The Gilded Cage by Lynette Noni

Author:Lynette Noni [Noni, Lynette]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780358434597
Google: NDQKEAAAQBAJ
Amazon: 0358434599
Publisher: Clarion Books
Published: 2021-10-11T23:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

The ride to Blackwater Bog was quicker than Kiva had anticipated, perhaps twenty minutes once she left the city’s walls and nudged her horse into an easy canter, with them skirting the Wildemeadow’s rolling hills until the land flattened and turned marshy, heralding the swamp up ahead.

Given how swift her travels were, Kiva remained confident she would return to Caldon long before he woke — and that she’d beat the looming rain clouds that were moving steadily closer. Her certainty only grew when she passed an elderly man walking his dog in the sleepy little village, and he happily provided directions to Murkwood Cottage, along with a warning that Delora valued her privacy. Because of that, Kiva had to travel much deeper into the Crewlling Swamplands than she’d hoped, but at least the path, while narrow and soggy, seemed safe enough.

“Easy, boy,” she told her nervous mount, patting his neck. “We’re nearly there.”

Rounding one final bend, she finally saw Murkwood Cottage up ahead, surrounded by thick vegetation and nestled beside a murky body of water. Made of stone with a thatched roof and a smoking chimney, the dwelling was quaint — in a creepy, swampish way.

When Kiva came to a halt, she’d barely dismounted before the front door burst open and a white-haired woman hobbled out, a cane in her hand that she lifted into the air and brandished like a weapon.

“Private property!” she screeched from her porch. “This is private property! Can’t you read?”

She pointed to a sign on the path so covered in moss that Kiva could barely make out the two capitalized Ps, let alone the rest.

“I’m looking for Delora,” Kiva said, not leaving her horse’s side in case she needed to make a quick getaway. “Is that you?”

The elderly woman squinted at Kiva for a long minute, then thumped her cane on the ground, moving an angry step forward. “I told you never to come back here, girl! I won’t give you what you want — not now, not ever!”

Kiva stilled. Zuleeka and Torell had said they’d visited with their mother, but that had been years ago. Did Delora think Kiva was Tilda? Her daughter?

“I’m sorry,” Kiva said, her throat tight. “But we’ve never actually met. I’m Kiva.”

Delora’s squint deepened, her familiar emerald eyes — Corentine eyes — mere slits, before she finally leaned back on her haunches. “Ah, so you’re not the she-devil.” Brandishing her cane again, she said, “But I’m guessing she sent you here. I won’t give it to you, either, so go back to where you came from. Shoo!”

“Please,” Kiva said, raising her hands. “I’m not here for anything.” She quickly corrected, “I mean, I am, but not —”

“I won’t give it to you!” Delora repeated, yelling now.

Kiva was at a loss, so she blurted, “I need your help controlling my magic.”

Delora’s mouth snapped shut. She pressed her lips together, looking Kiva over from head to toe. “You’re the one she left to rot in that prison, aren’t you? The one

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