Chapter 8
I glance around. If we were anywhere else, it would almost be peaceful. “Are you worried about what happens when night falls?”
He throws his bones into the fire. “It’s going to come whether we want it to or not. So, we’ll just deal with it when it does.”
“Will we sleep or stay awake?”
“You can sleep, and I’ll keep watch.”
“You can take the first watch,” I correct. “And then I’ll take the second.” I expect him to argue, but he nods in acceptance. “How did you manage sleep when you were alone?”
“I slept with one eye open,” he says easily, and I smile.
“Seriously.”
He shrugs. “I slept the best I could. An hour here, an hour there. There wasn’t anything else I could do.”
“Well, I’m here this time; so, we can take turns keeping watch.
” He turns those bright green eyes on me and looks at me contemplatively.
He doesn’t say anything, and I fidget under his stare.
“Well, I guess this is as good a time as any to try to get some sleep.” I walk over to the shelter he made. “You did a really good job with this.”
“Thanks.”
His voice right behind me makes me jump. I whirl around. “You need to make noise when you walk like the rest of us lowly humans. You must drive your people crazy because they never hear you coming.”
He smiles. “You have to admit, it’s a great way to find out how people really feel about me.” I shake my head and step inside the small enclosure and settle on the ground. I’m thankful that between the heat and the fire, my clothes and hair are completely dry. I settle on the ground.
“Here. This is all I have for a pillow.”
I eye his outstretched hand holding his shirt. “I’m fine.”
“Take it.”
“I’m not going to take your shirt; you’re going to need it.”
“Just use it,” he argues and then tosses it on my lap and walks away. “Sleep while you can, Kinsley. I’ll make sure you stay safe.”
His words stay with me as I lay down on the hard ground and try to get comfortable.
I wonder how in the world I’m going to sleep.
But between the fire crackling, the sheer exhaustion and overwhelm of everything that happened today, and knowing that Kaldar is keeping watch nearby, I find myself relaxing.
I’m pretty sure it’s that last one that helps me fall asleep quickly.
A growling sound wakes me from a dead sleep.
I shoot into a sitting position and try to process what’s happening.
I pull out my knife and crawl on my knees towards the entrance to the small shelter.
Something blocks my view of the fire. It takes me a moment to realize it’s Kaldar.
He’s crouched in front of me with weapons at the ready.
I don’t say a word; I just pat his shoulder and he moves his body so I can fit next to him.
We’re shoulder to shoulder, ready to take on whatever is coming our way.
There’s a screeching sound and something that sounds like a hiss.
It gets louder, and then there’s silence.
My legs are cramping in this position, but I don’t dare move.
Finally, Kaldar stands silently to his feet.
He looks down at me and puts his finger to his lips before slipping into the darkness in the direction the sounds came from.
I barely keep from calling out after him.
I wait a couple more minutes and then stand to my feet as quietly as possible.
The fire has died down, so it’s not creating a lot of light. It’s just enough to cast shadows on everything. I turn in all directions, knife in hand, watching and waiting. My heart is beating so loud, I’m sure any creatures nearby can hear it. “Whatever it was is gone now.”
I jump at Kaldar’s sudden voice. “Would you stop doing that?” I whisper hiss at him. “You are seriously going to give me a heart attack.” I blow out a slow breath, trying to calm my racing heart. “You can sleep now. I’m wide awake and won’t be sleeping anytime soon.”
“You sure?”
I nod and poke at the dying embers of the fire and add some more kindling. “Positive.”
“I just need a little bit; I won’t be long.”
“Go get your beauty sleep, Your Highness.” It takes me a moment to realize he hasn’t moved. When I look back at him, I can see his unimpressed face in the light of the waning fire.
“Beauty sleep?”
He sounds so affronted, it makes me want to smile.
He leaves me a moment later and settles in the makeshift sleeping area.
I can’t help my grin. The fact that I think this is funny at all is a testament to the fact that I’m probably losing my mind out here and am sleep deprived.
I pull out the knife Kaldar gave me and study it a moment.
It’s a good blade, but it’s short. I glance over to where he’s disappeared into the darkness.
Surely, he’s not asleep this fast. I stand quickly and walk over to the sleeping area.
“Kaldar,” I whisper into the darkness. I can’t really see more than a dark shape. “Are you sleeping?”
“Not anymore.”
I frown. “You couldn’t have gone to sleep that fast. Right?” I frown. “Did you really fall asleep that fast?”
“Is there something you needed besides asking me about my sleeping habits?”
His voice reminds me why I’m here. “Oh, sorry. Since you’re sleeping—”
“Not anymore,” he butts in.
I hurry to continue. “Can I use that long knife?”
I hear the slightest rustling, and then I hear his voice again. “Hold out your hand.” He places the pommel in my hand. Just having the weapon in hand brings me comfort.
I take a step backwards. “Thank you. Sleep well.” I head back to the fire and try to get comfortable.
