Zadyn lifts a hand, sparing him. “You didn’t know. It’s fine. It didn’t even scar.” He directs that last part at the stone-faced Mal, who eyes us up before returning his gaze to the fire.
“I’m furious with you, you know.” Zadyn lightly nudges my shoulder as he takes a sip of water.
“I don’t blame you,” I admit.
“You could have been killed?—”
“Zadyn, please. I can’t do the lecture. Not tonight. I know everything you’re about to say, and you’re right. I’m sorry if I scared you.”
He laughs without humor. “That’s putting it mildly.”
After we finish eating, Zadyn insists on checking my thigh wound. He cuts through my pant leg with a small knife before dabbing it with a dampened cloth.
“I can’t heal it before it's properly cleaned. If it’s infected, it will just seal it in,” he explains.
The bleeding has stopped, thankfully, and I pray it doesn’t get infected out here in the wilderness. For all the magic in this world, I don’t think they’ve mastered the art of modern medicine.
Zadyn and I have to share the only extra bedroll in the camp, and I’m grateful for the warmth of his body near mine. By the time we lay down, my body feels heavy and exhausted. But my mind is not so willing to rest. I toss and turn while Zadyn sleeps peacefully at my side.
Wired and frustrated, I sit up and glance toward the still-blazing fire. Jack is the only one left there, taking the first watch while the rest of the camp sleeps. He stokes the fire with a stick,eliciting soft crackles in the quiet night. His gaze locks with mine, wordlessly beckoning me.
I find myself walking toward him. He watches me approach. Stopping before him, I slip the cloak from my shoulders and hold it out to him.
“Thank you,” I say softly. He shakes his head, eyes sliding back to the fire.
“Keep it. You’ll freeze without it.”
Not in the mood to argue, I slide the heavy wool back over my shoulders and take a seat beside him. He quickly schools the look of surprise on his face into a mask of indifference.
“How did you get to me so quickly?” I ask. The angles of his face are made even sharper by the shadows and the dancing firelight as he stares into the flames.
“We were heading north toward Hyrax when we heard you screaming,” he explains. “You’re lucky we had just stopped to set up camp when you were attacked, or we wouldn’t have gotten to you in time.”
I lower my eyes while I pick at my nails.
“I should thank you for saving my life.”
“I’d do it for anyone,” he says without looking at me. “The better question is, what were you doing in the Bone Forest when you should have been at the castle?”
“Needed some fresh air.”
He chuckles darkly.
“Or you heard my conversation in the hall earlier and went searching for the portal.” Jack peers at me, face half illuminated by the crackling fire. “You’re either incredibly stupid or incredibly brave.”
“Actually, I’m just tired of everyone refusing to hear me out and treat me like a human being.”
His dark brows arch in surprise.
“Oh, you know what I mean. I did what I had to do. Or tried to, at least.”
“You would have been quite disappointed if you had made it to the portal, only to find that it’s out of commission for the foreseeable future. Whatever passed through that gate did a solid job of making sure no one else could.”
“So, why are you and your men heading there?”
“To scout the area, try to figure out what was strong enough to destroy two Guardians and stop it from invading these lands any further. I had planned to travel north with my men, but now that’s changed.”
I tilt my head in confusion.
