The Red Door Read online

  Esme filled a bowl and set it on the table. “He can be quite charming, it’s just that sometimes, his sarcasm gets him into trouble. You know, running the mouth a little too much.”

  I swallowed a heaping spoonful of the stew, thankful for a warm meal. The problem with Satchel and I was not only did he hold me captive, but we were too much alike. If I had an older brother in my own world, I was sure he’d be exactly like my captor.

  With my dinner finished, Satchel and Esme said their goodbyes. The midafternoon sun warmed our path, yet fear still filled my heart for what lay ahead.

  9

  “How far is it to the forest of Mateel?” I lifted the bottom of my dress and hurdled a puddle.

  “Not far.” He had his eyes set ahead, but I saw him checking the woods on either side of the road from time to time. “We’ll camp in the shadows, out of sight.”

  “Out of sight of what?” A chill ran down my back as I jumped over a stream that meandered through a meadow.

  “Athena’s soldiers… rogue insurgents.” He sent me a crooked smile. “You know, typical run-of-the-mill heathens.” He tapped his knife at his hilt. “Don’t worry, I’ll protect you.”

  I rolled my eyes but kept walking. We entered a section of the road where the trees arched into a tunnel of green. Birds flew from branch to branch, occasionally diving to the ground for a six-legged snack. The walk should have felt easy and light, like a day at Thompson park, but an ominous feeling overtook me.

  “Send the woman here, and nobody gets hurt.” A man at the edge of the woods had an arrow pointed right at my head.

  Something heavy hit my legs and I sprawled forward, squeezing my eyes shut. My chin scraped hard against the dirt. The distinct taste of blood filled my mouth. A buzzing sound cut the air above my head. Possibly an arrow?

  When I opened my eyes, the two men were engage in a fistfight on the side of the road. Satchel punched the archer in the cheek. He returned it with a right hook. Satchel shoved the man against a tree. A flash of light glistened in Satchel’s grip, and he reared back, plunging the light into the man’s heart.

  Recovering from my own blow, I sat up slowly. The light had been Satchel’s knife catching a wayward ray of sunlight. It stuck out of the man’s chest as he lay on the ground, unresponsive.

  I opened my mouth to talk but pain shot through my jawline. Satchel braced himself against a tree, hovering over the dead man. He had a red welt beside his eye.

  “Are you all right?” His chest still heaved from the fight. When I didn’t respond, he limped over and kneeled beside me. “Here.” He lifted my chin in his palm.

  I winced. Running my tongue along my teeth, I realized one of my molars was missing.

  “I didn’t mean to hit you so hard, but I had to get you on the ground.” He removed a handkerchief from his pocket and poured water from his canteen over it.

  It was cold on my chin and lip but helped to numb the pain.

  “Can you open your mouth?”

  My jaw hurt like hell, but I was able to give him about an inch of space.

  “A missing tooth in the back… a nasty gash on your tongue.” He felt along my jawline with his fingers. “But other than that, I don’t think anything is broken.” He gave me his canteen. “Wash out your mouth.”

  “Was that?” I muttered through a mouthful of blood. Lifting the canteen to my lips, I took a swig and swished the water around.

  “A rogue insurgent? Yes.” He took the canteen back from me and replaced the cap. “Everyone thinks they’ll get a huge reward if they bring in the new queen.”

  I spit the water out onto the ground. “Is that?” The pain morphed into numbness.

  “Why I’m doing it?”

  I nodded.

  “That’s why I started in the kidnapping business. Esme and I want to get married… to raise a family.” He smiled. “I know our home was beautiful, but it’s all her doing. With her skills, she could turn a hag into a princess.” His eyes raked over me. “I mean, look at what she did for you.”

  I punched him in the shoulder.

  “Hey!” He rubbed the spot where I hit him, making me feel extremely satisfied. “It’s true. We rented that hovel of a cottage with the five coins in my pocket.”

  “But you’re strong.” The words came more easily now that I worked my jaw a bit. “You could find a job.”

