They let me lead, but I could tell it was driving Kai nuts. He kept making grunting sounds every time I went in a direction he didn’t think I should—Prince Doom and Gloom had to give him a look several times to get him to stop—but I was pretty sure I was headed in the right direction. I weaved in and out of the trees and tried to go fairly straight. It was all going well enough until I found a tree with the dullahan’s symbol on it.
Panicking, I continued forward, watching for another set of glowing red eyes in the dark. Soon, the symbols became more frequent until we reached the small circular clearing similar to last time. But the clearing was not only similar, it was exactly the same. I had led us in a full circle. I closed my eyes and cursed the gods for my own stubbornness.
Kai started to laugh once he knew I’d finally realized what I had done.
I turned and gave him a look that would stop anyone else, but he was too busy laughing to notice. Two pricks. How lucky was I?
“Ready to work as a team yet?” Fen asked, running his hand through his dark hair.
“Work as your own team and just leave me the hell alone. I wouldn’t have gotten turned around if I didn’t have five extra people trailing behind me, distracting me.”
“I’ve already told you. I am your Guardian. I can’t just leave you.”
“Listen.” I stepped closer, that boiling rage about to blow. “I don’t need a Guardian, though it’s awfully fucking noble of you to want to be one now when you didn’t have a problem leaving me with Aibell.”
He shook his head and walked away. I relished in the victory.
“He’s not so bad when you don’t anger him all the time,” Greeve said quietly from beside me.
“Who asked you anyway?” I snapped back.
“Woah, Ara.” Wren stepped between us. “It’s been a long day. Why don’t we just set up camp here for the night and figure the rest out tomorrow?”
I took a deep breath and rubbed my face. “Whatever.” I dropped my pack to the ground, and that was enough of a clue for the others to do the same.
“You called?” Aibell’s withered voice rang out. She waltzed through the trees, grinning as if she had been there the entire time.
“No, I most certainly did not.”
“Fenlas, come here.” She crossed her small arms over her chest and buried them in the folds of her robes.
He was there in an instant. So kind and respectful to everyone else, apparently.
Aibell grabbed my arm and his arm and winked at me. She vanished, and I looked down to see iron chains linking us together.
“Are you fucking serious? Aibell? Get back here, you old hag!”
Her cackle lingered in my mind as I caught the crooked smirk on Fen’s face.
I snarled. “Something funny, Prince?”
He shook his head and looked away, his smile instantly gone. We simultaneously took a step in opposite directions and were jerked back toward each other.
“Could you just cooperate for once in your life and come this way so I can grab my bag?”
“Let’s try this: ‘Hey Fen, I need something this way, would you mind?’”
I huffed at his tone and jerked him in the direction I needed to go. I heard the oomph and the laughs from the others and ignored the furious look on his face. His stupid pretty fucking face.
Within minutes, they had a small fire going, which I thought was incredibly stupid, but apparently, they were all so much smarter than I was.
“Any guesses why she did this?” Fen asked me.
“You’re the know-it-all secret keeper around here, you tell me,” I bit out.
“Listen, Ara. I’m sorry. I can’t change any of that now. But here we are, stuck together, literally.” He raised the chain between us and shook it, causing my arm to swing also. “We might as well make the best of it.”
“Don’t tell me how to feel about being handcuffed to the one person I’ve dreamed about killing for weeks. Months, even. I might be a stubborn bitch who doesn’t listen, but you are a cold-hearted asshole who doesn’t care, and I’m not sure that’s any better.”
