Eden Forest
Book
One of the Saskia Trilogy
Aoife
Marie Sheridan
Four banished
Angels,
A world created
by the hands of God,
A Kingdom on its
knees,
A secret
protected for centuries,
And one mortal
can save them all.
Step into
Saskia.
City of Secrets
Book
Two of the Saskia Trilogy
Aoife
Marie Sheridan
COMING
SOON
A war awaits her
arrival,
A warrant for
her arrest.
She must rise as
a princess,
And Darkness
shall fall.
But will their
love survive this battle?
For Tristan and
Sarajane?
Step back into
Saskia.
Buy Links
Excerpt
Eden Forest (Part one of the Saskia Trilogy)
Chapter Seven
Sarajane
It’s so
dark I can barely see two feet in front of me. Tristan walks behind me, and
Legis leads the way. I don’t know where they’re taking me. Or what they want.
Neither of them has said anything since taking me.
Legis stops
abruptly, causing me to smack into his back.
He swings
around, grabbing my arm to steady me. These guys move unnaturally fast.
“Legis, what’s
wrong?” Tristan asks from behind me.
“Sir, I
need some light.” He looks back at Tristan as he speaks.
“I shall
lead and you stay behind her.” Tristan pauses as he walks past me. “Don’t try
to run. I am in no mood to chase you.” He takes his position in front of me.
Tristan does not move straight away. Instead, he holds out his hand in front of
him and whispers, “Lux.” I can see a light radiate in front of him. I jump
back, slightly startled.
“Let’s
move,” he commands. Legis nudges me on. We start walking again. I’m trying to
peer over Tristan’s shoulder to see where the light is coming from, but he’s
too tall, so I just stare at his back.
After a few
moments, Tristan makes a hand motion for us to stop. Then the light goes out.
He swings around and places his hand over my mouth, startling me, while pulling
me back into his chest. Legis stands as still as stone, not even blinking. We
wait. I can’t hear or see anything, only Tristan’s heart beating fast. I’m too
close to him for comfort. I can feel his muscles tense in his chest and
stomach.
He makes a
hand motion to Legis to get down. Then slowly he lowers himself and me to the
ground, never taking his hand off my mouth. He lies down on his side right
against me and pulls my hands to his chest, holding them with his other hand.
The heat
radiates off his body against mine, making my back feel cold. I can now hear
the shuffling in the distance. Maybe it’s Josh.
I try to
scream, but my sounds are muffled. Tristan whispers in my ear. “Stop or we all
die, you stupid girl.” I try to scream again and pull my hands free, but I
can’t get them out of his iron grasp. So I bite his hand until I taste blood.
He doesn’t even flinch. I know it’s hopeless.
The
movements pass us and I can now hear there’s more than one person. Tears roll
down my cheeks when I realise I will not be heard or rescued.
Tristan
looks at me, his jaw muscles tensing. It feels like forever we lie like this;
then Tristan speaks. “I am taking my hand away.”
I look up
into his eyes and know straight away I shouldn’t have, as my stomach flutters.
I drop my gaze and manage a nod of my head. Tristan removes his hand slowly,
but he still holds my hands against his chest. He doesn’t say anything, just
watches my face. His green eyes have softened. A blush rises in my cheeks. I
can’t take much more of his closeness.
“What are
you staring at?” I’m getting annoyed now. Well, I’m uncomfortable with this
gorgeous guy staring at me. He lets go and stands up.
Legis moves
up beside us. “Was it Clive?” he asks.
“I think so.
It sounded like there were three of them. It must have been Taurus and Felix,
also.” Tristan looks down at me still on the ground and grabs my wrists
roughly. I’m about to protest when he pulls me off the ground.
I look at
his hands still on my wrists. There are no teeth marks. “I bit you. I… I tasted
your blood.”
He
withdraws his hand. “We need to move now.”
“But I bit
you.” Tristan ignores me and starts walking away.
We come to
a clearing where two huge horses, black as coal, are waiting. They don’t stir
when we come closer, just stand there obediently.
