The guardsmen looked at each other. “Of course,” the larger one said. “That’s what we’re here for.”
Satisfied, Royla turned and began to jog through the dell. She closed her eyes and savored the warm air on her cheeks. A deep breath tickled her mind with the sweet smell of fresh grass in the sun.
She crossed the glen in no time. Pausing to make sure the guardsmen were following her, she stepped into the shadows cast by the trees.
The forest here seemed still. Perhaps because the vegetation was so thick, the usual sounds of animals and birds were muffled, if they were even there.
Royla held her breath. She tilted her head to one side and listened, trying to hear anything.
There was nothing there. The silence was a little eerie.
She turned to see that the guardsmen had stopped in the middle of the glen. They’d put their spears down and sat down on the warm grass.
Probably to enjoy the sunshine, Royla thought. It still seemed a little strange that they were there at all.Shehadn’t heard anything about wolves in the forest and she paid attention to what everyone said. And why hadn’t Barnisha mentioned it? Telling her to be more careful than usual? Why had she sent these two men after her instead?
Royla shook her head, ridding herself of the questions. That was her problem. She asked too many questions. Everyone always told her that.
Taking a few more steps into the forest, she crouched down and began searching the leaves for berries hiding underneath.
* **
The rage drove Thanred forward. Each time he thought of the smug smile on Dodlin’s face it would flare again. That ugly prick and his scheming. How he had bribed the others was still a mystery.
“Gutless fucking rat,” Thanred cursed. He lashed out at a fallen tree, leaving five long claw marks along the rotting bark. A sliver drove itself between his claw and the finger, making him grunt as the pain stabbed up his arm.
He closed his eyes and readied for the eruption of his fury. Calming himself had never been one of his talents.
But somewhere from inside the roiling red anger, a pang of sorrow rose up through him. Sorrow at how he’d been treated. Sorrow at how all the others had turned against him, had stood behind Dodlin, their heads bowed in supplication.
He had half a mind to turn back and tear them all to shreds. In his current state, Dodlin’s cronies would be no match for him.
The pain stabbed through him again. But instead of lashing out, Thanred took a breath. A deep breath, sucking air all the way to the bottom of his lungs. It cleared his mind, like wind sweeping fog off the sea. A stillness settled inside of him.
What good would it do to go back? No one wanted him there anymore. What good would it do to see them all again and be reminded of their rejection?
The caves of Nefresh that had been home for his whole life were no longer that. Now they were just a place. A place he would never return.
The finality of it eased some of his anger. As deeply as it cut, he knew there was nothing he could do. He could either walk up to the Old Horn at the top of the Mother Mountain and throw himself off, or he could go on living. There were other places in the world than the caves, after all.
The trouble with that, the trouble with all of this, was the gnawing ache between his legs. His cock stood half-erect. It had been that way since the day he’d left. Pumping it brought no relief, no matter how much seed he spilled.
His Dranark blood coursed hot in his veins. He took another deep breath, trying to quell his needs. If he didn’t find a way to sheathe it soon...
Other exiles had gone mad, or so the stories went. Driven to the brink by their need to mate, they’d been found at the foot of Mother Mountain, their bodies mangled and twisted from the fall. Unable to live with the powerful need unmet, they’d chosen to end it all.
Another deep breath. He steeled himself against the feeling. That wouldnotbe him.
His nostrils flared. The scent of...somethingsingeing his senses. Something hot and sweet and wet. He could almost taste it.
Steady, Thanred. Focus.
He turned his head ever so slightly to one side to try to follow the smell. It was not the heady musk of a Dranark female’s cunt in heat. This was... softer. Spicier.
He sniffed again. The smell was stronger, he was sure of it.
Thanred crouched low in the bush, his cock rising between his knees. His mind began to race. His eyes went wide at the realization of the time of year.
Sweet spirit, it is the offering!