I have a knife in each hand, and I feel as ready as I’m going to be.
The night hours drag, and every single sound makes me nervous.
I find myself wishing Farrah and Harper were here.
The last time I was stuck in the woods; at least it was with them.
I absently wonder how they’re doing. I’m not really sure how long Kaldar sleeps.
I would guess it’s less than three hours, but it feels like ten.
The darkness finally starts to recede, and I get excited about the sun coming up.
Maybe there will be a sunrise. Of course, we probably won’t be able to see it with all these trees around; but it still makes me happy.
It means we made it through the night. “We made it through the night.” I’m careful to keep my voice quiet.
“We had good food for dinner. I slept a few hours.”
“Kinsley?” I turn at the sound of Kaldar’s voice and am not surprised to see him standing only a few feet from me. I’m starting to get used to his stealth. “Are you okay?” he asks cautiously.
“Yes. Why?”
“You’re talking to yourself.”
I wave off his concern. “I’m just making my daily gratitude list. It helps me stay grounded and look for the good. Otherwise, I have a tendency to get anxious and worry a lot.”
I expect that to be it, but he surprises me. “What’s on your list for today?”
I can’t help my smile. “The fish we ate last night, and the fact I didn’t drown.
I need to add that detail to my list. We made it through the night, and the sun is coming up.
” When he doesn’t say anything, I turn to him.
He has an expression on his face that I can’t read, but I don’t think its annoyance.
I hope it’s not annoyance. “What’s the plan for today?
Are we staying here or do we keep moving? ”
He’s quick to answer. “Keep moving. The tests seem to get worse the more settled you are.” He grimaces. “I learned that the hard way.”
“What happened?” I ask out of curiosity.
“You don’t want to know.”
I look over at him. “I do.” I wait a moment, waiting for him to just tell me. He doesn’t disappoint.
“I had a spot like this that I stayed at for two days. When I came back one night to crash, snakes had invaded it and destroyed everything.”
I feel my face pale. “Snakes?” I whisper.
He looks over at me and grimaces. “I shouldn't have told you that.”
“I asked,” I insist. I really wish I wouldn’t have, though; but now that’s all I can think of. A shudder runs down my spine. I really hate snakes.
“Hey, it’s okay. I’ll make sure the snakes stay away.” I nod and try to think of anything else but snakes slithering their way into our camp. “Kinsley. Hey.” A warm hand closes around my bicep. “There are no snakes. Don’t think about it.”
I look up at him, way up. “Telling somebody not to think of something is the best way to get them to think about it.”
“Let’s keep moving.” We’re walking a few minutes later. “How long have you been bonded to Veyra?” His words bring an instant smile to my face.
“All of about a few hours before you brought me here.”
“I didn’t bring you here,” he mutters under his breath, but I can still hear it. For some reason, it makes me smile. “Only a few hours?”
“Yep.” I’m careful to watch each and every step I take, so I don’t step on any snakes. I help Kaldar cut down areas that get too thick to get through.
“How much do you know about jaguars then?”
“Next to nothing, but I want to learn. I mean I know a little from the trials but not much.”
“What do you want to know?” he asks.
“Everything you can tell me about them.”
“Jaguars have a fierce bite; their jaws are incredibly strong. They love water and are excellent swimmers. They protect their young fiercely. They hunt pretty much anything and hunt both during the day and at night. They like to stalk their meals, often from the tops of the trees.” There’s a smirk on his face when he says this.
“They’re obviously incredibly fast.” He’s quiet a moment, like he’s thinking.
“They use their tongue to clean themselves, but they have healing properties in their tongues that they use to clean an injury with.”
“That’s fascinating.”
He nods. “They’re amazing creatures. I haven’t really had a chance to be around Veyra, but if she’s half as incredible as Jespar, she’ll be amazing.”
“She is.”
He glances back at me. “You know that after just a few hours?” There’s a slight smirk on his lips.
“I knew it right away.”
He turns back, but I catch the smile tugging at lips as he does.
Conversation becomes difficult after that, because of the effort it takes to make even a little bit of progress through the thick undergrowth.
My stomach growls at some point, and I think he must hear it because he glances my way.
“Let’s try to find a place to rest a little and regroup. ”
“Okay.” It’s a great idea in theory, but we’re completely surrounded by underbrush and trees.
I’m not sure there is a place to rest and regroup.
But I push on, cutting down everything I can as we go.
My feet ache, but I don’t complain. He has it harder than I do with the muscle it takes to cut down everything in our path.
In fact, it’s getting harder and harder to look away from “said muscle” when it’s been in my face all day.
I feel my face heat, more than it already is from the heat of the day, and I look behind us.
I go still and reach out blindly for Kaldar.
My hand slides off his sweaty arm, but I grab it again and don’t let go. I feel his presence behind me.
“Stay completely still,” he says right against my ear.