“I’m not
getting on that horse until someone tells me where I’m going. And why.”
They both
ignore me. Instead, Legis retrieves a leather roll from behind a tree and
unravels it, revealing three black cloaks.
Legis and
Tristan put theirs on and fasten them around their necks. I start to panic.
These guys are lunatics.
While their
backs are turned, I slip off my high heels and move quietly away. My heart is
racing now. My mind screams, Run! So I do. The minute my feet hit the woods’
floor, noise rises, alerting Tristan. I run and don’t look back.
I can hear
Tristan calling my name as he takes chase after me. The rocks and sticks dig
into my feet, but I ignore the pain and push my body harder. I can hear Tristan
behind me, his heavy boots breaking every twig under them. He reaches out to
grab me. I try to pull away but fall awkwardly, taking him down also. I land
beside the trunk of a large tree, slamming my side into it before falling onto
the ground. I let out a whoosh of breath.
Tristan
rolls off his back and comes over to me. “Move your hands. I need to see if
you’re hurt badly.”
I move
away. “Don’t touch me.”
“Fine. Get
up, then, and walk.” I stand using the tree for support. My side is burning,
but it doesn’t feel as if anything is broken, just a lot of bruising.
“You’re an
asshole.”
Legis comes
rushing through the forest, a little out of breath.
“You got
her.”
Tristan
just nudges me on. “Move.” We make our way back to the clearing.
Since they
grabbed me from the ball, neither of them have hurt me or threatened me, and
Tristan only knocked out Josh.
Which
meant, more than likely, they wouldn’t hurt me. But why take me?
We reach
the clearing again. Tristan comes towards me with the black cloak and places it
around my shoulders. As he ties it at my neck loosely, I watch his hands.
Definitely no teeth marks.
I don’t
know why, but tears run down my face silently.
Tristan’s
hands pause and he tilts my chin up so our eyes meet.
His gaze is
soft, concerned, and my stomach flutters. I feel so angry with myself—that I
can find him so attractive under the circumstances. He lets my face go
abruptly, the coldness seeping back into him, and he jumps up on the horse and
stretches out his arm for me to take. I could run, but he would just catch me,
so I have no choice but to take his hand. Tristan pulls me up on the horse as
if I weigh nothing.
“Hold on
tight,” he commands.
“Why?” I
ask. He kicks the horse and we launch forward. I grab his waist tightly.
“That is
why,” he says.
I don’t
reply. I’m just praying I don’t fall off. We dodge trees so closely I can see
the veins on the green-brownish leaves. My heart is in my mouth. I close my
eyes tight. My stomach isn’t holding up well. Maybe not seeing every tree in
such detail will help. We come to an abrupt stop, and I open my eyes. We’re
fifty feet from the cliff.
Tristan
speaks in a language I don’t understand. He says a few sentences gently, but
his body is tense.
Just then,
the ground trembles under us.
I grab
Tristan tighter. “What’s happening?”
Fire shoots
up through a long crack that has opened just at the cliff’s edge. It roars up
into the air. Tristan kicks the horse and charges for the wall of fire, Legis
beside us. Just as we hit it, they both say “Aeirus” in unison, while I scream
and shut my eyes tightly. My ears pop as if I’m on a plane just at take-off.
Now I can’t
hear anything at all. I feel the sensation of flying.
Have we
gone over the edge? It doesn’t feel like falling, and I’m still holding on to
Tristan’s waist.
I open my
eyes slowly and wish I hadn’t. We’re in a large bubble, the two horses side by
side. When I look down, their hooves aren’t touching the bubble, but floating.
Outside, the fire rages all around us. It looks like we’re moving at an
incredible speed by the way the fire licks past us so quickly.
I start
hyperventilating. Oh God, what’s keeping the fire away? What if it breaks? My
breathing becomes harder.
Tristan’s
voice is strained as he calls to Legis. “Can you hold it? She is panicking.”
“Yes, sir,”
Legis replies. Their voices seem far away and everything is turning dark.
