Chapter 16
S now exited Harwin’s. Ardan leaned against the desk in the center of the room, his ankles crossed, staring at the ceiling. He came to an abrupt upright position when he saw her. Snow marched toward the door without giving him a wayward glance. He followed, right on her heels as she exited the building.
The evening breeze rolled over her. She paused a moment, closed her eyes, and inhaled the scent of the night air. It was redolent with the earthy, woodsy aroma of the surrounding forest. She sensed Ardan’s presence next to her as he shifted nervously.
“You can go home now.” She cracked an eye and looked at him.
“I don’t think I should.” His hand rested on the dagger hilt, as though he were prepared to pull it at any moment.
“I think you should.”
Without waiting for a reply, she started off through the village heading to the edge where it met the forest.
“Where are you going? What did you talk to Master Harwin about? Why did I have to leave?” He was out of breath as he fired off his questions, trying to keep up with her accelerated pace.
“Where I’m going you can’t come,” she said. “My conversation with Master Harwin was confidential and that’s why you had to leave.” She never broke stride as she spoke. The closer she got to the edge of the forest, the stronger, more energetic she felt.
“But, Snow—”
“Listen, Ardan.” She halted, turning to him and putting a hand on his chest. “I know you mean well and you’re trying to do what Yirrie wanted you to do but there’s something I have to do. Alone. You can’t come with me.”
Question flickered through his eyes. “Why not?”
She huffed, frustrated, and dropped her hand. “You won’t understand.”
“I might.” There was a twinge of hurt in his voice. “If you’ll give me a chance.”
And suddenly guilt swept through her. She understood what he was trying to do, truly, but she didn’t want him with her when she stepped foot in the forest to recharge. It was something she did alone. Only Annilen and the other forest creatures understood.
He reached for her hand, grasping it in his. “I like you, Snow.”
Oh, dear. That wasn’t good.
“I didn’t choose anyone at festival,” he added.
And that was even worse.
“Ardan—”
“Allow me to escort you.”
She blew out a heated breath. The last thing she wanted was for Ardan to have feelings for her. The fact he chose no one at festival was a terrible sign he was more interested in her than she was of him.
What harm could it do to have him with her in the forest? She reasoned if anything else happened, if there was another Shadow, then he would be there to help her. Finally, she relented and nodded.
“All right. I need your word you will tell no one.”
He squeezed her hand. “You have my word.”
She released him and continued on, aware of the many promises the elves made to her. Harwin keeping who she truly was to himself. Now Ardan will see her elemental magic at work. Even though Yirrie and Elator knew of it, they didn’t understand how connected she was to the world around her.
When she stepped out of the protective circle of the village and into the forest, she halted and closed her eyes to attune to the world around her. Ardan’s shuffling feet alerted her to his presence next to her. He didn’t possess the stealth she did and it annoyed her.
“Be still,” she snapped.
He stiffened but no longer moved. “What are you doing?”
“Shhh.”
With her eyes still closed, she sensed Faradill deep in the forest standing as a sentry among the other oaks keeping watch over the domain. The leaves rustled in the breeze. Annilen and her fellow sprites were preparing to sleep as they buzzed around their small homes, some of them within the trunks of trees. That is, if the trees allowed it. Crickets chirped. An owl hooted. Rustling underbrush indicated a nocturnal animal foraging for a late-night snack. The sound of the stream rushing over rocks inhabited by water sprites. The bray of a unicorn.
And, deep in the woods, the clop of hooves.
She opened her eyes, still attuned to the sound of the hooves and started forward at a furious pace. Hunters tended to come through the forest at night searching for their prey. She made it her mission to run off these pesky hunters. They weren’t wanted here.
Ardan stomped through the forest, his noisy steps scaring off any animals. Snow wasn’t used to all the noise of snapping sticks and crunching leaves. Her steps were stealthier and placed with purpose. Irritation clawed through her that he insisted on following her.
Up ahead was the clearing where she had rescued the unicorn not so long ago. There was no unicorn or hunter there tonight.
“Shouldn’t we have a torch or something?” As he said it, he stumbled over a fallen log.
“I can see fine.”
Indeed, her eyes adjusted to the nighttime shadows with ease. Because she was so much a part of this world, she was at home. With no moon, though, it was quite dark. She suppressed a snicker at the thought of Ardan having trouble seeing. Likely why he continued to make so much noise.
Faradill was past the clearing, but the horse’s hooves she heard came from the south. She stopped there and waited, stretching her senses to attune to the world around her. It was definitely a horse. Not a unicorn.
Ardan stopped next to her, looking from the clearing to her and back again.
“What is it?” he whispered.
“Someone is coming.”
“How do you know?”
“I can sense it.”
Again, his gaze swiveled from her to the clearing and back again. “You can?”
“Yes. Now shh.”
She waited there, her hands clenched at her side in preparation to use whatever means necessary to stop the intruder.
The horse came into view then at a slow walk. The man on his back was nothing but a silhouette against the backdrop of the forest night. He held the reins loosely in one hand as though he were on an evening ride without a care in the world. He rode through the clearing northward. When he was closer, she stepped into his line of sight, spooking the horse. It whinnied its distress.
