“We have to at least try, don’t we? It’s not yet sundown. The hunters are still far away.” The last hunting horn they’d heard had been distant.
“We can try,” Teryn finally said, “but we aren’t killing the boy. Instead, we do this my way.”
31
Teryn’s way, it turned out, was humiliating. And yet, Cora agreed, having no better idea of her own. After stashing her bow and arrows, she circled the camp and paused just outside the clearing. The young guard was still by the fire in nearly the same position she’d last seen him—his posture slumped with an air of boredom, the side of his face resting on his hand as he poked the burning logs with a stick. Cora took a deep breath, untucked her skirts from her belt so they no were no longer wrapped around her legs, and twisted her expression into one of distress. She stumbled into the camp, feigning sobs.
The boy immediately rose to his feet. His hand flew to the hilt of a dagger at his belt, but when his eyes swept over Cora, he withdrew the hand. “Ma’am,” he said, eyes wide.
She fell to her knees, her hair streaming around her. “You must help me,” she cried.
He came closer. “What’s wrong? What are you doing out here?”
She lifted her face, lips pulled into a pout. “I was kidnapped,” she said, her voice high and feminine and breathy, “by…by…by bandits.” Her words dissolved into a wail.
The boy stared at her, face pale and bewildered as if he couldn’t comprehend what to do with her. Just then, a figure came up behind him. Before the boy even had a clue, Teryn hooked an arm around his throat and squeezed the sides between his bicep and forearm. The boy flailed but was out in a matter of seconds. Teryn aided his fall and settled him on the ground. With a nod to Cora, she rose, and they jogged over to the cages. Wordlessly, they got to work, severing the ropes that bound the frames. Cora opened the baby unicorn’s cage first, then the one next to it. Soon all the cages were open, and all the unicorns were darting away.
We did it, she conveyed to Valorre, hoping he was still close enough to hear her.If you can communicate with them, direct them to go east so they don’t run into the hunters.
She felt Valorre’s reply as a trill of joy, one that had Cora’s lips stretching into a grin.
Teryn tugged her arm, nodding his head toward the edge of camp. She followed him out of the clearing to where she’d stashed her weapons. Her pulse was a roar in her ears as she shouldered her bow and quiver. They kept their pace as mindful as they could, but Cora felt like they were running for the way her body buzzed with elation and terror in the wake of their rescue. They’d done it. They’d truly done it. She had to stifle her desire to laugh.
Teryn stopped suddenly before her.
“What—” Then she saw it.
The baby unicorn was just ahead, its body quivering. Its thin legs quaked as it tried to take a step, but it seemed too overcome with fear or confusion.
“Seven gods,” Teryn cursed. “The poor thing.”
Valorre, there’s a baby. She’s so frail. She seems confused.
There came no reply. He was likely too busy guiding the others. Which left only her.
She took a slow step toward the tiny unicorn, her tawny fur thin and clinging to her bones. The creature startled, freezing in place as her eyes locked on Cora’s. Cora halted as well. Lowering her shields, she opened her senses to the unicorn. She was immediately struck by panic, a desperation to find someone very important to her. Cora’s throat constricted, and she was tempted to close the link if only to free herself from the emotions. Instead, she kept her senses open and tried to move them in the opposite direction. It had been effortless to converse with Valorre, but she’d never experienced the phenomenon with any other unicorn since. This time, though, she had to try.
Easy, she tried to convey, forcing her own emotions to calm, to exude safety and protection. The unicorn’s energy softened a little. Cora took another small step.I’m not going to hurt you. I’m here to help you. If you follow me, I’ll take you to my friend. He’s just like you.
She filled her mind with thoughts of Valorre, letting warmth and kindness radiate from her heart, down her palms, into the space between them.
The creature calmed further and took a step forward. Cora mirrored her every move until they were almost close enough to touch. Then, crouching down, Cora extended her hands. The unicorn tottered the rest of the way on her tiny, shaky legs until Cora’s hands met her hide. Cora nearly choked on a sob when she felt how prominent the unicorn’s ribs were beneath her palms. “It’s all right,” she whispered to her, voice thick with emotion. “We’re going to help you.”
Remembering Teryn’s presence, she cast a glance over her shoulder. Teryn’s expression was nearly painful to witness. His eyes were glazed as he stared at the unicorn. He met Cora’s eyes then, and she smiled at him. She wasn’t sure why, only that she wanted to erase his pained countenance and remind him that they’d done something good, something worth celebrating. He smiled back, which was perhaps an even sadder look.
Berol dove down from overhead and landed on Teryn’s shoulder. There was something uneasy about the way she perched, in the splay of her wings as she nipped Teryn’s cheek. Cora didn’t need to be bonded to the falcon to know the bird was delivering a warning.
A hunting horn sounded, shattering the air. It was too close. Far closer than the last one had been. The baby unicorn startled and made to dart away, but Cora lifted her in her arms. She wasn’t exactly a creature made for carrying, but she was so thin, her weight was hardly a burden to bear. “Shhh,” Cora whispered. “Easy.”
Teryn ran to her, and Berol launched back into the sky to circle overhead. He angled his head in the opposite direction of the horn, and Cora followed him. They crept away, their pace hurried. “I can carry her,” Teryn offered.
“It’s all right,” she said. “She feels comfortable with me.”
Another horn blast, this one from straight ahead.
Then another off to the side.
Cora’s heart leapt into her throat. They were surrounded.
