I feel his sorrow like the slow ache of a frozen heart, coming from the amulet tucked away in the pocket of my shirt. If I didn’tfeel the heartache, I would ignore the tiny, slow pulses connecting our blood. It matters less that I didn’t know about the magic when I remember he could have let me burn or drown once I had the bow, but he saved me instead. I would never have known how strong I am without that opportunity.
Whatever he’s keeping to himself, maybe his guilt is too great to explain it. I know that feeling, so I press my hand over his heart. His body moves in response, bringing me closer. Resting my head on his shoulder for a few hours, I fight sleep, telling myself I don’t want to miss the beauty of the quiet woods.
Safely sitting together on the sled we gain altitude, moving through thick pine trees and dense evergreens. I don’t know how Shaw remembers the way because everything starts to blend together. Without a word, he slips his hand over mine, reaching up my wrist to find the bracelet wedged against my forearm.
“I need the chain, Rasha,” he explains. I wiggle my wrist to slide the pretty silver metal down my hand. Removing the delicate chain, I give it to him and wait for some chasm in the forest to open.
It looks like he is counting the links or saying a prayer, and suddenly, my peripheral vision vibrates, shaking my line of sight. With another hard turn of the sled, I am thrown further into his lap, and I reach around his waist to hold on.
Snowflakes fall fast, tickling my nose and blurring the scene in front of us. Tucking his arm around me, he yanks the reins, and the whole sled moves forward a few inches before slamming back into the snow.
“No one can find you because you use magic to hide?” I ask in disbelief.
“I use remnants of what I have left to protect myself.”
“Sounds like the same thing to me. Why do you have magic anyway?” I retort and jump off the bench. His cabin is bigger than I expected. Aslaug perks up behind us, shaking abruptly to remove the caked on snow that coats her thick fur. I take the quiver before anything else, making sure the amulet and bow are safely inside.
Aslaug brushes her happy body against mine and runs around the snow like a puppy. Her huge paws propel her toward the door.
“She’s happy to be home,” I can’t help but point it out. He looks at his cat with that core-heating, satisfactory smile and unhooks the reindeer. They make their way behind the cabin like they’ve been here before.
“You are welcome to go in and get warm. There should be firewood by the hearth.” He gestures to the door where Aslaug is plastering her body against the handle.
Taking two bags of blankets and clothes out of the sled to carry with the quiver, I walk through the knee deep snow to the door and expect it to be locked. But the same feeling I had when I held the amulet returns, and I wrap my hand around the handle till it slowly opens.
Aslaug doesn’t even wait, pushing past the half opened door to run between my legs and inside her home.
“What magic has Shaw shared with me?” I whisper into the shadows of the cabin. We are connected clearly by something I didn’t know existed. Dumping the things on the first table I see to follow Aslaug to the hearth. Everything in here is carved, from the door frames to the table legs, to the many palm sized statues along the mantle. Shaw’s skills are on full display.
A pang of sadness hits me that no one has ever seen this in all the years he’s lived alone. I take wood from the rack to set up a fire and use one of the many strikers from a nearby basket to light the hearth. Aslaug rolls around on the rug, showing me her pretty white belly.
“Can I pet you there or will you nibble on me?” I ask, stroking the sides of her freshly healed ribs. The door opens and closes with a gust of snowy wind swirling around the cabin. Getting back to my feet, I keep the table between us and watch Shaw set his things in their places.
“What else can I help with?” I ask, needing to do something to distract me from the one bedroom with one bed past the kitchen.
“First, this goes back inside the bracelet.” He reaches across the table, holding the chain, but I hesitate. “Or I can keep it. But rightfully, the next steps are yours to take.”
“What does that mean?”
“The chain needs to be finished. You are smarter than you give yourself credit for. I know you felt something when you opened the door, when we crossed into the Sacred Forest, and when you touched the amulet.”
“We are bound by magic from the gods, aren’t we?” I ask, holding out my hand for the chain.
“It was the only way to make sure you didn’t die.”
“Just own it, Shaw.” My words are short and harsh. He walks across the room, and Aslaug runs into the bedroom to get out of his way. “Don’t make excuses. Own the fact that you knew what you were doing, and you chose to bind us together because…” I stop, flinching at how he’s looking at me.
“I knew what I was doing because my soul is bound into every link of the chain. Now you’re the only one that can help me forge the last two links. You are the only one who can draw the bow using ancient power,” he admits.
“And?” I ask, boldly stepping into his space. What happened this morning was not nothing, and he knows it.
“And because now that I’ve met you, I can’t stay away,” he whispers. Slipping his fingers through my hair, he finds the back of my neck, and I melt.
“Was that so hard?” I breathe, my lips so close to his, but I want to make him fight a bit more. My need to be close to him despite what he said about his soul is foolish, but I can’t stop myself.
“We need to clean up and get the animals settled.” He rubs his thumb under my earlobe, and my thighs tighten together, trying to hide how aroused I am.
“Sure.” I wind the chain back into my bracelet. Securing the clasp, I push it over my knuckles and under the sleeve of the shirt to protect it. Hissoulis bound to the metal. The small admission is huge, and yet, I am suddenly conflicted. He was never as free as I thought.
