I sigh inwardly.I can't talk to three men at once.
Then let me in. Your mind is… strong. It resists me.
I hesitate for a minute.
Please, or I'll storm the castle.
You’re insane,I retort.
Melisa,he growls.
Fine.
Carefully, I prod at that bond in the back of my head. I open it as much as I can, feeling him peer at the scene. His presence fills up the space in my mind and soul. I tell myself it’s just easier than speaking to three men at once, but something about him being there eases my roiling belly.
Ra’Sa growls at the sight of King Arion, and one word rings in my skull:traitor.
"You have been called here to answer questions about your fellow humans," King Rholker says at last.
I nod once, and he purses his lips.
"You assisted me with a slave. The one that recently escaped several weeks ago," he says.
A cold sweat beads on my back, and I swallow.
One of the king's bushy eyebrows pops up, and I realize he expects an answer, though that wasn’t a question.
"Yes, Your Majesty," I say with a dip of my head.
“And now she is gone,” he says with a frown. “Scurried through the cracks like a diseased rat.”
More uncomfortable silence. That doesn’t sound like a question, either. I push my shoulders back, fidgeting some of the tension out of my spine.
“Before Foremen Eneko left, he mentioned something to me in passing. Something that’s caused me to ponder for many days.” The king sits forward in his seat, looking at me with his shining, yellow eyes. “He said that he was grateful you had returned.”
My breath stutters in my lungs. My mind races with the trek, Enduvida, the Enduares. How had a king taken note of a slave’s location?
“Given the situation with the woman who escaped, I can't help but wonder where exactly you were,” Rhoker’s voice booms.
My breath continues, chopped up and shallow.
Breathe,Ruh’flor. Lie.
"The woman you speak of was insane,” I say, voice steady.
King Arion smirks and leans over to whisper something to King Rholker. The two of them share a short laugh, but the giant’s eyes snap back onto my face.
“Continue, girl.”
You’re doing well. Keep going, but don’t mention being outside for a week.
“I tended to her for weeks, and she would ramble lies about the trolls. The night she escaped, she... did something to us. Used some sort of spell. I remember it hit me in the head, and then I fainted. I woke up when another slave found me in the yards and returned me to my master." The lies roll off my tongue, but they hang in the air for several minutes.
My head is bowed while King Rholker considers me, not daring to look back at his face and crack.
I catch a slight movement as King Rholker looks at the Elf King. Slowly, King Arion nods.
"I detect no lie," he says.