Page 17 of Heart of Shadows

Her muscles burned as she pushed them harder, leaping from one step to the next. She dropped onto a road that was barely more than a track, following the same direction. Taking to it gratefully, she sped up, knowing her head start would soon be gone. She chanced a look behind her. Some were far too close for comfort. With her head tucked into her chest, she continued, dodging off the other side of the road and through the trees to camouflage herself as best she could, until the terrain forced her back onto the road as it looped down the hill. Her pursuers were even closer than before, but hampered by having to scramble down a precipitous embankment she had somehow avoided. She bit back a curse and rounded a corner.

Smack.

“Oof!” Harper crashed to the ground, her body smarting from the force of the impact and her breath knocked from her. A heavy weight pinned her sprawled form down. “Get off me!” she shrieked—and the weight vanished. She blinked and sat up, gasping.

“Watch where you’re going, foreigner!” A hand yanked her to her feet by the front of her shirt.

Harper gaped. She was face to face with one of the most attractive men she had ever laid eyes on. When he peered past her at the advancing mob, she caught a glimpse of pointed ears. An elf. His tanned skin radiated life and vibrancy, and coy green eyes were unfathomable pools under a tousled shock of wavy brown hair as his lips quirked in a lopsided smirk. It rendered him boyishly attractive, even though he looked a decade older than her. He was lithe and muscled, the tone that came with athletic endurance, and his perfectly fitted clothes enhanced his sculpted form. He wore a light shirt with green embellishing the collar and cuffs, ivy leaves chasing themselves around the edges.

His chest strained under his leather jerkin with the force of his breathing. Harper could not help but linger over the faded gold embossing upon it, the scratches and gashes that marred the once beautiful design. Her eyes crept down to his legs. Muscled thighs were bound in pants that looked far too tight to run in, and his light leather boots were perfect for a silent hunt through the forest.

“Did you hear what I said?” he snapped.

She blinked. “Sorry. What?”

“Don’t you know not to bother someone when he’s being chased?” He bounced on the balls of his feet anxiously. “Hey. Is that a Dragonheart?” he added incredulously.

She gathered the now dusty object into her arms again. “I don’t have time for this!” Harper pushed past him, but he grabbed her arm.

“Not that way. Tons of angry folks I’m guessing you don’t want to run into.” His gaze slipped over her shoulder and he frowned. “Oh my. You too? How interesting. That hill really isn’t stopping them. Seems we can escape together and ask questions later. How’s that sound?”

Harper turned. The whites of their eyes were visible, so close were they. “Good!” she squeaked. Together, they leapt off the road and crashed through the forest, tumbling down the hill in their haste to escape. Harper only had a second to wonder what this handsome stranger was being chased for before she had to give all her attention to the uneven ground ahead.

Harper could not tell whether the crashing belonged to her barreling through the bush or their followers trampling behind. The stranger did not let go of her hand as he dragged her along, somehow avoiding the worst of the rolls and hillocks in the earth that would have otherwise sent her sprawling. His hand crushed hers, but she had no breath to complain. Fuelled by rampant fear and the last dregs of her strength, she clung on. What would happen if they caught her? She had no doubt it wouldn’t be good.

“Did you steal that Dragonheart?” he fired at her.

She spared him a glance. “No!” It was all her burning lungs had the breath to reply. She scowled at his raised eyebrow. Curiosity got the better of her—as usual. “Why does everyone think that?” she gasped out.

“Well, it’s usually the case. No offense, but you’re clearly not from the Kingsguard. You’re not a dragon-rider or one of the king’s people. Besides that, you’re speaking Common Tongue with the most strange accent. If you’re speaking so, that means you’re not native to Pelenor! Which leads me to believe the Dragonheart isn’t yours. Where in Altarea are you from?” He looked pleased with himself when Harper gaped. “So, did you steal it?” he asked again when she did not answer. He looked excited by the prospect, as though bursting with more questions.

“No!” she gasped, exasperated and breathless. “Look, now isn’t the time!”

