“Aileana,” Xander called out, his voice panicked, “Watch your step.”
I looked down just in time to see a long black and white snake slithering on the ground mere inches from my toes. My breath caught in my throat as I stifled a scream. I could barely make out the snake’s body in the failing sunlight, but what I saw was terrifying.
“Oh my gods,” I whispered, staring at the snake. The creature was as thick as my hand, and it slithered quickly along the forest floor.
When I was younger, maybe eleven or twelve, there had been a red bird that had made a nest in the windowsill of my tower. It had laid three eggs, and I had watched in fascination as the tiny chicks had come to life. The mother had brought them worms and other insects to eat before they grew strong enough to leave the nest. When I’d asked my tutor about them, Orvyn had told me that worms were essentially tiny snakes.
Well, he had clearly been misinformed. This snake lookednothinglike a worm. It looked like a thing of nightmares. And considering just days earlier I had been attacked by Winged Soldiers, I knew a thing or two about nightmares.
I stood, paralyzed by fear, as the reptile continued on the path before me. It was at least the length of two males, and every second felt like an eternity as it slithered past me.
My chest felt tight, my hands clammy as I stared at the snake moving quickly through the forest. Even when it was no longer right in front of me, I couldn’t pull away my gaze.
When a large hand landed on my shoulder, I jumped.
“It’s just a leaf-eater,” Xander whispered in my ear. “It won’t hurt you. I promise. They only eat things that grow in the forest.”
I blinked, forcibly lifting my gaze from the forest floor. Xander’s brows were furrowed, his mouth pinched in a straight line as he studied me. “It’s okay, Aileana.”
“Forgive me if I don’t take your word for it,” I said as sharply as I could muster. “I’d rather not put the snake to the test.”
He nodded, holding out his arm, and his mouth twitched. “In that case, Sunshine, will you allow me to escort you the rest of the way? It’s a few minutes out. I promise I will do everything within my power to keep you safe.”
I laced my arm through him, and the moment our bodies touched, tension began to seep out of me. The two of us walked for a few more minutes in silence, picking our way through the forest. Thankfully, we didn’t see any other snakes.
“Here we are.” Xander came to a stop, putting his hand on mine. “What do you think?”
I thought I couldn’t do this. My heart raced as I stared at our surroundings.
“I-I can’t… I don’t….” My words failed me as I stared at the body of water before us. Memories of the currents in the river pulling me under filled my mind. Suddenly, my lungs were tight. It was becoming difficult to breathe again. I turned to him, my tone accusatory as I hissed, “Why would you bring me here?”
“To wash,” he said. “That’s all.” Shaking his head, Xander stepped forward and crouched. He dipped a hand in the water before looking back at me. “I told you, Aileana. I will keep you safe. You have my word.”
His word. The promise sent a shiver through me. Although Xander seemed to go out of his way to irritate me, he had fought the Winged Soldiers for me.
He had been willing to die for me.
Surely he wouldn’t try to drown me a second time?
Even if he wasn’t planning on it, I wasn’t keen on the idea of getting back into an unknown body of water. I would be perfectly content to never feel the pull of a current again in my entire life.
Xander must have noticed something on my face, because he stepped back, taking my hand in his. “Sunshine. It’s okay. The water here is shallow and doesn’t get deeper than my waist.”
“Are you sure?” I bit my lip, shifting away from the water’s edge. It had been days since I had last been in the water and I wanted to be clean, but this… I wasn’t sure I could do it. Acrid fear coated the back of my tongue as I stared at the calm, unmoving water.
“I wouldn’t have brought you here if I wasn’t sure,” he said. “Do you trust me?”
“Yes,” I breathed. I didn’t know how I felt about him, but trust. I knew I trusted him.
“Good,” he whispered. “Then please, believe me. I’ve been here before. I always try to stop here when I go to The Pines. This isn’t just some regular pond, you know.”
I raised a brow, happy for the distraction brought on by curiosity. “Oh? What is it?”
He chuckled, the sound warming me from the inside as he squeezed my hand. “You’ll just have to get in to find out.”
Clasping my hands in front of me, I stared at the water. It was still and looked so different from the river. Even in the fading light of the day, I could make out the tall reeds that stood sentry on the edge of the pond, like long, thin soldiers. In the middle of the water was a large, smooth rock.
It looked… calm. Peaceful, even. But I couldn’t shake the memory of water filling my lungs. My heart twisted at the very thought of getting back into the water.