Chapter 51 Highlands

Isla
IT'S TWILIGHT when we enter the deserted plains of the highlands. There is nothing but acres and acres of rustling trees and whistling breeze. I've become suddenly uneasy, it just dawned on me that we are going to spend time here, the sooner I get out of here the better.
Our pace has slowed down greatly, and any moment from now, I'll fall off this horse from exhaustion and spend the night unconscious, tomorrow morning too.
"When are we going to get there?" I whine.
"Where?" Kyan asks, his eyes set ahead.
"I don't know. The place you deem fitting for hiking or whatever," I snap.
Kyan chuckles. He is clearly amused by me. "Well, we aren't hiking. I decided camping will be more like it."
I curse mentally, hating him at this moment. I'm tired, and sweaty, and thirsty and starving and we haven't even gotten to a suitable resting place yet.
We enter a clearing with knee high shrubs and grasses, I raise my head to the darkening sky suddenly realising how late it is.
"Welcome to the Highlands of Altsas!" Kyan announces proudly. His eyes skim around and he dismounts Fire.
"What are you doing?" I ask.
He walks to me ignoring my question. "Come down."
I blink. Then realising what he means, I lean into his arms and he helps me down. When my feet touch the ground, my knees buckle and I groan as pain shoots up my legs, I fall forward and Kyan catches me, holding me against his chest. The heavy beating of his heart thumping against my ear. I sigh, thebreathy whisper is muffled as I bury my head in his shoulder.
"My legs... I can't stand," I muster breath to say.
Kyan grunts, he sucks in a sharp breath. "I know, you shouldn't have been on Lady Gin-Gin that long."
I hiss out a breath, "I'll be fine."
"You will." He carries me in his arms. I let out a yelp of protest which he ignores it. Pulling off his cloak with one hand, he tosses it on the ground, under a tree and lies me gently on it. Once my back touches the prickly fabric of the cloak, I jolt upright pushing the hood of my cloak off my head. He smiles a little letting his eyes run up and down the length of my sitting body. Then, as he he suddenly remembers something, he turns his back to me and starts walking away.
"Kyan?" He doesn't turn. He picks up our bags and drops them beside me with a heavy thud. "Kyan?" I look up to him but he avoids my eyes. I wish my legs were not aching like I had been hiking up a steep mountain.
"Isla," he calls my name like an elder sibling would; like I would call Mavli's to her.
"Don't stress yourself, please. I'm going to pitch a tent for us. Just... Stay put."
"How can you say that? I'm not going to just sit here—"
"You really don't have a choice, do you?" And I hate him as he trots away proudly. He disappears within trees and I'm left alone to my thoughts.
Ok Isla, it's pretty easy. Just survive this night and... But I need to get away now. Now! But my stupid legs aren't working. I suck in a huge gulp of air. Ok. I'm going to tolerate him until my legs regain their feel and I'll be on my way. It's pretty easy, I'll gallop to the market and trot proudly out of the gates.
But Mavli!
A string of curses swirls in my mind. I want to weep out my frustration.
I have to find Mavli. After I escape, I'll search for Mavli in the market and surrounding houses before travelling further into the Kingdom.
My head throbs mercilessly and a strong wave of nausea hits me. The silhouettes of towering trees and the sounds of night animals unnerves me. I close my eyes tight hoping to lock out frightening details of my surroundings like the branch of the tree which I'm lying below that looks like a claw. Like the hooting of owls and the cries of other night creatures.
A twig snaps and I jolt upright. My eyes adjusts to the darkness and I see the outline of Kyan's long and lean form. He carries big branches in his arms.
"You scared me." My voice is somewhat raspy. I try to steady my erratically beating heart.
"I'm sorry about that." He is close to me. So close that I'll only have to stretch a finger and I'll poke him in the stomach. I suppress a giggle though poking Kyan in the stomach sounds very inviting to me. I wonder how he will react.
He reaches for his rucksack and I hear him searching inside it for something. The fumbling stops and faint scratch noise follows it. The matchstick sizzles and a bright yellow flame dances on it, licking it's way across the stick. The yellow glow reflects on Kyan's face making his caramel skin glow like a sunbeam and his green eyes burst of flecks of gold.
My breath hitches and something flutters in my stomach.
