Sage nodded and took his hand into her own. She looked at Raven. “I want you to meet Marcus.” She turned to him and introduced, “This is my sister, Raven.”
Raven greeted him with a curt nod, still not satisfied. She wanted details. Where had they met? Her gaze dropped to their entwined fingers. And what was their relationship?
Landyn stood beside Raven. “This is Sir Landyn,” she said. But Raven couldn’t take her gaze from Marcus. Her stare pinned him, trying to sum him up. His lip was swollen as if he had been in a fight, and he was holding his side as though he were injured. She scanned her sister, but she seemed unhurt. “Are you in trouble?”
Sage shrugged and grinned helplessly. “Always. The king’s man, Nogaret, is looking for us.”
Raven’s mouth dropped and then closed into a thin line of displeasure. She shook her head. The king? she thought. Of anyone to make angry, the king was not the one.
“He’s looking for a book Sage decoded,” Marcus clarified with pride in his voice.
“A book?” Raven wondered. “The book we brought to Brother Nicolas?”
Sage nodded.
“Why is he looking for it? What’s inside?”
“Directions,” Sage answered. “To what, we aren’t sure.”
They quickly left Les Labadous and rode for half the night until Sage insisted that they stop so she could treat Marcus’s wounds.
Sheltered off the road, under tall trees that swayed beneath a soft breeze, the group rested.
Raven sat beside Landyn below one of the thin tree trunks. Dappled moonlight rained down upon them, making it light enough that she could see Sage ministering to a shirtless Marcus near a small stream. “I can’t believe we found her,” she whispered with relief. “If only we could find Willow so easily.”
Landyn took her hand into his own, pressing a kiss to her knuckles. “We’ll find her.”
Raven relaxed slightly against his shoulder, a blush spreading across her cheeks. Even Landyn’s words did not relax the stirrings of unease and concern for Willow. “We’ll head to Sybil’s farm and…” Her words trailed off as her nervousness rose.
“She’ll be there,” Landyn insisted. He glanced at Sage and Marcus.
Raven followed his gaze. They were speaking quietly. Sage leaned into Marcus, happy and content. Happier than Raven had ever seen her. When Marcus wrapped his arms around Sage and pulled her close to kiss her, Raven straightened, feeling an instant surge of protectiveness.
Landyn chuckled softly, drawing Raven’s glare.
“What’s so funny?” she demanded.
“Your reaction to them. I wonder if your sister feels the same about us.”
Raven sighed and settled against Landyn. Even though Sage was her little sister, she was a grown woman capable of making her own choices. Raven still had many questions, but she would wait until Sage was ready to tell her story. “She must love him,” Raven said softly. “Sage would never allow a man to kiss her.”
“Maybe she pushed him down first,” Landyn said softly with a playful grin.
Raven stared at Landyn with a grin. “That is reserved for me. Sage probably would have hit him over the head with a book.”
They shared a quiet smile before Raven stroked his arm affectionately. Her body came alive with the touch, and her glance trailed to his lips. Riding with Sage was going to test her restraint with Landyn. It was strange how a week could have changed their lives so much.
Sage stepped away from Marcus and sat in an open grassy area awash in moonlight. She pulled out parchment pages from her boot and spread them on the ground.
“This book that Sage is so interested in,” Landyn said, watching Sage’s movements. “Where did she get it?”
Raven shrugged. “First, Willow claimed she found it. But later, she told Brother Nicolas it was a gift. I’m not really sure where she got it.”
Landyn shook his head. “I don’t like this. Even if it is directions, the book was coded. It means there is something that we were not meant to find.”
“It’s a mystery. Sage loves mysteries,” Raven admitted.
“Still, if Nogaret is after the book…”
