Midnight in Everwood(31)

Marietta gave her hand.

He helped her up into the front of the sleigh, beside Captain Legat, who had first come to her aid. ‘Will you take me back to my world?’ she asked him.

‘We are returning to the palace,’ he said, snapping the reins and sending the moose charging back through the forest, the sleigh soaring through the snow after them.





Chapter Sixteen


Outside the sleigh, snow-coated firs rushed by at a rapid rate, infinite as the stars. Marietta took a deep, steadying breath.

‘The Shadows are terrifying. They bring out your inner darkness, prey on your hiddenmost weaknesses and fears,’ one of the soldiers said, leaning forwards. Marietta shivered. ‘Though you’re most fortunate you didn’t meet with worse. If you’ll allow me, I need to inspect your arm.’ He held a thick white cloth. ‘My name is Fin,’ he added softly as if it would help her trust him. Strangely, it did.

Marietta held out her bloodied arm. She took the opportunity to study the three soldiers sitting shoulder to shoulder in the back of the sleigh. Fin appeared of a similar age to herself, with curly black hair, warm brown skin and high cheekbones. The other two were a handful of years older and facsimiles of each other with blond hair and steely eyes in a paler, rosy face. Brothers, perhaps. The younger of which had been the one to help her into the sleigh.

‘These injuries are superficial. Pass me some snow, will you?’ Fin asked the brothers beside him.

The third soldier scooped up a handful of snow and passed it forward. His hand was missing its two smallest fingers. His eyes were sharp, evaluating, and Marietta determined never to underestimate him.

Fin gently cleaned Marietta’s arm before binding with a cloth. Her skin tingled beneath it like a sherbet lemon on her tongue.

‘And you mean to tell me there are worse things lurking in this forest?’ She turned her gaze back to the watchful trees. Ever present, ever silent.

Fin met her eyes. ‘Yes. It is wise not to attract undue attention in these parts. Those worse things? They glom onto blood trails and will hunt you to the stars and back for a taste. The Shadows are unsettling and can melt your wits, but they cannot touch you.’ When he removed the cloth, Marietta was startled to find her lacerated skin had knitted together, already the pale pink of new flesh. ‘Thank you,’ she said, running her fingers over it. The commonplace utilisation of magic made Marietta’s brain itch as she failed to apply logic to the phenomenon. Witnessing enchantments in this vein was far from the old beliefs of cunning folk or an infatuation with parlour magic.

‘I wouldn’t thank him,’ the younger brother said. ‘Fin isn’t being chivalrous; he’s far more interested in preserving his own hide.’

Fin stood up and flung the bloodied cloth far from the sleigh. ‘Can I not be both?’ he asked. His voice was cut through with a seam of compassion that his gentle working hands had also conveyed.

‘I’m Claren,’ the younger brother said, ignoring Fin as he continued to appraise Marietta. ‘This is my brother, Danyon.’

The sharp-eyed Danyon gave her a smart nod. Marietta inclined her head, noticing that Danyon’s hair was cut shorter, his uniform neater than his brother’s.

‘Pleased to make your acquaintance,’ Marietta said. Their accents were deep and harsh, the cadence of their voices taking some time to become accustomed to. ‘You may call me Marietta.’ A howl pierced the silent forest. Wild and guttural and close. The soldier sat beside Marietta urged the moose to gallop faster, the tableau of trees whipping by. ‘How does the town survive living alongside such a dangerous forest?’ she asked.

‘You’ll find that it takes more than a few beasts to threaten Everwood. Not with the King’s Army defending it.’ Claren grinned at her.

Marietta couldn’t help considering that he would have enjoyed Frederick’s company and the sudden thought jolted her; she ought to find a way back home. She had dwelled in this world with its enchantments and dangers longer than originally intended and was disconcerted to discover her awareness of time had become muddled. Perhaps she ought to secure passage back soon. Phantom eyes burnt Marietta’s back, her fear of Drosselmeier an ever-present shadow reminiscent of the abonné lurking in Degas’s L’étoile. She tossed a smile over her shoulder at Claren, scanning the dark expanse of trees at his back.

‘Now is not the time to charm a wanderer,’ Danyon told his younger brother before turning to Marietta. ‘The river marks the boundary of Everwood. There are wards in place to guard against the threats of the Endless Forest.’

‘Everwood is your town? I had been led to believe it was the name of this world.’ Marietta ignored the blush crawling over her neck. She was all too aware of her unchaperoned position among the four men, though their lack of response to the situation indicated their social values were as differing as the worlds they inhabited. A small smile flitted over her lips at the thought of Miss Worther’s expression if she could see Marietta now.

Danyon shook his head. ‘No, our world is Celesta. Everwood resides in the frozen east, Mistpoint in the flowered fields and cruel tides of the south, and Crackatuck in the green-valleyed west. The Thieves Road connects the three kingdoms, cutting through the forest and climes, though it isn’t warded.’

‘And all manner of dastardly bandits roam it,’ Claren added, his smile tipping higher on one side. ‘Brave or foolish enough to take their chances on the open, unwarded road. Though Everwood isn’t always as protected as Danyon would have you believe.’ He winked at Fin. ‘Remember when the Grand Confectioner lost his mind on snowberry crèmes and the enchantment slipped, allowing an intruder to rampage the palace?’ Claren and Fin laughed.