They exchanged charged glasses that left me feeling horrible. They were good friends, and my kiss with the prince had driven a wedge between them. I couldn’t understand exactly why, but I still didn’t want to be responsible for it.
After their little glaring match was over, I thought Kryn would stomp away, but his curiosity proved more powerful than his anger, and he stayed to listen.
“Go on, please.” Kalyll inclined his head.
I wanted to punch him in that beautiful, tasty mouth of his. He could stick his diplomacy up his ass. I wasn’t buying it now that I knew what he thought of me and my kind. No amount of respectful posturing would ever erase that knowledge.
Reluctantly, I explained myself, not because Kalyll asked me to, but because I wasn’t about to let this bunch think I was a thief.
“I had no reason to distrust Larina, so I wore the necklace because I didn’t want to offend her. Then the morning we left, she said she wanted me to have it. Of course, I said no. She insisted, said the necklace looked beautiful on me, and she could never wear it, anyway. Even though it felt terribly rude to refuse her gift, I did. Adamantly. She seemed to understand and finally relented. The thing is… she packed my bags. It’s obvious she slipped it in and that she’s working with whoever is trying to hurt Prince Kalyll.” I added the tile to his name and said it with as little emotion as I could. It felt cold on my lips.
From the way a muscle jumped in his jaw, it was clear he’d felt the chill.
“Thank you, Dani, for explaining.” Jeondar nodded once, then addressed the others. “Belasha is in possession of all my mother’s jewelry. I suppose Larina could have stolen the necklace, but it’s more likely that the queen ordered her to give it to Dani.”
Kalyll cursed under his breath. “She certainly had me fooled. Despite everything, I thought she was on our side.”
“Do you think she suspects... about you?” Cylea asked.
“Everyone suspects something is afoot.” Kalyll paced, staring at the ground. “But if my enemies knew the truth, they wouldn’t keep it to themselves. They would shout it off the top of Mount Ruin, and the entire realm would hear of it. So no, I don’t think anyone has figured out I’m a shadowdrifter.”
Jeondar unsheathed a dagger from his belt and started digging a hole in the ground. “We can’t take this with us. Maybe one day, if any of you come back this way, you can claim this buried treasure.”
He threw the necklace in the hole and covered it. I hoped someone worthy and in need would find it instead of one of these entitled jerks. They deserved to encounter a rattlesnake instead, if they had those here.
Disgusted by it all, I picked up my saddlebag and started putting everything back in. Kalyll leaned down and picked up a bundle of hemlock.
“I don’t need your help. I can take care of it.” I bit out the words.
“I want to help.”
Next, he went for the small pouch of headache powders at the same time I did. His fingers brushed mine, sending an electric jolt up my arm. I recoiled. We stared at each other for a long moment.
“Daniella,” he said my name with such a feverish longing that my anger almost melted away.
If he was some Fae elitist, how could he look at me that way? Why did it seem as if he felt the same things I did?
But whatever the answer, it didn’t matter. Soon, I would be back home, and this would be nothing more than an unfortunate bleep in time, an unwanted detour that I would easily sweep under the rug.
Yeah, keep telling yourself that, and maybe you’ll believe it, Dani.
It took all of my willpower to look away and continue gathering the rest of my things. When we had picked everything up, I extended the saddlebag in his direction so he could deposit the items he’d retrieved. Then I turned away, doing my best to ignore his presence, even though I could sense him standing behind me. He felt like a brewing storm ready to unleash its pent-up energy on me. He took a step closer, so close that I could feel his warmth along my back and his breath on the nape of my neck. His breathing was audible, ill-restrained, as if he was fighting something back. Anger perhaps? But I didn’t find out because a moment later, he marched away without a word.
I was both relieved and mad. I hated myself for wanting him. Because I did. Very badly. It seemed he wanted me to. At least his body did, even if his mind told him otherwise.
Maybe there would be a cold stream up the mountain pass where I could jump in and draw out this awful want. I could only hope.
An hour later, we were still on the same mountain pass, barely starting to see the other side of the range. The sun was nearing the apex of its daily trajectory, and soon we’d have to stop so Kalyll could take his elixir. We were riding at a clipped pace, trying to make up for the lost time to ensure we would arrive on time. Taking a detour through North Crosswood had eaten away time, and today was the first day of the new moon. We had to hurry.
I kept praying there wouldn’t be any more mishaps, nothing to keep us from getting there in time. I would go crazy if I had to wait in Kalyll’s company until the next new moon.
Arabis made a signal when it was time to stop. There was nothing but rocks and small patches of weed around. Though the sight of Mount Ruin in the background was the most majestic thing I’d seen in Elf-hame. The mountain was enormous, its peak topped with clouds and dappled with snow. The air blowing from it was so fresh it seemed to pierce my nose. It was the sort of sight that made you believe in gods.
Patting Dandelion’s withers, I dismounted. The others also got off their horses. Kalyll approached with a weary expression. He couldn’t like this any more than he liked becoming a bellicose brute or a monster for half the day, though at least this way, he didn’t have to worry about killing anyone. I reached for the saddlebag that contained the implements and ingredients to make the elixir. It felt strangely light, and when I reached inside it, I discovered why.
It was empty.
I gasped.