Chapter 37 Dae
Dae
The urge to tear through the cooling flesh in my mouth persisted. When was the last time I’d eaten a full meal, especially in my tiger form? Droplets of drool hung stickily from my jowls as I fought the urge to satisfy the gnawing hunger in my gut.
If I hadn’t shifted, the tantalizing desire of a fresh kill wouldn’t be drawing me in, but the energy expenditure would be too great.
An ache still resided in my thigh, and this boar must have weighed nearly three hundred pounds, a testament to how much a solitary creature can forage when it’s basically the only scavenger.
“Gods I’m so hungry,” I mentally grumbled to myself.
Ro kept pace several yards ahead of me, but halted, her last arrow docked and primed on a target in my direction.
I stilled, concentrating my primal senses.
She searched the woods behind me, never landing on anything specific.
My ear twitched, but even after a few seconds, I hadn’t detected anything.
Whatever she thought she heard, she also decided there was nothing. She lowered her weapon, a wrinkle creasing her brow before she turned and resumed. Occasionally, through the foggy aroma of meat curling around my nostrils, I caught glimpses of her scent.
I couldn’t pinpoint the exact notes, processing smells differently as a feline, but she smelled like dawn.
Refreshing, and warm, and new. Dare I say, hopeful.
It was like greeting an old friend, reviving the memory of a different time.
It had been too long since there’d been any brightness in my life.
Consumed with the same daily routines, surrounded by power hungry people more vicious than any animal instinct could ever match, I’d been withering without the light of hope, such as a plant left in a dark room. I’d almost forgotten it existed at all.
Especially being near that gods damned Black Pool, where everything was stripped of its essence and left in oblivion. I didn’t want Ro anywhere near it, didn’t want her light to be smothered by decay and obsession and hatred.
“I need to convince her to leave.”
“Dae?” she spun on her heel, facing me. “Did you say something?”
“Is she losing her mind? I’m a tiger and my mouth is currently stuffed with dead boar.”
“I can’t believe it.”
I spat the carcass from my mouth, letting it tumble to the soft ground. Her voice had carried, but her mouth hadn’t moved. She’d sounded like she was right beside me, speaking into my ear.
“I didn’t know this could work with shifters. I can hear your thoughts,” she said, her eyes alight with discovery.
“Ro?” Was I losing my mind? “How are you doing this?”
“This is my magic.”
“So you do have magic.”
“Are you going to use it against me?” Her hands balled, but not in anger, with worry.
“Never,” I replied into this strange hollow void that usually only contained my own thoughts. “This is kind of incredible. I’ve never communicated with anyone in this form, not even other creatures.”
Ro’s eyes dipped to the carcass at my paws.
“Face forward,” I snapped. “Ignore it.” Her emotions were frayed.
Lingering on what she’d done would only strip her defenses, and that would put her at risk once we returned to the others.
I bent down, hauling the creature between my teeth again.
She didn’t argue, simply listened and continued walking.
After a silent stretch of time, she asked, “Why did you vouch for me last night?” Her gentle voice caressed the walls of my mind without even glancing in my direction. It was a strange intrusion, but not one of discomfort.
“I told you, I don’t think you deserve to die.”
“But you saw what I did.” Did her voice crack, even in her mind? Somehow unable to resist swelling with emotion?
“I did.” How was I supposed to respond to that without sounding like I was judging?
I attempted to keep my mental voice flat and unaffected.
Her state was too unstable to offer my assessment, how I surmised she’d done it out of mercy.
Given her reaction to the boar, I knew she wouldn’t have time to fortify herself if her emotional dam broke right now.
She didn’t say, or I guess, think, anything after that.
We proceeded in silence, somehow louder than before.
I sent the occasional order to steer her in the right direction.
Eventually we found ourselves back by the riverbed where we’d originally departed.
Dalin and Johni had returned, but I couldn’t scent nor see Harlson or Val.
“You did it!” Johni rose from the log he’d been perched on, tossing the weed he’d been picking at to the ground. The smile on his face was pure elation. How he’d deluded himself to believe his life wasn’t already forfeit was beyond me, but I wouldn’t dare shed light on the fact.
“Thank gods we’ve only a day and a half’s travel left. We should return with a couple hours to spare.” The relief on Dalin’s face was evident as our countdown neared its end.
“Tell them we’ll start a fire at the next outpost, cook our portions,” I told Ro.
“We’ll cook our portions once we reach the next outpost. Nothing more than a reasonable serving each. I’m not sacrificing more of my bounty than I have to,” Ro said with authority that offered no warmth.
“Nice touch.”
“Thanks.” Not one tell on her face gave away that we were communicating.
While we waited for the rest of our party to join, we relaxed by the river. My ears twitched when footsteps approached. Harlson and Val marched toward us, hands empty. Ro stood there, arms cross, hip cocked to the side, the perfect picture of impatience when they greeted us.
“About time. Let’s go,” Ro ordered, starting to walk off.
Tension permeated the air. They’d barely accepted her, and now to be bossed around by an outsider? Harlson’s jaw ticked before Val said, “You said the king sent you, yes?”
Ro stopped abruptly, facing the volatile woman. “He did.” There was a challenge in her voice, one that scolded Val for doubting.
