AllFreeNovel
Share Us
My body swayed and my left foot moved. Then the right one. Screaming inside my skull, I couldn’t stop the motion. One step. Another. And another.
Bleddyn was still talking, turned away from me, and pointing where we’d come from. “—should go back and book a room for tonight.”
I could barely hear him as the hag’s crooked finger seemed to pull me further into the blackened meadow. I was so close, I could see the details of her face. The horror of it made me fight even harder against her spell.
Her mouth was lined with sharp, pointed teeth, and her eye sockets were empty. The wind turned and smothered me with her stench of rotten flesh.
She reeled me in, and all I could do was twitch in desperation like a dying fish. And then I’d reached her, and she grabbed my arm, pulling me toward her with a grip like a steel vice.
My insides felt liquid with terror, but her magic overwhelmed me. My eyes rolled up, and my mind blanked as her mouth descended on my throat. I steeled myself for the sharp, tearing pain that would end my life.
As I screamed and screamed silently, a shower of hot liquid splattered my chest and chin. As quickly as it had happened, the spell lifted, and I could move again. I fell on my butt and scuttled backward like a panicked crab.
Bleddyn stood over the fiend’s headless torso, breathing heavily. When he’d made sure she was definitely dead, he turned toward me.
His lips curled into a vicious snarl, and his eyebrows were drawn together, making him look utterly ferocious. I shrunk under his furious glare, terrified yet again. When he noticed my agitation, he lowered his sword and took a deep breath.
“Goddess, I cannot take my eyes off you for one second. Do you know nothing? Looking at her visage nearly signed your death warrant, you hapless woman.”
I cowered lower, turning my head away so I wouldn’t have to meet his eyes.
“Beth.” His voice softened. “Beth. Look at me.”
He’d cleaned his sword on the monster’s clothes and sheathed it. Grabbing me by the arms, he pulled me against him with one smooth move. And then he bent down to kiss me as I clung to him with all my strength.
Chapter thirteen
MyhandsshookasI gripped the tankard of mead Bleddyn had forced on me. He kept glancing at me, concern written on his face. I didn’t want to talk about it, but I was well aware of how close I’d come to dying.
Bleddyn had carried me back to the tavern, and Mistress Olwen had taken one look at me, ushered us to a free table, and pushed me down on the bench firmly. Without being prompted, she’d brought out a drink for me. While I recovered, sipping on the sweet mead, both the older woman and my Fae protector held a whispered conversation.
Snippets drifted my way while I pretended to be absorbed in the beverage.
“We will stay at least for tonight,” and “I shall make sure she is comfortable.”
I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to get past the flashing images of the attack, but I couldn’t get the smell of dirty rags out of my nose. Quickly, I took another drink of the spiced liquid, grateful for the aromatic notes wafting from it. There was a bitter note under the cinnamon that reminded me of juniper. Maybe the Fae had a version of gin the woman had added to the mead?
I inhaled deeply, allowing the scent to cleanse my emotions. A much happier thought floated through me.
Bleddyn kissed me.
I’d been so distressed, I’d barely reacted. Now I regretted not returning his kiss.
I sure hope I get another chance.
The sweet drink slid down my throat, warming me all the way into my stomach. A pleasant lightheadedness, even giddiness, replaced the shocky cold in my veins.
How strong was this stuff? The steam blurred my vision as I contemplated the tankard’s contents as if I could find the secrets of the universe inside the golden liquid.
Bleddyn joined me on the bench, put his arm around me, and pulled me close. I resisted for a moment, then melted into his embrace, grateful for the security he offered.
“I have negotiated with the mistress that we stay tonight. I shall make sure our rooms are ready.”
His baritone rumbled through me, sending the heat lower down my body. I wanted to burrow against his chest. Then his words sank in. Rooms, he’d said. Plural. A jolt of disappointment pierced the warm glow the mead had wrapped around me. I should have been happy to get my own space. But all I wanted was to beg him to take me to his bed.
Instead, I pointed at the drink and the plates of food. “Thank you. For saving my life, and for this.”
“It was my pleasure.” Gently, he pushed me away from his shoulder. Then he got up and walked up the stairs. Maybe I shouldn’t have noticed how well he filled his breeches, but I was only human. Half-human, anyway.
