Below the Peak (Sola)(76)
Smack! Nadine’s hand whipped across his face. Her chest rose heavily as rage boiled her blood. Her whole face flared with hurt, her heart bleeding from the insult.
Nikolas stared at her with his mouth open, shocked.
“You’ve hurt me” Nadine glared, wetness welling in her hazel eyes. “How could you?” she whispered.
Nikolas features fell, he took a step back. Swallowing the lump in her throat, Nadine gave him her nastiest smile. “Thank you for reminding me who I am. You have exhausted your time, it is time to leave.”
Nikolas lips parted as if he wanted to say something but closed after a second. He grabbed his coat from the arm chair beside the bed and stomped away without a backward glance at her. When she heard the slam of the entrance door of the house, Nadine collapsed on the bed, shoulders shaking as she cried.
Chapter Thirty-six
“The weather is beautiful” Izza commented as she joined her in the sitting room and sat across her. The room was pleasantly bright from the sunlight streaming through the windows.
“Yes, it is,” Nara observed, taking a sip of juice from the cup in her hand. It was the kind of weather that invited you to go outside. It was sunny but not very hot, just the right kind of temperature with little wind to tickle the hair on one’s skin and keep the stickiness of sweat at bay. Pleasant weather, perfect for riding. The thought slid into her mind. Four weeks had gone, and she had yet to do it. She blamed the unpredictable weather. There had been days that it seemed it was going to be sunny but then suddenly when it turned afternoon the clouds changed and rained, while other days it drizzled from morning to late afternoon. Just a few days ago it had seemed perfect to go for a ride when she had rushed inside to the armory and grab a sword for a minute only to be greeted with rain when she had stepped outside. One could imagine her frustration and boredom reaching another level. She couldn’t understand the season here; did it work differently from other lands? Because if it were the same as Murisa, it should be sunny and not downpouring. Her eyes got lost in the distance as she imagined how good it would feel to race across the tall green grass field, fresh air with the fading scent of smoke wafting down her nose and filling her lungs and the breeze on her face. Nara stood abruptly, slamming the cup on the table.
“Goodness!” Izza clutched her chest. “You scared me.”
“Sorry” Nara apologized. “I’m going for a ride.” And gave no care if it decided to pour. Rain or not, today was her day. She could already feel the excitement slipping in her bones.
Izza smiled and said in elvish. “That’s a brilliant idea.”
“I’ll get going” Nara spun and stalked toward the armory room. She was already dressed in proper clothes comfortable for riding, a white long sleeve tunic, trousers and boots: now all she needed was a weapon. When Nara reached the armory, she opened its door and paused to stare the array of killing and torturing devices neatly arranged; swords, both long and short, spears, bows and arrows, knives, ropes, hammer and axes to name a few. Teasing her bottom lip, she contemplated which one to pick and more specifically which weapon would be best to fight against rebel elf or an attack from any other unfamiliar creature she had never fought. Her dagger alone wouldn’t suffice, and she wasn’t going to undermine her safety even though she was great in hand to hand combat. One can never be too careful when in still new territory. Sucking on her bottom lip, she grabbed a bow quiver and a short sword. Before shutting the door, she drifted her gaze to the top shelf again and unto the jars with filled with some sort of red powder. Curiosity picked in her mind what the powder could be. Poison? Deciding she’d ask about it another time, she closed the armory and headed for the stables. Upon reaching the stables, she found a horse readied for her already by the stable elf whom she still hadn’t talked to nor found out his name. She mused if Izza had told him to be ready the horse when she had rushed into the armory.
“You’re generous,” Nara told the elf. The elf nodded and busied himself. On that note, she saddled and made her escape.
She started with a canter, controlling the horse with the harness on its face since she was still new to riding him. They moved down the hill, past the houses and into the direction Nara faintly recalled she and the prince with his mates had emerged from when arriving in town. Her memories are serving her best, she remembered the beautiful green plains and hills she had seen and ridden through. A shot of excitement rushed through her, causing her to grab the reins tightly to change the pace. Slowly as every house faded back and only fertile land emerged, the mighty beast started to gallop.
“Wow,” Nara adjusted herself and held more tightly as the horse raced harder. A spike of adrenaline mixed with fear had her heart pumping. The strength and power of the creature were incredible. The times she had ridden the odd horse, she hadn’t fully appreciated its uniqueness but now riding alone with little care in the world and just for pleasure, made her be in awe of it. Its gait smoother than any other horse she had ever ridden.
“Stop” she ordered, looking around and deciding they had gone too far from the town. However, the horse kept on going. “Halt!” she ordered again only to be ignored. Her heart started beating in a different rhythm other than excitement as she adjusted herself on the saddle and to the motion.
Only then when she yelled “Stop!” in elvish, the horse began to slow down until it stopped altogether. She exhaled and shook her head. Feeling calmer after a minute, she hopped down unto the ground.