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Not stranger. I’d just married this man.
A shiver coursed down my entire frame. I felt his soft chuckle rumble against my cheek, making me blush. Relaxing my grip, I leaned away, pinching my knees like I’d been trained to do when riding.
As we charged out of the courtyard and away from my family, my new husband’s scent enveloped me. His cloak smelled of damp earth and warm stones and the faint aroma of citrus oil, but beneath it all was the familiar, calming scent of horse and leather, infusing my mild state of panic with a sliver of comfort that eventually worked to ease my tightened shoulders as we thundered down the brightening road.
In the predawn light, the crowds flocked into Leor for the first official day of the Festival de los Cuentos. Masks and costumes adorned many of the faces, but by tonight, nearly everyone in the streets would be dressed in full festival attire. My heart sank. I would miss going with Zara to see the storytellers perform.
I hadn’t had time to pack a single item. My sole possessions were my now-ruined dress and dancing shoes and Zara’s borrowed blade. A knot formed in my chest, and every stage we passed seemed to drag my fragile composure closer to the dirt.
Amid the growing crowd, Rafael had to slow his horse to a walk. He emitted constant grunts of disapproval as he weaved among the slow pedestrians. To keep from focusing on what I was missing, I closed my eyes and leaned my cheek against Rafael’s wide back. Instantly, the muscles in his back tightened.
The sound of a board clattering to the cobblestones nearby spooked the horse, who rose onto her hind legs. Rafael snapped a hand around my thigh and pressed it to him, keeping me from sliding back. Embarrassment tinted with gratitude flamed up my neck at his touch.
Hector rode up close beside us. He eyed how tightly I clung to Rafael, then said, “Time is up.”
With another glance at the pale sky, Rafael nodded, his hand slipping off my leg. Over his shoulder, he said to me, “You will travel the rest of the way on Lily alone. Hector will accompany you.”
Confused, I startled as Rafael slid from the saddle. When he turned his hooded face up to me, the light revealed his handsome features, but his brow was knotted with either worry or anger, and I hated that I couldn’t tell which.
“Where are you going?” I asked, suddenly frightened to travel alone with a fae who hadn’t vowed to protect me.
“Hector will take good care of you,” Rafael said, sparing a glance at the blond fae. “I will meet you tonight at camp.”
“Camp?”
“We will return to my home, but I can only travel at night in the mortal lands.” To my expectant expression, he offered no clarification. Instead, he lifted the reins, waiting for me to slide forward into the saddle. When I did, he added, “Be ready to ride after nightfall.”
With that, he turned and darted away between the two nearest buildings, running like his life depended on it.
9
Rafael
As soon as I left my brother and my new wife behind, the change ripped through my muscles.
Agony threatened to pull me to the ground, but I clenched my jaw as the bones elongated, and I kept running. Each limb tightened, then stretched, joints crunching and grinding. Though it took only two breaths for the change to be complete, those seconds were small eternities, carving out their dominion over me like tiny armies. Five massive claws on each paw raked against the cobblestones, drawing the attention of an aproned shopkeeper in the alleyway. I stood on my hind legs, towering over him even at this distance. He screamed and hopped back through his open shop door.
I lunged after him, rage rising as it always did in this form. His face held a grimace of fear. That fragile mortal, already half-dead, could still walk on his two legs, while I was confined to crawl the earth on paws as long as the sun shined.
With a growl and bared teeth, I lifted a paw and obliterated the door that fool thought could keep him safe from me.
Screams rang out. Wood splintered. A little girl stood in the center of the bake shop, frozen in terror, her hand clutching one of the fake lilies that impoverished humans wore in their hair.
I stared down at her through the wrecked door. The girl’s face reminded me of Talia’s. I hesitated.
A man grabbed the girl and bolted out the front of the shop, breaking my momentary trance. My vision blurred, and the animal inside of me raged. I tore into the shop, shattering pastry displays and upending tables. I clawed the bowls and cups off the shelves. Shards of pottery and glass stabbed my paws, and I growled even louder, fueling my fury with pain.
It only took seconds to destroy the shop. For a brief moment, I sat in the settling dust and licked the irresistible honey from my fur. Not much longer now, and I might be free of this bear form forever—if I could find a way around my vow to protect the woman I’d married. Crashing back outside, I lumbered away from the bakery, its lingering scents torturing my heightened senses. A reminder of what I truly was.
10
Talia
When Rafael was out of sight, I continued staring at the place he’d disappeared. I almost forgot I was holding a horse’s reins until the mare moved beneath me.
“Where is he going?”
Hector answered in a low voice. “Rafael will answer your questions when he’s ready.” He mirrored my narrow glance, as if challenging me to ask another question. “At least, you and I no longer have to hurry, but we should keep moving.”
