Chapter Eighteen
“ W hat do you think?” Gray asks me as he pulls Azalea’s healing salve from his satchel.
“I think the tall one could use a lesson in manners,” I grumble, still frustrated.
Gray chuckles. He shifts to his knees, sets the salve down beside me, and begins unraveling my bandages. “Though right you may be, that isn’t exactly what I’m asking.”
I sigh. “I think, regardless of how irksome they appear to be, traveling with them would better our odds at making it to Bathara in one piece.”
“But do you think we can trust them?”
Tricky question.
Do I think we can trust them? No, not really. They both appeared to be hiding something earlier. Whether it’s the details of their scouting mission or something else, I can't be sure. But do I think they’ll take us to Bathara like they say? I suppose I do.
I wince a little as Gray reaches the lower layer of bandages. “I wouldn’t spill my deepest secrets to them anytime soon, but I do think they’ll make good on getting us to Bathara.”
“I suppose you’re probably right.” Gray reaches the final layer of linen, leaving nothing but my bare skin waiting underneath.
He hesitates and flicks his eyes to mine, clearing his throat.
“I—uh. I can turn around while you remove the last bit and wrap yourself in the first layer of fresh bandages if you want.” Splotches of red rise to his cheeks .
I arch a humored brow. “Didn’t you already bandage me?”
A confused look scrunches his face, as if what I’ve said makes no sense at all. “That was different. You were unconscious and bleeding out. I had no choice. This time, I want to make sure you have the choice.”
An airy smile sweeps across my lips, and I teasingly reply, “Circumstances may be different, but my body remains the same. It’s nothing you haven’t seen before.”
He resumes with his work. “If I had it my way, I would’ve never seen a single inch of you. Not unless it was you who wanted to show me.”
He sucks in a sharp breath, and I never knew a human face was capable of such redness.
“That came out wrong. I meant if you wanted me to see you shirtless.” He slaps a hand to his forehead and drags it down his face. “Wait, no. It’s still coming out wrong. I mean…what I was trying to say…”
And at the sight of his uncharacteristic stammering…
I tip my head back, laughing. I laugh and laugh, until my side pinches and my ribs ache. Tears swell in the corners of my eyes, and I have to swipe them away with the crook of my finger. As I laugh, I feel the sun kissing my cheeks, and I become keenly aware of all the color surrounding me.
And for a brief moment, I feel the flickers of happiness; it feels so warm.
Have I truly become so cold that I’ve forgotten what it feels like to have warmth settle inside me?
When I tilt my chin back down, I find Gray watching me, an indiscernible look resting within his eyes.
“What?” I ask, the traces of laughter still bloating my words.
He observes me for a moment longer, and I notice the way the sun makes the copper in his eyes burn—the way it lightens the mossy green to near-translucent. “Nothing,” he finally replies in a soft whisper.
I make a face at him. “Come on. Tell me.”
He shakes his head, smiling. “Really, it’s nothing. It’s just… I don’t think I’ve ever seen you laugh like that.”
The words swell in my chest and press against my breastbone, aching tenderly .
He applies the healing salve to the puncture wounds at my shoulder before laying fresh bandages. When he finishes the last layer, he clips the extra fabric and pulls back to inspect the quality of his work.
Deeming it acceptable, he meets my eyes. “All finished.”
Gray and I find Draven and Kiran near the river, watering their horses.
As we approach, Kiran turns to greet us, but Draven’s gaze remains fixed on the coursing river, his hand mindlessly stroking his horse’s strong body.
“So,” Kiran coos. “What did you decide?”
Gray inclines his head. “We’d like to accept your offer, if it remains.”
Kiran smiles, delighted. “Wonderful. You get to ride with me, Nightenjoy.”
One glance at Gray after those words, and I have to bite down on my lip to hold in my laughter.
Kiran slides his sapphire eyes to me, a smirk already curling his lip.
“I don’t know what you’re laughing about,” he chides.
“You have to ride with him.” He jabs his thumb to the towering figure behind him.
To Draven. “And if you haven’t noticed, he’s the broody, insufferable type, and they don’t make for very fun company. ”
My smile indeed quickly falls, and now I’m fighting the urge to gulp.
Evidently, my shift in demeanor is obvious, because Kiran folds his arms across his chest and gives a confirming nod. “That’s more the expression I’d expect to see.”
I flick my eyes to Draven’s considerably broad back, just in time to see him stiffen. And as if sensing that somehow, Kiran’s smile just grows wider.
He really is always smiling, isn’t he?
“When do we leave?” I ask, curious to know how much time I have to prepare before getting onto a horse with Draven.
Kiran makes a show of thinking. “Let me see…right now, as it so happens.”
The blood leeches from my face, and I make a choking sound.