Tristan swings himself around and grabs me before I fall off the horse. He
places me in front of him so I’m facing him. His lips are moving, but I can’t
hear anything, and then I black out.
In my
dream, faces of tormented people race through the fire, reaching out for me to
save them. The smell of burnt flesh makes me gag, and I recoil. As the hands
come through the bubble, reaching for me, all the flesh melts away, leaving only
bones. I scream and fall off the horse into the waiting hands of the dead.
I wake with
a thud. My eyes shoot open. I’m lying against Tristan’s chest, his arm firmly
around me. His other hand holds the reins. I can feel the horse beneath me slow
down. Tristan relaxes his grip around my waist, and I look up at him.
“Let me off
now.” He stops the horse immediately. I jump down, clumsily landing on sand,
white sand. I look around me.
There’s
nothing but sand for miles. Oh God, I feel sick. Tristan jumps down and walks
towards me. “Stay away from me,” I roar.
Tristan
stops abruptly. “I know you’re upset.” But the way he looks at me says he
doesn’t care. He holds out his hands in front of him, as if he’s trying to calm
a wild animal.
“Upset?
Upset? Not even close. Where the hell am I? And what was that… fire?” I ask.
Tristan
approaches me slowly with his hands still outstretched.
“We need to
move now.” His voice is full of irritation.
I let out a
roar. “Like hell I will. Answer me now. Where am I?”
He looks at
Legis who says nothing. “I will tell you where you are, but then we have to
move.” I don’t answer him. He comes right up to me then, still taking caution
not to get to close. “You’re in Saskia and the wall of fire is the passage to
get here.”
I don’t
even know how to respond. Maybe all this is one big nightmare. I pinch myself
hard on the arm and let out a little squeal. I’m not dreaming. I take some deep
breaths to calm myself.
“Okay.
Okay, so I’m in Saskia… And why am I here?” I can hear the hysteria in my own
voice.
“I can’t
answer that.”
I let out a
roar of frustration. Tristan uses this opportunity to grab me and throws me
over his shoulder caveman style.
“Let me
down now.”
He climbs
up on the horse and places me in front of him. I try to wiggle out, but he
restrains me with his arms. “I told you we need to move. So calm down and soon
all your questions will be answered, princess.” He spits out the last word. He
kicks the horse and off we ride.
“How far
back do you think Clive and the others are, sir?”
Legis asks.
“They would still be looking, so if we make it to the first resting area in the
next hour, we will be a day ahead of them.”
An hour
later, night has fallen completely. This world is weird. There’s not as much as
one star in the sky, even though it’s clear and the moon is red. It’s not
creepy the way you would think. It’s breath taking.
We slow
down. Tristan helps me off the horse. “We rest here.”
I don’t
have the energy to argue. So a nod of my head is all the reply he gets. Not
that he notices. Tristan and Legis are pushing sand back with their hands and
pulling out of the ground what looks like large rolls of leather. Legis rolls
his out.
It is full
of blankets, wood, a hammer and a few large pieces of paper wrapped around
something the size of a large stone.
Tristan’s
holds similar things, but also glass bottles along with what looks like strings
of leather.
They set to
work. They have tents up within the hour. I have to say I’m impressed by their
skills. I pull back the flap of the tent that Legis has erected. There are
blankets all over the ground, giving it a cosy feel, yet it’s spacious enough
for all three of us to sleep in. I really hope that’s not the case or I’ll just
sleep outside.
Tristan
starts setting up a small fire. I sit down beside him.
“Is this a
different era?”
He pauses
what he is doing and considers my question. “In a way, yes. Saskia is very
different from your world… I am not knowledgeable enough of your world, but
Legis would gladly tell you.”
I look at
Legis. “What do you want to know?” he asks while kneeling down on the opposite
side of the fire, as Tristan continues setting it up. I feel like saying I want
to know everything, but I think about the most basic question I want to ask.
“What is
this place? Is it all sand?” I hope the answer to my last question, is no.
“It is a
world parallel to yours and in ways no different. The outskirts of Saskia is
sand, but that is as far as it goes.”
