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Autumn nodded and stared at the fire. I felt something from her. I had thought it was an inner glow within her, but now I realized it was like warm embers edging across steel.
“You've developed magic.”Is that why I’m so drawn to her?Was her magic like the queens? But I couldn’t imagine anything Autumn possessed to be like Amira.
Her eyes met mine levelly, and I could tell she considered her answer and assessed my trustworthiness. I’d do the same in her shoes. She was silent, which gave me the answer.
“Magic was scarce, even when it was alive in Catalan. Guarded. I’d think your family would know.”
“That's just it. My father told me something before I left for the north months ago.”
Her eyes grew haunted, and I found my hand wanting to reach for her. As if my comfort would be welcome after all the bullshit I represented. “What?”
Those stunning gold eyes held mine. “My parents made a deal for me to quicken in my mother's womb. They made me from a bargain, a deal. From magic.”
My heartbeat picked up. Our eyes held for a long time. I didn’t know what to say and continued to resist the urge to offer comfort. I had an inherent need to protect Autumn from the haunted look she still held.
We said little after that. Soon we separated into our respective rooms, and morning came quickly. I had stayed up most of the night worrying, calculating timeframes, possibilities, and doubts.
The next day, Autumn and I spoke little as we rode hard toward the Winterwood. We were making impeccable time, and I was pleased to have this leg of the journey almost done. I had known it would go pretty quickly since we could use the main roads and weren’t technically in hiding. However, it was the Winterwood that would be a challenge. Since the wolf attack, I had gone back into the wood to exact revenge for my marred skin, but Autumn hadn’t been back, and the closer we got, the more withdrawn she became. I could tell she didn’t want to show me her anxiety, but I felt it. I had learned to read her as she had me.
There was a village to the east of the wood where we would find lodging for the night. Camping out near the tree line of the wood wasn’t feasible, and the post was likely occupied by guards who may recognize Autumn. We found a shabby inn with one room available. It had one large, moth-eaten bed. We were both too exhausted to care and knew what dawn would bring. Autumn was withdrawn, and I hated the role reversal. I had gotten used to her questions and bright energy, so to have her be the sullen one was a little disconcerting. I was a pessimistic bastard, but Autumn was not.
I began to make a bed on the floor for myself, but Autumn gestured with her hand, stopping me.
“We’re adults, and we’ve been riding hard all day. Sleep on the bed. It's large enough for both of us.” She glanced at the bed and then the floor with disdain. “On second thought, I might fight you for the floor.”
A slow grin settled across my lips; I could feel it taking shape. I hadn’t smiled in all the months we’d been apart, but since seeing Autumn enter the ballroom in Xev, my face learned to retake the form.
“Autumn, what are you feeling?”
She glanced at me slowly. We had both succumbed to a cold bath and shivered in our clothes. I had just struck a flame in the fireplace since the coin we were paying for this room did not include any hospitality.
“Anxious. Still a little confused.”
I nodded. “Understandable. I’m also anxious. I only know that Bereille said to find the dwarves.”
“But how do we find a race which is said to have been extinct for decades?”
I bit my lip and glanced away. “I have no idea.”
With that between us, we got into the musty bed. I never imagined sharing a bed with Autumn. I should have, considering I had envisioned her and me doing a fair number of things together, but I had never dared to spark that domestic image in my mind. It was too intimate.
Having sex with someone was only one level of intimacy in varying degrees. Lying with a person platonically without sex the reason for sharing a bed… Never, in all my dreams, had I thought of it. I don’t know why. It was comforting and wonderful in its companionable simplicity. There were no expectations, no awkwardness. We were stiff and apprehensive when we’d first gotten into the bed, but we both eased quickly into comfortable positions with our aching bodies sighing in relief at lying down.
If I moved my arm two inches, I’d brush it against hers. I could feel Autumn’s warmth and weight next to me, and I smiled into the darkness, then plunged into a deep, satisfying sleep.
Fool’s Errand
We were on a fool's errand—a completely ridiculous, unattainable quest.
I could be romancing a handsome guard, yet I was entering a dark, wintery wood with a huntsman who had tried to murder me in this very wood.
It was a fucking delight.
We had to leave our horses, afraid they would make us a larger target for the wolves. We could quietly pick our way through the forest, but our mounts could not. Plus, we could climb a tree if we had to. Something, as far as I knew, the wolves couldn’t do. I hated leaving Tavere, but I knew he would be well-tended. Especially with the amount of coin Sahlyn left the stable for our horse's board.
My nerves shredded at every little noise, but I prayed that if a demon wolf entered my vicinity, I wouldfeelit as I had last time. I wished for Iro and sucked in a sad breath at his continued absence. I knew birds didn’t have long lives, so I shouldn’t be surprised, but I’d had his companionship for five years. Not having him was like missing a piece of myself.
Sahlyn and I were quiet and reserved around each other, which was fine. I didn’t want to think of him the way I had begun to before we parted months ago. I couldn’t afford that. If I were to have a life when this was finished—whatever we were supposed to do in Dunvar was over—I wanted to go on with my life without ever seeing the huntsman again.
