“Of coursethey’re real, Vivienne. Why do you think I was concerned for your safety?”
“Well, why didn’t youtell meyou were worried about Kelpies?”
I frown, confused. “Are you saying it would have made a difference?”
“Yes!” She stomps past me, a fur blanket clutched around her.
“How was I to know you didn’t realize that Kelpies were real?” I stress. “I thought everyone knew such dangers existed.”
“Well, you thought wrong,” she snaps before disappearing into her tent.
Releasing a sigh of relief, I scrub a hand across my face. When I saw her hair beneath the water, I thought something had grabbed her. I’m just so glad she’s unharmed, that I don’t care that she’s mad at me. I’d much rather suffer her wrath than see her hurt or worse.
Perhaps she’ll forgive me after she’s had a moment to think about why I was concerned. But when she emerges from her tent and levels an angry glare in my direction, something tells me forgiveness is the last thing on her mind.
CHAPTER 18
AUREN
Afaint thread of tension pulls at my senses through our fated bond. Vivienne is still upset. Aside from our connection, I can tell by the way she sits a little too stiffly in front of me on Vaelen’s back, and the way her spine remains straight as a spear. She’s been silent since we left camp a few hours ago.
The only reason she allows my arm around her waist is because she nearly tumbled from the saddle earlier when Vaelen stepped over a giant root.
For a fleeting moment, something flickers through the bond… almost like a presence. Something dark and cold. Watching… waiting.
Closing my eyes, I try to focus, but it vanishes before I can grasp it. It feels similar to what I sensed during Vivienne’s nightmares. Unease settles in my chest as I wonder again if it’s some lingering magic of the Goblin bargain.
Sighing heavily, I wonder if she can sense anything of me through our bond. If she can, she has said nothing. Then again, neither have I.
The forest is quiet around us, sunlight weaving through the canopy in shifting ribbons of gold. The air smells of damp earth and the river winding alongside the road. But beneath all that is her.
My nostrils flare as I draw her delicate scent of vanilla and jasmine deep into my lungs.
Gods. If she only knew what her scent does to me.
“Do shadowbeasts exist?” she asks abruptly, pulling me back from my errant thoughts.
I blink. “What?”
“Shadowbeasts,” she repeats crisply. “Creatures that lurk in dark forests and drag unsuspecting travelers into the underbrush.”
I arch a brow. “Some would say Ogres qualify as well.”
She huffs. “That was not helpful.” She looks back at me. “And what of Elves? Do any of your kind still lure unsuspecting humans into the woods, never to be seen or heard from again?”
I arch a teasing brow. “Why do you think we’re in the forest right now, my darling wife?”
She narrows her eyes, and I fight back a grin. I probably shouldn’t tease her, but I’m just so happy she’s speaking to me again, that I cannot help it.
Vaelen’s ears flick back as if he is equally entertained as well.
She crosses her arms. “Can you be serious a moment?”
I smile. “I am always serious, Vivienne.”
She stops short of rolling her eyes. “Well, then answer my question: are shadowbeasts real?”
“Yes, theydoexist, but they are usually found in the north.”