Val crossed her arms, rocking her hips in place. “How long have you been working for him?”
A tingle pricked my skin. Whatever Val was goading for had unease brewing a tempest in my gut. “Careful, they’re trying to lay a trap for you.”
“About two years.” To Ro’s credit, her body language held firm. She showed not a moment of hesitation.
“You’ve never been to our camp before. As a matter of fact, the king has never sent anyone north.” The curious flair to her voice was a deception, thinly veiling her distrust.
Ro’s heartbeat became erratic, but she held an air of indifference as she replied with a quick-witted jab, “Why, oh why, would he ever have robbed anyone else of the pleasure of your company?”
Val blinked, the only reveal of the anger simmering beneath her skin as she held that feigned smile.
“Why didn’t you return with the last convoy?
Surely you know of the established trade route.
” Val was gearing up for something, and Harlson was nervous, evident by the thin sheen of sweat gathering by his temple.
Ro rested her arms on her hips, letting out a deep sigh as she said, “Are you going to bore me with logistical questions all day?”
Val’s smile was vicious. “We could have killed you on sight. No one informed us you were coming, and that makes me question if you were meant to at all. And if you’ve truly been sent by the king, why not send more than just a girl with arrows?”
“This girl with arrows is apparently the only one capable of doing your job.” Ro gestured to the boar.
Any evidence of Val’s entertainment faded in an instant. “Tell me, who are you meant to report to upon your arrival at The Order? Carmin or Graycin?” Vines crawled almost imperceptibly slowly, inching toward Ro’s feet. Harlson’s fingers twitched, showing his preparation to grab his axe.
The first indication Ro had lied, they’d kill her. She wouldn’t be worth the magic in her veins if they suspected and ended a spy. It might be the one thing that would save Harlson and Johni from certain death.
“Say Marvoe.” Thank the gods Ro had this magic. I hadn’t named any of The Eleven to her before.
“Listen, believe me or not, that’s your choice.
You can take it up with whomever you want when we get there, but I have a job to do, and I don’t plan on displeasing Marvoe by wasting precious time on asinine questions.
” She batted her hand in the air, like she was swatting away an annoying fly.
“Let’s move.” She maintained that steady, level, commanding tone, and walked away, leaving her back exposed to them.
A display of arrogance, but total confidence.
Clever, albeit dangerous.
Val and Harlson exchanged a look that had them both questioning their intuition.
Killing or harming someone sent by the king for aid would surely get them both killed.
Doubt seeped from their pores and tainted the air.
Dalin and Johni trailed behind Ro, and I cast Harlson and Val a narrowing stare before I retrieved the kill and followed.
I didn’t bring myself closer to Ro. If I showed allegiance to the huntress, it might cause speculation that I’d fed her information. Learning how to strategically place myself during my time in the north had been my greatest skill. If I hadn’t been careful, I would have been dead long ago.
This was just another part to play, another tactic to deceive. So why did it feel so gods damned hard to put distance between us?
A downpour of rain sullied our travel after several hours. The wind picked up with ferocity, and lightning flashed across the sky every few minutes, sending a booming wave of thunder to shake the forest around us.
There’d be no setting up a fire. Every log and stick was thoroughly soaked through by the time we arrived.
Each outpost had been established based on the protective environment around it.
The previous had been embedded in hills, and this one sat at the base of a cliffside.
Rock formations created small cave-like holes in its face.
Shouting over the roaring wind was essentially futile, but everyone had the same idea.
I wouldn’t shift back in weather like this, not when I had a layer of fur to keep me warm. The four members ducked into an alcove, one that definitely couldn’t fit me in this state, and that was filled to capacity with the four of them.
Ro dipped into a shallow cavity, thoroughly drenched from head to toe.
None of the protrusions were deep enough to shelter her fully from the pummeling downpour.
Ro’s lashes bat against the rain, searching the sky.
I nudged the dead boar under a shallow rock shelf, then made my way to Ro.
We were obscured from view of the others, otherwise I wouldn’t have risked it.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s Braxius. I told him to stay behind us while we traveled. I’m worried he took shelter before we stopped and he won’t know where to find us.”
A shiver ran along my heated skin, not from the rain or the wind, or the rumbling static that clung to the air threatening to forge into a lightning bolt at any moment.
No, from the pure worry and fear emanating from her, and the way she shook uncontrollably.
The elements had torn down her defenses and left her bare.
Her knuckles whitened from her grip, from how she hugged herself and hunched her shoulders. She might freeze out here if she remained exposed.
“He’ll find us,” I assured her.
She nodded, her shaking growing more violent. Her teeth began chattering then.
“You’ll freeze. Get comfortable and lean against me.”
I shook my body, throwing off excess water despite the unending stream from the sky, then laid myself down before her alcove. The size of my body covered half of the exposure.
I expected more questioning, but only felt her quivering frame press against me.
She tucked herself between my elbow and my ribs.
I faced away from the cliffside, ignoring the steady pelting that carried on.
Within half an hour, Ro had stopped shaking.
I could feel her breathing deep and slow.
She’d fallen asleep, and an unexpected sense of pride washed over me.