Heart Over Sword-Chapter 317: The Hideout

Evanna released a long breath after following Cedric to this secret hideout, somewhere she never expected. Mist sprayed gently across her cheek, causing the side of her hair to grow damp with water. The water thundered loudly, the drop to Evanna’s side deadly. She was under the waterfall the elven palace rested on.

All along, there had been this small cave that a hidden path led to from the palace. Only Arawn and a few of his closest companions, such as Cedric and Garrett, knew about it. It was only ever used for emergencies or, when they were younger, to rebel and escape the palace. However, no such rebellion would last long in a place such as Direwood Forest.

Apparently, Thalinal was never worried when Arawn left on these rebellious escapades. ’He will learn and grow strong from what he meets in the forest.’ Cedric repeated word for word in a deep voice that sounded nothing like Thalinal, yet he did resonate with wisdom. It only made her heart twist more for the loss of her husband’s father.

Now, she stared at the small area where a few magical orbs did grow in brightness at their approach. It wasn’t a place to stay, not really, and only meant for them to pass through. But it was the best place to be.

"It is not much," Cedric began apologetically.

"It is perfect," Evanna smiled up at him politely before gazing at the hard, cold stone floor. To the side was a chest, and within it, she discovered a small pillow and a few blankets. It was fundamental and basic, reminding Evanna of her time travelling across lands, though she had more supplies with her. However, it was better than nothing.

"It is late, Your Highness. You should rest-"

"I have no intention of resting," Evanna asserted.

Cedric sighed and placed his hands on her shoulders to ground the Princess and calm her. "It is better to rest now while you can."

"I shouldn’t be hiding out," Evanna replied through gritted teeth. It was hard to just sit by even if she’d ’attempted to assassinate the King’. "Surely there is something more productive I can do?"

"I will search for His Highness, Prince Arawn. Until then, I suggest you rest." Cedric patted her shoulder gently before stepping back, his meaningful gaze remaining on her until she relented and nodded.

Cedric was right. Evanna couldn’t leave this little haven, and she knew Cedric was capable of going through Direwood forest and finding Arawn. "If you’re not back in three days, I will be leaving." She could last that long with the meagre provisions from the chest, but the greater concern was the presence of the Faceless within the palace walls, putting her friends and mother in grave danger!

After watching Evanna come to the same conclusion as him, Cedric wished her farewell, feeling a little reluctant to leave the Princess without protection under the waterfall. But what else was he supposed to do? Arawn was still in Direwood forest, unaware of what had happened in the palace walls. This was the best plan they could come up with for now.

Leaving Evanna behind, Cedric ventured out from beneath the waterfall, jumping into an old portal that was invisible. If he hadn’t used it multiple times, the elf may have missed it and jumped to his death. That was the point, though. It was meant to remain unseen.

Cedric arrived in the midst of the forest. Darkness already tried to swallow him whole, but he’d trained in Direwood, and although it could be like a maze, primarily upon nightfall, he knew these parts best. The portal always sent them to the same spot. It wasn’t that far from the palace, but enough that no guard would come across him unless they were the warriors that patrolled this part of the woods. But they were with Arawn already on a task to kill the Faceless.

It was odd that Arawn hadn’t returned to the palace, although he sometimes would take days, if not weeks, roaming the area; Cedric knew the prince wouldn’t leave Evanna for so long. They were loved-up newlyweds, and even though they acted mostly platonic in front of others at breakfast, those such as Cedric and others closer to Arawn could see the difference in his behaviour. There was no way he was going to stay on such long missions anymore, not when he had a dark beauty like Evanna waiting for him.

He hesitated in his quest to locate Arawn and the warriors. He was familiar with the paths they would traverse to inspect for monsters, and that was probably their course of action while searching for the Faceless. Still, he followed the routes, discovering grim corpses of monsters and elven men along the way. It looked like a battlefield, mostly the Faceless creatures dead on the ground. There was no Arawn.

