“I’m so sorry; I don’t know any healing magic,” she apologized before staring at her feet.
“Don’t worry, little mate. I’ll be fine in an hour. Let me dig some more clothes out, and then we can find somewhere to camp.”
“I need to replenish my magic. It took a lot to teleport across that gorge and kill a monster.” The incubus winked at me, but I turned my back on him in favor of finding some pants before my dick got frostbite.
“When you say replenish your magic, you mean we…” Raven’s voice died and from the awkward silence that was followed by a faint laugh, I knew she’d figured out what the damn incubus meant.
“It’s too fucking cold for that,” I snapped. The cold didn’t bother me too much, or the merman, but my witch was not immune. It was impossible to tell how much further we had to go in this storm. If the incubus thought he was getting his dick wet in the middle of a raging snowstorm, he was delusional.
“If we push on, we should reach the valley tonight,” the merman said while refusing to make eye contact with any of us. His trident had disappeared, much like Zane’s blade. I guessed they could summon their weapons with magic or perhaps stored them in a pocket realm.
I dragged a plaid shirt and padded jacket over my chest, wincing as my shoulder twinged.
“Okay, if you think it’s worth pushing on, let’s go.”
My witch rallied and straightened her spine. “I’d rather sleep somewhere more sheltered,” she admitted. “Will there be a cave or something?”
“With a bit of luck, we’ll find the vamp’s house,” Zane replied. “Maybe he lives in some boujie log cabin with solar panels and hot water?”
Raven snorted. “That wasn’t the vibe I got when I saw him in my dreams.” Her smile vanished, and the sad look I hated returned.
She sniffed as I squeezed her hand.
“We’ll find the bloodsucker, pet,” Zane promised. I nodded in agreement even though I was aware he could have turned into a withered husk by now. But I’d worry about that later.
33
Raven
My extremities were numb from the cold. All I wanted to do was soak in a hot bath, but the chances of that happening were somewhere between zilch and never in a million years.
“Stop whining.” Kenji’s grumbling interrupted my mental meltdown.
“I didn’t say a word!”
“You thought it. That’s enough to ruin my sleep.”
“So happy you’re enjoying our vacation.” He shuffled in the backpack currently slung over my bear’s broad shoulders and peered out at me as I trudged behind, taking extra care to step in Maverick’s footprints to avoid disappearing in a snow pile. Some drifts were at least six feet tall. Not a problem for my bear, but a big problem for little old me.
Snow dusted Kenji’s black nose. He snapped at a few stray flakes drifting down from the inky sky before yawning.
The storm had abated in the last hour, much to everyone’s relief. Either Alaric had passed out or he’d calmed down. Either was acceptable. I just hoped he stayed calm because I didn’t know if I could cope with another blizzard.
“Are we there yet?” I whined, ignoring Kenji’s censorious look.
Before anyone could reply, we stepped through some trees and into a wide open space. Ahead the mountain loomed tall and ominous, half obscured by low clouds. The way forward appeared clear, but as I’d already learned to my cost, appearances could be deceptive. What looked like a snowy field could easily be a frozen lake.
Maverick murmured something to the merman, who darted ahead, his blue braids swinging jauntily. He paused a hundred feet in front of us before gingerly stepping into the thicker snow. As we watched, he sniffed the air and then continued. Once he’d reached the other side of the open space, he hollered, “It’s fine. Snow over pasture. No running water below.”
Kenji climbed out of the backpack and stretched lazily. I threw him some serious side-eye.
“What?”
“Good to see you’re feeling fresh, Kenji.”
His lip curled up in a foxy smirk. “I had a nice nap, thanks.”
I gave him the middle finger, but he stuck his tongue out at me and scampered away to jump in a pile of snow.Silly kitsune. He acted like a pup sometimes.
