-HIM-
The following day we left right before sunrise. I decided to keep our group small. Twelve people in total to ensure we could travel fastest. I let Theresa sleep against my chest as we rode towards the desert while the sun started coming out behind us.
By the time it was noon, we had managed to cross the ranges that separated the desert from the small villages on the outskirts of the city. We rode in the sun with many breaks, taking the first day slowly.
We stopped when the sun went down and set up a camp. The whole time, I made sure my mate was not uncomfortable in any way. Travelling in the sun for the entire day had taken a toll on all of us, but as soon as the sun was down and the desert started to cool down, it got chilly pretty fast.
I built a fire for Theresa while others got busy setting up tents and scouting the neighbouring area to see where we were. Lars got busy with the equipment to map the stars and plan the journey for tomorrow.
Everyone got busy quickly. I watched Theresa standing on top of a dune and scanning the horizon, seemingly lost in her thoughts. I watched her while preparing some tea. She stood there for a while, watching the sky taint itself with pink, purple and red colours before everything went dark.
The stars were out, twinkling around the full moon. I wondered what was going on in her head. I contemplated going to her, but I let her have some moments alone while I discussed tomorrow's plans with my men.
She returned to the fire after a long time, sitting beside me. I offered her a shawl as the temperature continued to drop. The Dead Desert was searing hot in the day but freezing cold at night. This extreme temperature variation was one reason why it was so inhabitable.
She took the shawl from me and put it around her while I inched closer. Lars had read the stars by now, and he joined the two of us soon. The rest of my men were busy preparing dinner and caring for the horses.
I discussed tomorrow's plans with Lars while Theresa sat beside me and listened. I took out my cigars and offered her one. She winced at them.
"Don't you have the violet ones? They taste the best. I hate these red ones," she muttered. Lars and I froze. Lars stared at me wide-eyed while I studied her face.
"Are you a smoker?" I asked her intently, handing her a violet cigar custom-made only for my consumption. No one other than me possessed them. Then how come she knew about the violet ones?
"Sometimes, I smoke," She muttered, taking it and undoing its wrapper as if it was normal for her. As if she had always had this specific kind of cigar.
"Oh, really. What do you smoke?" I couldn't help but ask while Lars stared at her wide-eyed. I could tell that he was thinking about the same thing as I.
The only way she could be familiar with these exclusive cigars was if she somehow managed to come across the cargo stolen from me a while ago—the ship with all that weed and Valdemerca's book.
"Anything, as long as it helps me calm down," she answered, lighting it and taking a long drag from it. Meanwhile, all the possibilities ran through my head.
"So, you've had this kind of cigars before?" I asked her, inching closer.
"Yeah," She answered. Suddenly, Murik's words rang in my ears. When I went to him after being unable to find who stole my ship, he told at I'd know someone who might lead me to it. This solidified his claims. It was Theresa. I looked at Lars to find him thinking the same thing.
"Where did you have them?" I asked, keeping my voice calm, not to make it seem like I was interrogating her. Suddenly, she straightened up. Her lips quivered.
"I don't remember," She answered sharply. I exchanged another look with Lars. "Why asking?" She asked me.
"You see, Theresa, these cigars aren't on the Market. They're made only for me," I told her, running my knuckles down my jaw. She shivered but didn't say anything, so I continued. "A few months ago, I had one of my ships robbed. It had a lot of weed and stuff like this on it. But that's not what matters to me. There was something else on the ship. Something significant, and I have been looking for it for a while but still haven't got a clue yet,"
I noticed how her breaths got shallow as she listened to me.
"What exactly was it?" She asked.
"A book," I told her. "Valdermerca's book," She took a sharp breath and looked at me wide-eyed.
"Do you know anything about it?" I asked her.
"No," She answered sharply and looked away, smoking her cigar. I exchanged another look with Lars. She knew. There was no doubt about that. She knew something, yet she wasn't giving it to me. I wanted to press more on this but decided to let it go for now.
We will get there slowly and steadily.
"I'm not sure this is the exact thing I tasted. But something similar," she told me.
"I see," I nodded, knowing she was lying. These kinds of cigars were only made in my kingdom for my consumption. They weren't sold.
It made me wonder why she was lying. Was it her people who stole it? I needed to give it a thought.
As the night continued, we had dinner before we went to sleep. Some of my men stayed awake in turns for night watch duty. Theresa had already retired to bed while I discussed more important things with my men before I went to our tent.
"What are you doing here?" She asked, surprised to see me.
"We're sharing," I told her, watching blood rush to her face. I grinned at her before slipping into the furs with her.
~
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