watched him with narrowed eyes from across the practice yards, not bothering to include him in their exercises. Even Helen, who normally helped him train, had proceeded with caution, observing him with a calculating gaze, not even offering her usual morning greeting—something he’d always known she’d done for Xander’s sake, anyway.
He’d thought maybe when he helped bring back a queen, the guards at least would alter their opinion of him, even if the common raven would never know what had happened at the House of Peace.
Clearly, he’d been wrong.
Rafe arched the sword over his head and whipped the bag with his blade, unconcerned as a bead of sweat dripped down his brow. He had to keep moving, keep fighting, keep smacking things around so he wouldn’t wonder if his sour mood had to do with something else—something like the princess currently dining with Xander and the wonder in her eyes as she’d stuck her arms into the waterfall. It was the same expression she’d worn when he’d shown her his magic, as though it wasn’t something to fear but to celebrate—as though he wasn’t someone to fear but to celebrate.
Rafe dropped his sword, curled his palms into fists, and punched the damned bag instead. The scratch of burlap against his knuckles was a welcome distraction from the pain lingering in other places of his body. The field of his vision narrowed, so there were no guards, no ravens, no practice courtyard and no castle, just him and this undying opponent, and the sting of blood gathering on his skin as he beat the senseless thing even more senseless. When his body was within an inch of giving out, Rafe pumped his wings and used the extra force to place a kick right in the center of his target, fraying the rope. Just as he was about to land the final blow, the hiss of an arrow made him start. The point landed with a thud in the center of his bag, immediately sending a cascade of beans to the floor, the sound like the patter of rain during a summer storm.
“What—” Rafe spun, surprise nearly making him choke on his words.
The owl stood behind him, lowering her bow as she shrugged. “I thought you could use the help.”
“How long have you been standing there?”
“Long enough,” she answered elusively.
He frowned. “Long enough for what?”
A smile tugged at her lip, a haughty sort of thing, as though she could see right through his skull and read every thought in his mind. The very idea made him wary. But a moment later, it was gone.
She blinked and stepped forward, walking past him to kick at the now loose pile of dried beans on the floor, sending a sprinkling over the dirt. “Long enough to know you could use a partner, and as it happens, so could I.”
“Look…” Rafe shuffled through his memories, trying to recall her name. “Cassi, right?”
The owl nodded, ruffling her wings proudly, the black-and-white speckles even more out of place than anything about him, though she didn’t seem to mind. In fact, she spread her feathers, as though unconcerned to stand out. “Yes, Cassi.”
“Well, Cassi, thanks for the offer, but I’m fine,” he gruffly replied, bending to pick up his sword as she watched with an eyebrow slightly raised.
“You’re fine?” she asked slowly, her attention dropping to the blood caked over his knuckles before returning to his face. A challenge glimmered in the depths of her gray eyes, like a storm daring him to dodge its lightning. “Sure you don’t need any help with those cuts? I’ve tended to Lyana’s before. I know how to treat a few shallow wounds.”
Rafe resisted the urge to yank his hands away and hide them behind his back. He flexed his fingers instead, not breaking the owl’s gaze. “They’re nothing.”
She shrugged, the knowing smile lingering over her lips, then disappearing in a blink—but it was enough to make him wonder.
Did she know?
Had the princess spilled his secret?
As the idea traveled across his head, the owl released a heavy sigh as her shoulders fell, taking her wings with them, turning her into a woman who looked just as lonely as he did.
“Look, Rafe, right?” She didn’t wait for him to answer. “The only other person I know on this island was whisked away before I even woke up, and I haven’t seen her since. I’ve been wandering the halls, looking for a familiar face for an hour. You’re not my first choice either, but right