Okay, next
question. I’m watching Tristan from the corner of my eye as he lights the fire.
He has no lighter or matches, yet the flames begin to build. “How does he light
the fire?”
Tristan
looks up at me. Legis speaks then. “In our world, we are born—”
“Legis,
enough,” Tristan says, then rises. He lifts the brown paper parcels and opens
them, handing each of us bread, cheese and one of the glass bottles. I look at
mine. The bread is as thick as three slices of normal bread and the cheese is
cut generously.
Is this our
dinner?
“Eat,”
Tristan says while tearing his own bread. A perfect gentleman.
“No butter.
A bit of coleslaw maybe?”
Legis
laughs. “Sorry, but this is it. One of the differences in our world. We eat to
live, but in your world you live to eat.” I don’t like the statement even if it
is partially true.
Tristan
ignores us and eats his own. He seems to have no social skills.
I can’t eat
anything. My stomach is still unsettled, and as much as this chat seems normal
enough, these guys have just kidnapped me. I open the bottle. It has a
corkscrew on hinges as its seal. I take a sip first, testing it. It’s wine,
white wine, tasty. I take a deep gulp and then reseal it.
“So do you
have cities or towns like us?”
Legis looks
at Tristan for approval. A nod of his head allows him to answer. “I would not
say we have cities, because you will think of large metal structures. Ours are
more like large villages. The central point is the castle.”
“A castle.
So do you have, like, a king and queen?”
Once again,
Legis looks to Tristan for approval and receives it. “Yes, we do.” I sit there
and try to picture this village with its big stone castle in the centre. Legis
interrupts my thoughts. “We live very simple lives here compared to your
world.”
I never
would’ve guessed, but I don’t voice that. Instead, I go right back to the
start. “So are you going to answer my first question? How did he light the
fire?” I look sideways at Tristan; he’s looking directly at me. I blush. Thank
God it’s dark. “How did you light the fire?” I ask him directly.
Tristan
comes over and sits beside me. “Before we go any further, I need you to
understand I am not your friend and I don’t have to answer your questions.” He
looks me straight in the eye. “Understand?” His words are cold and harsh.
“Yes, I
understand.” My voice comes out in a whisper.
“I am going
to scout the area,” Legis says and leaves.
Tristan
rises, returning to the opposite side of the fire. “Get some rest. We have a
lot of ground to travel tomorrow.” He throws me a leather roll. “Wear these
tomorrow,” he says while looking me up and down. “They are far more suitable.”
Taking the
roll, I walk to my tent. This guy really hates me and I don’t know why. I push
Tristan to the back of my mind. I have more important things to think about.
Like why I’m here.
But I know
at this stage they will not tell me anything.
I lie down
on all the blankets. It’s really comfortable. My mind wanders to Jessica, Dad
and Josh, wondering if they’re looking for me. Poor Dad—first Mum, now me. What
if they have my mum here in this world? But it makes no sense.
I stay in
the tent for a while, unwrapping the leather roll.
It contains
a white tunic, trousers, socks and boots. I start to change straight away, but
keep my cloak on over the outfit. I can hear Tristan telling Legis he’s on
guard and then Tristan goes to the other tent.
I lie there
biding my time. I don’t have many options. Only when they are asleep, I will
escape. Going back the way we came is not an option, but at this moment, I just
need to get away from Tristan and Legis.
After
waiting another two hours, I creep from my tent.
Legis is
asleep by the fire. Carrying my boots in my hand, I pass Tristan’s tent and
hold my breath. As I tiptoe past, sweat gathers on my neck. If he wakes, what
would he do? Kill me?
Fear makes
me move faster. Once I pass, my speed picks up.
When I glance
back, the glow of the fire is far away. Now I only hope that Legis told the
truth about this place not being all sand, or I will die of dehydration. But
I’ll take my chances.
