Eva paused when she finally broke free of the keep’s outbuildings. She stood and let the rain pelt her, the cool water helping to calm her raging emotions. Once she’d had some time alone to think, she would know what to do. Right now, she needed to be down at the lake.
Reaching the canopy of trees, Eva felt her nerves begin to calm. Even in the pouring rain, even with thunder cracking angrily overhead, she could breathe again.
Her thoughts wandered far afield, grappling with the worry that all the trust she’d placed in Finn, all the moments they’d shared had been based upon a lie.
As she walked, however, Eva’s surroundings forced her to focus on her journey down the trail. The top of the trail was the same as always, if muddier. The further she went, the less stable it grew. Nearing the stone where she waited for Finn, she realized she needed to turn back. She could already hear the churning water just beyond the nearby tree line, the sound of angry waves pounding the rocky shore reaching her even in her despair.
Eva turned to head back up the trail, only to find it had become a tiny but powerful stream of mud and raging runoff.
Determined not to panic, though she had to admit it wasn’t looking good, Eva reached for the nearest tree to support her as she climbed upward against the current.
Her left foot slipped. Her right foot couldn’t hold her. She felt the rough bark of the tree brush her fingers just before the muddy water carried her away.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Cold. Frigid cold.Heart racing, nerves striking her body like the lightning overhead.
She couldn’t swim. And she was in the lake.
Thunder cracked. Her arms reached, her neck stiffened. She couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t shout. The water’s surface bobbed just out of reach no matter the effort she made.
One breath, finally. Then a mouthful of muddy water. Eva choked, trying to spit it out. Instead, she took in more through her nose.
Her legs kicked. Her arms grabbed, as if she could touch the shore, though she couldn’t even see it. For all she knew she’d washed to the next village over already. Her body moved as it willed, no longer controlled by her mind.
Against the chaos of the raging waters, a moment of tranquility settled upon Eva. In the depths of her mind, she knew she would die. Her efforts at escape paled pitifully in the face of the roiling waves. She could not free herself.
Yet the panic faded, even in the face of this knowledge. The more imminent her death became, the easier it grew to accept her fate. Instead of struggling, Eva settled into a trance under the water.
Her dress billowed about her, swirling in the undertow. Bubbles trailed in its wake. The flashes of lightning overhead illuminated the translucent waves and bubbles, creating a breathtaking landscape of light and dark that mesmerized Eva.
From the darkness two shadows emerged, moving rapidly toward her. She heard nothing but the cacophonous tumult of stormy water.
An iron grip encircled first one arm, then the other, lifting her from her peaceful perch beneath the waves. She tried to protest, only to discover she could do naught but cough and choke, unable to draw a full breath. Chaos descended once more, the thunder above a stark reminder that escaping the waves did not guarantee safety.
The world spun about her in a whirlwind of water, reaching for her from the lake below and the sky above. The moment her feet hit land she threw herself to the ground, coughing up enough water to make a puddle on the muddy shore.
Several good whacks reverberated from her back through her body. Taking one gasping, ragged breath, Eva turned to see Finn behind her. His hands held her tightly, one about her waist, the other on her back. Even in her state of confusion, Eva noted how pale he’d gone, his face whiter than new milk. His hair lay plastered to his face by the torrential rain falling about them. Eyes the same grey-blue as the storm-tossed lake simmered at her with intensity.
Eva thought he might shout at her, but a sadness overtook the flash of anger on his face. He leaned forward, his hands pulling her head to his. “I thought I’d lost you,” he whispered into her hair, barely audible over the storm. “I can’t lose you.”
Bit by bit, Eva’s senses returned to her. She sank into Finn’s warm body, his heart beating so hard she could feel its rhythm against her own chest.
He had saved her.
She had nearly drowned, and Finn had rescued her.
Eva’s hopes soared. He had passed some of the most challenging physical trials, leaping over trees as big as a man, defending himself from an onslaught of spears with naught but a shield and his own considerable skill. He had proven his intellect through his dedication to music and poetry. And, when she’d needed him most, he had been there. Though she hardly dared believe it possible, it seemed that Finn could handle anything.
And at this very moment, sitting in his arms on the shore, soaked to the bone and coughing up water, Eva decided that perhaps he could handle her family as well. It had been an awfully long time since her cousin had caused any mischief. As long as they kept their betrothal a secret, Eva felt they would be perfectly safe.
A flush of heat rose within her as she held his words close.I can’t lose you.
In that instant, Eva knew she couldn’t lose him either. If there were a way to make a marriage between them work, she would find it. She gazed up at him, raindrops running down her face. “No,” she agreed, “you can’t.” She raised her hand to his face, tracing the strong line of his jaw until his eyes met hers. “I’m beginning to think you can survive anything, Finn Ulfsson.”
Finn’s breathing grew shallow. He clearly understood her implication. “Even marrying you?” he asked, his voice rough with emotion.
“Aye,” she grinned, suddenly not caring a whit about the tempestuous storm assaulting them, “even marrying me.”
