Chapter 37 #2
“I’m fine,” I snapped, wiping my tears with the back of my hand.
I desperately tried to cram a small pot into the bag I was holding.
When I failed, I broke, and my breathing became erratic.
It was clear that I was in the last week of my cycle—always worse when I hadn’t taken care of things by now.
Frustrated, I threw the pot onto the ground only to realize the bag I was using was Njall’s pants.
I sank to the ground, tears streaming down my cheeks.
A comforting warmth enveloped me as Njall’s arms wrapped around my shoulders.
Affection from anyone other than my brothers wasn’t something I usually sought, not since I’d been a teenager, but in that moment, I needed it more than I’d ever confess to anyone.
So I let him hold me while I cried, releasing the fear for my brothers, the rage at my siren sisters' betrayal, and my hatred of how badly I’d botched what should have been a simple retrieval mission.
As my violent sobs subsided, Njall shifted his position and pulled me close to him, stroking my hair and whispering it would be okay.
Exhaling contentedly, I nuzzled into Njall, letting him calm all the pain and rage churning inside me.
When I turned to look at him, his face was right before mine, and he was watching me.
I remembered what it felt like to kiss him, and how soft those lips were, but now, all I could smell was Talia.
A jealousy I'd never known flared to life.
“We’ll find them,” Njall said softly, oblivious to the turmoil.
I pulled back sharply to escape the smell, grabbed the pot off the ground, and went to shove it into my bag. “I know,” I replied solemnly. “And then I’ll kill every man who dared to touch my brothers.”
We worked in silence after that, gathering up the remaining items and loading up the horses.
Their reins had loosened from the log we'd tied them to, but despite being left alone for hours, neither had gone anywhere. Either these were the most loyal horses ever to exist, or they were simply lazy, but I would not complain about it. I grabbed the mule’s reins and scanned for the trail we’d used to sneak into the woods and hide from the road.
Njall found it first, and soon enough, we were moving once more.
Despite the risk of being spotted, we stuck to the main road to make it to Coral’s meeting point in time to save my brothers.
The dew on the grass was completely gone by the time we found the narrow side road that Coral had described to me.
I would have overlooked it, but a tree had fallen and covered the path near the road—a victim of the storm that hadn't yet been chopped into firewood.
I dismounted to examine it. After I hacked off a large branch, I decided that the horses would have no issue going over it, and we were back to trot toward the meeting point.
As we rode, Njall broke the silence with a hushed query. “Elva?” He hesitated before continuing. “Do you have a plan for how we’re going to get your brothers back?”
“Yes. I’ll pretend to be working with Coral, and I'll convince them to take me to whoever is in charge so we can negotiate to give you to them, too. They won't be able to resist that. While I do that, you’ll free them. It’s the least you can do after you tried to get us arrested.”
“You’re going to throw that back in my face forever, aren’t you?”
“Absolutely,” I said with a sly smirk, pushing my horse forward.
A few minutes later, we heard shouts of laughter through the trees. “We should leave the horses here,” Njall said. “If things go sour, we won’t want to lose them.”
I nodded and guided us toward a thicket near a towering oak tree that had many branches sticking out. I tied the horses to a low branch while Njall climbed up to scout the area.
“It’s to the west,” he said, jumping down and pointing through the trees. “They seem to be organized into three areas. If they're anything like my father’s men, it’ll be one for the highest ranks, another for standard forces, and the last for prisoners and waste.”
“So we just have to figure out which one we each go to.”
Njall nodded. I handed him my daggers and began rummaging through our supplies.
His eyes flickered with curiosity as I pulled out my corseted top, but he said nothing.
Without warning, I grabbed the bottom of my shirt and pulled it over my head, careful not to snag my hair.
As I stuffed it into my pack, I realized he'd turned around to give me privacy.
Silly man. I checked my wound, and it was still red along the scar, but the rest of my skin had reverted to its usual pale shade.
Smiling to myself, I slipped into my corseted top and pulled the strings tightly along the front, sending my breasts spilling over the top enough to distract the guards.
I tapped Njall’s shoulder. “Is this enough cleavage to seduce you?”
“I don’t know how to answer that.”
I rolled my eyes. “I travel with two gay sirens, I need a man who appreciates the female form to help me convince the guards that I’m a siren—the kind of siren they expect me to be.”
Njall nodded, and I could feel his eyes rake over me.
Finally, he beckoned me closer. He loosened the corset, so I didn’t spill out as much, and pulled the straps from the top of my shoulder to the sides.
“You should aim for sultry, not easy,” he said.
He also took my braid out, letting my wavy hair cascade across my bare shoulders.
“Now the only thing you’re missing is seaweed in your hair. ”
“Seaweed? Humans honestly think we walk around with seaweed in our hair?” I was incredulous. “You've obviously never come across week-old seaweed.”
“Oh, I have,” Njall said with a brief grin. “But I’m not all human males. Now go knock’em dead.”
“I will, if need be.” I slid a dagger into each boot and slipped my small sheath into my waist so I could add one more. “Make sure you stay out of sight. I don’t want to have to rescue three men today.”
Njall smiled as he leaned against a tree. “I can handle myself.”
“Take the ax,” I said as I tiptoed out of our hiding spot toward the camp.