Skye let out a breath and squared her shoulders. “Right. Thanks. Let’s go.”
In daylight, the town bloomed with variety—colors, textures, styles. They passed an open-air market, with vendors selling from carts under canopies, much like in Nelanta. It lacked the distressed look of Saltmarsh Reach or the sophistication of Clearwater, projecting a character all its own. Music drifted from the open door of a coffee and tea shop. Skye made a mental note to pick up a jar of Olive Branch honey before they left.
“Here we are,” Lark said. “Horseshoe Tavern and Inn.”
“Come in with me,” Skye insisted. “What if she didn’t come?”
Lark had the audacity to roll her eyes. “Five more minutes.”
“Thank you.” They walked through the entry together.
A clerk glanced up. “You’re early for lunch,” he said.
“I’m looking for a member of the AlgonCree party,” Skye said, assuming an officer’s authority. “Ms. Renée Revard, dark hair, twenty years old, slender, about my height.”
The clerk glanced up across the lobby. “Like her?”
Skye spun, her breath catching in her throat. Renée glided into the large, open room, anchored by seats centered around a dormant stone hearth. “We’ll take care of that later,” she said to Laurent Kewatin, their keeper of treaties, whom Skye recognized from their time in Aurora. “Make sure Kookomis is briefed with the new information.”
“Indeed.” Kewatin struck off down the hall. Renée lifted her gaze, and their eyes met across the room. Skye had yet to breathe.
A warm smile widened across Renée’s beautiful face, lighting her eyes. They moved together, not rushed, not a mad dash, but a steady rhythm of feet certain of their path.
“You came,” Skye said. She didn’t know whether to hug her or give her space. What might have changed in the past month? She had felt a connection between them in Aurora. She felt it again now, prickling her senses, teasing her emotions.
Renée reached for her. Skye met her hands, their fingers entwining like braided cords. At her touch, a quiet spark ran up her arm, settling somewhere deep.
“I knew I would see you here,” Renée answered with a warm smile. “I prayed for your safety, and I knew Queen Frost would be guarded by her elite team.”
Skye relaxed, delighted by Renée’s words, expression, and touch. Yes—the eyes. Lark was right … and probably gone by now.
With a chuckle, she said, “You must have some pull with the Creator, because I’ve had some pretty close calls since I last saw you.”
Her eyes dancing and smile widening, Renée dropped Skye’s hands and inched nearer, draping her arms around her neck. “We pray differently than others. We do not ask, plead, or hope for what we want. Instead, we offer thanksto Creator that the desire is already ours, has already come to pass. Therefore, I could be confident you remained safe.”
“Wow.” Skye blinked, drawing her arms around Renée’s waist. “That’s some kind of faith.”
“It is the proper order. One does not put the cart before the horse, as they say.” She brushed light kisses on Skye’s cheeks and took a step back, gazing into her eyes once more.
A euphoric fog filled Skye’s brain, and she shook her head. “I don’t understand. Isn’t it normal to be thankful for things after you’ve received them?”
Renée’s lips twitched, her nut-brown eyes sparkling with delight. “Normal doesn’t mean correct. The cart is our desire. The horse provides the energy to bring it to us. Therefore, the horse—our vibration of appreciation and thankfulness—must come first, or the cart will never arrive.”
“Huh.” It made an odd kind of sense, though Skye had never heard such a philosophy before. Suddenly, she wanted to know more about how Renée’s people lived, what they believed.
“I have to walk with my grandmother to the courthouse.” Her arms fell away.
Skye felt as if a stone had dropped into her stomach, snatching her joy. Her countenance fell. “Oh, yeah, of course. I didn’t mean to—”
Renée leaned in, placing a gentle kiss on her lips. “We will have time later. I promise. Just concentrate on keeping us all safe and pray the leaders don’t kill each other locked in that room.”
Her smile and joy returning, Skye nodded and inched away. “I will. I promise,” she added with a flirtatious grin. “And I look forward to spending whatever time I can with you.”
Renée tossed her hair and winked. “I take it Lark is well?”
“A full recovery.”
“Good. Now, duty calls, Lieutenant. I’ll see you at the courthouse.”