"Eva, you can't run from this forever. You'll have to face the human side, eventually."
"Not if I can help it. You deal with the humans; I'll take the mythologicals," Eva shouted over her shoulder as Sebastian transitioned into a gallop, Caia increasing her speed to keep pace.
Jason slowed and scowled at Caia who showed every intention of accompanying Eva and Sebastian. "Caia, you can't go with them. Just stop running. I don't want to have to find you later."
Caia put on a burst of speed, leaving Jason in her wake.
"Caia!" Jason yelled in a plaintive voice.
Eva silently wished Jason luck. With both Caia and their guests. Better him than her, though. If faced with a choice between humans or mythologicals, Eva would take the mythologicals. Every. Single. Time.
four
Thetransitionbetweengallopand flight was smooth. Almost unnoticeable as the ground dropped away.
Eva clung to Sebastian's neck, laughter breaking free as she took in the scene below her. Caia determinedly chasing after them, Jason trailing in her wake at a much slower pace. Already, their figures were getting smaller, but Eva thought she could make out the scowl on his face. She could almost hear the curses he was using. The good-natured grumbling.
The small herd of horses that belonged to the Trateri still back at camp scattered, sensing the predator that Sebastian was.
Eva felt a little bad at how much harder Jason's job had just gotten.
The tiny figure that was Jason threw up his hands before shaking his fist after Sebastian.
A snicker filled her mind.
"You did that on purpose," Eva said.
Sebastian's agreement was silent. A feeling more than anything.
Through trial and error, Eva had discovered words weren't always needed for her to understand what Sebastian or other mythologicals were feeling. Sometimes thoughts or emotions that she wasn't sure were meant for her to hear slipped through, intruding on her own.
It was a facet of her abilities that had always been there, but since the confrontation with the rebels who'd attempted to enslave Sebastian and his mate, she'd begun noticing it more often.
The connection was clearer and more present. She wasn't sure what it all meant. Whether her abilities had been strengthened when she'd put out a massive call for help or if continued communication with the mythologicals around her had made her more sensitive to the things she would have ignored before.
In either case, it was one of many questions she had for Sebastian and the other Kyren. So far, it was obvious they knew much more about her kind and their abilities than anyone else she'd met.
With that thought in mind, Eva straightened, studying the far side of the valley where Roscoe and his charges were slowly making their way toward the camp. Even from up here, they were still too far away to see. Barely more than blobs of browns and beiges moving across the valley floor.
Sebastian's wings worked, taking them higher, over the ridge as they left the valley behind.
Their trip passed in silence as Eva let herself be lulled by the beauty before her.
The Highlands were always a place of beauty. Every step you took trumped the one before. You could throw a rock and hit a stunning vista.
It was different seeing the land from this angle. A bird's eye view, as it were. It enabled Eva to notice things she hadn't before. Patterns that were difficult to discern when standing at ground level.
The jagged lines of mountain ridges drew her eyes. Deep grooves caused by water eating away at the stone sloped toward the many ravines and valleys they passed over. Some smaller than the valley where she and the Trateri had set up camp. Others just as big, if not bigger.
Monolithic stones jutted into the sky; their bases shadowed by towering pines.
Eva shivered. As much as she enjoyed the crisp feeling of the wind against her cheeks, it was quickly becoming unbearable the higher they climbed.
At this altitude, it didn't matter that early summer had come to the Highlands. Here in the mountains, at an altitude only birds ever reached, summer was nothing more than a fleeting afterthought.
Knowing it would only get worse, Eva dug into one of the small saddle bags. She pulled out a jacket made of leather. It was covered by a small layer of water-resistant oil from a solder beast. The oil made the jacket mildly wind proof, a welcome function at this altitude.
More importantly, it allowed water droplets to bead on the jackets surface and roll right off.
