And wolves.
It has been years since one of the monsters that used to roam freely in these forests has been spotted. Still, we remain ever vigilant. It is either that or die.
I would rather be gutted by some wolf’s snarling maw than expire due to decay.
The flames dance higher into the mist when Gryff stabs a blackened log. “I wish he would stop throwing those damn rocks.”
Something soars over my head, hitting Gryff square between the eyes. He leaps to his feet, his muscles coiled, and his teeth bared in a growl.
Maddox does not even have the good sense to stand and meet his fighting stance. “Awe, is the big, scary fae going to hurt me?”
“Fuck off. Both of you.” We are not here to piss around. We are here to do a job. A job we cannot do if they keep snarling at each other.
When a stone hits my back, I do not budge. I would sooner launch myself into the canyon than give in to Maddox’s attempts to rile us. The man bores too easily for this position. He really should try tanning hides or join the barterers on their treks to the other Unseelie territories.
An idle Maddox is a menace, indeed.
“You need to lighten up, Ever. Would not want that pretty face of yours to end up in a permanent scowl like poor Gryff’s.”
Gryff drops back onto one of the flat stones encircling the fire with a huff, stabbing a little harder, no doubt picturing Maddox’s grinning face in the flickering orange and red flames. Of all the males in our clan, Gryff is the one I would not cross. Maddox must not have a brain in his head because he does not have the same reservations.
Another one of Maddox’s rocks is launched into nothingness, vanishing without a sound. “Have you given Leah Locke an answer yet?”
I nudge what remains of a femur with the toe of my boot, scooting it back into place with the rest of the bones lining the path. “Not yet.” If it were up to me, I would never respond. Maybe if I leave it long enough, she will forget she asked me in the first place.
Maddox tosses the next stone into the air, catching it once more without even looking at the thing. “Do me a favor, will you? Let her down gently so she does not hate the rest of us by association.”
Gryff snorts. “Like Leah Locke would ever consider mating with the likes of you.”
This time when the stone comes, Gryff is ready, snatching it from the air before it strikes his forehead. A rare smile crosses his face before his favorite expression of utter disdain for everything and everyone returns.
Maddox grins, his teeth a vicious flash of white in the darkness. “Who said anything about mating? I just want to bring her to my barrel-top, bend her over, and?—”
I pick up the biggest rock I can find and throw it at his exasperating head.
Maddox rolls in the nick of time, and the stone cracks against the edge of a plank before vanishing into the abyss. “You bastard. That almost hit me.”
“You should not talk about females like that.”
He blinks at me, his brow furrowing. “Why not? Wren likes it.”
Gryffin grabs another log from the pile we gathered, adding it to the top of the fire. “That is not what Ivan says.”
“What does that mean?”
Stab. Stab. Stab.“Sounds like a question for Wren. I heard she proposed to him last night.”
“Fuck off. She did not.” Maddox looks to me for the truth.
“I am afraid he is right. When I saw her this morning, she bore his mark.” There is sure to be an announcement soon.
My stomach grumbles with hunger; the venison we had for dinner was not nearly enough to keep me sated. I retrieve a piece of dried jerky from my pack and bite off a chunk, but the peppered seasoning burns the shit out of my tongue.
This is the last time I let Gryffin make the food.
Maddox catches a handful of stones and chucks them into the void. “Well, that is a knife to the bollocks…”
Flickering firelight dances in Gryff’s eyes when they meet mine from over the fire. “Maddox is right, though. You should let Leah Locke down easily.”