“I’ll leave you both there,” Sifa says.
“Why?” Thyra spins in the saddle to find Sifa’s eyes.
I keep mine straight ahead, where they belong.
“Like I said, Fhord and I don’t get along well.” She pauses a moment. “And you’ll have a better chance without me. I’m pretty sure they think a woman acting alone helped you escape. They’ll be looking for two females traveling together.”
Fuck if my next words don’t come out before I can stop them. “We should go a little farther together,” I say, contrary to all my best intentions. My savage can’t let go. He needs to keep Sifa safe. Overprotective, meddling bastard. “We’ll be safer if we stay together until we get to a town.”
Sifa’s silent for so long, I nearly spin my head to find her. Finally, she speaks. “It’s a bad idea, Fhord.”
“Just until the first town. One night,” I insist as I give in and turn toward her. “You and Thyra can sleep. I’ll stay outside and keep watch,” I add for good measure. My savage rewards me with a grumble of approval.
I’m so fucking pathetic.
“Okay,” she says at last. “One night.” Pausing, she glances down and I realize she needs help.
“Wait there,” I tell her, my voice soft as I dismount. “Let me help you.”
“I can do it, Fhord. It’s not a big deal.”
But I need to do this for her. As angry as I am—as resolved as I am to push her away—she’s still my little rabbit. I can’t just let her hurt. So I help her down from Hilde and turn away.
Being close to her calms me.
And that is so fucking dangerous.
I cannot let myself find calm and comfort in Sifa’s presence.
I gather a few supplies for Thyra—water and food she should be able to keep down—then find a spot as far from Sifa as possible, where even her scent won’t reach me. When I lie down, my face to the wall, I will myself to relax. I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep but I need to at least try.
We wait in another silence so thick it seems to drip down the surrounding walls. Somehow, I manage to drop off for an hour or two. My eyes fly open as the cave starts to dim, flipping over to search for Sifa before I’m fully awake. When I find her, something inside me relaxes. She’s sleeping, peaceful. I wish I could capture this moment and hold it forever.
When Sifa moves, I shift to stare at the rocks above us. I need to keep all these feelings to myself. Sifa can’t know how fucking hard it will be to watch her ride away.
“We should go,” she says as she sits up, stretching her arms above her head. And then I feel her gaze on me and I turn to look at her. “I’m ready for this to be over,” she whispers, her voice sad and distant.
“I know. I understand.” Standing, I pull together our things and stow them on the horses, then help Thyra mount Sigurd. I turn as Sifa does the same—her body healing quickly, as elves do—smiling despite myself at the nag Sifa somehow brought back to life for this journey.
She has that effect on everything she touches. Especially me.
Sighing, I mount Sigurd and jostle his reins to lead us into the night.
The first few hours are treacherous. Every fifteen or twenty minutes, we’re forced into hiding, sliding off our horses to crouch behind a rock or bush and wait, our hearts in our throats the entire time. Thyra’s exhausted within the first hour, her body so depleted she can barely hold herself up on the horse. More than once, I have to tighten my arms around her and keep her in place, her head dropping back to lay against my chest.
Three different times, I’m certain we’re going to be caught. The first group of soldiers gets too gods-damned close, and I can’t see an escape. My savage is roaring inside me to protect Sifa, but when I turn to her, I don’t see fear. She’s watching me, her brow furrowed as if she’s weighing a heavy decision. Just as I’m about to risk everything by using my magic when I sure as fuck should not—hoping I can kill our pursuers fast enough to stop them from sending a message to the Dróttning—they move away.
The second time, I understand. I shift my head to glance at Sifa after we’ve dropped to the ground behind a bush. Her face is twisted in concentration, eyes distant. She’s watching the guards approaching us, mouthing words I can’t discern. When they’re so close I know they’ll find us this time, her eyebrows draw together, her forehead furrowing as she whispers through firm lips, her jaw tight.
Even if I wanted to, I wouldn’t be able to look away from this stunning female. The knowledge that she trusts me enough to risk using her magic sends sparks up and down my spine. Every part of me wants to claim her right now.Mine, my savage rumbles, dragging himself toward the surface as he tries to take advantage of my need for our mate. Fucker.
Finally, they start to move away. Sifa nodding as her silent chant grows a bit less frantic, smooth and calm. When they abandon their search and turn from us, she relaxes, watching them ride away with a satisfied look.
“Holy fuck.” My voice is so low, I wonder if she’ll hear me. She does, spinning her gaze toward mine. “You’re so fucking incredible. I’ve never met another female like you.”
“And you never will,” Sifa responds with a wink. “Time to go.”
After we’re nearly caught for a third time, Sifa starts to wilt, the concentration required to send so many searchers away draining her energy. I wish I could take this from her, carry some of her burden. But I can’t do anything like this and we both know it’s necessary. The gods are with us, though. We’ve gotten far enough away from the Nest and haven’t run into anyone else.
