Stolen

The walls have ears

"As sad as your story may be, Lord Orm's guards are the ones that took you from your human life. Autumn Fae are notorious for stealing human females for all of their various tastes. You smell like you probably taste like stars and spun sugar. Lord Orm has a sweet tooth."

Alli wasn't sure whether or not to be embarrassed or even more angry. "And how do you think that you are any better? Did you, or did you not, take me from him?"

"From him, yes, but not to be my plaything. That is simply cruel."

"In that, we are in agreement. Orm is cruel. But back to your first question- dude...I'm human, and have been my whole life. Why would I lie about that?"

"It doesn't matter. It's time for us to get moving. We need to be at the castle now, before the Ball starts."

" 'Ball'? What the Hell kind of nightmare is this? Will there be demons of darkness there too? Am I the token human sacrifice," she snapped, her brush with death making her feel a bit more on edge.

Aiden ignored her questions. "Get dressed in this. We have to move." He threw an oversized animal fir parka at her and exited the tent again. Alli looked at the garment he had tossed at her. One thing, the only thing she understood, was that Aiden was the leader, and the leader didn't want her dead. He needed her for something first. That was the only part that was keeping her alive.

The journey through the snowy woods took two days. Alli was sure that she had never felt so much like a popsicle in her life. She couldn't feel her feet, she couldn't feel her fingers, and her nose kept running like it was a leaky faucet! It didn't help that Cristian kept throwing murderous looks at her over his shoulder, or that Aiden kept yanking her back against him on the horse, to make her "more comfortable". She was over the entire journey, starting from the exact moment she was stolen from her home. Fae were cruel, bloodthirsty, jerks and if she ever got back to the human world, she would make that well known. They only ate the frozen fruits, nuts, and berries they could find along the way. They never had a fire, they hardly slept. From the pace they pushed her to, she wondered if they knew that humans were much more fragile than they are. And, it only got worse as they got closer and closer to the Winter Palace. She wondered if she would even be alive when they got there, just given the cold, never mind the bloodthirsty Fae that wanted her dead!

"Dismount here," Aiden called over the wind, pushing Alli off of the horse. She fell on the ground, laying there unmoving. Her body throbbed as Aiden dismounted and came over to peer down at her. "Get up." She wasn't even sure her voice worked anymore, but she knew she couldn't stand up without help, so she just stared up at the sky, wishing it would stop freaking snowing. "Get UP Little Thrall," he commanded again, his power infusing his voice.

Alli's inner voice snorted sarcastically. If she could get up, did he think she would still be on the frozen ground? She couldn't even seem to pry her lips open to tell him to go to Hell. So, she stared up longer, wishing for sunshine and a warm, tropical beach.

Aiden muttered something rude and definitely crude under his breath as he leaned down and tossed her over his shoulder. "You are not permitted to die. I will not let you. If you die on me, Little Thrall, I will hunt you through the Great Beyond and drag you back here myself." Since his word seemed to be the ending word of all things, she believed him when he told her that she was not going to die, simply because, so far, he hadn't let her.

From the point where they dismounted, or Alli had been thrown off the horse, they trudged slowly and silently through the snow, not wanting to alert anyone to their presence. They made their way into the stables, where it was slightly warmer. That was when Alli remembered that the shivering started. It felt like just a little bit of heat was enough to free her from her freezing, but not enough to thaw her out. It was enough to make her start shaking uncontrollably and irritate her captor just a little more.

"Can you control yourself, Little Thrall, or should I have Cristian control you,"Aiden growled low in her ear as he guided her to the back of the stables.

Alli glared at him. "D-D-Do y-you k-k-know n-n-oth-th-thing abou-t-t-t hu-hu-mans?"

"I know that they are very similar in make up to a Fae. That's all I need to know."

Somehow Alli didn't laugh. "W-we ar-re n-n-noth-ing alike! Th-thralls d-d-d-die easily in c-c-cold."

Aiden seemed to digest this information. "How easily?"

"V-very."

He nodded once, and then took his cape off, flinging it around her shoulders. Warmth seeped into her bones. Alli's eyes closed involuntarily. The heat had already started sinking into her body, urging her tired eyes to close. Her shivering quickly came to an end. "This way, Little Thrall. We are going to take a back entrance to your new home."

"That's right- I forgot you had a new, pretty cage you intended to lock me away in. Why were you keeping me again?"

"When I decide to tell you, you'll be the very first to know. Stop talking and start moving."

Alli glared at him. That was all fine and well, but moving was a struggle because of how cold she was. She looked up at the wall. "W-w-where-?"

He reached over her head, pushing a plank at the back of the building. A door opened. He gave her a smirk. "Be careful. Even the walls have ears here."