldn’t have been on the Rise.”
“But I was.”
“And you were caught.” Vikter stopped in front of me. “What would you have done if it had been another guard who discovered you?”
“If it were anyone else, I wouldn’t have been caught.”
“This isn’t a joke, Poppy.”
“I didn’t say anything funny,” I said. “I’m being honest. Hawke is…he’s fast, and he’s very well trained.”
“Which is why we’re working on your hand-to-hand combat.”
My lips thinned. “My hand-to-hand fighting skills aren’t bad.”
“If that was true, he wouldn’t have caught you. Go,” Vikter ordered.
Keeping my chin low, I threw a punch. He blocked with his forearm, and I pulled back, looking for an opening, though not finding one. So, I made one. I shifted as if to kick, and his arms dropped a fraction of an inch. My opening appeared, and I swung, slamming my fist into his stomach.
He grunted softly. “Nice move.”
I dropped my arms, smiling. “It was, wasn’t it?”
Vikter smirked, but it faded quickly. “I know you’re probably tired of me saying this,” he started, “but I’m going to say it again. You need to be more careful. And you’re throwing punches with your arm instead of your core.”
I was getting tired of hearing him say that. “I am careful, and I’m throwing a punch like you taught me.”
“Your swings are weak. Limp. That’s not how I taught you.” He grabbed my arm, shaking it like a wet noodle. “You don’t have a lot of upper body strength. Your strength is here.” He placed his hand in front of my stomach. “You will inflict way more damage this way. When you throw a punch, your torso and hips should move with you.”
I nodded and did what he said. I missed, but I could feel the difference in the swing. “Hawke isn’t going to report me to His Grace.”
“You really think that?” He blocked my next punch. “Better.”
“If he was going to say anything, he would’ve gone straight to the Duke.”
“There could be a hundred reasons why he hasn’t said anything yet.”
A few days ago, I would’ve agreed, but not anymore. Not after what he’d confessed the night prior. “I don’t think he’s going to, Vikter. I don’t have anything to worry about, and neither do you. I didn’t tell him you were the one who trained me.”