Stolen by Marlena Frank

Author:Marlena Frank [Frank, Marlena]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: The Parliament House

It took a few minutes for Graddic to turn the carriage around completely, but that was plenty of time for Colin to bid farewell to Lauren. Then, in a few four-legged bounds, he lunged at the carriage and latched onto its door. The carriage rocked sideways, standing on two of the four wheels before it adjusted to Colin's weight.

"Watch it, you damn weasel!" Graddic called from the front of the carriage. "You topple it, and I'll topple you!"

Colin gave a bashful grin and slid inside, sweeping his black-tipped tail around and nearly hitting Shaleigh in the eye.

"Sorry," Colin dropped down in his seat with a bashful grin. "Lauren certainly was insistent. I didn't think she was going to let you leave, sir." Colin laughed, but Teagan didn’t respond. Instead, he stared through the window as the crowd of workers grew smaller in the distance and rows of vegetables passed by. His expression was very different from the one he'd worn before with those three women; it was softer somehow, more like how he had been the night before. He was less like some high and mighty Faerie and more like a friend. She much preferred this Teagan to the one she had seen just a few moments ago.

"You knew Lauren well, didn't you?" Shaleigh looked for any change in his expression, but Teagan was persistent in keeping his mask in place. "I don't think I've seen anyone hug you before."

Teagan gave a heavy sigh and turned to them. He couldn't quite meet Shaleigh's eyes. "Lauren was another kidnapped human. For a time, we thought she could be Master Cathal's reincarnation, but that didn't last long. She was only eight when we found her, and the people didn't take to her. It's difficult to ask a populace to follow the orders of a child, or even to respect one for that matter. On top of that, she was..." A pained expression came over him. "She was too naïve for this work."

Naïve. In a way Shaleigh could understand the temptation to just allow yourself to go along with whatever Madam Cloom or the populace decided, but that wasn't what she wanted to do. She didn't want to put her future into the hands of so many violent people. No, if she wanted to do this, she needed to do it herself, by her rules, regardless of the consequences. Sure, she might make rash decisions or say the wrong things, but even if she did fail, at least she would know that she had done everything in her power to get home. At least she would know that she tried her best.

Colin whistled. "Wow, so Lauren was eight when you saw her last? That must have been over ten years ago." Colin's attempt to keep the mood light was like trying to shine a light into a deep well. "I bet you didn't have a single Seeker at the time. Who brought her over?"

"Seekers were several years off. I was reluctant to train anyone in the ways of kidnapping, even if it was for the good of the Garden.

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