“We need to find shelter for the night. And food if I can manage it.” I collected her cloak from where she’d left it, settling the heavy wool around her slumped shoulders.
The simplest thing would’ve been to continue along the road to the next town. Except there was no telling who we’d meet. Having a human find me covered in blood and Keelynn in shock wouldn’t end well. I needed at least a few days to recover before going back to the underworld.
Where would we go?
How long had we traveled today? A mile, maybe? Meaning if we headed north, we should run into the Síonon River. Perhaps we’d find an abandoned cottage or stable nearby to shield us from the damp night ahead.
I led Keelynn into the forest. Ferns grew at the base of the trees; fallen leaves and twigs overtook the rest of the ground.
Padraig. The poor man.
Living his life only to have it stolen away by a human.
Did Keelynn desire vengeance for her friend the same way she had for her sister? Or would she accept his death more readily because it had been delivered at the hands of a human?
After all Keelynn had seen, did she still think us monsters? If only I could read her mind.
Although her tears had stopped, her weak posture remained.
When she began to limp, I slowed my pace. Had she turned her ankle? Her boots had looked new at the beginning of this journey; perhaps they’d given her blisters. Not that I could do anything about either until I got some food.
My stomach let out a pitiful gurgle, the apple and hunk of bread I’d taken from the twins’ house long gone.
Her footsteps faltered, as if she’d only just realized we were deep in the woods. “Where are we going?”
“It should be around this bend.” Or the next one. I could hear the river now, a soft rush of waves sweeping past stones, eroding the shore.
“What should?” she asked.
She’d see soon enough. We passed a fallen tree devoured by moss, wound our way between rocks and ferns to a small clearing at the bank of the river. The water wasn’t too deep here—up to my shins at most. And the thick cropping of trees would give some shelter from the rain waiting to burst from the black clouds above.
Barring any major setbacks, if we followed the river tomorrow, we should reach the faeries by early evening.
I threw my bag onto a dry patch of ground, giving my magic a nudge to see how much had returned. It stirred, only a spark instead of a flame. “Shelter or food?”
Keelynn looked at me as if I’d spoken in a different language. “Excuse me?”
“There was a time when I could manage both after a fight, but not anymore, so you’re going to have to choose one.”
Her gaze swept from the bank to the branches. “We’re stayinghere?”
Here seemed as good a place as any. Close to fresh water, far away from humans and their iron blades. “We don’t have much of a choice. We’re too far from anyone I know, and the nearest village is hours away.”
“Why did you bring me through the forest? Why didn’t we follow the road?”
“And risk encountering the man who murdered Padraig? I don’t fancy dying”—again—“today, do you?”
More of her hair came loose when she shook her head. Her tongue nipped out as she mulled over her response. “Shelter,” she said with a resolute nod.
Feck it anyway. I’d known she’d choose the more draining of the two. “We’ll need firewood. Do you think you can handle that?” If I wanted to shift anything more than a canvas sheet, I’d need to conserve my energy.
Bless the woman, she didn’t whinge or complain. She straightened her shoulders and said she could handle it.
“Good. Leave your cloak here and keep sight of the river so you don’t get lost.” I didn’t have it in me to go traipsing about in the dark trying to locate her if she wandered too far.
“My cloak? Why?”
Hadn’t she seen the blackness invading the sky? It was a wonder we weren’t already drowned. “Because the heavens are about to open, and you’ll want something warm and dry to wear tonight.”