Hours passed until Cedric decided to search for the prince at the palace. Undoubtedly, the creature, Scarecrow, who had taken over the King’s body, was aware that Cedric was meant to be dead or discovered his body was missing. The elven warrior had to sneak into the palace, which was fine as he returned through the portal, where he returned to the waterfall. Cedric checked on the Princess, but she was restless in her sleep and woke as soon as he arrived.

Sneaking back into the palace was a breeze, and returning to it in the middle of the night revealed an eery calmness about the place. Cedric shouldn’t be worried; it wasn’t unusual if the nobility were sent to their rooms for ’protective measures’, but he assumed the search would continue. The more he continued into the palace, the more he became confused.

"Cedric?!"

Cedric cursed under his breath. He’d been hiding behind a column. His ability to sneak around was abysmal. Turning, Cedric was faced with Anwal, who looked more than pleased to see him. "Thank the Gods you’re here! Do you know where Princess Evanna is? Arawn is losing his-"

"Cedric!" Arawn roared from the other side of the hallway, marching towards him like a man on a mission, his white hair flowing back, face stern, eyes ablaze. "Where is she?!"

Back at the waterfall, the stream of water was like a lullaby to Evanna. She was in and out of consciousness, her restlessness sneaking up on her and making her toss and turn on the hard stone floor. It wasn’t quite warm here, yet she could not light a fire, nor did she have any other skills than to create a small curtain of vines and leaves between her and the water.

Evanna’s creation provided some shelter from the wind and the spray of water. But her already damp clothes and hair couldn’t be resolved. Sleep still tried to claim her, though, and she allowed herself to fall into it.

Cedric had been right that she would need her strength for what was next to come. To think, it had only been the night before she had been in Arawn’s arms, enjoying his company and the comforts of their first days as a married couple.

The sudden footfall of rushed steps startled Evanna into an upright position, her swords pointed towards the path behind her where the hidden tunnel and door were. Slowly, she rose to a crouch, her heart thumping louder and louder until the door opened. White hair and a fierce expression, with Cedric and Garrett behind him, Arawn marched through the entrance.

Evanna’s swords dropped, clattering on the ground, her hair clinging to her soaked dress and damp face. Rising to her feet, her stomach twisted, and her heart tightened at his expression as a slither of hesitation entered her mind. "Arawn... I didn’t kill-"

Arawn rammed into her so hard her breath left her. His arms were wrapped around her tightly, his hand on her head so she was pressed against his chest. Evanna could hear the drum of his heart beating wildly. "I would never doubt you," he whispered as their hearts synched and beat as one.

Evanna’s breathing calmed as she smelt him and held onto him tighter. He wore the clothes he left with that morning; there were splatters of ink-coloured blood across them. Somehow, it still missed his perfect, untouched, clean hair. Staring up at her husband, there was no doubt in her mind that this really was Arawn. Scarecrow probably thought the prince would die in the woods.

While they embraced, his men surrounded the area. Only those aware of the secret hideout were with them. They set up a small perimeter, some outside of the portal in the forest, keeping an eye out for the Faceless.

Evanna released a long sigh, her shoulders dropping from the tension that had held them tightly together. "I’m sorry about your father," she whispered, keeping her head lowered. Arawn’s arms stiffened, but he lowered his chin to the top of her head, silently gaining strength from his wife.

"He’s gone," Arawn said after a while. At first, Evanna thought he meant his father, but there was no emotion in his voice. Sure, he was known as the icy, cruel prince, but he never hid from her. Garrett and Cedric were also facing away, giving them some privacy.

"What do you mean?" Evanna peeked up at her husband.

Arawn’s arms loosened, and he looked down at Evanna, keeping her in his arms. "Loraven got to Scarecrow..."

"My mother!" Evanna gasped. "Is she okay?"

Evanna searched his face, but his expression had already made her body relax. "What about Scarecrow?"

"He got away," Arawn replied, fury lacing his voice. Evanna stared at him, her expression sad. Arawn lost his father, and the one responsible got away.

"He won’t get away," Evanna affirmed. "We’ll make sure of it."

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