Another soldier across the tavern stood. “I will,” she echoed.
“I will.” The promise came steadily, one by one, until the entire room was standing, their vow spoken into the quiet of the tavern.
Air rushed from Josie’s parted lips, relief sweeping over her so fast, she was almost dizzy with it. She glanced down to find Aleissande grinning up at her, pride gleaming in her eyes.
“Well done, Princess,” she said privately, just for her. Then the general turned to the troops, her voice hardening as she barked her first command.
“Listen carefully. We’re about to create one hells of a diversion.”
54
Aya had kept secrets her entire life.
The death of her mother, the unusual tug of her power, the confusing feelings that stirred in her stomach back when she’d hated Will but didn’t understand why he could so easily slip beneath the careful tether she kept on her rage.
It was a strange thing to be free of such burdens now; to wake up in Will’s arms and know that he had seen the depths of her, and did not fear what he’d found. That final confession of what Evie had threatened to do to her in Kakos had felt like a cleansing of sorts, the admission of her relief and how much she loathed herself for it leaving her lips and taking the guilt and shame with it.
It had made it easier to tell Will the rest.
No matter how far the fall, they’d promised. She’d retaken that vow that night at the lake, a new scar adorning her palm. And she kept it by filling in the details of her time in Kakos each day they traveled. She knew it painted a horrific picture; Will couldn’t hide the revulsion that sometimes flickered across his face when she spoke of Evie. But she could see the relief, too.
“Thank you for trusting me.” He’d pressed the wordsinto her lips on their final night in the farmlands. They’d taken advantage of camping under the stars before heading into the Druswood, and Aya had used the soothing blanket of the night sky to ease her breath as she told him of that first time Andras had stolen her power—how it had ripped at something deep inside of her, something she wasn’t sure would ever heal.
He’d held her close and listened steadily, and when she was done, he brought a smile back to her face by telling her outrageous stories about the constellations that she knew, based on their utter ridiculousness, were nowhere near the truth.
She smiled as she remembered them now, her body warm in the cradle of Will’s arms as they slept on the floor of a cave deep in the Druswood. She could hardly make out the early morning light through the thick canopy of trees, but the birdsong indicated dawn had come. She glanced toward the mouth of the cave to see Akeeta and Tyr nestled against one another. They’d been hunting late last night, and Will and Aya had taken full advantage of the privacy.
Aya stretched the best she could in Will’s hold, her body aching pleasantly.
“Stop squirming,” Will grumbled, his voice rough with sleep as he buried his head into the bare skin of her shoulder.
“It’s morning,” Aya replied. The pads of her fingers skimmed across his forearm. As if in agreement, the wolves lifted their heads. Tyr stretched languidly before stepping out of the cave, Akeeta at his heels. “They’re eager to go,” Aya mused.
“I don’t care,” Will muttered, tugging her closer. His mouth brushed her shoulder and up her neck. “Want to stay here.”
Aya shivered as his breath coasted over her ear. “You know we can’t.”
“Mm,” Will hummed, his teeth tugging gently on herearlobe. He shifted, his leg pressing between hers as his hand coasted down her stomach. “I could make a convincing argument,” he reasoned as his fingers slipped right where she wanted him most.
Aya’s breath caught, her hips bucking up against his hand. Will chuckled, the sound seductive and dark in her ear. “But I suppose you’re right,” he murmured, his fingers withdrawing the slightest bit. “Weshouldget going—”
Aya’s fingernails dug into the skin on his wrist, stilling his hand from further retreat. “I will kill you if you stop,” she warned, the threat utterly diminished by the desire thinning her voice.
Will pressed his grin into the crook of her neck as his fingers resumed their sweet torture.
“Well that certainly wont do, will it, Aya love?”
***
The levity did not last. It came in stolen moments, often when they tangled together at night, or in the rare instances when they allowed themselves a break from strategizing what they would do on their arrival as they rode through the dark, tangled maze of the Druswood.
But the closer they drew to the Talan border, the more elusive those moments became.
Aya could see the worry beginning to wrap around Will, tightening the space between his shoulder blades. It only grew worse when they officially crossed over into Tala.
Perhaps something had dulled in her after all she had encountered in Kakos. Because while she felt apprehension stirring in her stomach, that sharpness of fear was nowhere to be found, even as she considered how she very well might be facing the mob who killed her father.
What news would have come from Sitya this time? Had Evie claimed her place in the narrative, or was she continuing to use Aya’s name as a mantle for her sins?
