"Mr Marule." I take a step back and lean against the well, placing a hand over my heart. "My goodness, you frightened me."

Mr Marule tilts his head to the side, his wavy locks falling across his face as his mouth stretches into a grin – the kind of grin that would make any girl weak at the knees. "I told you to call me Will."

I scan him warily. It doesn't feel right to call him by his first name. He is from the Palace, he is above me in status and I do not know him. To call him anything other than Mr Marule seems informal and disrespectful.

"Okay..." I swallow the nerves in my stomach. "...Will."

His eyes flicker.

"There it is," I furrow my brows. "Your eyes they did that...that thing again."

He's staring at me with an even gaze and a raised eyebrow. He is the same way he was that afternoon – charming and confident, a combination that the men in Adaymos can't seem to get right. It sets me on edge. Something about this man isn't right; he's too charming to be safe.

"What thing?" He asks, like he has no idea what I'm talking about.

I bite my lip. "What were you doing outside the gates?"

Mr Marule's composure doesn't change, he just tilts his head to the side. "What were you doing creeping around the village after dark?"

"I..." Heat rushes to my cheeks, but I don't have to answer because a giggle echoes off the walls around us – Krista's giggle. Mr Marule's eyes dart towards the sound faster than I thought possible. "I asked you first."

"You're spying on Mr Toledano," He murmurs. I flush a deep red.

"He's my sister's suitor." I brush my hands on my dress, embarrassed to have been caught spying by Mr Marule. "But that woman isn't my sister."

"Ah." He raises an eyebrow. "Mr Toledano is not a faithful man. For some reason, that doesn't surprise me."

I feel the urge to return his smile; there's something so contagious about it, something that makes it feel hard not to replicate. But this is my sister's suitor, the man she is supposed to be with for the rest of her life. I should not be smiling.

"Why were you outside the gates?" I ask again.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He speaks with such confidence that had I not just seen him, I would believe him. He offers me a hand. "May I escort you home?"

I look down at his hand, stretching out from his dark sleeves. His velvety skin is free of any marks – everything about this man seems perfect and untouched. It makes me think of the scars running up my left arm. What would he think? Would he curl away in disgust?

"Miss Thelene?" he repeats when I don't respond.

"I –" I clutch my hands behind my back.

Part of me wants to take his hand, to experience the feeling of our skin making contact, to see if I'd imagined it the first time. But the other part of me is afraid of this man and his flickering eyes, charming smile, and burning touch.

I lift my chin. "I think I can manage on my own, thank you, Mr Marule."

I turn away, distancing myself from this man who makes me want to move closer. Mr Marule was outside the gates, I watched him leap over the wall and then watched him act like he didn't know what I was talking about. Something isn't right.

"Miss Thelene," he says. I pause to look at him over my shoulder.

His eyes flicker again as he looks at me, my heart skips a beat – and it isn't from fear, though it probably should be.

His mouth stretches into a grin. "I told you to call me Will."

I swallow and spin around to rush back through the shadows, my cheeks tinged pink and my heart hammering against my chest.

Mr Marule frightens me. He is charming, confident, and seemingly perfect. He has no fear of the forbidden forest, he can leap over a wall like it's nothing more than a stick lying across the ground, and his eyes flicker in a way that I have never seen before.

But I'm not afraid of Mr Marule because of that. I am afraid of him because of the way his touch burns and the way he makes my heart pound.

And that makes me foolish.

#

The next day is warm.

The sun shines, the sky is blue, and there is no cloud in sight. It almost seems wrong, like the weather should be mourning Alyx like the rest of the village.

Ethii Toledano is sitting with Imelda in the village dining hall when I arrive for afternoon tea. They are sitting side by side, Ethii's hand placed delicately on the small of her back and Imelda's cheeks flushed a deep pink.

I stand in the doorway of the dining hall, shielding myself from the harsh sun outside as I stare at the two of them sitting with a couple of others in the centre of the room. I notice Kenna sitting on the other side of the room with Krysta and Elizabeth. She catches my eye and ushers for me to come over. I take a look at Krysta and walk towards Imelda's table instead. I don't think I can speak to her without talking about what I saw.

"Alera," Ethii says when I reach the table. He eyes me briefly before looking back at his friends and smirking. "Please, sit. You know your presence is always welcome."

