“Now what?” she muttered.
She couldn’t simply open the door and drag him in. Those inside were likely to try to get out. And she couldn’t count of them helping her, either.
“No choice,” she said, and unlocked the door.
The smell hit her immediately. The same stench of unwashed bodies and waste that permeated the Glittering Birch tree. She gagged as she grabbed Jeremiah and dragged him further in.
“What’s this?” The voice was right behind her.
She dropped Jeremiah and turned. Thomas, one of the two that she needed to speak to on the way back from Glittering Birch, stood directly in front of her. She hadn’t noticed on horseback, but Thomas was large for one of the Folk, tall and broad through the shoulders.
“Take care of him,” she said, pointing down at Jeremiah.
Thomas glanced down, then returned his stare to her.
“Why?”
“Because I’m telling you to.”
“So?”
“What are you? A child? Do as you’re ordered.”
Thomas cocked his head, then looked back down.
“What happened to him?”
“I hit him.”
Thomas laughed. “Good. He’s an ass.”
He turned without another word and walked away, leaving Jeremiah where he lay.
“At least I didn’t have to hit him, too,” Shireen muttered, and dragged Jeremiah further into the room.
She left him lying on the floor, making sure he was breathing regularly. Although she felt bad about leaving him, she had no choice.
No one else bothered her as she walked to the door. Looking back, she saw several pairs of eyes watching. She returned their gazes for a moment, then passed outside, locking the door behind her. Once on the steps, she took large, gulping breaths of air, trying to clear the stench from her lungs.
♦ ♦ ♦
Shireen passed the rest of the day in her office, shuffling paperwork that should have been filtered to her by Samuel. Her aide was still missing, and she had yet to replace him. Doing so would have felt like a betrayal, like she was admitting that he was gone for good.
Wherever the Soul Gaunt had taken him, he seemed to have disappeared like he never existed.
She stared at yet another requisition for something that she didn’t even know they needed. How did Jediah deal with this? It was a never-ending, mind-numbing succession of minutiae that no one really cared about, least of all her. No wonder Solomon ditched the job and ran away.
Well, enough of it. For today at least. She glanced out the window at the sunlight shining on the leaves of the trees. What a beautiful day. Too nice by far to be cooped up in an office. A ride in the Greenweald was what she needed, to be out in the forest, listening to the trees sing their slow song of the ages.
“Where are you going?” Orlando was coming into the office as she was leaving.
“Out,” she said.
“Okay. Out where?”
“I don’t know. Out there. Taking a ride. What are you, my mother?”
“Whoa! What’s that all about?”
Shireen turned back to her mate. He was trying to mask the hurt on his face by making a joke of it, but she knew him too well for that to be successful. For a moment, she honestly didn’t care, and then it almost felt like a veil lifted and she saw him more clearly.
“I’m sorry. I…I don’t know where that came from.”
But she did. She could feel it, even now, telling her that it didn’t really matter if Orlando got his precious feelings hurt. What did he know of what she was dealing with anyway?
“You all right?” he asked her.
“Yeah, I’m fine. I just… I need to get out of here for a few minutes. It’s driving me crazy being stuck in here all day.”
“I understand. Let’s go for a ride then.”
He smiled and took her hand. When she returned his smile, it almost felt like she meant it.
♦ ♦ ♦
Their ride in the Greenweald was wonderful, and it helped. The trees were always a boon to the Folk, something that soothed their souls and reminded them that even if their lives were fleeting, there was beauty in the world that would last far beyond them.
“Thanks,” she told Orlando as they slowly neared the compound, far too early for her taste. “I needed that.”
He nodded. “So did I. It’s been way too long since we’ve been able to do this. I hope Solomon gets back soon. Then we can go back to being scouts and spending more time out in the wilds.”
“Yeah, right… Solomon.”
Orlando looked at her strangely, so she tried to cover it up. “I only meant that I wonder if he’ll ever truly take the Head of House position. Or if he’ll have some other reason to do something that only he can do.”
“I don’t think so,” Orlando replied. “If he said he’d do it, he’ll do it. He did say that he needed to go after Celia from the beginning, remember.”
Of course, you would say that, Shireen thought to herself.
She shook her head. This was starting to get serious.
“Orlando…” she began.
“Mm?”
“There’s something wrong… with me.”
“What are you talking about?” His concern was evident.
“I’m feeling strange. Like I don’t care about the House, or my duties, or…”
“Me?”
Shireen nodded, unable to say it out loud, which she supposed meant something.
“You think it’s part of what’s going on?”
She nodded again. “I feel so weak.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Whatever this is, it has nothing to do with how strong someone is. We’ll figure it out.”
“I need to go back,” she said.
“Back where?”
Shireen reined in her horse, bringing it to a stop. Orlando followed suit.
“Back to Glittering Birch. I have to see what this is and how I can stop it.”
“All right then, let’s go. First, let me
