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I nod. As much as I hate the idea of going back out into the cold, I know we cannot stay here forever. Besides, I’m sure this family will be much more comfortable with us gone. Despite my reassurances that Aurdyn will not harm them, they still regard him warily.
I suppose I cannot blame them. I’d probably be the same way if I’d not spent as much time with him alone as I have over the past few days.
Moira moves to the kitchen and begins packing strips of meat and even some cheese for our travels. She hands me a large fur cloak to wear over my borrowed dress tunic and pants and a pair of sturdy fur boots to match. “This is too much,” I tell her, feeling guilty at the thought of leaving her without warm clothing.
“Orin can make me some more,” she insists. “Besides, you’ve a long journey to the Ice Mountains from here.”
She returns to the kitchen, while Aurdyn follows me to our small corner of the room, near the bed so I can put on my new boots. As I put them on, I bite back a sigh of frustration. They’re the wrong size, but still a definite improvement from the ones I arrived in.
“What is it?” Aurdyn asks.
“These are a bit large on my feet.” I glance up at him. “But I’ll manage. Besides, this is the least of our worries.” He arches a questioning brow, and I continue. “While you were gone, Moira and Orin informed me that there’s a bounty on our heads.”
His expression darkens. “Why did they not say anything before now?” A thin curl of black smoke puffs out of his mouth as he glowers in their direction. “Why wait until—”
“Stop.” I grip his forearm, drawing his attention back to me. “They are already afraid of you as it is. Is it really that shocking that they’d wait to say something until after you were gone? I mean… truth be told, they didn’t have to say anything at all, but they did, because they wanted to warn us.”
Crossing his arms over his chest, he narrows his eyes. “Still. They could have said something earlier. I wasted the morning hunting for them when we could have already been on our way.”
“But you said the weather—”
“It does not matter,” he grumbles. “We’ve already wasted too much time. Hurry. We must leave at once.”
I fasten the cloak around my shoulders and Moira hands me a satchel with supplies. The door opens and Orin rushes inside. Shaking off his cloak, he quickly hangs it by the door and moves to the table to take a quick swig of warm tea. He then turns to Moira and clasps her shoulder as he leans in, whispering in her ear.
“We’re saved,” she exclaims, and then turns to us. “Oh, thank you ever so much for your kindness.”
I blink several times, wondering why she’s so happy, but when I look up at Aurdyn, his expression is set in a stern mask. “Tell no one we were here,” he says in a low voice laced with irritation. “Do you understand?”
They both nod quickly.
We turn to leave, but the children rush up to us. “Thank you for the food,” one of them says. “And for not eating us,” the other adds, and I clap a hand over my mouth to stifle a laugh.
When we walk out into the snow, I turn to Aurdyn. “Why were they thanking you so profusely? What did you do?”
“Nothing,” he replies absently as he focuses all his attention upon scanning the woods around us, presumably searching for any sign we are not alone out here.
“It did not seem like nothing.” I put a hand on his arm and his head snaps to mine. “Tell me.”
“I left them extra meat,” he replies.
I wait a moment for him to elaborate. When he does not, I ask. “How much?”
“Enough to last the winter.”
I’m stunned. “I thought Dragons didn’t like Dwarves.”
“Just because I dislike their kind does not mean I wish them to perish for lack of food.” He frowns. “This winter has been harder than the last; I could see they were starving. And despite what you may believe, I am not heartless.”
CHAPTER14
AURDYN
Why does it matter to me that she thinks I am unfeeling? I’ve never cared what anyone thought of me before, especially a human. But Freyja is not just anyone. She is… important to me. There is something about her that draws me in, but I do not understand why. I would think it is the bond that makes me so intrigued by her, but I am not sure I can entirely attribute it to that.
She is fascinating in the way she views the world. In a situation where I would normally be indifferent, she instead is kind. As she was to the Dwarves. And it makes me consider my own actions in a different light when I study them through her lens.
Before her, I doubt I would have given the Dwarves much thought, and I certainly would not have paid attention enough to recognize that they were struggling to survive.
