“I’m sorry. I can’t explain why I left, but it was important. I had to do what I did.”
“It doesn’t matter.” My voice is harsher than I want, and I regret the flinch it prompts from her.
Then I pull my shit together. If she cares for me at all, I’m going to hurt her. I need to destroy every last one of those feelings. It’s the only option.
Twisting, I start to walk in the direction of Thyra and the waiting horses. “We’ve done what Bevin wanted. We’ll stay together long enough to get out of danger. Then we’ll go our separate ways. I’ll get Thyra back to Bevin.” My voice is flat, empty.
Hers, though, drips with emotion. I can hear her heart in her words. “I understand. I wouldn’t want to travel with me after what I did, either.” She pauses and I resist theneedto turn and look at her. “I’ll leave you when we get away from the Nest.”
I nod, keeping my eyes straight, away from her. It’s the only way this will work. The only hope I have of calming my savage enough to let her go when the time comes.
Thyra’s waiting for us next to Sigurd, ready to leave this place. She managed to change while we were gone, replacing the scraps prisoners wear with the soft, comfortable tunic and leggings I dragged from a pack before chasing after Sifa. I help her mount then pull myself up behind her, nudging Sigurd into a walk as I resist the urge to help my rabbit. But when I glance back, she’s hesitant to mount Hilde, looking down at one of her ankles. Guilt spills into my guts as I realize she’s hurt.
“What happened?”
Her gaze lifts and I see a hint of tears in her eyes. “It’s nothing,” she mutters. “I sprained my ankle. And may have broken a rib. I’ll heal soon.”
Dropping back to the ground, I dig through my pack for a bandage. “Let me help you.”
“It’s not a big deal, but I should probably wrap it before we go.”
“I’m going to help you, Sifa,” I tell her as I stride over. “Can I lift you onto Hilde without hurting you?”
Her lips tip up in a sad smile. “Just don’t grab me here,” she responds as she pats a spot on her side.
I reach for Sifa—wishing my gods-damned cock didn’t twitch from just being close to her—and set her in her saddle, then remove her boot and push up her pants. Her ankle’s swollen and discolored, but it doesn’t look broken. After wrapping it carefully, I draw her pants back down and shove her boot into one of her packs. “What about the rib?”
“It’ll just have to heal. It won’t take long.” She smiles—the same sad look as before—and runs a finger down my cheek. “Thank you for taking care of me, Fhord.”
I grunt and turn away because I cannot let her see the emotion her touch triggers in me. Mounting Sigurd again, I yank the reins and nudge him toward the cave’s entrance.
We ride in silence for the first hour or so, Thyra’s head resting on my chest, as if she doesn’t have the strength to hold herself up. Finally, though, she straightens her neck and asks the question she’s probably been pondering since we started.
“What’s up with you two?”
Sifa’s close enough for me to see her stiffen in her saddle, but she doesn’t answer Thyra. She probably knows, like me, that Thyra can’t know what Sifa did. Bevin would punish her. And then he’d start asking questions.
“Nothing,” I assure Thyra. “Something unexpected came up, and Sifa handled it.”
“Then why are you so angry at each other?”
“We’re not angry,” Sifa says quietly. “We don’t work well together. But we got you out. That’s what matters.”
Thyra scoffs. “I’ve been reading people long enough to know what this is,” she declares. “Don’t tell me if you don’t want to,” she adds after a moment. “I’m just grateful to be free. You can keep your secrets.”
The rest of the trip is silent. And heavy, the weight between Sifa and me increasing with every step. I’m aching to see the sky, let the emotions that seem to be trapped in the space around us find someone else to haunt. I’m aching to get away from Sifa.
Finally, a splash of sunshine appears in front of us. Thyra sees it at the same time and gusts out a sigh of relief.
“I didn’t think we’d make it, that I’d ever feel the sun on my skin again.”
“I wasn’t so sure either,” Sifa says from behind me. “Fhord’s done the impossible, it seems.”
“We’ve done the impossible.” She probably was more important than me in getting Thyra out. Which I’ll let Bevin know.
“How long until we can leave here?” Sifa whispers this question, as if she didn’t want to ask it.
“We’ll wait in this cavern until it’s dark,” I respond, looking anywhere except at her. “They’ll have doubled the sentries, at least, by now. It’ll be easier to get away when the sun’s down. From here, it’s about a six-hour ride to a safe place we can hide, if we move fast.”
