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And it wasn’t just me. I hadn’t just thrown myself toward him. He had moved of his own accord.
I curl up, wishing I would blend away into the forest floor and erase the last few moments. Do I want them gone? I don’t even know what I feel, or what I want right now.
The last thing crossing my consciousness is the fire burning in those deep blue eyes.
29
Roan Montgomery
Myarcheryskillsneedsome fine tuning, but I manage to spear through a couple rabbits before the sunlight makes its last debut.Where’s Aiden when I need him.
My mind is racing as I scan the trees, a breeze bringing my senses slowly back to me. What had happened back at camp? I was in control of myself, but I wasn’t. One moment she was offering to help me, and all the sudden I wanted nothing more than to grab her. To untie her loose braid and run my fingers through her hair.
Hunting seemed the only excuse to get away and compose myself. I had wanted to kiss her— wanted to feel her against me. To feel her lips on my own. To feel her skin beneath my hands. The more I think about it, the worse I feel. And the more I want to go back and do it again, but finish what I started.
Perhaps the thief simply wanted to lower my defenses, to see where I was weak. If so, she succeeded. I’ve never met anyone that could upset my ability to stay calm and patient, analyze the situation, and respond accordingly. Something about her is simply infuriating and… enchanting.
And what about Lena? I’m betrothed to Lena. I’m going to be with Lena. I love… Lena.
Guilt bulges inside of me as I relive those moments with Ari, and for the lie I keep trying to pass as truth.
I want to love Lena. I want to. But in the almost fifteen years I’ve known her, I’ve never once felt what I felt in those few seconds with Ari. I need to shove away the memory, to remember my place in this world. I can’t be with her when I’m promised to another. I just… can’t.
I start the trek back to camp, rabbit in hand, newly emboldened to keep my composure around this girl. The last dregs of light disappear into the horizon before I find my way back, making it difficult to see my footing as I walk.
A few loose roots wrap around my feet, throwing me off balance. I’m able to right myself each time, but my steps remain clumsy. I try to be more careful, stepping around the inanimate claws gripping at me. It almost seems as if they want me to fall, want to catch me unbalanced. To watch me tumble down. I won’t let myself get caught up, to falter. I won’t.
My mind is so focused on my surroundings, it’s a welcome reprieve from the turmoil of these two women— one I’m on a path to save and marry, and one whose touch seems burned into me in a way I’m not sure I can forget.
I take a few more careful steps before a scream echoes in the distance.Ari…
I drop the rabbit, my hand already gripping the hilt of my sword, running as fast as my feet will take me. My chest is pounding as I make it to the foliage at the edge of our camp, my steps slowing as I head toward the rustling voices from up ahead.
Three men rummage through our bags, and another pins Ari to the ground. Her face lies hard in the dirt, her hands wrapped around her back and held by the weighted grip of the man on top of her. His knee digs into her leg, his other hand pushing into her upper back to keep her flush against the ground. She bucks against him, clawing at the dirt as she tries to roll herself over and out of his grip. But he stops her with a single motion. A knife lies at the side of her throat, its sharp edge threatening to slice into her soft neck if she attempts to move again. She stills, the icy breath of rage searing through her eyes.
My jaw clenches tightly at the sight, my breathing coming in heavy waves.
“Get off me, and I might decide not to kill you,” she snarls through gritted teeth. The man leans harder against her back, his weight pushing against her lungs, a swift grunt of air escaping against the pressure. The men surrounding them chuckle as they throw our stuff around.
“It would seem the easy target you found us is putting up more of a fight than you thought, Jaren,” one of the men laughs.
Jaren— the one holding the knife to Ari’s throat and pinning down the woman half his size.Jaren. Silas’s man. And… someone else’s man. The cool familiarity crawls through me once again. I’ve seen him before, and not just with Silas. Where have I seen him? I stare, willing my mind to open and share the secret of this man. Jaren looks to Ari, pure hatred seeping from his dark eyes. Those eyes…
My memory hits me like a punch to the gut. My jaw drops open as I realize where I saw him once before. He was at Sir Reynaulds that day. The afternoon before Evander’s observance when I went to assist Reynauld. He was there. Jaren was with Reynauld. A low snarl bubbles in my throat, but I swallow it back in order to stay hidden.
Is Sir Reynauld somehow connected to all of this as well? He must be, mustn’t he? I haven’t seen Reynauld since that day, nor thought of him or heard his name since then. Is he part of this treachery too? I've yet to see any other connection to Reynauld. But if he is involved— I will find out. And I will gladly pay him back.
Silas could be working for Reynauld. Or him for Silas. I look around for the greasy, tawny-haired man, but see no one else beside these four. His men are doing his dirty work. I’d expect nothing less.
Jaren does have a reason to hate us, the memory of Ari’s dagger lodged in his side rolling through my now sharpened memory. But he wouldn’t be here without his master’s demand. And who exactly is commanding Silas? I plan to find out.
My senses are on full alert. The anxious thrill of a fight swaps thought and reason for instinct and strategy.
The other three men come into focus. The one dumping out my saddle bag is the same man I knocked over before leaving the outpost. The other two rummaging around I don’t recognize.
No doubt Silas has ordered these men to take us back alive, if I sized him up correctly. He personally wants to watch death creep upon us, the light dimming from our eyes, relishing in our demise. Silas will regret this night. Jaren will regret this night. I vow it to myself before I cautiously step out of the bushes and into the clearing.
“Gentlemen. How nice of you to join us this evening.” I say, stretching a smile across my face. They startle, turning to look at me without any hint of friendliness.
