The Goddess (Lady of the Light book 1)

Ch. 6

Maelgywn hadn't said a word to her since he had taken them both back to the inn. Everyone had been awake, however, the look on their Kings face ensured no one asked why the children were bloodied and smelt like soot.

Even Lillabeth had wordlessly gone to get her herbs quietly as Maelgywn carried Telen into the joining room and laid him on a settee. Em had miserably sat down near his head, her head resting on her knees as she watched the party mill around. Maelgywn sat in a huge armchair and watched emotionlessly as Lillabeth cleaned the boy's wounds.

Eventually, everyone went back to their rooms, no one had said a word, yet the silence was almost suffocating.

Em was sore the next morning, her dreams had been filled with terror, darkness and a need to escape at all possible costs. She shivered as she remembered waking up in a cold sweat, as she panicked that she would never be able to leave this place.

"You need to have a hot bath; it will help your muscles relax," Lillabeth said as she walked into the room. The slim blonde woman seemed angry this morning as though she had been fighting with someone.

Em merely nodded her agreement; she didn't trust her voice right now. She slowly moved out of the bed and into the cover robe Lillabeth held out to her. Her arms were sore, probably from the effort of dragging Telen out of the stall. They had been lucky no one had caught them or that they hadn't caught on fire.

"So, the city is ablaze" Em turned around in shock to face Lillabeth. "With news of last night. Next time you want to set something on fire, perhaps you shouldn't use the biggest stables in the city as fodder?"

Em couldn't think of a reply, she stood there with her mouth hanging open in shock as Lillabeth turned to gather a few things.

"Come on child, let's get you clean, then we can discuss this sudden urge of yours to set fires."

Em felt relatively more human after she had bathed and eaten. Lillabeth had taken her to the bathhouse and warned her of Maelgywns need for a lecture. Telen was fine, he was currently practicing swordsmanship with Lucan, and no worse for wear, everything had turned out okay, well if you didn't count the current fire ravaging parts of the stables, there was no news on whether anyone else was hurt. She only wished that she knew what had happened to the horse and prayed that no one else was injured in the fire.

Maelgywn walked over to the table where she sat, and poured himself a cup of ale, then sat opposite of her.

"I think we need to talk child." He started.

Em sat there in silence and waited for the yelling and the lecturing to begin.

"Firstly, I think we all need to know what happened last night?" as he spoke Alistair, Balen and Everett sat at the table. Lillabeth remained sitting in a chair near the window, she sat there calmly sewing whilst often glancing at the streets below.

Em looked down at her lap, she squeezed her hands together tightly and closed her eyes, she concentrated on her breathing and tried not to cry.

"Em, sweetling, we need to know why you decided to burn down the stables," Alistair said it quietly and reached out to touch her shoulder. He was astonished when she flinched away.

"She, she was in so much pain. I couldn't leave her like that." Tears were running down her face as she looked up at Maelgywn, her struggle to not cry was lost. After everything that had happened over the last few weeks it seemed as though it was finally catching up to her.

"She?" Maelgywn asked, the tears in Ems eyes were pulling at his anger, making it hard to hold on to. He could feel himself relaxing a little when he caught his sisters' eye, Lillabeth smiled slightly and nodded, as though she knew exactly what he was feeling.