“Not everything is so cut and dry,” Shadow said. “You may not understand why Penn does what he does, but at least give him a chance. He may surprise you. We all might surprise you.”
I huffed. “I doubt that. He’s exactly who I think he is. Besides, I don’t have to give him a chance. He kidnapped me. Forcibly took me from my home.”
Shadow laughed. “He saved you.”
“So he could use me! That’s not saving someone. That’s... something else.”
“He has no finesse.” Charming twirled his finger in the air. “He probably just threw you over his shoulder like a barbarian. I would’ve been much gentler.”
I thought about the kiss we shared, how Penn had held me so tenderly, and my jaw clenched. No, no, I would not be thinking about that anymore.
“Lucky he saved you at all,” Hammer said. “Still don’t think we need you for whatever mission Penn has planned.”
“You’re a real ray of sunshine,” I said, and Shadow laughed, then sobered her expression when Hammer glared at her.
A bird soared above us, flying toward the bushy green treetops. Pink and purple smudged the blue sky as the sun sank lower, and I took in the view. After spending so long in the dark, moments like these struck me. No matter how horrible life may be right now, at least I could feel the sun on my face, see the green of trees, breathe in fresh air. It was more than I could say for Jillian or Driscoll.
“How did you get your nickname?” I asked Shadow after a beat of silence, curious.
She laughed. “In order to be officially initiated into the academy, your final task is to spar with Penn. I wasn’t great with my sword work or my archery lessons, and I didn’t have the strength of Hammer. So I had learned to be quick, to be silent, to be like a shadow. At night, when everyone slept, I’d practice creeping up trees, across branches, jumping to the ground as silently as I could. I got better and better at it, and soon, I didn’t need to be great with a sword or be the strongest in the group. Ihad my own assets that Penn could use to his advantage. So after he’d beaten me three days in a row in the sparring ring, I decided to play a different kind of game. I jumped up into the trees and disappeared from sight. No one could see me, hear me, as I crept over the branches and dropped right down behind Penn, sword at his throat.”
Oh, I wished I could’ve been there for that.
“Am I going to have to spar with Penn?” I asked, partly horrified and partly exhilarated by the thought.
Shadow nodded. “Everyone does before they’re allowed to go on a mission. Penn has to make sure you’re ready. Too many lives have been lost on these missions.”
I straightened at that. “What?”
Hammer grunted. “We weren’t always the seven thieves. There used to be eight of us, but Butcher lost his life a year ago. Since then, Penn has been stricter about who he lets in, stricter when it comes to training. Except for you, apparently.”
My entire body grew weak, like at any moment I might just sink under the water, unable to emerge. I knew these missions must be dangerous, but one of the thieves, a skilled, trained thief, had died? Spirits below. The Huntsman was after me, and now there was the very distinct possibility I might die on this stupid mission of Penn’s. If I lost my life, there went any hope for my people. For Jillian and Driscoll. I had to speed up my plans for escape, had to get to Jasper as soon as possible so he could help me fight all these looming threats.
I leaned my head back against the rocky ledge of the hot spring.
“I know things are different here than where you’re from,” Shadow said. “But Penn isn’t one of the bad guys, trust me. He shoulders all of our burdens. Sometimes to a detriment.”
“And how does he do that? Shoulder your burdens?”
Shadow bit her lip. “His isn’t my story to tell.”
That’s what I thought. They must be under whatever spell the king of thieves had over them, and I wouldn’t be able to break it.
“What do you learn about us in Elwen?” Shadow asked. “The mountain dwellers, as you call us?”
I heaved a sigh. “We learned about the war for independence between Elwen and Mosswood Forest. The false king and queen.”
When I was just three years old, a man and woman rose up in Elwen, gained a following, and soon had convinced a group of people that they should separate from Elwen. We dubbed that man and woman the false king and queen. They claimed Mosswood Forest as their territory, and they started a war to gain their independence and make Mosswood Forest its own court. The war was bloody, cost so many lives. We managed to kill the false king and queen, which had only angered their followers. They ultimately ended the war when they created a magical border that spanned the length of Mosswood Forest, cutting everyone in Elwen off from valuable resources, herbs, minerals that we depended on the forest for.
Charming gave me an amused smirk. “The false king and queen? That’s what you called Queen Jarusha and King Damur?”
“Well, what else would we call them? They conspired behind my mother’s and father’s backs. They spread rumors and lies about them, convinced people to follow them and forsake their Elwen heritage.”
“How do you know they spread lies?” Hammer growled.
I sputtered. “Because they claimed my father was evil, was corrupt. He made mistakes, absolutely.” I thought of the ways he’d refused to listen to others, the way he’d always been so sure he was right, even when it was clear he wasn’t, the way he retreated into himself the older I got. “But he wasn’t as bad as they made him out to be. The false king and queen were twopeople who threw temper tantrums because they didn’t like the way my father ruled. And they ultimately caused so much pain with their actions when they could’ve just talked to him.”
Shadow raised an eyebrow. “Would he have listened?”
