Chapter 5
My heart was utterly calm, like nothing could disturb me.
But somewhere in the general's estate, someone's heart was surely being tormented, burning with anxiety.
In the stables of the general's estate, Halbert hadn't slept a wink all night.
He was personally guarding the stables, keeping a close watch over his legendary horse, Windchaser.
Guards were stationed every few steps inside and out, the place locked down tighter than a drum.
He wouldn't let anyone near the stables. Even the hay and water had to pass his inspection three times before he brought them in himself.
Halbert wasn't buying it.
He was a battle-hardened general who'd survived countless wars. He would not let some woman's words mess with his head.
He was going to see the sun rise and fall for himself.
He was determined to prove that everything she said was just nonsense.
He was going to break her damn spell.
The study was locked down just as tight, with everyone on high alert.
His battle flag, proof of all his glorious victories, was guarded by four of his personal men, swords drawn. Not even a fly could sneak in.
Unity stayed by his side, one arm still in a sling, the other gripping Halbert's sleeve like her life depended on it. Her face was ghostly pale, and the shadows under her eyes were deep and dark.
She hadn't slept a wink either, driven nearly mad with fear.
Unity's voice shook as she clung to his sleeve. "Halbert, what if we just got rid of the horse and the flag? If they're gone, that bitch's curse won't hold any water, right?"
Halbert shot her a cold look.
"No," he replied, his tone icy.
Those were his honor, his everything.
If he destroyed them himself, it was no different than letting the curse win.
Either way, it was admitting defeat.
Halbert never admitted defeat.
The sun kept rising.
All was quiet, nothing out of the ordinary.
Windchaser was just eating hay in the stables like nothing happened, and the battle flag in the study stood untouched.
Halbert felt his nerves loosen up a bit.
Honestly, it was almost funny to him.
He couldn't believe he let a madwoman's words mess with his head.
He felt that Lane's death had to be just a coincidence.
Unity breaking her hand was just a freak accident to him as well.
But just as that thought crossed his mind, a thunderous crash erupted outside.
It felt like the whole ground shook.
Halbert shot to his feet.
"What the hell is going on?" he barked.
A servant burst in, practically tumbling over himself, his face completely drained of color.
"General, the stables just collapsed!" he stammered, barely able to get the words out.
Halbert's mind buzzed, a loud ringing drowning out everything else.
He dashed toward the stables like a madman.
Unity let out a scream and rushed after him, tripping over herself in panic.
The grand, sturdy stables now lay half-collapsed.
A massive main beam had snapped in the middle and crashed straight down.
Several guards had been injured by the falling debris, sprawled on the ground and groaning in pain.
Windchaser was trapped beneath the broken beam. His hind legs were twisted at a grotesque angle, his black mane smeared with blood and dust.
He let out a piercing, desperate whinny that echoed through the wreckage.
Both his hind legs were broken.
Halbert stood before the ruins, feeling frozen to the core.
It was as if his blood was turning to ice, inch by inch.
He didn't believe that this was a coincidence.
Before Halbert could even wrap his head around the disaster, another messenger came barreling in, panic etched all over his face.
"General, the battle flag snapped!" he shouted, his voice shaking.
Halbert turned his head stiffly, like he'd been hollowed out, moving as if his soul had left him.
He walked toward the study, each step slow and automatic, like he was moving on autopilot.
Inside the study, the four guards were all kneeling, shaking like a leaf.
The battle flag that meant everything to him lay on the ground.
The sturdy ironwood pole had snapped cleanly in two, right down the middle.
The break was riddled with tiny holes, hollowed out from within.
There were termites.
No one knew when the termites had hollowed out the inside of the pole.
The shockwave from that distant crash was just enough to break it for good.
Windchaser's legs were shattered.
The battle flag's pole had snapped clean in two.
The curse had come true.
Not a single thing was different from Lizzie's prediction.
Inside the general's estate, all the servants and soldiers kept their distance, watching Halbert warily.
The awe in their eyes was gone.
All that remained was fear and alienation.
A general who couldn't even keep his prized horse and battle flag safe.
A man whose honor was undone by nothing but his wife's words.
They wondered if he was even worth following anymore.
Halbert felt countless eyes on him, each one like needles stabbing into his flesh.
In that moment, all the authority and confidence he'd built up over a lifetime was smashed to pieces.
Suddenly, he spun around and tore off toward the water prison.
He needed to see Lizzie.
He needed to get answers.
He wondered who she actually was.
He was going to make her stop, whatever it took.
The iron door burst open.
Halbert charged into the pitch-black dungeon, his whole body brimming with fury and panic.
He spotted me, bound to a wooden post.
In the darkness, I couldn't make out his face, but I could hear his ragged breathing and feel the tension in the air. He was so wound up, it felt like he might explode any second.
I was gagged and couldn't say a word.
I just raised my head and stared at him in silence.
Halbert stormed up to me and ripped the gag from my mouth.
He shouted, grabbing my shoulders and shaking me desperately, "Lizzie, what the hell do you want?
"Just tell me.
"Money? Status? I can give you anything you want.
"Just make it stop. Please, just make it stop!"
For the first time ever, the mighty general who always stood above everyone else was actually begging.
He shook me so hard my head spun, and my throat felt like it was on fire.
I looked at his face, he was almost broken, teetering on the edge of collapse.
I smiled.
It was a silent smile, but it made him freeze, his whole body going stiff.
With a voice so hoarse it was barely more than a whisper, I spelled out my demands.
I said, "First, throw Unity out of the general's estate. She's never allowed to step foot in the Yikar City again.
"Second, Halbert, you'll personally write me a letter of divorce and set me free. Then, you'll publicly confess your wrongs, tell everyone how you betrayed me, how you were cold and ungrateful.
"Finally, you'll kneel right here and apologize to me for wasting ten years of my youth."