Novel Sneak Peek! Princess And The Pea Retelling - Adira - Scene 1

Today I’m so excited to share the first scene from the novel I’ve been writing. It’s a fairytale retelling of The Princess and the Pea. I’m excited to share the first part of Adira’s story with you guys! 

If you are interested in hearing the rest of the story, I’ll release it scene-by-scene. To listen to what happens next, make sure you sign up for updates, and I will send the future releases straight to your email. 

Willing to See, Scene 1

The Bite 

The sun beat down as it neared the horizon behind her. Adira swished through the dust swirling in tendrils around her skirt as she hurried down the path. She squinted, searching the edge of the village for a glimpse of her father and brothers. She felt goosebumps rise on her arms, even in this warm weather. What could be keeping them? She picked up her pace.   

She knew Sage wanted to get home as soon as possible after work was done. They were finally going to celebrate his birthday at dinner tonight. Adira couldn’t help feeling something important must have happened to keep her brothers away. Something just wasn’t right.  

She approached the village gate and heard voices around the wall - voices she recognized. She sighed in relief. Nothing’s wrong; I was overreacting. They must have just been delayed by - Adira stopped dead in her tracks. Three men were carrying a makeshift stretcher, upon which lay a fourth man. She instantly recognized the dark, bearded face lolling on its side – her father. His eyes were closed. 

“What happened?” Adira asked, heart leaping to her throat. Running to the group, she finally realized the two people in front of the stretcher were her brothers. Connor shifted to get a better grip, Sage to his right. 

“We think he was bitten by a snake in the fields,” Connor said breathlessly. Sage chimed in, “Belorin said there’ve been others bitten, too.” His gaze shifted back toward the third man, holding both posts of the stretcher at the opposite end. Adira recognized their neighbor, one of her father’s closest friends. 

Adira had heard of a villager from Julenia being bitten by a snake not long ago; the victim hadn’t survived. She studied Connor. He was normally more reserved than Sage, but even he seemed shaken and agitated, eyes shifting uncomfortably. 

A cold sweat broke out on Adira’s neck. She felt a weight of responsibility settle over her. As the oldest, her role was to think calmly and rationally to provide a solution to the problem. But Belorin was here; surely he knew what to do? She eyed the burly, bearded man and searched his face. Though he tried to hide it behind his closed expression, despair filled his dark eyes. She shivered. 

Perhaps the rumors were exaggerated. Perhaps they were overreacting. “Let me help.” She grabbed a handle from Belorin so each of them now held a corner. “Let’s get him home, then I’ll run to the apothecary.” Her heart sank into her stomach. I hope mother is strong enough to handle the shock. 

She looked down into her father’s seemingly-peaceful face. He could have been sleeping, but was likely unconscious. Adira knew her father would never let anyone carry him on a stretcher if he could help it. He hadn’t made a sound. 

Papa, don’t leave us! It’s not your time. 

She swallowed a sob and blinked back hot tears, tightening her grip on the stretcher as they made their way home.