Black Moon Draw is incredible. From the rolling emerald hills to the jagged mountains and imposing white cliffs beside great oceans, I can't imagine anywhere so breathtaking.
I'm led back into the forest. The man slows our pace and winds among trees, crosses clearings and takes us once more back to the cliff, only to return to the woods.
When my captor slows us to a halt, he passes me a homemade canteen with mint water. I drink deeply, tired from the combination of fear, cold, and travel.
He pulls my horse abreast of his as we enter another field. The horses are snorting and blowing hard from the pace, radiating heat that buffers me from the cold night.
"You are well?" he asks.
"More or less," I reply. "Just another night getting kidnapped, I guess." I listen to the sounds of the night, the movements and cries of animals, waiting to hear the Shadow Knight crash through the forest after me.
"You are safe, Naia."
How the hell does he know my name? "Who are you?" I ask, handing back the drink.
He lowers his hood, his gold-tan eyes visible in the dim light of the forest.
"Westley!" I exclaim. "You're the Desert Knight's son?"
"Aye." He offers a small smile. He looks much better than when I saw him last. His eye has healed, and he's no longer gaunt and pale.
"But . . . how . . ." I try to wrap my mind around the coincidence of finding him in the bench seat of the Red Knight.
Disney Princess.
It all clicks. "Omigod! You're the one who was supposed to marry Dis . . . uh, I mean, the sister of the Red Knight!"
"Aye." There's sadness in his features.
"The Red Knight held you prisoner to what? Make sure you didn't ruin his plan to marry off his sister?"
"In part. It was to keep my father in check as well."
"What a total asshole!"
Westley chuckles. "'Tis a form of negotiation. When a man opposes you, you ensure he has a reason to cooperate. I went to reason with the Red Knight when he gave away my love to another man. 'Twas foolish. He wisely captured me for his purposes."
Their sense of checks and balances in this world is barbaric. The Red Knight must have something on everyone, if the Shadow Knight didn't blink about being imprisoned in his own dungeon and a boy held hostage for a year believes his captor to have simply outsmarted him.
"So is it a good thing I freed you or not?" I ask, puzzled by his calm acceptance of the situation.
"Aye. Your act saved your life this night and possibly that of the Shadow Knight," he replies. "Though I will ask you never to tell my father that."