  “Yes, but by working for the insurgency, I can make triple the amount.” He shook his coat pocket and the coins jangled.” Esme doesn’t like that I’m gone so long. She doesn’t know the real danger I’m in.”

  “You said you used to do it for the money.”

  He held his hand out to me and helped me to my feet. “That’s a story for another time. We’ve got to get to Mateel before dark.”

  Even with his limp, Satchel picked up our pace, and we traveled through forested glens and meadows. By dusk, we reached the crest of a hill that overlooked a valley below. Sprawled out as far as I could see a dark forest spread over the landscape like an infectious skin disease. Who knew what type of creatures lurked in its shadows?

  “Mateel,” He held his arms out to the land in front of us. “The insurgence has lost many a good soldier to its clutches.”

  “Then, why go through it?” I gripped the material of my dress.

  He sidestepped down the grassy incline, taking my hand every so often to help me through the steeper pitches. “It protects us from Athena. Her soldiers don’t dare set foot on its hallowed ground because of old superstitions.”

  “Superstitions?” I rolled my ankle in a divot, biting my lip to keep from cursing.

  “Some believe it’s haunted. Others think mythical creatures live there—trolls, fairies, and other nasties.” He stopped to adjust his sack and stared out at the mighty forest.

  The love fairy. It was the last of the three ingredients we needed to make one pendant. “And what do you believe?”

  “That the forest is its own life form. It lives and breathes to torment even the bravest of souls.” His voice took on an icy tone.

  A chill ran down my back. ”Have you seen anything?”

  “I just try to get through it as quickly as possible.” He continued walking, quickening his pace, not discussing Mateel any further. What happened to him inside the forest?

  The woods rose up like a wall in front of us as we drew closer. I no longer heard the chirping of birds, but I wasn’t sure if it was the time of day or something more ominous. Damp cold surrounded me, and I suddenly wanted to be next to a campfire, both for warmth and for light.

  “There’s an outcropping of boulders ten minutes south. We’ll camp there for the night.” Satchel didn’t spare a second to look at me. His eyes darted around us.

  “Esme doesn’t know what you risk in your job?” I couldn’t imagine my husband, or even boyfriend, spending so much in the name of money or a cause. Yet, here Carter and I were doing the same thing.

  “You mean my life?” He smirked, the lines on his face clearly visible in the golden-hour light. “No. She knows it takes me away from home for long periods of time.” He pointed to the scars. “And I had to lie about these.”

  “How do you explain away cuts all over your face?”

  “I had a nasty run-in with a giant thorn bush.” He drew in a deep breath. “I don’t like lying, Chloe. But sometimes, it’s a necessary evil.”

  I stared at my boots, one foot in front of the other, after my own lie left his lips. “My real name’s Megan.”

  The humor of the situation crossed his face. Here we were, a couple of liars trudging into a deadly forest—one to become queen and the other a hero.

  At the outcroppings, he removed a bedroll from his sack and tossed it to me. “Once you lay that out, go gather some kindling. Don’t go too far.”

  In other words, don’t get eaten by a ghastly monster stalking the borders of the woods for an unsuspecting victim. Along the edge, beneath giant pines, sticks were scattered on the forest floor. I gathered
the kindling as quickly as I could. The silence made the pounding of my heart echo for what I’m sure was at least a mile.

  “What are you really up to with Satchel?”

  I jumped and spun around. Esme had completely changed from her innocent, flower girl, waiting at home for her man to return appearance. She wore a billowy white shirt with brown, leather pants. Her pale blonde hair was tied back in a knot. A knife hung from her belt.

  “Esme.” I took a step toward her. “What are you doing here?”

  “I don’t know what you think of me, but I do know what Satchel thinks of me. He thinks I’m content waiting at home, serving the people of our village meals when they’re sick. I can’t wait around any longer.” She glanced in the direction of the fire. “When I saw you leave with him, I wished it were me.”

  “Does Satchel...?”

  “No.” She brushed off her pants, straightened her shirt, and adjusted her hair. “Do you think he’ll be angry?”

