Chapter 5

• SNOW’S POV
• I wake up to the suffocating smell of smoke invading my nostrils and interrupting my breath. What the hell is happening? I jerk out of the spot I’m sitting and look around to see the horses in the stable panicking. They’re neighing in disorder and trying to get out of their cages.
• I notice where the smoke is coming from and I panic, as I try to find some water to put the fire out, but I’m too late. The fire is already spreading and burning up all the hay in sight. The sun hasn’t completely risen yet and I’m the only one in here, with no way to get out since I was locked in.
• I struggle to free the horses and they panic as they try to get away from the fire, but it’s spreading wildly. I run towards the door and try to break it open but I’m not strong enough. Oh God, why is this happening to me? I start coughing hysterically as the smoke starts suffocating my lungs. I look around and the entire stable is covered in smoke and fire. How did this even happen?
• One of the candles must have fallen from its hold. I fall to the ground on my knees, coughing, praying for someone to notice the fire soon and come and get me out of here. I’m scared. I don’t want to die.
• As I fall to the floor, my breath gives up on me, and I feel myself slipping away when suddenly, the doors shoot open and I’m carried outside by a pair of strong hands. The horses neigh as they all run out of the burning stables.
• The man who carried me places me on the ground and I cough hysterically as I breathe in the fresh air. If he had been a minute too late, I would probably be dead by now.
• “Oh no! My stables! What did she do? My horses! My hay!” The old woman who owns the inn exclaims as she notices the fire. “What the hell did you do, girl?”
• The old woman addresses me, not even giving me time to catch my breath. “It wasn’t me ma’am. I woke up to the fire. One of the candles must have toppled over.” I say trying to reason with her. Why would I burn her stables when I knew very well I was locked inside for the night?
• “So the stables just magically got burned up then, is that what you’re trying to tell me?” The woman says as she walks towards me grabbing a lock of my hair and squeezing on it. I let out a whimper at the pain.
• “I swear ma’am. I didn’t do it!” I say as tears start forming in my eyes.
• “You must be a bringer of bad luck then! All my horses are gone now! You’re a witch.” She says distastefully in anger as she pushes me to the ground.
• “That’s enough!” The man who saved me suddenly steps in, stopping the woman from laying another finger on me. He has a thick accent. His voice is deep and authoritative when he speaks and I didn’t notice how huge he was until now.
• “She said she didn’t do anything. Can’t you see she was locked up in there? Why would she try to kill herself?” The man defends me and the feeling I get is strange because apart from my mother, no one has ever stood up for me before. My heart warms up in a foreign way at the sight of someone defending me. I must be dreaming.
• “Stay out of this lad! This doesn’t concern you. She was the only one in the stables when it happened so it’s only natural that I blame her. She has to pay for the damage she has caused or she’ll have to work for me as a slave for the rest of her pathetic little life!” The woman says bitterly and my heart jumps in fear at her words.
• No. I can’t be a slave and I don’t have enough money to pay for the damages to her stable. The money I have with me is just enough to get me to the North. A wave of regret washes over me as I contemplate whether or not I should have ever left my pack in the first place. If I had just stayed home and mourned my mother’s death properly, then none of this would have happened. The thought of going back home and completely giving up on this journey crosses my mind. Just a few hours in and everything is already getting messed up. Maybe I am bad luck to my own self and every one around me.
• “Please ma’am. I didn’t burn your stables. I have no money to pay you.” I say begging the woman as I get on my knees in front of her. She slaps me sending me falling back to the floor. Tears fall from my eyes as my jaw stings in pain.
• “So, you’re just a low-life peasant. I guess you’ll be working for me as a slave then.” The woman states with an evil smirk on her face. I thought people who ran inns were supposed to be welcoming and kind. This woman is evil.
• “Touch her again and I’ll have your head.” The man who saved me steps in front of the woman and pulls out a shiny dagger. His dagger looks like it costs millions. Who is this man?
• The woman trembles in front of him in fear as she offers me a bitter look.
• “How much does she owe you?” The man questions her.
• “A hundred gold pieces.” The woman says courageously. The amount she mentioned is unreasonable. She had at most six horses in those stables and I’m sure if she looks well enough, she’ll find them. The horses can’t have gotten far. I don’t even have that kind of money.
• The man shakes his head with a chuckle and takes out a bag of coins, dropping it to the ground in front of the woman. “You’ll find sixty gold pieces in there. Take it or take it.” The man says to the woman with a deep and warning voice and she picks up the bag quickly, grumbling under her breath as she walks back toward her inn.
• The stables are still burning but she has probably forgotten about that already at the sight of money. This man just saved my life. Tears fall from my eyes as I feel grateful for him. No one has ever done what he just did for me. I’m a stranger and he just gave away his money like that for me. He either has an ulterior motive or he really is just a good person. But it’s impossible that he did that for nothing.
• I let out a sigh as I realize I now have a debt to pay to this man. He walks towards me and offers me his hand, with a light smile.
• “Thank you, sir.” I say softly as tears still fall from my eyes. I grab his hand and he lifts me up with ease. He takes out a little cloth from his pocket and gets close to me as he gently wipes away my tears.
• I look up at him in awe and admiration. Now that my eyes are dried of tears, I notice how heavenly he looks. He has blond hair, green eyes, and the most perfect face I have ever seen upon a man. He looks like something out of a fairy tale.
• “How can I pay you back sir?” I ask him sadly as I bow my head to him. I wait for him to tell me how he wants me to pay him back. My mind races in fear. He might ask me to work for him for an unreasonable amount of time. Or worse, he might ask me to pay with my body and as traumatized as I am after what happened to me, I really hope this man’s heart is as kind as his face and he doesn’t ask for anything too drastic.
• “There’s no need for that.” He says with a shrug as he walks towards his horse. I arrange my satchel over my shoulder and walk quickly towards him. Did I hear him right? He can’t be willing to just lose sixty pieces of gold for a complete stranger right?
• “I insist sir.” I say to him as he takes out an apple from his bag and feeds it to his horse. My stomach grumbles with hunger at the sight of the juicy apple.
• “And how exactly do you intend on paying back sixty pieces of gold, mmh? You don’t look like you have much, and I’m not complaining. I don’t need you to pay me back.” He says looking me up and down as he unties his horse. He doesn’t look at me like others normally do. He doesn’t look at me like I’m a filthy peasant like others would call me.
• His eyes hold kindness and he talks to me like I was a real person and not just some peasant from the slums.
• I nod at him gratefully and look around as I try to find my own horse, grateful that I’m out of this situation as fast as I got into it. My heart basically falls to my stomach when I can’t find my horse anywhere. Oh no! That was my only means of transportation to the North. What do I do now? He must have probably fled with the other horses because of the fire. I don’t know how far he has gone and I have a map but if I go looking for him on foot, I might run into rogues. What do I do?
• The man notices the look on my face and stops in his tracks. “Where are you headed?” He asks suddenly.
• “North Sir.” I answer with a low voice, lowering my head and averting my eyes from his gaze.
• “Well, what are the odds? I’m also headed North. You look like you need a ride.” He says and I shake my head as I take a few steps backward.
• “I couldn’t impose sir, I don’t want to be a burden.” I object.
• “I don’t mind.” He says flashing me a kind smile. “And please, call me Stefan.”