CHAPTER 6– THE JOURNY 

HELENA 

The silence after his words felt heavier than anything he had said before. I didn’t speak again; there was nothing left to argue with. He had already decided I was something still unfinished and that was somehow worse than being worthless. I needed to leave, get the hell out of there. with that, I looked at the fire as it cracked softly between us. 

For the first time, I become aware of how small the cabin really was. How easily he fille it without trying. How little space there was for me to exist without being observed. That was about the only thing I missed about the palace. it was big enough for me to go unnoticed for hours. 

He stood first, not rushed, now slow. Certain. He picked up a small bundle near the fire. Wrapped cloth, supplies, something prepared long before I woke. “You are leaving” I said before I could stop myself. it wasn’t a question. He stopped, didn’t answer immediately. That alone was an answer. 

Finally, he looked at me. “You can stay.” He said. “But not here.” my chest tightened. that wasn’t safety. That was removal. He wanted me gone before trouble found him because of me. “Where am I supposed to go?” I asked, he paused. Then reached for something, a paper, a scrap, a mark drawn quickly in charcoal. 

He stepped closer and dropped it beside me. Not gently, not harshly, just final. “Follow this path.” He said. I started at it. A direction, not a destination. Just enough. Well, I knew where my destination was. I looked up at him. “And you?” I asked quietly. He didn’t look at me when he answered. 

“I have other things to deal with.” Of course he did. people like him always did. he moved toward the door. For a moment, I thought he would leave without another word. But then he stopped. Not turning, just paused. “If you survive the next stretch” he said. “You will reach places where you stop needing help from strangers.”

A beat, “That is where you will find out what you actually are.” And then he left. What did he mean by that? confused, I wondered. But I already knew what I was. I was a maid who escaped from the palace. a fugitive whose life was in danger should she be discovered.

I sat there, not moving for a long time. even after the door closed. Even after his footsteps faded. Even after the cabin settle back into silence. It was ridiculous, really. I didn’t move for a long time. what was I expecting, him to take care of me and nurse me back to health. Wishful thinking. 

He was gone and yet the space still felt like he was there. I stared at the mark he had left behind. A direction. Not comfort, not protection. Just instruction. My fingers hovered over it for a moment before I pulled back. I didn’t trust it. I didn’t trust him, what if he was sending me to my death. But I also didn’t have anything else. 

A bitter laugh almost left my throat, but it died before it could form. Of course this was my life now. following the directions from strangers who decided whether I lived or died. I pushed myself up slowly. Pain answered immediately. Every muscle protested. Every breath felt heavier than it should. 

The fire was still warm, but it no longer felt like shelter. Just temporary survival. I glanced around the cabin one last time. it didn’t belong to me, nothing there did. I took a careful step toward the door.

Then another, each movement slower than the last. when I finally stepped outside, the cold hit differently this time. 

Not like danger, like reality returning. The forest stretched ahead of me. endless. Indifferent. No footsteps waited for me anymore. No voice and not decisions being made of my behalf. Just me. I looked down at the path he had marked. It didn’t look like safety. It looked like uncertainty that had been given shape. 

Something given to me instead of something I chose. My hand tightened slightly at my side. “Fine,” I whispered to no one. Not agreement, not trust, just movement. Because standing still, was no longer an option. And so, I started walking.

For a moment, I wondered what would have happened if I had not met him. if I had stayed on the road, if I had just let everything end when it almost did. the thought didn’t bring peace. It brought nothing at all. Maybe that was worse. I exhaled slowly. The forest didn’t wait for me to be ready, it never had. 

Neither had anything else. So, I kept moving, one step, then another. Each one heavier than the last but mine. The cabin disappeared behind me without ceremony. No goodbye, no safety, no answers. Just silence swallowing what little certainly I had left. I didn’t look back, because if I did, I might stop walking and I couldn’t afford that anymore.