She drew in a slow breath. And this time, instead of pulling away from the strange comfort he gave her… she held on. And continued to do so, not realizing just how tightly she held it, until the strange sound faded once more into the depths of the forest and the silence slowly returned.
Even then, she did not release him immediately. The warmth of his hand comforted her too much to let go easily.
Kaelan felt hesitation in her before she finally loosened her hold, though her fingers brushed his once more as she drew back.
A small thing. Barely noticeable and yet he noticed it. Every bit of her. The gentleness in her eyes, the softness of her touch, the tenderness in her voice. Comfort healing came naturally to her, more natural than she knew.
Kaelan moved toward the narrow opening in the wall once more, needing a moment to clear his thoughts. She distracted him far too often and that was not good, but he should have expected it, knowing what he knew.
Night had fully claimed Driochmor now. Darkness pressed thickly beyond the ruins, swallowing the trees until only faint outlines remained against the dark sky above.
Bria settled closer to the fire again, pulling her cloak more tightly around herself and noticed that no stars showed here. That unsettled her more than she wished to admit as did the mist that began to creep slowly toward the opening.
“The mist will reach us soon enough,” she said worried what challenge it might bring.
Kaelan glanced at it briefly. “That’s not mist.”
Bria looked toward the opening again. At first, she thought him wrong. Pale strands drifted between the trees, curling low across the forest floor. But mist moved with softness, with aimlessness. This moved differently, almost deliberately.
It slipped around trunks and roots in slow winding trails, gathering thickly in some places while avoiding others entirely.
Bria stared uneasily. “What is it?”
“Best not to wander near it.” A faint shadow of a smile touched his mouth. “You ask many questions.”
“And you seem to provide answers as if familiar with these surroundings.” The words left her softly, honestly. “And it makes me wonder.”
She left it there, leaving him to explain. Or would he avoid responding?
The faint touch of a smile left his mouth as his gaze lingered on her, and once again Bria felt that strange pull between them strengthen, invisible yet undeniable.
“It is a creature who feeds on fear,” he finally said.
Bria blinked in confusion. “Feeds on it?”
“Aye, it senses fear and is drawn to it like dogs are drawn to bones.” His eyes shifted briefly toward the mist that seemed to linger but not move forward. “The mist wraps around a person, feeding off fear while feeding it in return.”
A chill swept through her. “It leaves a person even more fearful?” She shivered. “That is horrible for it robs the person of all?—”
“Hope,” he finished. “They are left feeling hopeless and helpless.”
Bria stared at him, uncertain whether the tale frightened her more because of what he described… or because he spoke of it as truth rather than legend.
Kaelan approached the mist and it rolled back as he neared it. “Begone, you will find no fear here.”
The mist rolled away and Bria assumed Kaelan’s confidence overpowered her lingering fear enough for the creature not to sense it. And the strength of his confidence gave her hope that they might just survive Driochmor.
Bria found herself watching Kaelan when he sat opposite her near the fire. Shadows moved across his face with each flicker of flame, revealing and concealing him by turns. He seemed carved from the same rough strength as the stones surrounding them, solid and unyielding.
“You should try to rest,” he said, looking up from where he stirred the wood with a stick to keep the fire burning strong.
“I do not think sleep will come easily here.”
“It will.”
The certainty in his voice almost made her smile.
“Do you always speak as though the world bends to your will?”
