Chapter 16
I couldn’t believe my eyes. There stood my platinum-haired elf, looking none the worse for wear, and after blurting his name, I added, “Did you break out of jail?”
His lips curved. “Nothing so exciting. I got released with a warning to leave the country.”
“That’s it?”
“The large donation to the precinct probably helped.”
I shook my head. “Glad you escaped the clink. How did you find me?”
“Have you forgotten? The pernicae isn’t the only one who can track Anivivi’s location.”
“Speaking of the giant monster bird, I fought it.” I might have puffed out my chest a bit in pride.
His brow arched. “I’m impressed. How did you defeat it?”
“Not so much defeat as diverted. I turned it into a ginormous butterfly and convinced it to hunt down its creator instead of harassing me.”
Misha stared at me, and I couldn’t read his flat expression, but Cedric could.
“Crazy as it sounds, she’s telling the truth. Minus the fact she first turned it into a terrifying teddy bear with giant teeth and claws.”
“That would have been a sight to see,” Misha snorted.
“More like terrifying.” Then I added more shyly than usual for me, “I’m glad you found me.”
“And I’m pleased to see you continuing on our journey. I half expected you to turn around and return home.”
“I thought about it, but Cedric talked me into continuing onwards and helped fund this berth. Although I might not have kept it for long if you hadn’t come to my rescue with that ticket collector. I tried to convince him he didn’t need to see my passport, but I don’t think he understood English.”
My statement brought a frown to Misha’s face. “You tampered with his mind?”
“More like tried to make him believe he’d seen my passport and all was good.”
Judging by Misha’s expression, he didn’t approve.
“I take it your people don’t do that.”
“No. free will is sacrosanct.”
“Unless it’s mine, and then you seem to think it’s fine to tell me what to do,” I retorted, a little miffed by his attitude.
He opened his mouth as if to speak and shut it. “I guess that does seem a tad hypocritical. However, there is a difference. I’ve been very upfront about my intentions. Pushing thoughts on to others doesn’t give them a choice.”
“Again, not sure what choice I had either, but I do understand what you’re saying, and I promise, I only did it to protect myself.”
“For future reference, bribery also works.”
“If you have money. In case you don’t recall, when you got arrested, I had nothing. Not even my clothes. If it weren’t for Cedric and his slick paws, I’d have been screwed.”
“No need to steal anymore now that we’re back together and I recovered our bags.” He held up his hands to show them. “Now mind letting me in the cabin?” We’d been having the conversation at the open door, not exactly discreet.
“Yeah, of course, come in.”
Misha filled the space with not only his size but his presence. He stowed our luggage and then collapsed on the bench that could fold out into a bed. “It will be nice to relax. I’ve been travelling nonstop since I was released. I take it you didn’t have any more run-ins with Valefor.”
I shook my head. “Nothing. Hopefully he’ll be too busy dealing with the butterfly I reprogrammed to bother us.”
“I wouldn’t count on it.”
The train began moving, setting us in motion toward our next destination. Russia.
“So are you ever going to tell me where we’re going?”
“It’s a—”
“Secret,” I interrupted with a sigh. “Meaning if something happens to you, I’ll have no clue where to go. And before you say it can’t happen, it just did.”
“Should I become unavailable, another will venture forth from the enclave to take my place.”
Not exactly the response I wanted. “What if I don’t want someone else?”
Misha arched a brow. “Don’t be so sure you wouldn’t prefer it, seeing as it would likely be my brother Sergei and he’s much nicer than me.”
“Why were you chosen?”
“Because I’m the one with the most experience with the outside world. Unlike the others, I found living cloistered stifling so volunteered every chance I had to run errands.”
“What’s your enclave like?”
He began talking, telling me about his home, a place of stone buildings with paved roads heated underneath to prevent ice and snow from building. Of the gardens they tended inside greenhouses built before the concept even existed.
“It sounds really nice.” And then, because I couldn’t help myself, I had to ask, “Are you really one of the last elves born to your people?”
He nodded. “There are only three younger than me. Two of them siblings. My parents were unusually fertile for our kind.”
“And there’s been no more babies since you lost the spirit?”
“None. The Elders believe it’s because we’re not native to this world. We need that boost of magic from Anivivi to thrive.”
“Meaning it’s super important to get it back inside its tree lest your people die out.”
“Exactly.”
Then, with an impish grin, I had to say, “So does this mean you’re a virgin? I mean, if you can’t make babies, is there any point in bothering?”
His jaw dropped, and Cedric hopped from his spot on the opposite bench and headed for the door. “That’s my cue to go.”
Misha let him out and then leaned against the closed door. “I am not inexperienced,” he stated, his pale cheeks showing a hint of pink.
“Good to know. Do you practice often?”
Turned out his face could get even brighter. “Do you?”
“Not in a while, but given I’m feeling a tad rusty, I’m thinking maybe I should dust off my skills.
” I rose as I said it and stood in front of him.
Brazen? Very. But here was the thing, I almost died a few times the last few days.
Could die tomorrow, seeing as how I embarked upon on a dangerous quest into the unknown.
Should I even be thinking of my own pleasure at a time like this?
I say yes. Live for the moment and all that crap.
Not to mention, I couldn’t stop thinking about that kiss.
A kiss I repeated.
A kiss that I might have started but he took over.