“It’s probably best if you go and properly introduce yourself,” Kiran continues. “He’s rather unfriendly, and if you’re going to ride him, he likes to be familiar with your scent.”
My cheeks flood with scalding heat as I tug at my brows. “ Excuse me ? I don’t know what sick perversion makes you think—”
Gray loudly clears his throat, cutting me off. “He’s referring to the horse, Lyra.”
I didn’t think it was possible, but I’m certain my cheeks grow even redder than before. “Oh.”
Draven finishes prepping his stallion right as I clasp my cloak.
He gives the horse a pat before turning to face me. “Do you want to get on first or would you like me to?”
I shrug. “Either is fine with me.”
He studies me, his mismatched eyes striking. “Have you ever mounted a horse before?”
Though his tone wasn’t condescending, I still answer with a slight defensive bite. “Many times.”
He hums, the sound a deep, hypnotic tune. “And are all the wounds dressed properly?” Though one would think those are caring words, there isn’t a hint of tenderness to them.
The question catches me off-guard. “They are.”
“Good.” With fluid grace, he mounts the horse suddenly and offers his hand after. “The last thing we need is to be slowed down by an infected wound.”
I resist the urge to roll my eyes, but still swat his hand out of the way. I mount the horse, thanking the gods the beautiful stallion holds steady.
As I position myself on the saddle, I press against Draven’s frame— all of his frame—and I have to douse the fluttering wings of butterflies in my stomach before they take flight.
I have no interest in such juvenile feelings. I especially have no interest in getting distracted by his looks. There is far too much at stake for me to get diverted by a pair of pretty eyes and a toned body .
Not to mention, our first encounter leads me to believe he’s always an unpleasant ass.
Draven reaches around me for the reins, and I am swallowed by his muscular arms, embraced by his towering frame. It makes me feel all at once deeply in danger and entirely safe.
At least he smells decent—like citrus and leather mingling with the subtle smell of sweat.
Noticing how he smells makes realization smack me in the face.
I must smell terrible.
But maybe that’s not a bad thing. Maybe it’ll act as a barrier to make him stay away.
“Are you ready?” Draven calls out to Kiran, his deep voice rumbling in his chest against my back.
My mouth runs dry, and I have to swallow against the sudden drought in my throat.
But then I glance over at Gray, who looks positively unamused to be sharing a horse with Kiran.
Not because he is frustrated with sharing a horse with a man; Gray doesn’t care.
But rather because he and Kiran are both large, muscular men sharing a saddle that is not fit to accommodate two people with such builds.
A giggle escapes me.
“Ready,” Kiran answers over his shoulder, turning his speckled horse away from the river, eastward.
Draven kicks his heel into his stallion’s side and makes a clicking noise with his mouth. We begin to move at a slow trot.
Without turning around, I ask, “Where are your other traveling companions? There were two others with you before.”
“We’re meeting up with them now.” A pause. “How were you injured?”
I’m surprised by the question. “We had an…encounter.”
“An encounter? With what?”
I huff a sardonic laugh. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
The horse picks up speed, and Draven shifts forward with the reins. I can practically feel his breath on the tip of my ear as he replies, “Try me.”
A chill skitters down my spine, and I become keenly aware of his hips pressed against my backside. I clear my throat. “It was a Wynn.”
Draven is silent for a long moment. “And where was he?” I feel more than see his chin jerk toward Gray.
“Also injured,” I reply.
Draven snorts a dry laugh. “Naturally.” He pulls on the reins, his arm brushing against me.
Ignoring the touch, I glance back pointedly at him. “And what’s that supposed to mean?”
“What do you think it means?”
“I don’t know. Hence why I’m asking for clarification.”
A small bump on the ground has Draven again shifting into me. I again ignore it. “Someone who can’t even defend themselves against one silly creature has no place participating in Bathara’s entrance exams.”
I manage to keep my words clipped. My annoyance contained. “Have you ever seen a Wynn before?”
“No. I have not.”
“Then you have no right to judge him when you haven’t the faintest clue what we were up against. It…
” I pause, flashes of the Wynn running through my mind.
“It is a creature of nightmares—of death and rot. I wouldn’t wish my worst enemy to face it.
” I sit up a little straighter and lift my chin.
“And I’ll have you know, Gray is an incredibly capable wielder, and an even more talented fighter. His swordsmanship is second to none.”
He huffs as if he’s amused. “Is that so?”
“It is.”
His low grunt is his final reply.
We continue trotting behind Kiran and Gray in silence, the clapping hooves the only sound for a long while. Until Draven’s voice snaps me from my wandering thoughts. “I want you to know you’ll be safe from injury for the rest of this journey.”
I arch a brow—even if Draven can’t see it. “Oh?” I retort a bit mockingly. “And how can you guarantee that?”
“Because I’m here now. And despite what you might think, I don’t lose. Ever.”