Princess Elodi's Arc

Chapter 11 of 55

The griffin flew for hours. Wind tore at Elodi's braid. Her fingers ached from gripping the saddle. Below, the castle had long vanished, and dark forest rolled under them like water. She had never traveled so far. Every muscle shook, but she did not let go. Opal huddled inside her cloak, small and warm against her ribs. Then Damon leaned back toward her. "There," he called over the wind. He pointed down. A clearing opened in the trees. A thin stream cut through it, bright under the moon. The griffin tilted. Elodi's stomach lurched. The ground rushed up. Wings snapped wide to slow the fall, and the great animal touched down. Its clawed feet crunched the grass. It folded its wings and shook out its tan feathers. The blue harness creaked as it settled. Elodi's whole body trembled. The flight, the bells, the tunnel, all of it caught up with her at once. Damon swung down first. He turned and reached up. "Easy," he said. "You're safe now. Take my hand." She looked at his hand. She barely knew this man. Hours ago he had been a stranger across a ballroom. Yet he had held her mother's eyes so she could run. He had waited outside the walls in the dark. He asked for nothing. She took his hand. His grip was steady. She climbed down, and her boots hit the grass. Her legs almost buckled. Damon held her arm until she stood on her own. "I've got you," he said, and let go. Elodi stepped away from the griffin. The clearing was quiet. No bells. No torches. No guards calling her name. Only the stream and the wind in the trees. She walked to the water and dropped to her knees. She scooped the cold stream in both hands and pressed it to her face. It ran down her neck. She drank, then splashed her cheeks again. The shaking began to ease. Opal slipped free and darted to the water, chattering, its jeweled collar flashing in the moonlight. Elodi sat back on her heels and looked up at the open sky. No walls above her. No locked door behind her. For years she had dreamed of this exact thing. Now it was real, and her hands were wet, and a griffin stood breathing behind her. Damon crouched by the stream a few feet off. He did not crowd her. "We'll rest here," he said. "They can't track us this far." Elodi wiped her face and studied him. "Why did you help me?" she asked. "You don't owe me anything." He was quiet a moment. "Because no one should be kept in a cage," he said. "Not even a golden one." She believed him. That surprised her most of all. She had escaped alone in her plans. Now she was free, on the ground, in a place with no name, beside someone she had chosen to trust.