“Unlikely.”
“Hmm, if I beat you to that hill, does that make me the more ‘experienced’ rider?”
He glanced at her sidelong, surprised and mildly amused. “You wouldn’t keep up.”
“Only one way to find out.” She needed this. Needed him to look at her like something other than a threat. So she leaned forward, Whisper’s ears flicking back in anticipation.
Sebastian’s mouth twitched. “You’re going to regret that.”
“Let’s see what you’ve got then.”
They kicked off together – hooves hammering, wind tearing through their hair. The grey surged ahead first, Sebastian low in the saddle, every movement controlled. Whisper answered Kara’s urging with a smooth, powerful stride, drawing level.
For a breath, she looked across and caught him looking back – not guarded, not furious. Just alive.
Then she took the lead.
He muttered a curse behind her, and she laughed under her breath. He was there, on her shoulder, pushing hard to catch her. She coaxed Whisper enough to stay in front and block him from overtaking before the bend. They slowed only when the slope ahead forced them. She felt his gaze before she met it.
“You cut me off,” he accused.
She glanced over innocently. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“You do.”
His eyes held hers too long, his expression searching.
“Sounds like an excuse,” she laughed, though her pulse raced under his stare. She squeezed her knees into Whisper’s sides and together they cantered gently down the hill.
After a few minutes, she asked, “How long until we reach the Fire Shard?”
“Four days,” he answered without looking at her. “Three, if we pushed hard. But we can’t.”
“Why not?”
“The Shard’s at the temple on the Thorne–Fatàn border. The road there is volcanic ground – old lava flows.”
She pictured it: cracked earth, fissures hidden under the ash. “So if we push too hard, we would–”
“Break a leg. Probably yours, definitely the valmares.”
“Sounds welcoming,” she muttered.
A corner of his mouth pulled up. “You’ve never been to Fatàn before?”
“No. They creep me out to be honest. All prophecies and predictions.”
His head turned, and he looked like she’d said something completely absurd.
“You mean exactly the reason we’re here?”
She rolled her eyes. “In general. Not this one.”
He looked at the road ahead again. “I don’t have a choice you know, but you do. You could go back home. Think of some excuse.”
Kara turned towards him. “Do you want me to leave?”
He hesitated.
