Woes and Hose by Igor Ljubuncic

Author:Igor Ljubuncic [Ljubuncic, Igor]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-07-07T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 24

A Pair of Scissors

“The best place to hide oneself? In plain sight.”

—GARNA, FAMOUS PHILOSOPHER, BEFORE THE FALL OF THE VALEDIAN EMPIRE (EST. 340 YEARS TO THE END)

24th Day of the Month of the Linden

Eva was bored. Again.

She was a prisoner. Again. And there was a war brewing. All of her plights had one theme in common.

Prince Dietrich II.

Bastard.

She hated being locked up inside the house, even though her captor did his best to accommodate her needs. A maid came every morning and replaced the silk sheets on her bed. She had fresh food and expensive wines, board games, books, needlework. Dick was even willing to let her have pet birds, but she wasn’t keen on having a cage brought into her own cage.

It was a moderately luxurious imprisonment, but imprisonment nonetheless.

There was always a guard outside the door, and two more in the gardens, and she thought she had seen someone sitting on a rooftop of the building on the opposite side of the street, with a crossbow resting in their lap, eating an apple. A constant reminder that she wasn’t free to do what she wanted.

Eva almost believed Dick when he said this was for her protection.

But there was no mistaking the aura of war enveloping the city. Patrols walking through the streets, day and night, the yelling and cursing of engineers setting up cannon, the hushed voices of worried women, telling the horrors of the last siege.

The house she lived in had a balcony, and Eva would sometimes spend a few moments sitting there, knees covered in a quilt, enjoying the fresh air and the sun. She wondered what would happen if she tried to escape. If she leapt off the balcony, would she break her ankle on the rough cobbles below, and would she be robbed of her little perks if she were caught? The people passing in the street rarely glanced up. They were too busy minding their own fears and worries.

Eva knew no one could recognize her. Few, if any, would believe her if she told them her identity. If she did so, Dick said she would probably end up getting trussed, tossed into a smelly bag, and carried off to a different prison, and then ransomed, sold, or maybe killed…

She did not want to contemplate that avenue.

No. Dick might be a vile man, but he had not hurt her.

So, she sat at the balcony obediently, quietly, trying to pretend she was in a safe, cozy place. She tried to enjoy the food and the drinks and the books. And she waited for Dick’s company. As much as she hated admitting it to herself, she was somewhat impressed by his language and wit. Maybe she was just lonely. But he listened to her, he tried to comfort her—he made an effort to lessen her predicament. It was almost as if he cared.

Only he had given promises before, and always failed her. He had lied to her.

Eva missed Nicole. She missed Teresa. She even missed her own father, in a special kind of way.

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