“Or not,” she challenged.
He grunted. “Willful woman.”
“Determined,” she corrected.
Her voice held no heat, only conviction. He almost smiled at that—almost.
“Besides, we separate here as agreed,” she reminded him and went to free her hand from his.
He kept hold of it, raising it up between them. “I let go when I say so.”
She glared at him, her voice sharp. “I am not your captive. I am free like you who wanders.”
He released her hand. “You are as free as I am to follow you.” His hand shot up when she went to speak. “Don’t bother to argue. It will do no good. I will remain with you until I know you are safe, and nothing will change that.”
“You are free to do as you will,” Elara said, seeing no point in arguing with him and took a step toward the village.
He watched her go, silver hair catching the light through the trees, her figure shapely, her stride determined. And damn if he didn’t admire it more than he should.
Elara’s heart hurt seeing the village in such disarray. The Hunters had torn it apart in their search for anyone hiding, much of it unnecessary. It was to instill fear, make people obey. Women moved among the wreckage, gathering what they could, blankets, spilled grain, righting toppled cauldrons.
“Elara? What are you doing here?”
She turned at the sound of her name.
Two women hurried toward her, skirts gathered in their fists, faces streaked with dirt and ash, and Elara recognized one.
“Nell, I hoped to warn you. I am so sorry I arrived too late,” she said, tears glimmering in her eyes.
The other woman gasped. “The Hunters hit Birkfell?”
“Aye,” Elara said.
Nell drew back, her eyes searching Elara’s face. “And Maelis? Where is she?”
Elara fought her tears as she shook her head slowly. “They took her.”
Other women had joined them, and they all shuddered at the grave news.
Nell pressed a trembling hand to her mouth, tears spilling freely. “Nay… not Maelis. She’s tended to most of us since we were bairns. She saved my boy when fever nearly took him.”
Elara’s voice faltered. “Maelis urged me to run and warn others.”
“That would be Maelis, always putting others before herself,” Nell said.
The grief in the woman’s eyes struck her like a blow. Elara wished she could offer some comfort, some promise that all would be well. But that only seemed like a distant dream now.
Nell gave a nod toward Dar, helping two men carry the man the Hunters had felled, into a cottage. “Who is he?”
“A wanderer,” Elara said. “He helped me avoid the Hunters that comb the nearby woods after they hit Birkfell. He offers me a bit of protection.”
“Wanderers don’t linger long in one place. Be careful, Elara,” Nell warned.
“I care not if he stays with me. I must do as Maelis asked… warn other villages.”
She did not mention her idea of hunting for the healer the king sought. It was better that no one knew of her plan. Maelis would argue against it, tell her she was insane, but what else was she to do, stand by as healers disappear, leaving others to suffer?
“I heard the captives are taken to Caerith, home of the king. Do you know if that is true?” Elara asked, wanting to know if others had heard differently.