Chrysis let out a long, exasperated sigh. “How are we supposed to get them back to Licordia like this?”
“Put her on horseback and she’ll sober.”
Chrys gave him a look that said she thought he was as out of his mind as they were. “That’s impossible. Even if I changed into a human, I wouldn’t be able to lift her. She’s twice my size.”
Ronan wanted to beat her. Crow or not.
Flying to another post, Chrysis rolled her eyes as Mischief struggled to get into the saddle of her horse. Sadly, she kept sliding off and falling back to the ground.
Ronan let out a fierce growl. “You’re right, Chrys. You’re not helpful at all.”
He lifted Mischief from the ground, but not before he took a moment to glare at Chrys who was resting on a post near the horse. Nose to nose. Then he hoisted Mischief up into the saddle.
True to his words, Mischief came out of her stupor, grabbed the leather reins and placed her feet into the stirrups. “Is there a battle?”
“Not yet,” Ronan said.
Chrysis gaped in awe. Completely stunned, she watched as he went to Cadoc and repeated the process.
As with Mischief, Cadoc sobered almost instantly.
“How is that possible?”
Ronan shrugged. “They’re still not completely sober. It’s a holdover from our shitty youths. Put them on a horse and they fall in line.”
Chrysis hated to admit it, but she was impressed. When they’d first arrived to find them drunk and sprawling in the middle of an orgy, she’d been ready to go home and forget this stupid errand.
At least Ronan had been alone when she’d found him hunting in the woods. But to be honest, she’d forgotten just how massive he was in size and how attractive she’d always found him. No wonder Ryper had wanted him for this venture.
He stood head and shoulders over almost all human males. With long, darkbrown hair that held golden highlights and stormy gray eyes, he was a fearsome beast, even for a shifter.
And Cadoc. Even though she normally didn’t find humans or particularly red-headed humans attractive, she made an exception for him. Ruggedly handsome and as dangerous as Dash or Ryper, Cadoc was lethally charismatic with a sharp sense of humor that could be registered as a weapon in most kingdoms. He didn’t need a sword. His tongue could cut to the bone.
Worse?
The more biting his comments, the funnier they usually were. As Dash liked to say, Cadoc was akin to someone bumping their head. It was hilarious so long as it wasn’t happening to you.
As much she hated to admit it, she’d missed them.
Ronan began saddling a black stallion.
“Are we stealing a horse?”
He didn’t pause. “I can’t fly with them drunk. Someone has to lead them. Otherwise, they’ll end up who knows where. Our luck, inside Meara’s palace with a battle axe aimed at her throat.”
Chrysis scowled at the restrained fury in his tone. “All of you hate her, don’t you?”
“You havenoidea. Be grateful for that.”
She was. From the handful of stories she’d overheard over the years, she was more than delighted to have been spared the nightmare they’d endured. She had her own demons to battle, but they were paltry compared to the ones that gave the Outlaws no rest.
Ronan left a stack of sovereigns in the stall to cover the cost of the horse before he swung himself up into the saddle. He took Cadoc’s and Mischief’s reins. “We’ll head to Licordia to get Aderyn, then wait for you and the others to join us at the lodge.”
“What about Xaydin?”
Ronan paused to think before he answered. “He’s off on his own quest. Best we leave him to it. Besides, we can handle this without him.”
That was probably true. Xaydin was an irritable one, and he had a price on his head that was staggering. Granted not as staggering as the one currently on Dash’s head, but impressive, nonetheless.
