Chapter 41
Belle
The shadows seemed to shimmer the deeper we went, and echoes rose in the distance, almost at the edge of hearing. A haunted cry for help drifted through the woods, faint and immaterial.
I pulled back on the reins, halting Briar. “Is that someone from the hunting party?”
“One often hears voices in these woods,” Valen said without emotion. “It’s the forest trying to lure us deeper, to ensnare us by playing on our mercy. Ignore them.”
I stared at him, unable to do as he instructed. “How can you be certain? They sound like men.”
“I’ve ridden after the cries many times, and I’ve never found a source. Only danger.”
I studied his cold expression, then looked away. He’d gone after them. That meant he wasn’t as impervious to the cries as he seemed. It was a tiny crack in his carefully cultivated image as a heartless tyrant, a sliver of humanity showing through, like a fleck of old paint behind the new.
Perhaps he’d only gone looking out of duty, but duty seemed to mean something more to him than most men.
We continued through the trees, though minutes later the voices rose again, and a cold awareness spread over me.
Valen’s body grew unnaturally still, and he scanned the darkness, his nostrils flaring.
“What is it?” I whispered, growing wary.
He guided Storm aside, his attention now behind us. “Take the lead, princess.”
The king knew these woods, and if he sensed danger, I’d do as I was told.
I pushed Briar forward, half expecting a beast to burst out of the shadows, but nothing did.
The strange voices had gone silent, and the forest began to take on an eerie light as we skirted the edges of the Fold, as if all the trees were alive with moonlight.
I exhaled, my heart slowing.
Then I saw it: a brief flash of movement to my left, catching a beam of light through the trees. Silver fur, bared fangs, and a powerful body that dwarfed Briar. Dyrwulf.
Just as quickly, it was gone.
I shuddered. It couldn’t possibly have been that big, could it? I glanced at Valen, but he showed no sign he’d seen the beast, yet he must have. Was his silence simply to keep me calm, or was it best not to draw attention to ourselves?
The wolf’s gaze lingered as we continued, even as I caught only glimpses of movement.
It must have been following the seam of the Fold, just as we were.
I tugged on the reins and guided Briar away from the ribbon of light rising into the air.
The wolf didn’t pursue, just as I’d hoped.
It’s guarding its territory, not hunting.
I turned my attention to the forest floor, searching for any disturbances in the underbrush. At last, I spotted tracks.
My fingers tightened around my bow. I slid off my horse and knelt beside the faint traces of cloven prints.
A boar. I followed them down a shallow slope, to where one had been pressed into a patch of soil—the edges were sharp, still fresh, but the full print was far wider than a man’s spread hand. That…that wasn’t possible.
“How big did you say the bloodgolts are?” I called back to Valen, trying to keep my voice steady.
“Big enough to trample you, which is why I want you back on your horse.”
I opened my mouth to speak, then stilled as a low rustle moved through the branches ahead. The forest had grown quiet again, and my instincts sharpened, the way they always did when an animal was watching me.
Not the wolf, but something else.
I glanced back to where the horses were. The king had caught the shift in my attention, and his gaze tracked toward the sound.
I slipped into the shadow of an oak, unslinging my bow, when the king’s hand curled around my arm, stopping me. I hadn’t even heard him dismount.
The dappled red moonlight brought out the iridescent scales in his mask, and my stomach dipped for a reason that was not panic.
Valen was the most dangerous predator in this forest, and yet he could ease my fear with a single touch. I hated it.
“Let me do this,” I said softly.
His brows knitted together in disapproval, but instead of fighting me, he released me.
My fingers were steady on the bowstring as I padded forward, keeping my steps to the patches of moss that carpeted the forest floor.
I took a steadying breath and focused on my quarry.
I’d stalked countless rabbits and small game, and guided hunts for lords, and yet it was nearly impossible to ignore the king’s gaze on my back—silent and watchful.
The musky scent of a wild animal lingered in the air, sharp enough to set my nerves on edge. It was close.
I tried to calculate the size based on the prints, but my mind faltered. Would an arrow even wound such a creature? I slipped one from my quiver, readying it on the string.
You killed a beast in one shot. You can do this.
A horn sounded in the distance. Someone had the first kill. I wondered if it had been the wolf or some other creature I’d yet to lay eyes on.
I hurried forward, then slipped behind a tree and froze. Pale horns flashed in the red-tinged moonlight, and my breath caught. They were like a twisted crown of bones, larger, more elaborate, and more beautiful than anything I could have imagined. A dyrivar.
The stag stood proud in a rocky clearing, its corded muscles shifting beneath its silver coat as it lowered its head. It was magnificent.
Valen joined my side, an expression of awe settling over him as he took in the beast. “Perhaps the Fates have blessed you after all,” he whispered, so low I could barely hear.
The stag tensed and lifted its head, its dark eyes scanning the trees until it found us. I expected the creature to bolt, but it didn’t. Instead, it watched us. Waiting. It stamped its front foot, its breaths curling into soft white trails with each exhale.
“What are you waiting for, princess?” Valen asked, when I made no move. “Its horns could make dozens of talismans. Take the shot.”
A knot rose in my throat, but I raised my bow and drew. I knew what I had to do, and yet, I couldn’t. Hesitation locked my fingers, my arm trembling with restraint.
The stag tipped its head up and met my gaze, then, as if it understood my intentions, it lowered its horns to the ground in a bow that was too deliberate, too sentient for an animal.
I eased off the string and lowered the bow. “This life isn’t ours to take.”
For a moment, the silver sheen of its coat danced before my eyes. Then it was a man, with long silver hair and imperious eyes. He was lithe and lethal and had a fair beauty that was unlike an immortal.
Then the illusion was gone. The stag angled its head toward the trees and bounded forward, disappearing into the shadows.
My breath shuddered from my lungs. It was magical. Beyond explanation. I turned to Valen. “Did you see that?”
The king’s gaze swept over me, landing on my lips. “I saw one beautiful creature spare another.”
My mouth parted, and I turned from him to the place where the creature had been. He hadn’t seen what I had. Why? Had it been my imagination, or something for my eyes alone?
“I think the dyrivar came as a warning,” I said, softly, almost in reverence.
“What do you mean?” Valen asked, a sudden edge to his voice.
I turned back to the king. The question was, had it been a warning for us both, or for Valen?
Keeping my gaze leveled on him, I slung my bow over my shoulder. “That not everything is as it seems.”
The lines of Valen’s face drew taut, and his powerful shoulders stiffened. There was a sudden unease about him that hadn’t been there before.
A horn blared in the distance, yanking me back to the moment. A second kill. Our time was running out.
“Perhaps it’s as you say,” Valen muttered, his voice more distant than before. “The dyrivar was a warning I should take you back to the pavilion. Let the others finish the hunt.”
Did he think I didn’t have the strength to take the shot?
I shook my head. “I want to finish this. I asked for the tusk. It should be me who bears the responsibility of taking the creature’s life.”
His gaze was calculating, appraising.
“What is it?” I asked, bristling under his silent scrutiny. “Do you think I’m incapable? Or simply a liability?”
“Neither. I’m just…” He paused, expression unreadable. “You surprise me.”
“Does that mean you’ll let me finish the hunt?”
He studied me for a long breath, and then his lips twitched. “I doubt you’ll give me much of a choice.”