The King's Lover-Chapter 280: The Woods
Rose sat atop a brown horse. The mane was long and the horse looked well taken care of. She couldn’t help but run her finger across its coat. The horse grunted in satisfaction and moved forward and backwards as she adjusted on the saddle.
Lady Deana looked up at Rose with a worried expression as she watched her climb onto the horse. Lady Deana grabbed the sides of her dress nervously, and Rose worried that she might really stop her.
"Are you sure about this, Rose? I can send you in a carriage—you don’t have to ride to the market. And you can also take a servant or two with you. I don’t feel very comfortable sending you off alone."
"The market isn’t so far off, and I remember the path, my lady. You have nothing to worry about. Riding would be faster, and I’ll be back before you know it," Rose said with the best smile she could muster, trying to assure Lady Deana.
She didn’t want Lady Deana to panic. Her entire plan revolved around this. This was her only way to get out of the estate undetected, and she also needed Lady Deana to be calm so the lady would take longer to cause a stir when she wasn’t back.
"Well then, let me send a servant that can also ride along with you," Lady Deana pressed.
Rose smiled again, doing her best to make sure it didn’t look as if she had ulterior motives for going alone. "I ride pretty fast, Lady Deana. It’ll be quicker this way, and the marketplace isn’t so far off. You have nothing to worry about, I promise."
The lie rolled off her tongue easily, and Rose didn’t even hesitate. She felt bad, but it didn’t compare to going to her sick mother, and she wouldn’t change her mind about this.
Lady Deana held her gaze for a moment. As if seeing what she was looking for, she softly nodded and took a step back. "I’ll be waiting for you."
Her smile made Rose’s heart squeeze, as all she was about to do was break Lady Deana’s trust. She had no intention of going to the market. She planned to veer off into the woods, find the rocky path, and take the route out of the town that wasn’t fenced.
As long as she stayed away from the Stonefield pass on her way to Stonegate, she should be fine. After Stonegate, it was smooth sailing from there, and she would be in Edenville in less than a day.
Rose nodded and tightened her grip on the reins, ready to lead the horse toward the gate.
"Wait," Lady Deana cried, as though recalling something.
A servant rushed towards the lady and handed her a small skin bag with a string tied around the mouth. Lady Deana stepped forward one more time and stretched out the bag to Rose.
"Here you go. That should be enough to pay for the silks—and you can get whatever you like," she smiled at her.
Rose’s eyes widened. It was the one thing she had been worried about. The crown prince only moved around with gold coins, and she couldn’t take that without anyone noticing.
Besides, it was better to have no money than to have a gold coin. She was bound to draw unnecessary attention if she ever tried to spend it.
"Thank you, Lady Deana." Rose was really grateful, but she couldn’t say that—she was worried she might give away too much.
Lady Deana lightly touched Rose’s arm and stepped away. Rose pulled the reins and spun the horse while Lady Deana stood with a few servants, waving at her.
Rose smiled as she turned away. The horse moved steadily, and Rose could feel the muscles underneath. She sped through the gates, taking the long winding path that led to the market, just to be safe.
Rose didn’t plan to see it through. She had checked the map well enough to know where to make the turn that would lead her into the woods and then out of Futherfields. As long as she could get out of Futherfields, the rest should be easy.
Rose glanced backward to check if she had ridden a significant distance from the estate and to also see if she was being followed. Certain she was safe, she turned her attention to the road.
If she kept on this path, she would come upon the market. Houses lay on both sides of the path. It was still morning, so it was quite busy. Voices echoed through as people roamed the street, and she had to swerve her horse a little to the side to avoid a fast-moving carriage. There were quite a number of them—she expected nothing less from a town as big as Futherfield, only second to the capital.
The path suddenly separated, and Rose took the turn without hesitation. She made the horse pick up the pace, but not so much that she would draw attention to herself. The houses remained unchanged, but Rose knew the closer she got to the woods, the fewer the houses.
Rose could already make out the trees, and soon enough, there was nothing but an open field that led into the woods. Rose had been worried she wouldn’t make it this far without being stopped, but so far, all she got were stares. Perhaps she had no reason to worry, as it was daylight.
She got to the entrance of the woods and didn’t slow down—rather, she rushed right into it, speeding through the path. There was a cleared trail that ran straight through the woods.
It was this path that Rose used, and it led her further into the forest. Rose hoped she would find the rocky path. The terrain was a little different from the map, but Rose didn’t feel as though she was lost just yet. She had brought along the map, and as soon as she needed it, she would be quick to use it.