I don't miss the sarcasm in his tone, nor do I miss the way his friends snicker when I sit. I ignore it and sit anyway; I've been accustomed to it my entire life. One of the reasons why I don't like Ethii Toledano is because of the things he said about me when I was a child, the rumours he spread about the scars on my arms. And Ethii Toledano has never particularly liked me, either.

Ethii devours his food and boasts about his garments stall and how he plans to sell them in the Palace someday. I fight the urge to roll my eyes. Nobody ever gets out of Adaymos, we are born here and we die here. It's almost impossible to get out, and I am almost certain that Ethii Toledano will not be the first.

It's something we accept from the day we understand it. I have, Imelda has, Kenna has, we all have. For some, it's easy; for others, not so much. The idea of living the rest of my life in Adaymos collecting stones for my father and marrying some local farmer doesn't sound like much of a life to me. But it's just the way it is.

"Have you spoken to Mr Marule recently, Ethii?" Imelda purrs from his side, peering up at him with wide blue eyes.

Ethii nods proudly. "I showed him around this morning." He puffs his chest out. "I told him about my garments and he said he'd be interested in bringing them back to the palace with him when he leaves."

"Really?" Imelda chirps. "Wow."

I scoff under my breath, causing Ethii to dart his eyes towards me. "Something to say, Alera?"

I swallow and then shake my head. "No."

He leans back in his seat. "Didn't think so." He mutters under his breath. His friends snicker again. I peer across the room to see Krysta staring wistfully in our direction; it makes my stomach churn. "Not that it'd be important if you did."

Imelda looks at the table to avoid my eye. I bite my lip. Sitting at Ethii's table wasn't such a great idea as the knowledge of what he was doing last night is on the top of my tongue. I know I can't blurt it out in the middle of the dining hall, but I know I can't keep it to myself forever. I couldn't do that to Imelda.

"Alera," Alec says from across the table. He is Ethii's best friend and he's almost as awful. "You must be coming of age to begin courting."

Imelda perks up at the idea and change of subject. "She'll be nineteen next week. All the suitors will be invited to her birthday celebration."

Alec raises an eyebrow. "You mean she has potential suitors?"

"Of course she does," Ethii scoffs, and for a second, I think he's about to say something kind. "Surely there are plenty of men in the village who don't know about those hideous marks on her arms – they'll sure get a shock on your wedding night."

Ethii's friends laugh under their breaths. I don't know why it gets into me, but my hands burn and my cheeks flush bright red. I am used to Ethii's taunts, they don't usually bother me. But with last night on my mind I can't ignore his taunts.

"At least when I find a suitor, I will only have one," I snap. "I won't feel the need to sneak around in the shadows with another man."

Ethii looks as though he's been slapped and his friends fall silent.

Imelda frowns. "Ethii, what is she talking about?"

"I haven't the slightest idea," Ethii responds without missing a beat, his eyes staring dangerously into my own. My poor sister takes his reassurances and relaxes immediately, but I have never been more on edge.

My face burns and my blood boils. I want to blurt everything out; I want to expose him. I want to pay him back for everything he's ever said about me – and this is the way how. But before I can do anything, Ethii jumps in the air and pulls Imelda back with him.

Shrieks fill the dining hall.

It takes me a few moments to realise what's happening; our table cloth has lit on fire. I leap backwards in fright as a few men rush forward to put out the fire with cups of water and a cloth. My eyes flash to Ethii's and the fire is forgotten because he stares at me with a gaze even more deadly.

I shake where I stand.

I've made a mistake. Ethii hated me before, but now he is going to make my life a thousand times worse. I dash from the dining hall before either of us can say much else.

Once outside, I lean against the wall behind the hall where all the old trays and chairs are thrown. I close my eyes and take a breath. I should just go home, let Ethii cool off, let myself cool off – I can apologize to Imelda later and tell her the truth. I owe it to her.

I don't have any stones to collect as Sundays are the day I have off. Usually, I spend it with Kenna and my friends in the marketplace, but there is no market today because of Alyx's death and I don't particularly want to see Krysta.

Just as I open my eyes, someone grips onto my wrists tightly. My eyes fly open. Ethii Toledano is standing in front of me, a malicious snarl on his face. He squeezes my wrists and presses me against the wall behind us. I let out a small cry when my back digs into a piece of wood sticking out.