The man, startled, pulled the horse to a stop. “Whoa, girl.”
“Who are you and what are you doing in these woods?” Snow demanded.
He sat tall and still in the saddle. Shadows concealed his face. “I’m passing through, my lady. That’s all.”
“Passing through? No one passes through these woods.”
Even as she said it, she recalled Master Harwin’s words of travelers who once came through these woods looking for respite. Was this man one of those?
“Well, I am.” There was a distinct smile in his voice.
“At this time of night?” she asked.
Ardan stepped up next to her, his shimmering blade in his hand. She hadn’t heard him move, nor did she realize he had unsheathed the dagger. The stranger remained still in the saddle for a long moment.
“Yes, my lady. I was hoping to find a place to stop and rest the horse and myself for the night.”
“There is no place to stop here,” she said, her voice hard and unforgiving. “You should turn back.”
He gave a small laugh. “I’m afraid I can’t do that.” He inched the horse closer to the two of them. “You have an interesting blade there, my lord.”
“I am no lord,” Ardan said. “And this is an enchanted blade.”
“Indeed?” The man sounded intrigued. Then he dismounted the horse, coming around the front and holding onto the reins. He walked toward the two of them. “May I see it?”
“No,” Snow answered. “You may not.”
The stranger paused within a few feet of them and now she was able to make out his features. He was tall, broad-shouldered, wearing a hooded cloak. His face was still shrouded in shadows but she was able to see his pale blue-green eyes and square chin with a dimple in the center. His face was covered in stubble, as though he had been traveling for a few days.
Her heart skipped as she peered at him. Her magic reached out to him, tingling and sizzling. She sensed something earthy about him. Something that told her he was like her. He had a crisp, clean scent that reminded her of a spruce tree, but underneath that was the heady scent of wood smoke. He was earth and fire. He was wind and sun.
He was an elemental.
He cleared his throat. “My lady, you’re staring.”
“More like gaping,” Ardan added, his tone flat with a tinge of jealousy.
She jerked herself out of her thoughts and tried to look away from him but found she could not. She was drawn to him in a way she had never been drawn to anyone.
“Show him the blade, Ardan,” she heard herself say.
He gave her a look as though she’d lost her mind. Perhaps she had but said nothing. He handed the blade over to the stranger, who took it and examined it with a critical eye. He twisted and turned the dagger. Since there was no moonlight, it was hard to see the wavy steel. Even so, it still shimmered with its iridescent glow.
“This is a fine weapon,” the stranger said. He lifted his gaze back to Ardan and gave him a magnificent smile. “And I should know. I forged it.”
“You’re the master blacksmith?” Ardan asked.
Snow continued to gape, her heart doing double time her chest. He was an Artificer. What had Master Harwin said? They knew how to manipulate fire, air, and the iron deep within the earth.
“I’ve been called that,” he said with a nod, sounding humble. He returned the dagger to Ardan.
“My father visited your forge. You made this for me,” Ardan said.
The stranger stepped closer to look Ardan up and down, then stepped back. “Your father was the elven lord who commissioned it?”
“He was,” Ardan said sounding proud.
The stranger’s gaze turned to her then. “But you are not an elf.”
“I am not,” she agreed. “I’m human.”
One dark brow raised, his expression curious and interested. “I’ve heard stories this forest is enchanted. I see the stories are true.”
She flushed, her cheeks burning.
“If you’re truly passing through, then we should let you continue on your way,” Ardan said, clearly ready to be done with the stranger.
“I am passing through,” he said. “I mean no harm to anyone.”
“That’s good. Because I am the protector of this forest. I do not take kindly to hunters who try to hurt those who inhabit this place.”
She didn’t know what made her say it. Ardan’s head snapped in her direction and she could feel his stare boring into the side of her head. But she kept her gaze locked on the handsome stranger with the blue-green eyes standing in front of her.
“I assure you, I am no hunter.” He granted her a knee-melting smile. “I’ll be on my way then.”
He headed around the horse, who had stood patiently waiting for him to return to the saddle.
“If you’re looking for a water source for your horse,” she said, “there is a stream that runs east to west just north of here. You can rest there for the night, too.”
A faint light of wonder twinkled in the depths of his eyes. The beginning of a smile tipped the corners of his mouth. Despite the shadowy darkness, she saw it.
“Thank you, my lady. I am grateful for the information.”
He stuck his foot into the stirrup and hoisted back into the saddle, taking the reins in his weathered hands. He continued his path to the north. Snow remained where she was watching him leave until he was well out of sight. Her heart sang with delight and, for the first time, joy bubbled through her.
“We should return to the village now,” Ardan said.
But she didn’t want to. She wanted to stand there with the vague hope the stranger with the blue-green eyes would return.
“Snow?” he queried.
She exhaled a deep sigh of contentment. “Yes, I suppose you’re right.”
He reached for her hand, tucking it into the crook of his elbow. He was talking, but she wasn’t listening. Instead, she was thinking about the stranger. The stranger, she realized, she would likely never see again.