  “That you’re in danger? Probably.” This girl had more in her than I gave her credit for. “But if you ever want to change things for yourself, you’ve got to take chances.”

  She sighed and took the armload of kindling from me. “It’s just that I’ve been patient for so long. I love him, and if he tells me to go home, I’ll obey.”

  Two things hit me in that moment. First, Esme had a lot to learn about women’s lib. She shouldn’t have to listen to Satchel, or anyone else for that matter. The second and more important thing was her wording. Esme said she’d been patient. In the note I’d found in Athena’s castle, the first thing it said on the list was love was patient. Love is patient, love is kind, it is not boastful or rude. Maybe the embodiment of these qualities would defeat Athena.

  I reached out and pulled Esme into a hug. She seemed like the huggy type. “You can only love and respect Satchel if you love and respect yourself. If he doesn’t see that, maybe he’s not right for you.”

  Back at camp, Satchel had built a firewood tent. At the sight of Esme, he jumped up from his crouching position. “What are you doing here? You’ve got to go home. It’s not safe.”

  “If it’s not safe, then why are you here?” Esme placed her free hand on her hips. “We’re supposed to be partners. We’re supposed to work together. If I’m left at home, day in and day out, I’m no better than a spinster.”

  “But if something happened to you… I’d never forgive myself.” He dropped to one knee as if pleading with her. “Please go home. I’ll be home in a month’s time and by then, we’ll have a new queen.”

  “A month? No.” She dropped the kindling among the logs. “This is where I belong, by your side. And I don’t care if it’s in our village or in the clutches of Mateel.”

  He huffed and stormed off into the ever-darkening landscape. Esme had a satisfied grin across her lips. She proceeded to light a match and set ablaze the leaves beneath the firewood.

  “I’m glad you’re here.” I sat beside her and stoked the flames with a stick. “Other than that wretched queen, I’ve been around way too much testosterone lately.”

  She gave me a quizzical look.

  “Men.” I jabbed the stick deeper into the flames, setting the tip on fire. “It’s been a while since I had a girlfriend.”

  A stick cracked, alerting our attention to the perimeter of the boulders. Satchel settled into a crevice, our watchdog for the night. Esme removed a second bedroll from her own sack, and I fell asleep to the crackling and warmth of the fire.

  I woke to a shake on my shoulder the following morning. Satchel’s hair was tied back, revealing a face that had its fair share of stubble.

  “We need an early start to make it through in one day, my queen.”

  “It’s Megan,” I grumbled, throwing my arm over my eyes to block out the daylight.

  “Yeah, well, yesterday it was Chloe, so that gives me license to call you whatever the hell I want.” He gathered supplies into his sack.

  I glanced around the campsite. “Where’s Esme?”

  “She had to go to the bathroom.” His voice was short. “I blame it all on you, by the way.”

  “And what’s my fault this time?” I lifted myself, sitting crisscross, and warmed my hands in front of the imaginary fire.

  “You told her it was ok to say no to me.”

  “That’s because it is. She’s not your wife and even if she were, it’s her decision to come with us.” I thought about the note with the Bible verse in my bag back at the palace. “You never know what kind of help she’ll be.”

  “If we want to decorate our campsite, she’ll be a tremendous help. Other than that, she’ll just be in the way.” He stopped mid-step as Esme rounded a tree.

  “Is that really what you think of me, Satchel?” Her hair was down. Her eyes were wide as if truly seeing him for the first time.

  I was not ready to be in the middle of a lovers’ spat, so I wandered off to take my own bathroom break. A short distance into the forest, another smoldering campfire drew my attention. Did they know we were here?

  A girl, possibly a year or two younger than me, stepped out from behind a boulder followed by two large men. “Athena’s got a bounty on your head, miss. And we’re here to claim it.”

  10

  Athena’s henchmen were clear across the campsite. I might be able to reach Satchel and Esme by outrunning the soldiers. But before I could take a single step, one of the men dragged Carter out from behind a bush.

