Page 119 of Dream Reaper

“What—”

The prince broke off at Jerrid’s warning hiss.

Three humanoid figures peeled out of the smoke and shadow. Ava, Brynja, and Finnr faltered as they clasped eyes on Jerrid and Haryk.

“Oh, Jerrid,” Ava rasped, “you came back.”

Something tightened in his chest. Had she thought for even a moment that he wouldn’t?

“Of course I came back,” he growled as they met in the middle of the corridor.

He roamed his gaze over her body, searching for blood or signs that she’d been mortally wounded. She looked bruised and disheveled, but…

She’s alive, Dragon breathed, relief oozing from every syllable.

“And I brought the prince. We came as fast as we could.” He stepped to the side so that the others could see his companion.

Brynja and Finnr both recoiled, but Ava remained in place, clearly still confident in their plan.

“Your Highness, I’m so sorry to have dragged you back into this⁠—”

“There will be time for pleasantries later,” the prince interrupted, swiping a hand at the air as if to dismiss her concerns. “Jerrid has told me everything. Where is the curse?”

She hesitated, glancing at first Brynja and then Finnr. “I, uh, don’t know. It was right behind us in the tunnel, but then Talos brought down the ceiling⁠—”

“Talos?” Jerrid and the prince bellowed as one.

Ava took a faltering step backward, but then she set her jaw and advanced on him. “Yes, Talos. We didn’t have a choice. The shadow got into the keep, and the children are below in the cellars. We had to hold it back until you arrived. We didn’t have a choice.”

Something dawned in the back of Jerrid’s mind, and Dragon hissed angrily. “That was Talos in the stairwell. Someone knocked into us when the ceiling came down.”

“If I had known that was him…” Prince Haryk muttered under his breath.

“I know you have your personal reasons for wanting Talos,” Ava said, her voice surprisingly firm when talking to her liege, “but our first priority must be the women and children. Is it not? We need to defeat the shadow—your curse—so that everyone is safe. Then we can go after Talos.”

Jerrid snorted but ignored the confused, slightly hurt look she slanted in his direction.

It wasn’t the time to tell her that he hadn’t been laughing at her plan or her determination to help, but at the idea of her chasing through the Shadewood after the elf who had once kidnapped her.

It struck him as ironic. In a good way. She wasn’t the helpless lass he had once presumed her to be. She had hidden grit and strength he’d not seen in those early moments. And a heart big enough to risk it all for people she barely knew.

He had to respect that, no matter how much he hated it when she put herself in danger.

No, we can’t tell her why you hate it so much when she does that. Dragon snickered, flaring to life obnoxiously in Jerrid’s mind. It would be admitting that you actually have a heart and aren’t an eternally boring grouch…

Jerrid flinched and clenched his jaw in an attempt to hide his reaction to Dragon’s words. No, he definitely didn’t want to have this discussion with Ava, especially in the presence of all these witnesses who had no business eavesdropping on any conversations relating to his heart.

He cleared his throat and turned to study the dark elf prince. “This is the reason you came. To defeat the monster that escaped last time.”

“I know my duty,” Prince Haryk said, drawing himself up stiffly. “I am here to help. Talos will be dealt with later, I assure you.”

Ava breathed an audible sigh of relief. “We need to get back down to the cellars to make sure everyone is all right. We were trying to draw the shadow away to keep it busy until you got here.”

Jerrid shot her a frustrated look. “You used yourself as bait, you mean.”

“We made ourselves the last line of defense,” Brynja snapped, her tone surprisingly angry. “Nobody was bait.”

Was she coming to Ava’s defense? He let his gaze flicker between the two lasses as he wondered what had happened between them in the two days he’d been gone.