After my
boots are on, I stand still to let my eyes adjust to the dark. The red moon
casts only a small amount of light. The temperature drops the farther I go into
the desert, causing me to wrap my black cloak tightly around my body. West
seems the best direction to go; it’s far away from Tristan and Legis. I just
hope it will not take too long to come across normal ground, and then I can
figure out how I’m going to get out of this mess.
The first
hour I gain a lot of ground and am feeling positive about the decision I made,
but as the hours slip by and sand is all I see, my thoughts turn to fear of
never seeing home again.
This
god-forsaken desert could take my life yet. My thighs burn; my throat is dry.
How long
have I been walking? Looking up at the sky tells me a few hours. It’s starting
to get brighter and the temperature has risen. When I turn away from the sky
and try and focus on my feet again, dizziness washes over me, causing me to
stumble and fall face first into the sand. The need to sleep pulls at me; my
body feels exhausted.
When was
the last time I ate? Saliva flows into my mouth at the thought of food. I
swallow it to try and tame the dryness in my throat, but it does little good. I
once read that you can drink your own urine only once in a dire situation and
it would not poison your system, and this definitely qualifies as a dire
situation. The thought of that makes me get up onto my feet and walk, my steps
are slow and clumsy.
Movement in
the distance makes me stop. I squint, but my eyes can't focus properly. The
dizziness settles as I stand still for a few moments. I refocus. Nothing, no
movement. So I keep pushing farther with the feeling of dread. Catching
movement again, I stop. It's closer now, but it doesn’t seem possible, unless
whatever it is, is moving at an incredible speed. A horse? No, no dust or
sound. Tristan? I freeze. No, he’d be coming from behind me. At this thought, I
turn around and laugh at the emptiness I’m faced with.
God, I feel
as if I might lose my mind out here. The cloak on my shoulders feels as if it
weights a ton. I strip it off with no energy to carry it and dump it on the
sand, hoping a wind will rise and cover it over, hiding the path I have taken.
Maybe being in the tent with water and food wasn’t so bad. Then I scold myself
for such weakness.
“No, he
took you from your home.”
My newfound
anger pushes me on. The movements are all around me now, but it must be my
imagination, as they seem to move when I move. Noise comes from my left, no, my
right.
I strain to
listen. The noise comes again. It’s like the hiss of a snake, only louder. Then
it’s all around me. I turn in a full circle but can’t see anything. My head
spins, causing me to fall onto the sand again. Closing my eyes, I try to let
the dizziness pass. I roll over on my back, keeping my eyes closed.
Keep it
together, Sarajane, I tell myself, but the prospect of dying makes laughter
bubble in my throat. I let it out. My laughter soon turns hysterical and I feel
like crying. I open my eyes and every part of my emotions turns to fear.
A white
grotesque face looks down at me. It shimmers as I try to focus. I question what
I’m seeing, if it’s real or not.
The
creature hisses at me, showing off a long black tongue that slides between
black pointed teeth. Eyes that are hollow and empty stare at me. Fear runs
through me as more faces appear around me. I shut my eyes and pray for this to
stop and repeat to myself, This is not real, over and over again.
But when I
look up, they’re still there, staring at me with hungry black eyes.
Digging my
elbows into the sand, I push my body up. The creature closest to me rises off
his haunches and places his foot on my chest, pushing me back down. His body is
human-like, only hunched and twisted. The others start to look impatient.
Growls rise
deep in their throats.
I hold my
breath, afraid to breathe. What are they? Frozen with fear, I don’t move as
much as a muscle. The creature’s inhuman growls start to rise.
One of the
creatures moves closer to me very slowly. As he moves, he keeps glancing over
at the one who pushed me down, so I assume he’s the leader. It licks its lips.
A whimper of fear rises in my throat as it reaches me. My noise attracts the
attention of the leader. He grabs the creature just before it touches me and
throws him on the sand. The creature slams its fists into the sand while
looking at his leader. It points at me.
“Eat.”
My mind
goes frantic. Eat, as in eat me? Get up!! Get up!!!
I scream in
my head.
Rising on
shaky limbs, I get to my knees. Sweat gathers on my forehead from exhaustion.
