With that, she pushed away from the tree and continued forward. Lorcan fell into step beside her, keeping an ear out for any sign of an approaching enemy, just in case any thieves lurked in the woods. He knew that he should stop her, even if that meant tossing her over his shoulder and returning her to the castle, kicking and screaming. But, in truth, he was intrigued. If the assassin truly had escaped this way, and they could find her, then they still had a hope of discovering who she had been working for.
And Thane needed to know if it had been his mother. He’d become certain that she’d been involved, but there was no proof. He needed to know the facts, one way or another.
A little voice in the back of his mind whispered to him, reminding him that he needed to focus on his mission. His mark even flickered a warning. All of this prancing around and seeking assassins was nothing more than a distraction, a diversion from his true goal. But Lorcan’s goal had become so muddied over the years. He had spent so long by Thane’s side that he could no longer remember why he’d been so fuelled by vengeance all this time.
He no longer thought of Thane as his enemy.
It was a truth he’d tried so hard to ignore, but he couldn’t anymore. Reyna’s arrival at the Air Court had brought out something strange in him, a realization of who he’d become. No longer was he a male who hid in the shadows. He was part of the Air Court now. Suddenly, pain shot through his arm where his mark blazed to life. Gritting his teeth, he stumbled.
I didn’t mean it, he told the mark.Thane is my enemy.
Immediately, the pain vanished.
Reyna had stopped and turned when he’d stumbled, and now, she was watching him with hawkish eyes. “What’s the matter?”
“Nothing,” he said. “I just tripped on some snow.”
“You were wincing and clutching your shoulder. You’ve done that before. Is it a wound?”
“I said I’m fine,” he growled.
The ice fae continued to regard him carefully, but then she shrugged and kept moving through the trees. Lorcan did not know what he was going to do. Clearly, the mark would never let him forget his mission. It would kill him if he ever broke away from it completely. He knew he’d been pushing it as far as he could for far too long. Eventually, his past vows would come back to force his hand.
In the meantime, he needed to keep Reyna safe. That, at least, was not against his orders.
Suddenly, Reyna stopped. She frowned, peering through the thick yew trees. “I can’t see ahead. Can you?”
But he could see nothing more than darkness and snow-blanketed leaves, twisting together to form a harsh painting of shadows and light. “Not a thing. Where’s your owl?”
“I left him back at the castle. For his safety.”
Lorcan narrowed his eyes. “Safety against a fleeing assassin who doesn’t stand a chance against your warrior skills? What aren’t you telling me, Reyna?”
“I’ll tell you soon.” She glanced up, and then unclasped her cloak. The whisper-thin material flapped idly as it drifted onto the ground. “I’m going to climb this tree and see what’s ahead.”
Before Lorcan could argue against it, Reyna was halfway up the trunk of the tree. He shifted a little closer just in case she lost her grip and tumbled back down to the ground. But he knew that she would have no trouble, even though the trunk was slick with ice and the lowest branch rose high above them.
As suspected, she reached the branch with ease. Perching on top of it, she gazed into the distance. Lorcan watched.
What was he even doing out here? Better yet, what wasshedoing? Thane would be angry when he discovered that Lorcan had gone along with this ridiculous adventure, but Lorcan just could not seem to convince himself to turn back to the castle.
After a moment, Reyna leapt from the branch and dropped onto the snow before him, spraying up icy mist. Her cheeks were flushed with color but her steady breath suggested that she hadn’t struggled at all to make the climb.
Lorcan lifted a brow. “Make that three talents.”
She propped her hands on her hips. “Well, thanks for your help. I think it’s time you turned back.”
“Not happening.”
Pursing her lips, her eyes darted to the side. Lorcan frowned. What was going on?
“I don’t need your help,” she said quickly. “In fact, her trail seems to stop here.”
“I see. So, we should return to the castle then.”
“I want to check up ahead anyway. But you go ahead and start back. I’ll catch up with you.”
“You’re not going to get rid of me.” Slowly, he crossed his arms over his chest. “What aren’t you telling me? You said you’d explain. And now I think it’s time for that explanation.”
