The Glittering Court
Page 70

“You must be excited,” said Mira. She looked eager to change the subject. “A great adventure ahead of you.”
“I don’t care about the adventure. I just want everything to be settled with Cedric.”
I spoke boldly and earned looks of admiration and wistfulness. Tamsin might treat marriage pragmatically, and Mira might treat it with indifference, but I frequently had the sense that both were fascinated with—and even a little jealous of—the romantic love I’d stumbled into. The three of us stayed up late and talked about the future. I didn’t want to tell them the truth: that I was a bit terrified of what was to come. Not with Cedric, of course. Leaving a noblewoman’s life for that of an upper-class colonial citizen in a well-established city wasn’t as big a leap as it might seem. But going from nobility to a commoner in a vast, unsettled wilderness? That was something altogether different, and I had no idea what to expect.
Mira and Tamsin were allowed to see me off the next morning. The party leaving for Hadisen was far bigger than I expected. They gathered on the edge of town, a vast cavalcade of horses, wagons, and people in seeming disarray. Warren was near the front, looking splendid on a white horse as he spoke to several other men who seemed to be advisors. Another rider trotted up to us, and I did a double take when I saw it was Cedric.
“Are you on a horse?” I exclaimed.
He shot me a wry look. “You don’t have to make it sound quite so outlandish.”
“I just didn’t even know you could ride.” I looked the horse over. She was a shaggy brown mare who seemed to be bored with everything going on around her. “I hope you didn’t pay a lot for her.”
“I wasn’t aware you were such an expert.” I understood the cautioning tone in his voice. Horseback riding was a common pastime for the nobility in Osfrid when they were at the country manors. Here in Adoria, many settlers rode horses for survival. But a city commoner, like my Adelaide identity, would never interact with a horse outside of practical transport. I would’ve expected the same for someone like Cedric.
“I’ve seen them around, that’s all,” I said. I had to restrain myself from correcting the awkward way he sat his saddle and held the reins.
“Well, she’s tougher than she looks,” he assured me. “I call her Lizzie.”
I tried not to roll my eyes. “Great choice.”
Looking around, I saw that Tamsin was up talking to Warren, her face shining. Mira too had disappeared, and moments later, I spied her listening to some men making plans to explore Hadisen. Not far from her was Grant Elliott, who appeared to be delivering some last-minute supplies.
“My allies have abandoned me,” I remarked.
Cedric leaned down and brushed some wayward tendrils from my face. The intimacy startled me until I realized we had nothing left to hide. “You’ve still got your number-one ally,” he said, although he frowned when he saw whom I’d been watching. “Grant Elliott seemed decent enough on the ship, but it turns out he’s joined Warren’s group of heretic hunters.”
“Heretic hunters?”
“Yeah, there’s a group of them promising to ‘keep order’ while Warren’s away, and find the Star Advent Alanzans who escaped from jail. Grant’s among them.”
“Well, then I’m sorry I gave him my business.” I touched the wide-brimmed hat on my head. “Maybe I should try to return this.”
“Don’t,” said Cedric. “It’s cute.”
I wished I could ride too, but the meager funds he and I shared couldn’t cover a second horse. That, and my riding skills would have raised suspicions. Instead, I’d be riding in the Marshalls’ wagon, something that sounded more luxurious than the reality. It was a plain, rough-planked contraption packed with various supplies that the children and I would have to squeeze in around. It had no top, and I hoped we wouldn’t run into any rain.
At last, Warren called for everyone’s attention. “It’s time,” he called, his voice ringing above the throng. “Time to claim our destiny!”
Settlers and well-wishers alike cheered, and even I couldn’t help getting caught up in the spirit of adventure. I hugged Tamsin and Mira goodbye and then climbed up into the back of the wagon. I was saving the split skirts for when we reached Hadisen. For the journey, I was in a calico dress that was as barebones as one could get. No chemise, no petticoats—just a simple lining underneath. If not for the floral print, it could have passed for one of the Grashond dresses.
My spot in the wagon was a cramped and narrow one between two bundled crates. The planks I had to sit on were dirty and worn, and trying to clean them only resulted in getting splinters. Five minutes into the ride, I learned that there was no shock absorption of any kind.
I leaned back against the wagon’s side, thinking of what we’d always called the “rose parlor” back in my family’s Osfro home. Elaborately designed rugs covering every inch of the floor. Velvet-covered wallpaper. One-of-a-kind paintings. Vases imported from the Xin lands far to the east. Chairs and sofas with padding so thick, you would sink into them. And of course, everything was meticulously cleaned on a daily basis by a flock of servants.
“What’s wrong?” asked one of the Marshall girls. Her name was Sarah.
I glanced over at Cedric riding that ridiculous horse. “Nothing. Just thinking I’ve come a long ways.”
Within an hour, we were out of the city’s limits, past the fort and its skeleton crew of soldiers. A few hours after that, we’d moved past all of Cape Triumph’s small outlying settlements. I’d thought the wilderness had a claim on that town, but I was wrong. The far reaches of Denham Colony looked as though no human had ever touched them. The towering trees that had stood like sentinels in Cape Triumph now formed a veritable army, side by side, at times making the rough road difficult to traverse. It was fascinating. Breathtaking. Terrifying. The real New World.
My starry-eyed enthusiasm didn’t last long. When we called a halt for the night, my legs nearly collapsed underneath me when I got out of the wagon. The constant shaking and close quarters had cramped my muscles, producing a soreness I would have expected only after running uphill for five hours. Dinner was dried biscuits and jerky, little better than the ship’s fare. Fires were built for heat and boiling water, and I was sent to gather wood from fallen branches. Mostly I seemed to gather splinters.
Cedric, like most of the younger men in the party, was kept busy with various jobs, so after a quick smile at dinnertime, he disappeared for the rest of the evening. When bedtime came, Mister and Mistress Marshall slept in the wagon while the rest of the kids and I made beds of blankets on the ground. The earth below me was hard and uneven. The blanket couldn’t keep me warm as night’s chill deepened, so I’d added my long leather coat. I was still cold. And I was pretty sure every mosquito in the colony had found me.
I tossed and turned, my frustration keeping me awake almost as much as the harsh conditions did. I found myself again thinking of my Osfro town house. This time, I was obsessed with memories of my bed. A mattress big enough for five people. Silk sheets scented with lavender. As many blankets as you needed on a cold night.
I didn’t realize right away that I was crying. When I did, I quickly got up before any of the children sleeping near me woke and noticed. Wrapping the thin blanket around me, I hurried away from the wagon, slipping through groups of other sleeping settlers. A few still sat by fires, dicing and telling stories, but they paid little attention to me. I moved as far to the camp’s edge as I dared, enough to give me privacy but not venture into the wild unknown.