He shook his head. “No.”
“So, what does that mean?” I placed my hands on my knees, hunching over so I could catch his eye. Surely, he’d thought of a plan B.
“It means I will probably have to escort you as far as I can,” he said. His voice still had that indifferent tone, but there was a glimmer in his eye that showed perhaps he didn’t mind coming with me.
And honestly, I was as well. I wouldn’t have to be alone in my journey.
“You won’t make it far without help,” he said. “You don’t know our world. You wouldn’t know what to look for in a Fae hunter, or a shifter. You wouldn’t know how to hide, where to hide, you wouldn’t know who to trust.”
I nodded, pushing the teary emotions down and away. My fingers shook. I gripped my knees tighter.
“You’re right,” I said. “I wouldn’t last two minutes past these walls.” I took a long, shuddering breath, then looked at him with the most confident smile I could muster. “So, when do we leave?”
He reached up and cupped my face. For a moment, we were silent. H
is gaze moved from my eyes to my nose to my lips to my chin. He curled an errant strand of hair back from my face, letting his fingers linger on my neck.
I smiled, suppressing a shudder from sliding down my spine. “As soon as possible,” he finally said, his voice low and husky.
I stared up at him, trying to think of everything I wanted to say to him. I wanted to tell him how I felt, how happy I was to see him, how relieved and grateful I was to know that he would take me to safety so I wouldn’t have to say goodbye to him just yet. I wanted to hug him, to take him in my arms again.
Instead, I said, “I better get ready then.”
He dropped a single kiss on my forehead, the move slightly paternal, but also very caring. It was intimate, something I wasn’t expecting from him. I wouldn’t take it for granted.
“Yes.” He nodded once, pulling away but only slightly. “I will go and speak to the elders and inform Abigail of the plan. She’ll want to know everything, I’m sure.”
I laughed. “That’s for sure.”
Tavlor opened the door and sunshine streamed into the room. I closed my eyes and basked in the warmth. My entire body tingled, but whether that was the sun or Tavlor, I couldn’t be sure.
I looked outside, fear flickering through my veins. I frowned. It was such a beautiful day, and yet, I couldn’t help but feel wary about even appreciating it.
“So, I step out there, knowing that the Council has set a bounty on me so that random killers want to capture me?” I asked, turning back to face him. I didn’t like to admit I was hesitant.
He nodded. “Yes, but technically, you knew that before just now.”
I didn’t think he was referring about himself being hired to capture me. It almost seemed as though he meant that I knew the sort of life I was going to live the second I left my mother’s safe confines and ventured into the magic realm. I had so desperately wanted to know who I was, who my father was.
“Yeah, but the numbers have drastically increased lately,” I pointed out, not bothering to hide my sarcasm.
He took my hand in his and squeezed. Then he let go. “But this time, you’ll have me by your side. I won’t leave you until you are safely inside your mother’s realm.”
I took a deep breath and stepped into the forest and the fresh air that surrounded us.
There was nothing like the air in this realm, the strength and clean calmness. I wasn’t sure if it was the magic of the Fae or the way they worshipped nature, but I wasn’t really looking forward to going back to the manufactured air of the realm I’d grown up in. Though I only used my magic when I was with Horlow, I could feel my magic sparkle when I was here. Like it naturally wanted to come out and make friends with the elements.
I’d never felt healthier, or stronger, than living here. I’d never felt happier, either. I wished I could show this place to my sisters, that they could experience what true peace felt like.
“I just need to say goodbye to Horlow and Abigail,” I said, “and then we can go.”
Tavlor nodded and together we began making our way back to the centre of the town. Hopefully they would be there. We couldn’t waste time searching for them and I didn’t want to leave without thanking them for all they had done for me.
We walked, side by side, and everything felt so right. Despite the danger I was in, the risks he was taking, I was at peace. He would protect me no matter what. I was safe with him. He might have been pretending to hunt me, but I knew, deep down, he would never hurt me.
I allowed myself a brief moment to relish the feeling. I pretended that he wasn’t a guard and I wasn’t the bastard child of the High Warlock. I pretended he wasn’t supposed to turn me over to a dangerous Council and I wasn’t on the run for my life. Could we be together in any other world? Could we make whatever was between us work?
I hoped so.