Chapter One #2
“Never,” she supplied sarcastically, giving me those seductive eyes before placing the flint and iron pyrite in a dry spot on the ground. “Now, for the tinder.” She started toward the cavern’s exit.
“Where did you learn all of this?”
“Silas taught me,” she answered, stopping before a strange plant growing on the cave’s walls. “He may not have been willing to teach me to fight, but survival was important to him.”
My chest tightened with an awful ache. “Knowing how to fight is survival, too, no?”
Era brushed her fingers over the plant, too distracted to respond to me. “Lichen…” she whispered, before removing the dagger secured at her waist.
“Hey,” I said, hurrying toward her. “How do you know that’s safe?” The leafy substance looked like a fungus…or perhaps algae.
“It’s all we’ve got, other than the random branches scattered about.
” She placed her dagger back in its holder after safely acquiring the lichen.
“Silas had told me all about the different ways to start fires, depending on what environment you’re in.
I guess the kingdom had lost many soldiers in the past to the cold.
” Her eyes dropped to the material. “This should crumble to powder. If we strike the flint and pyrite over it, we should be able to start a fire.”
I nodded, glancing out of the cave at the sky, which darkened with every passing minute. “You know best, Princess.”
She smiled. “Gather whatever twigs you can find and form a pile. As thin as you can—make sure they’re dry, too.”
“On it.”
As Era harvested more lichen, I scavenged for whatever sticks I could find. There weren’t many, but enough to get us through the night. Hopefully.
I snuck glances at Era, marveling at the way her teeth sank into her plump bottom lip as she worked, how her damp hair curled along her jawline.
And at how damn resourceful she was. She had made two separate piles—a small one atop a rock and a larger pile beside it. I had no idea what she was doing, but she seemed confident.
Era knelt in front of her scavenged materials. “Come on, you bastard,” she muttered as she struck the flint and fool’s gold against one another in a downward motion.
I ambled over, placing the pile of twigs beside her larger heap of lichen. Era repeated the motion above the tinder until, finally, tiny sparks flared to life.
My mouth dropped open at the sight of the lichen glowing orange.
Era moved swiftly, blowing on it until smoke formed.
She then grasped the rock that held her smoldering creation and gently dropped it onto the larger lichen pile.
Pride swelled in my chest as she blew, and the heap burst into open flame.
She laughed in disbelief, dropping the rocks at her sides. “I did it! I actually did it!”
My grin spread as she turned and beamed at me. We worked together, feeding the flame the numerous twigs I had gathered. Soon, the fire was crackling, a pleasant wave of heat surrounding us. Our wet clothes still clung to our bodies, but I hoped they’d be dry by morning.
I was about to suggest we sit down and relax for a moment before brainstorming our next move, when a loud noise came from the cavern’s entry.
Era jumped back just as I spun, and my stomach flipped as I saw the floor at the entry begin to rise.
Sealing us inside here.
“NO!” Era cried, and we bolted to the entrance. For what, I wasn’t sure, because there was no way to stop the stone from creeping upward. Era’s entire body began to shake just as the entryway closed, trapping us inside.
I could hardly distinguish Era’s features, the only light coming from our small flame and the tiny openings in the ceiling.
“Oh…oh no…” Era’s hand clutched at her chest, her breathing becoming shallow.
“Hey, hey, hey,” I uttered softly, gently grasping her shoulders and using my magic to read her for the first time since our argument.
Her unease became my own—her debilitating terror. My own pulse quickened with every second I felt her emotions, her sheer panic.
I didn’t enjoy the darkness either…but this? This level of fear was unbearable, so much so that I abruptly shut my magic off, envisioning a wall between us.
“Hey.” I tightened my grip, and her watery eyes found mine. “I know how you’re feeling, Era. But we will be okay. This valley plays tricks on the mind.”
Lena had shared with our group all the information she had gathered during our travels over the past several weeks. Immeron had mentioned something…The Valley of Awakening.
Could we be in it now? Why was it just Era and me?
Her face began to crumple, her voice trembling as she uttered breathlessly, “I’m afraid…of the dark…”
My brows furrowed, and then my mind rushed to the moment we had shared that evening outside that abandoned circus.
“I am quite fearful of the dark…I’m grateful for this magic.”
Fearfulness didn’t cover the horror she felt. “You are safe with me,” I murmured, brushing my fingers along her cheek. “I’ve got you.”
Her face fell, and then she wrapped her arms around me. I held her tightly, hushing her cries, repeating, “You’re safe,” and “I’ve got you,” as we moved closer to the fire.
No one was here to watch her. She didn’t feel the need to give me the cold shoulder or act tough when she wanted to break.
She didn’t have to hold anything back. Once we were beside the flames, I took a chance and read her again.
Her anxiety was still the dominant emotion, but now embarrassment crept through her as well.
“Do not be embarrassed,” I insisted, and I felt a flood of relief from her as I kissed the top of her head. “Let me hold you, baby.”
I’d never called anyone that before, and based on the pleasant warmth I felt from Era, I don’t think she’d ever been called it, either. Her broken gaze found mine. “How are we going to escape from here? The entrance—”
“Lumen.”
A bright blue orb of mage light shot from my hand, floating above us, illuminating the cave. Era took a deep breath, the light providing her with some comfort.
“We will figure it out in the morning,” I assured her softly as I removed my crossbow and placed it on the ground. My eyes flitted to the ceiling. “For starters, there is that small entrance in the ceiling. I can make stairs out of ice, potentially break it open, and escape through there.”
“But—”
I held her face with both palms, gazing at her intensely. “You need rest.”
I helped her shivering body lie beside the fire. She didn’t protest as I removed her bow and quiver.
“We’re still drying off,” I continued, lying beside her and wrapping her in my embrace. “Using this heat while we have it is the best thing we can do.”
Era only faced the fire for a moment before she turned in my arms, burying her face in my chest. “I don’t know what I’d do without you,” she whispered.
I knew I shouldn’t, but I kissed the top of her head again. “Well…I know what I’d be doing without you. Freezing my ass off.”
Despite her unease, she chuckled, glancing up at me with that beautiful face.
There was a pregnant pause, and my expression softened as I asked, “Why are you afraid of the dark, Era?”
Her jaw tensed, her eyes shifting hesitantly between mine as thunder stirred beyond the cavern walls.
And then she told me everything.