When the creature sees me trying to get up, a high-pitch squeal leaves his
throat and he charges.
The others
are pounding the ground with their feet and fists while screeching. He is an
inch from me, his eyes wild with hunger, but that’s as far as he gets. An arrow
is embedded in his neck. Blood splatters across my face as he crumbles to the
ground.
There’s an
eerie silence amongst the creatures as they focus behind me. I look around just
as Tristan and Legis move forward.
The leader
of the creatures digs his feet into the sand like a bull, causing dust to rise,
and throws his head back, letting out a deafening screech. They charge.
Tristan
takes three of them out with arrows in a matter of seconds, while Legis fights
on the ground with two swords, decapitating anything that moves. I stay on my
knees, too shocked to move. It’s over in minutes. Only one lives—the leader—but
he has a long gash down his torso. Tristan places his foot on his chest, the
same action the creature did to me.
Has he been
here that long?
Legis
brings water to me. I gulp it down as Legis looks at me with disappointment.
“You could have died,” he says. I ignore him and pour water all over my face,
feeling a little more alert.
He helps me
rise on shaky legs. My attention returns to the creature under Tristan’s boot.
Tristan has his sword pointed at its chest.
“Exile, you
are a long way from the mountains.” His tone is harsh.
The exile
looks at me. “Smell.”
This causes
Tristan to sneer cruelly. “You lie.” And he slices off the creature’s hand. It
goes berserk under Tristan’s foot, but doesn’t get loose. “Why are you here,
exile?” Tristan’s voice is even harsher than before.
The
creature is squealing in pain, but he manages one word.
“Smell,” he
says again. Wrong answer. Tristan slices off his other hand.
Oh God, I
feel sick.
The
creature is screeching in pain. It sounds like a dying cat.
Two pools
of blood stream from his wrists where its hands once were.
“Stop it,
Tristan. This is cruel,” I shout at him. He looks at me but keeps his foot on
the creature’s chest as it trashes under him.
“Be quiet.
I will deal with you later.” His tone is deadly; his eyes are filled with
anger. Feeling very afraid, I take a step backwards. His attention is back on
the creature again. “Last chance, exile.” He raises his sword.
The
creature looks afraid, shaking its head in a pleading gesture. Just before the
sword reaches him, he speaks. “King Paulus.” The blade pauses at his throat.
“Where?”
Tristan asks.
The
creature’s features take on a resigned look. I think he’s done talking.
Tristan
pushes the blade harder. “Where, exile?” And then to my amazement the creature
throws his head forward, pushing the blade into his own neck, killing himself.
Blood gurgles in
its throat.
Bile rises
in my throat, and I look away as Tristan pushes the creature off his blade
using his foot and wipes it clean on his trousers. He slides the sword into the
holder on his back.
Then his
intense gaze turns on me. My muscles tighten as he moves towards me, breathing
heavy with anger. He grabs both my hands, pulling them together without speaking,
and from his belt extracts rope that he uses to tie my hands together.
“I’m
sorry,” I say in a panicky voice, but he keeps tying knots in a complex way. I
yank my hands to try and stop him. “I said sorry. Please don’t.”
He shoves
cloth into my mouth, cutting off my protests, and ties a piece over it to keep
the gag in place. I’m still protesting, but nothing I say is understandable.
“If I have to tie you to me, I will.” He shakes me. “Do you understand?” I nod
my head as tears fall from my eyes.
Tristan’s
face softens slightly. Hating to show him any weakness, I look away from his
gaze. He places me in front of him on the horse and Legis mounts his own. We
make our way back to camp. I try to keep my body straight, but I’m too weak and
I slump from exhaustion. I start to drift off but panic every
time I see
the creatures in my mind.
“Sleep. You
are safe now,” Tristan says and wraps an arm around me so I won’t fall off. He
holds the reins in his other hand. The warmth from his body and his heartbeat
lulls me too sleep. I feel safe with his strong arm around me. I just wonder
what price I’ll pay for his kindness, and then my thoughts are no more as I
fall asleep.
