The thing is fuckingenormous—bigger than my bed at home by far.Hell, it’s bigger than the forge whereIwork all day.Thebranches woven into it are as thick around as my arm—some even thicker—and the inside is lined with pale, coarse fluff that looks almost like wool, thoughIknow it’s the fiber from cloud-pine trees, which only grow high in the mountains where the air gets thin enough to choke most folk.
The nest is deserted or at least, itlooksdeserted.ThanktheGoddessfor small mercies.
I bank to the left and try to get closer, but the ledge beneath the nest is too damn narrow and the air around it is treacherous.Windwhips upward from the ravine below in savage gusts, making the currents twist unexpectedly.MyDrakehisses in annoyance and beats his wings harder, trying to hold steady, but even he can’t get close enough to letElowenreach the nest safely from his back.
Fuck.
I circle once more, scanning the cliff face untilIspot a broader outcropping of rock some distance away.Itisn’t exactly safe, but it’s wide enough for me to land andShiftback without pitching both of us into the void.
It will have to do.
I angle down toward it and land hard, myDrake’sclaws scraping stone.Theimpact jars through my whole body andIhearElowensuck in a breath.Icrouch at once so she can climb down, which she does.Assoon as she does,IShift.Aswith my clothing, the bag of supplies appears on my person—it’s part of myDrake’smagic thatIcan keep things with me thatI’mwearing or touching whenIgo back and forth between my two forms.
The wind is vicious up here—it grabsElowen’slong red curls and sends them streaming behind her like a banner of flame.Iput an arm around her, trying to shield her from the worst of it and she steadies herself with one hand on my shoulder and looks up at the nest.
“Oh,” she breathes.“It’shuge.”
“No shit,”Imutter, already looking at the narrow path of stone leading from our ledge to the one where the nest sits.It’sless a path and more a shelf—barely wide enough for two careful feet placed one in front of the other.Onegood gust would send a person right off it.
My gut tightens at the thought as another gust of wind swirls around me.Thecold hits harder in human skin and the wind cuts right through my shirt, butIbarely feel it.I’mtoo busy looking at that fucking ledge and calculating how easy it would be for a slip…a loose stone…even a strong gust of wind to take my curvy little priestess right over the side.
Elowen clutches her robe closed with one hand, her eyes wide.
“So…that’s it?”she asks, nodding toward the nest.Herpale blue eyes look enormous in her flushed face and her curls are whipping all around her.“That’swhere the feather has to come from?”
“That’s the nest of anEmperorHawk,”Isay.“Mustbe—no other bird is that big or builds a nest that huge.”
She wets her lips, looking from the nest to the ledge and back again.
“Well…Iguess there’s no choice then.”
I already know she’s going to try it…Ialso already knowI’mnot letting her go alone.
“I’m coming with you,”Itell her firmly.
She blinks in surprise and turns to look at me.
“Really?Butthe feather has to be plucked by my hand.Thespell said only the one doing the weaving can touch the elements.”
“That’s fine.”Ijerk my chin toward the ledge.“Youcan pluck the damn feather.I’mstill going with you.”
Her expression softens a little—a mixture of gratitude and nerves flickering in her eyes.
“Thank you,” she says quietly.
I shrug, trying not to let on how much the thought of her crossing that death trap alone bothers me.
“You can thank me once we’re back in one piece.”
I sling the supplies bag over one shoulder and test the first stretch of the ledge with my boot.Thestone is hard but uneven, with loose grit skittering off into the drop below.There’sa cliff wall to our right and open air to our left—nothing but a sheer fall into shadow and broken rock hundreds of feet below.
I turn toElowen.
“Stay close to the wall.Putyour hand on the stone when you can and don’t look down.”
“All right.”Hervoice is steady enough, thoughIcan see the fear she’s trying not to show.
She lifts her chin and steps onto the ledge after me.Gods, she’s brave.Ifeel a rush of admiration for her—I’venever been with a woman so determined to get what she wants.
