Anything I wanted that bad rarely ended well for me. Look at Abner—though the exact reasons I wanted him in the first place now amounted to loneliness and proximity.
My pack was a little lighter than yesterday as we left our first camp. Was Ward’s pack bulgier than usual? He had the muscle to carry it. Not that I was admiring them. That was sweet of him. Or practical. Still, I chose to think his kindness made the morning a little brighter. The fact I didn’t have to ask made the road straighter, and the forest we passed through a bit greener.
I felt refreshed enough to be on the lookout for more food for tonight’s dinner. Ward shortened his stride for me, but we still walked at a good pace. Hopefully, I wouldn’t embarrass myself like yesterday. I explained the pair of shorts I needed to make walking in the skirt bearable, and it took a few combinations of spells, but the fact I was able to swing my legs back and forth with complete ease was worth the embarrassment of describing them.
The walk on the road through the woods was easy and the silence companionable as morning turned into afternoon.
“We should practice your shift. It will be helpful for you to control it for the challenges ahead.”
I didn’t really want to. I was so vulnerable as a snake. What would happen if I got stuck like that? Would Ward still want a lousy shifter? Would he haul me all the way to Vinguard in a wheelbarrow? And the more I pretended I was just a normal girl, the more I could hold on to the belief this mates thing was all a disappointing joke. That was easier than thinking it might be real. The first relic hadn’t been the snake purger I thought it would be, but if there were four of them, maybe we needed all of them for me to be human again.
“I think I’m okay. The walking isn’t so bad. The slithering is kinda gross.”
Ward’s disappointment was tangible in the air. “You couldn’t be gross if you tried.”
“Not that there’s anything wrong with shifting, of course. Your bear is only pant-wettingly terrifying the first couple of times. Definitely not like what everyone in my village imagined shifters would be like.”
“Everyone outside your village would agree. What exactly did they tell you in this place no one knows about?” Ward’s curious gaze fell on mine.
“It was all rumors, for the most part,” I said. I was absolutely not going to insult him by describing the maiming and tearing speculation. “Though, if I’m any indication, a few villagers must have done more than gossip about you magical types at some point in our history if I popped out as a result.”
Ward thought before he answered, pushing his hair back from his face so his wicked scar burned in the light. He would have looked dangerous without his smile. “I have to agree. My bear couldn’t mate with you if you were not part of a shifter line.”
“The sex must have been great to overcome their fear,” I said without thinking.
Ward’s smirk scrambled my brain for a second before I dodged the conversation back to neutral territory. “What else do you think the village was hiding?” I asked.
“Humans are very good at believing what they want to believe, even when all evidence points to the contrary. So your village might harbor anything if the magic wasn’t free to grow.” Ward adjusted his pack like it weighed nothing.
“I don’t think the elves who helped hide us would be happy to hear that. The agreement was always hiding us in exchange for the promise we stayed very unmagical. No wizards bent on world domination. No witches with a Goddess complex.”
“That’s how you’ve stayed hidden for so long? Elven magic?”
I pointed to my chest. “Don’t look at me. I did what I was told and stayed put, pursued non-magical hobbies. Maggie was the one who always broke the rules. It was her fault we were in that bar in the first place.”
“I’m glad you were. I might never have found you otherwise.”
I’m glad you found me, too.I barely stopped myself from saying it out loud, but I forgot he could hear my conversation mentally. The return of the grin on his face said he noticed, but he was a true gentleman for what he said next.
“What would you like for dinner?”
The change in subject sagged my shoulders with relief. “How long?—”
The question choked out of me when Ward’s large hand yanked my pack. How did I end up in front of him? When did I get fast?
“Don’t touch it.” He commanded. “You can never predict what the remnants of the Godds magic will do.”
In that tone of voice, I would have done whatever he wanted, but in order for me to comply, I had to know what he was talking about. I put my hands up, just in case. Ward hadn’t let go of my pack, but he eased around me to block me from… a piglet. It snuffled harmlessly at the ground, its tiny feet pawing in the dirt. Tiny grunts filled the air. It couldn’t have been more than a handful of a creature.
I started to sweat. Every bit of gear I brought rattled as I shook.
“Evie?” Ward asked.
“Don’t let it near me,” I said. I popped into my snake form involuntarily.
“Shift back, Evie. You can’t maneuver like that.” He peered down at me. A different question on his face.
I forced myself human again, and it took a few tries to stay that way. “What? You just told me not to touch it and it's ancient magic. You won’t get any argument from me.”
