CHAPTER 4 - FRIEND OR FOE

HELENA

He was back, panic flared. Should I run? stupid thought. Where would I go? How far could I get with a broken body and no strength? Begging? Maybe that would work. He was alone now. That had to mean something. He had lied for me. Maybe, just maybe he meant to help. I looked up at him, searching his face for anything I could use.

There was nothing. No anger, no kindness, just stillness. I gave up trying to read him and let my head fall back. Pathetic!

I tried to push myself up again, but my arms trembled and gave out. I hit the ground with a dull thud, breath leaving my lungs. So, this is how I would die? Flad on my back, without even putting up a fight. What a joke.

If I had known it would end like this, I would have let the fire take me. he watched me for a moment, unreadable. Then he moved. Before I could react, he bent down and lifted me as if I weight nothing. The world tilted, and suddenly I was slung over his shoulder like I was nothing more than a sack.

“Where are you taking me?” I asked, my voice weak. No answer. Figures. My body felt heavy, my thoughts slow. If he wanted to kill me, he would. It didn’t really matter anymore. I would have died on that road anyway. At least this way, maybe someone would bury me.

Grandma, be well. We will meet again in another life.

My eyes burned, but I refused to close them. Not yet. One thing was certain, he knew. He had seen the uniform. I had caught the way his eyes lingered on it earlier. He knew I wasn’t just some villager. Which meant he wasn’t just some ordinary man either. So, what was this? Was he saving me or delivering me?

I didn’t know and I was too tired to find out. “Who did you offend to end up like this?” His voice cut through the fog in my mind, snapping me wake. My body went rigid. My heart slammed against my ribs. I didn’t answer. Fear gripped me, tight and suffocating, stealing the words from my throat.

“Don’t want to answer?” he said. A pause. “Fine.” The single word settled heavily in the air. It didn’t sound like acceptance. It sounded like a warning. My thought spiralled. What was I supposed to do? Tell the truth? He wouldn’t believe me. lie? If he went to the capital, he would find out soon enough. 

There was no safe answer, no right choice. Only consequences. “You are not afraid of dying.” he said quietly. “You are afraid of being taken back.” Gods! He knew. I swallowed hard, my throat painfully dry. I forced myself ton speak anyway. “So, what are you going to do?”

The words came out weaker than I intended, small, betraying me. A low chuckle rumbled from his chest. It wasn’t amusement, it was unsettling. My stomach twisted. What was I thinking? Challenging him like that?  You have done it now, Helena. “That depends.” He said. “On whether you are worth the trouble.” he paused. “So far, you are not.”

He didn’t have to say it. I knew I wasn’t worth anything. So, why was he helping me? or was he? “Still not going to tell me where you are taking me?” I asked. “I don’t answer questions.” He said. That shut me up. without warning, he stopped and dropped me.  

I hit the ground hard. Pain tore through my body, forcing a sharp breath from my lungs. I bit down on the scream clawing its way up my throat. I glared at his back as he walked away, as if I could brin a hole through him.

A wooden cabin stood a few steps ahead. He pushed the door open. A moment later, a light flickered to life inside. He stepped in, then paused at the doorway and looked back at me. “Are you going to stay there?” he asked. “Or are you coming in?” cold and unbothered. As if he hadn’t just thrown me to the ground knowing I could barely move.

I clenched my teeth and dragged myself forward. By the time I reached the door, he was already inside. A fire crackled in the hearth. A pot rested over it. The heat hit me the moment I crossed the threshold. It was suffocating after the cold, wrapping around me, making my head spin. I collapsed just inside the doorway, too weak to go any further.

He didn’t rush to help. Of course he didn’t. I lay there for a moment, catching my breath, the firelight flickering across the wooden walls. It felt ureal, warmth, shelter, safety. Or something close to it. I forced myself up, inch by inch, dragging my body closer to the fire. Every movement burned, every breath a struggle.

By the time I reach it, my hands were trembling. Still, I held them out to the flames. I didn’t care how pathetic I looked anymore. Behind me, I could feel his eyes on me. watching, measuring. Waiting. A cup land beside me with a dull sound. I flinched. “Drink.” He said. No softness, no kindness. Just a command.

I stated at it for a second before grabbing it with shaking hands. The liquid was warm, water, maybe. I didn’t question it. I drank like someone who hadn’t in days. Maybe I hadn’t. when I finished, I lowered the cup slowly, my grip tight around it. Silence stretched between us. Heavy, uncomfortable.

“Why?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. The question slipped out before I could stop it. Why save me? why bring me here? why not just leave me to die? For a moment, he said nothing. Then. “You are still alive,” he said. That was it, no explanation and no elaboration.

My fingers tightened around the cup, that wasn’t an answer, but somehow, it was. I let out a slow breath and leaned back slightly. Exhaustion pulling at me from every direction. My body ached. My mind was heavy, but for the first time since I ran. I wasn’t running. My eyes drifted shut before I could stop them. just for a moment, I told myself.

Just for a second. If he wanted me dead, he would have done it already. That thought settled in my chest, fragile but enough. The last thing I felt was the heat of the fire against my skin and his gaze, still on me. unwavering.