With a snarl, he paused halfway to the open door, where I spotted Valdar waiting and wringing his hands. I braced myself for Rune’s rebuke. His body practically hummed with rage, like he was seconds away from ripping off the head of the next person who annoyed him. And unfortunately, that was probably me.
“Grab that rope, a waterskin, and a towel.” He jerked his thumb over his shoulder at his worktable. “And get your bow, just in case. Don’t fall behind.”
Without another word, Rune stormed outside. I swallowed the lump in my throat, then scurried through the cottage tocollect the items he’d listed. By the time I made it through the door, Rune and Valdar were already vanishing through the trees. With my quiver bouncing on my back, I dashed after them.
On my way, I had to leap over shredded branches that were scattered around Rune’s garden and weave past his workshop. A larger branch had fallen against one wall, smashing a few beams. The sight of it forced my feet to slow. It would take hours to salvage—if he could even salvage it. My heart hurt for him. I’d seen the glint of pride in his eyes when he spoke about this place. He’d put so much time and effort into it, and he’d clearly crafted it with loving hands to build the home of his dreams.
I shook my head and started off again. When I caught up with Rune and Valdar, they were entombed in a stony silence. Questions tumbled around my mind, but I kept them contained. Neither of them looked like they’d welcome a volley of questions right now.
When we reached the village square, the collapsed house marred the line of buildings like a plume of smoke against a clear blue sky. A crowd hovered around it. Two elven women were sobbing, their arms flung around each other. A few other folk stalked around the perimeter and pointed at a tiny opening between the fallen planks of wood. When one of them looked our way and spotted Rune, they waved us over.
Rune led the way, marching with fierce determination.
“Glad you’re here, Rune,” the shadow demon said, his dark eyes sweeping across our group. “Helga’s trapped inside. We can’t get to her without putting her at risk of getting crushed.”
Rune grunted, then shoved past the demon. He was the minstrel I’d noticed on stage last night, though that familiar spark I swore I’d felt when I saw him was gone now. Nothing about him seemed familiar. Unlike most shadow demons I’d met, he’d shorn his hair to his scalp, which had the effect of making his curving horns look twice as large. It might have comeacross as intimidating if it weren’t for the tunic he wore. It was made entirely from wildflowers.
“Frida, I need your help,” Rune called over his shoulder.
He squatted beside the fallen house with his arms shoved into the gap. It was then I noticed how wet everything was. Rain had soaked the world, and condensation still clung to the patches of grass surrounding the house—right where Rune’s knees dug into the ground. Rivulets of rainwater curled down the broken planks of wood and pooled on his arms. The water hissed where it made contact, but Rune didn’t so much as flinch.
I hurried over to him, my heart leaping in my chest. “Can you reach her?”
“No. She’s too far back.”
“Then get your arms out of there,” I scolded him.
He grimaced, then gave me an almost imperceptible head tilt, like he was motioning for me to come closer. I leaned forward and tried to ignore the heat emanating from his body, a heat that urged me to draw even closer.
“I might be a bit stuck,” he murmured.
My eyes widened. “You can’t be serious.”
“Unfortunately, I’m as serious about this as you are about cheese.” A ghost of a smile flickered across his lips. “Think you could help me out?”
I knelt beside him and wrapped my hands around his biceps. A sudden tremor went through me. His face was only inches from mine—so close I could see flecks of gold in his brown eyes and catch the lingering scent of smoke from this morning’s hearth-fire. Despite the weight of the entire village’s gaze on us, it suddenly felt like we were alone, and the roaring of my heart drowned out the whispers and shuffling of feet.
And then I blinked, and everything came rushing back in around us.
I swallowed. “Right. I’m going to pull really hard. I need you to brace yourself. Are you ready?”
Rune nodded.
“On the count of three.” I tightened my grip on his arm. “Three. Two. One—”
With a very unladylike groan, I put every ounce of strength into yanking at his arm. For a moment, I thought nothing would happen, that his arm would never budge. But then something gave way, and his arm scraped free of the broken wood. Blood bubbled from the line of scratches along his arm, but it was nothing compared to the dozen welts scattered amongst them. I hissed between clenched teeth, but Rune barely seemed to notice the pain. He shifted sideways, angling his body just so, and pulled the other arm out of the gap. Angry red consumed that arm, too.
The sound of muffled sobs drifted toward us, and tension tightened Rune’s face.
“Helga, it’s all right,” he called out. “Don’t you worry. We’re going to get you out of there.”
Her sobs quietened.
Ignoring the wounds, Rune grabbed the edge of the beam and shook it, testing the weight of it. “I need you and Valdar to hold this piece up while I try going inside again.”
I squinted at him. “That’s a completely nonsensical idea. Let me go instead. I think I can actually fit through without tossing beams around and making the whole thing collapse.”
“You want to go in there instead?” He jerked his head my way, looking genuinely surprised. I tried not to take it as an insult.