“Well, come on then. The sooner we lose them, the sooner I hear this tale. I love a thrilling escape.” He shot a smouldering grin at her that made her stomach swoop with something else entirely, and pulled her faster. Trees and shrubs raced by, and the mossy carpet underfoot put an extra spring in their step as they approached a break in the trees. Rays of sun flashed through the canopy above them, half-blinding her with every step.

“Almost there!” he called cheerfully. “Never let it be said that I didn’t help a damsel in distress—and her Dragonheart.”

Harper scowled. This man… elf… whatever… grated on her, or perhaps it was the frustrations of a long, hard day. No matter. She had just about had it with whatever was happening. Her mysterious companion tugged her in another direction, altering their course slightly. The gaps between the trees widened. Harper saw a flash of blue ahead and forested mountains behind it. A lake! The elf did not slow as he approached the edge of the trees. Harper tugged him back, but he pulled her forward inexorably. She couldn’t see the edge of the lake, which meant…

The trees ended abruptly, and the cliff edge loomed. Before she could protest, he sped up, tugging her with him, and leapt off the cliff with her in tow. Harper screamed as the ground fell away beneath her. There was barely a moment to take a gulp of air before they plunged into the blue depths. The frigid water forced the air from Harper’s lungs and she flailed, panicking, as her mouth instinctively opened to draw breath where there was only water. Her cloak bloomed around her, tangling and folding in upon her. She clutched the stone tighter, and weight dragged her down.

Panic had her screaming into the water—a seething mass of bubbles erupting from her mouth. His hand tightened around hers and he yanked her towards the light. When they broke the surface, she gulped in great shuddering breaths, letting out a sob of belated shock. Panic flooded her, leaving her unable to take a full breath as she kicked her legs and thrashed her arms, trying to stay afloat.

“No time for that. Swim, quickly.”

“I can’t swim!” she shrieked, choking as she went under for a second and water sloshed into her half-open mouth.

He dragged her up a second later and she hurled out the mouthful of water, choking for a breath and clutching at him as desperation spiked within her. With a muttered curse, he pulled her alongside him and broke into a fast, one-armed stroke that sliced through the frigid water. Above them, the cliff face soared, limestone pockmarked by weather and crushed by the roots of the trees that clung precariously to the top. Panic overcame Harper once more as those cliffs seemed to lean in and crush her. She struggled for a moment in the elf’s grasp as the cloak wrapped around her legs before she kicked it loose. The cold crept into her, gnawing at her bones. She couldn’t expand her chest to breathe from the fear and the cold suffocating her.

Shouts sounded above them. The mob gathered at the edge of the cliff, but no one followed them into the water. The elf angled for a small, rocky cove at the base of the cliff—the perfect escape where no one could follow unless they too jumped into the lake, except it was also a trap. How could they escape? She shot a glance at the elf as he swam toward it, his brows drawn down in grim determination. Who was this enigmatic stranger?

“Welcome to your getaway,” he announced as he staggered to his feet, the water chest deep on him. Harper, over a head shorter, clutched at him, shrieking as her boots hit the bottom, and immediately swept away in a cascade of loose stones that she could not see at her feet. He hauled her out until they were waist deep. Was the air above or the water below colder? Her teeth chattered, and her entire body shook. She could hardly tell which felt worse. Only fear kept her on her feet, for her legs threatened to buckle.

She looked around, wondering at his words, for they made no sense. The cove was tiny and a dead end. No caves or tunnels. No way up the cliff. The only way out lay across the huge stretch of water. She didn’t have a better plan—and now she had no choice but to trust the handsome maniac before her. Harper quickly resigned herself to the fact nothing made sense anymore, and that she had no space to care beyond anything but her own survival.

They scrambled from the shallows, water streaming from them. Compared to the cold water, the air felt warm. Harper’s teeth chattered all the same, chilled to her very bones. On all fours, she clambered through the shallows, the sharp rocks cutting her hands and her cloak catching on every sharp edge and yanking her backwards.

“Here,” the elf called to her.

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