"Believe it or not," I said, "I am not helpless. I am the Rose, after all, complete with thorns. Bright as a flower, andnothelpless. Zasen's father taught me to hunt too."
"Is that where he learned it?"
"Mhm." I chuckled. "He would take us boys and Jeera out. We'd bring back enough to feed both of our families. Most animals don't see my colors, though. Humans? We do." Then I cupped her face. "I'm also smart enough to stick with someone who'll keep me alive."
Those baby blue eyes of hers found mine, and for a moment she said nothing. She simply looked from one of my eyes to the other as if trying to find the joke in that.
"I will never leave you, Rymar," she swore.
"I know." And I leaned in, pressing my mouth against hers.
I didn't tell her I loved her. I didn't tell her I was proud of her. I didn't even say that she'd surprised me out there. I simply kissed her.
Because now was not the time. This was not the place. We were alive, the Moles had come, and as soon as we stepped out of these trees, I knew the next part would send us in different directions, but I needed this.
I needed her, I needed the family we'd built, and I needed to say something. Words just wouldn't do, so I took her mouth, kissing her with every unspoken feeling spiraling in my mind, and letting her sort them out for me. Her lips moved againstmine. Her tongue didn't shy away. When her hand clasped the side of my neck, I could feel it getting sticky, but didn't even care.
Kanik had said it the other night. She sawme. Not the man people wanted me to be, or the one I should've become. This woman accepted my fears, my heart, and my insecurities and somehow made them feel like things I could conquer with her at my side.
"Thank you for protecting me," she whispered before pulling away.
And those words proved it. I felt pride swelling in my chest as I stood. "We're partners." It was the best response I had. "Now let's go find our other partners, hm?"
"Girls, come," Ayla said, pushing through the evergreen branches like she'd done this a million times.
I followed, truly impressed at how far she'd come in such a short time. Once, she'd never seen a tree. Now she moved through them like she'd been doing it her whole life. And the moment we were out of them, she told Holly to find Zasen.
I heard him before we got there. "Xav!" he called. "Lansin! Ayla!"
"Here!" Ayla yelled back, breaking into a jog.
In a few more steps, we found Zasen, Kanik, and Chlo. Kanik was holding cloth against Zasen's arm, trying to wrap a bandage around it while Zasen kept moving. Chlo was dragging a body closer, into a pile they seemed to be making.
That was when Shadow rushed into the area, looking first at Zasen, then Ayla. A moment later, Lansin and Xav followed, but Xav was limping. Lansin had blood on his face, leaking from his hair. In other words, we'd taken a bit of a beating.
"Who's hurt the worst?" Ayla asked.
"Zasen's got a minor cut," Kanik said. "Just needs wrapped, and if he'dstop, that would make it easy."
"I'm good," Chlo said.
"Lansin got his head bashed," Xav told us.
Lansin grunted at that. "Xav twisted his ankle."
"Sit," Ayla ordered, pointing at Xav. "Rymar, press a bandage against Lansin's head until it stops bleeding. Xav, boot off."
"Ayla, I'm fine," Xav grumbled.
Kanik pitched a bag of medical supplies at her. "Wraps are in there."
She nodded, never taking her eyes off Xav. "You will be more fine with a wrap."
But Lansin caught her arm, turning her to face him. "What happened to your neck!"
"Meri's husband," Ayla said. "I was going to kill him, but he's stronger than me." And then she smiled. "But I have dogs."
"Is he dead?" Zasen asked.