Waking up
some time later, I’m lying on my side. I smile with warmth and contentment.
There’s a heavy blanket over me. My hair is loose, and a curl falls onto my
face. I raise my hand to push it back and that’s when I feel the rope biting
into my wrists. My hands are tied. Sitting up too quickly sends a rush of
dizziness through me. I regret the action straight away, as my head is
spinning. It slowly resides and all last night’s events come back to me—trying
to escape, the creatures, Tristan’s anger and his kindness. A blush rises in my
cheeks when I think of his arm around me.
Struggling
to my feet is harder than expected without the use of my hands. It’s hard to
balance, but I make it upright and steady myself. Tristan and Legis’s voices
make me pause.
“Why would
King Paulus want Morrick’s daughter?”
“To use her
against him,” Legis replies.
Tristan
lets out a heavy breath of frustration. “King Paulus is smarter than that. If
he wanted to get at Morrick, why not take Clive or Luna? Morrick does not even
know her.”
“Maybe
Paulus knows something we don’t,” Legis says, but doubt clouds his voice.
What are
they talking about? The creature mentioned this King Paulus.
My stomach
growls, reminding me it’s been nearly two day’s since I’ve eaten anything. I
leave the tent.
Legis is
turning a rabbit over the fire, and he looks up at me. “Good morning.” I’m surprised
he’s spoken to me after last night’s events.
“Legis.” I
sit on the log across from him. Tristan gets up and leaves without a word. So
he’s still angry.
Legis
focuses on the rabbit. When he feels it’s done, he takes it off the stick that
has been pierced through its body and starts cutting it up with a small dagger.
He places three large leaves— they look like dock leaves, the ones you use when
you get stung by nettles—on the log beside him and equally divides the rabbit
meat between the three of us.
He hands a
leaf across to me. “Thank you, Legis.” I raise my tied hands since he obviously
missed that small detail. “Could you untie me?”
“You will
have to wait for Tristan to come back.” Legis doesn’t meet my eyes; instead, he
starts eating his own meal.
“I haven’t
eaten anything in two days. Untie me, please.”
His face
darkens. “If I were you I would stay quiet.” So he hadn’t forgotten last night
after all.
A half an
hour later, Tristan returns from wherever he was.
All of
Legis’s food is gone and mine is cold at this stage. Tristan looks at the two
leaves on the log and then at Legis. He kneels down in front of me with a small
dagger. “If you try to escape, I will tie your hands and legs every day.
Understand?”
When he
looks up at me with his green eyes, my breath catches in my throat. This close,
I can see flecks of gold amidst his iris.
Also, a few
days’ growth of stubble has started to appear, giving him a rugged look.
His eyes
search my face. “Do you understand?”
A blush
creeps into my cheeks. How long was I staring at him?
I drop my
gaze and lift my up my hands. “Yes, I understand.”
He cuts the
rope.
Rubbing my
raw, red wrists gives me some relief. Tristan hands me my leaf of rabbit meat.
I take it and start eating immediately.
“I never
heard you in the desert.” I was more thinking out loud. It was something that
had bothered me—two horses coming through the desert, yet they were silent.
“You were
ready to collapse when we found you,” Legis says, causing me to look at him.
“Yeah, I
was.” But I should’ve heard them.
Legis turns
to Tristan with a look of surprise and curiosity on his face.
Author Bio
Aoife Marie
Sheridan is twenty eight years of age. She lives in Kells, Co. Meath, a small
town just outside Navan. Aoife was raised in Navan but left with her
family at the age of sixteen. Aoife has always had a passion for writing but
mostly poetry. This is her first time to write a novel.
Aoife Marie
Sheridan studied Accountancy and qualified as an accountant technician. She
worked in this profession for several years but with the economic downturn she
was made redundant.
Aoife Marie
Sheridan now spends endless hours reading and writing.
Aoife Marie Sheridan’s
first novel Eden Forest placed first in writers got talent.
Author Links
Giveaway
Giveaway is a PDF of Eden Forest (Part one of the Saskia Trilogy)