  His face was marred with cuts and bruises, and one of his eyes had swelled to the size of a baseball. Goosebumps pricked my skin.

  “Run, Meg. They’ve got. . .”

  The heftier of the two men walloped Carter in the gut and he doubled over, spitting blood across the ground in front of him.

  I glared at the man and then at the girl. Her short, brown hair was spiked with red tips—an obvious Athena sympathizer or lover. Her tiny frame was covered in red leather. Between the two men, she appeared even more child-like.

  “You can run back to your traitors, but I suspect they’ll be joining us soon.” She punched something into a black box and held it to her ear.. “Yeah. We’ve got her.” She switched the phone to the other ear. “Ok. See you in a couple.” The girl clipped the box onto her belt and nodded to the second large man.

  He crossed the expanse between us in five gigantic steps. I didn’t move out of fear of the other beefcake punching Carter again. The man twisted one of my arms behind me and half-pushed, half-carried me to the teenage punk.

  She walked around me like a cat checking out its prey. “I don’t know why Athena wants you so badly. You look like something someone dragged out of a dumpster.”

  I chuckled, knowing it was truer than she thought.

  “You think this is funny?” She nodded at the man near Carter, who proceeded to throw a punch into his face. “Every time you so much as think of acting up, Max takes it out on pretty boy. Unfortunately, the queen won’t let us lay a hand on you.”

  A group of four guards entered the camp with a half-conscious Satchel and Esme flung over one of their shoulders. Her feet kicked at her captor.

  The girl spoke with the leader of the second group. “He’ll be here any minute.”

  Fighting back was impossible. Satchel and Carter had been beaten down too far to be any help, and Esme was smaller than me. We’d hardly stand a chance against six grown men with weapons.

  “Farra.” Brek entered the campsite with his red and pink uniform on, a sword at the hilt. He stopped in front of me and placed a finger on my chin. “Athena will reward you richly.”

  My spirits lowered even further. Nothing had changed from the palace. I wanted to slug him, but he couldn’t control the spell he was under. “Let us go, Brek. It’s me. She’s got you under some kind of love potion.”

  “I suggest you stop talking about my queen in such a derogatory manner.” Brek’s eyes were glazed over, his shoulders stiff. “You, along with these other pieces of trash, are threats to
her and threats must be snuffed out.”

  “Captain.” Farra kneeled in front of Brek as if he were a god. It made me want to hurl. “What shall we do with the other insurgents?”

  He stared down at Carter, who still gripped his face. “Kill them.”

  Not on my watch. I kneed my soldier in the groin. He released me, and I charged the soldier restraining Carter. But before I could take him out, an arrow flew through the air and hit his captor square between the shoulders. He fell to the ground in a heap.

  “Retreat!” Brek barked.

  Commotion filled the camp as another arrow, this one set ablaze, pierced the helmet of the soldier holding Satchel. I raced to a nearby tree and hid behind it. I wasn’t sure I wanted to know who was shooting arrows in our direction.

  Although it wasn’t the smartest thing to do, I motioned Brek in my direction. I rummaged through the pocket of my dress and removed a green capsule. Satchel had provided me with a supply for our journey through Mateel.

  “Don’t think for one minute I’m going to protect you.” He crouched beside me, his breath ragged. “I’ll tell her you died from an insurgent’s arrow.”

  How in the world was I going to get him to swallow a capsule? In the open field, multiple soldiers’ bodies were strewn across the ground. The survivors must have taken off because only Carter, Satchel, and Esme remained. I brushed the dirt off my dress and used the tree to pull myself up.

  Brek grabbed my arm. “Where do you think you’re going?”

  I shot him an annoyed look, one he’d affectionately called my demon look. “To see if my friends are all right.” I hated leaving him when he could easily take off and rejoin the other zombies.

  “The insurgents don’t know you.” He gripped my arm tighter, cutting off circulation to my fingers. “Besides, you’re my bargaining chip.”

  “I’m nobody’s anything.” I tried to rip my arm free, but he wouldn’t let go.