He burns short pieces of wood which he snaps off from the big branches he returned with. Slowly, the fire builds up and larger pieces of wood enters it making it burn with slight cracking and roaring sounds. I scoot a little closer to the fire and warm my hands. If I move a little closer, I'll singe the fine hairs on my knuckles.
Kyan begins to push the big branches into the soft earth mounting them like poles so they meet at a point "What are you doing?" I dare to ask.
"Making a tent, Miss." His voice humours me, "nothing serious though. It will be high enough for us to crawl in and sleep."
I nod. "I'd be grateful to have something over my head."
"I'm sure you regret coming here already," he says teasingly.
I grunt in reply. Yes and no.
After making sure the thick sticks are firmly rooted, he pulls out the small knife he always keeps safe in his boots and picks up the cloak I was wearing from beside me.
I watch, a bit puzzled by what he was going to do. He runs the blade through the thick fabric making it sing as it rips into two halves. Satisfied, Kyan ties it to the point of the sticks so it covers half of it like a curtain. Knowing what he is coming after next, I crawl off the second cloak and he picks it off the floor with a flourish. He rips it too and uses it to cover the remaining half.
"What if there is a wind?" I blurt.
"There will be no winds," he replies confidently then gives me a look, "except you have anything to do with it."
I can't help tittering but I don't reply.
Finally, he picks up the long branches with a wide network of smaller branches and a canopy leaves. He lies them leaning on the cloaks and sticks making our tent more solid.
He props down beside me on the damp ground. "Can you do me on last favour?"
I look at him, a bit puzzled. "If I can."
"I want to check something out." He is already standing up and strides away.
Exhaling heavily, I lean back on the bark of the tree and close my eyes. My fingers travel to the priceless bracelet around my wrist, I pinch the tiny jewel between my fingers twisting it. The cuts I sustained from the rose thorns are almost invisible now.
Kyan's boots crunch and thump and he is seated beside me again smelling strongly of earth and musk. And berries.
I eyes flutter open. Kyan must have been watching because he laughs gently, the vibration of the hum pulsating through his body. "Are you really that hungry?"
"Are you seriously asking me that?" I brows scrunches together and I feel my forehead wrinkling.
He doesn't reply. His fingers come up to my mouth and I feel a cold round ball pressed to my lips. I open my mouth, accepting the offering and I sigh in delight as I chew the sweet berry. "What is it?"
"Wild berries," he replies.
I freeze and narrow my gaze at him.
Understanding my look, he chuckles. "I'm not trying to poison you, Isla. What kind of man poisons his betrothed?"
I wince at the last word but offer him no reply. Tension spins between us, words are left unspoken, the truth hangs heavily in the air. He offers me another berry before popping one into his mouth.
"Where did you find them?" I gesture to the berries and open my mouth so he can feed me another one.
"Saw them when I went to get the branches," he replies.
We fall silent, I stare into the blazing red flame that spits out flying sparks of light thinking of how hot the sparks can be.
"I don't know much about you," he remarks.
"Ask me anything," I hear myself say. "Just two questions," I quickly add.
He groans then falls silent thinking of what to ask. I pick a berry from his palm, and then another. Then, I pull out the flask of water we were given and gulp down part of the half that remains.
"First question," he says, "whom do you prefer between your parents?"
I raise a disappointed brow. Kyan smirks, "just answer it."
I bite my lip. I'm so sorry, mother. "Father."
He smiles like he saw it coming.
"It's not that I don't love my mother!" I say.
He shrugs.
"My turn!" I declare, he pushes a berry into my mouth and I chew before asking, "who were the other girls chosen before me? You said you have been delaying getting married."
His happy features turn blank. "Boring princesses."
"Oh." It is obvious, and hearing him call the princesses boring makes me happy and I don't understand why.
"Did you have a fiance back at... Back home?" He stutters a little and he stares right into the fire
"No."
"No." He echoes and his lip twitches. He pushes the last berry into my mouth and then takes a big swig from the flask.
"Last question," I say. "Where is Rakar's father?"
"Dead." Kyan says flatly.
I flinch at his change of tone. Then he looks at me and his eyes soften. "Let's sleep."
I nod. And I crawl into the tight space after him keeping our legs in and our heads out. The fire burning unrelentingly metres away. I fish out a veil from my bag and although it is just a flimsy piece of lace, we use it as a blanket. I try to ignore the whine of mosquitoes as I close my eyes.