Page 27 of Strength of Desire

“Yeah, sure. I’ll be okay. And, um, thanks.”

I waved my wrist in her direction. I really was pleased with how the vocator had turned out, even if I was a little worried about what others might think.

“My pleasure,” she said with a final smile, before turning back to the fire.

I was amazed that I was able to successfully backtrack through the maze of Hearth Haven to the front door. Amazed, and proud of myself. I stepped out into the afternoon sunshine with a grateful smile. I hadn’t felt uncomfortable in Hearth, not exactly, but it was nice to feel the breeze on my face again, and know I was above ground.

It was chilly, though, so I set a quick pace as I headed back to the manor. Maybe I could get back in time to grab a sandwich from the refectory before I had to go to Haven Selection. But I must have used up all my mental mapping ability inside Hearth. I was so focused on my hypothetical sandwich that I didn’t pay attention to my route, and soon enough, I was hopelessly lost.

I stopped in the middle of the path I was on and spun in a slow circle. I couldn’t see the roof or towers of the manor anywhere. I couldn’t see any buildings, in fact. I assumed I was still on Vesperwood’s campus, because Professor Romero had said something about the wards discouraging students from leaving, but aside from that, I had no idea where I was.

A caw sounded through the trees, and I looked up hopefully. Maybe the raven was coming back. Maybe it could guide me to where I needed to go. But all I saw overhead was a crow, much smaller than my raven, perched on the edge of a tree branch. It stared at me, and I got the distinct impression it felt I had invaded its territory.

“Sorry,” I said, looking up at it. “I’m trying to get out of here, I promise.”

I glanced around. All I saw were bare winter trees and shrubs, mixed with pines and other evergreens. A huge spruce leaned over the path ahead, and part of me wanted to turn back. It looked a little ominous, despite the bright sunshine of the afternoon. But I didn’t want to turn around either. After all, I’d just come from that direction, and I hadn’t found the manor back there.

With a sigh, I walked forward again. I passed under the spruce without incident, and told myself not to be stupid. Trees didn’t have nefarious intentions—right? The path curved, and I blinked.

Was that a roof peeking out through the trees up ahead? It looked too low to belong to the manor, but whatever it was, maybe I could find someone there to give me directions.

I resumed walking, the wood shingles of the roof coming into focus. The path curved again. I followed it eagerly—and walked straight into Noah, coming from the other direction.

His eyes narrowed immediately. “What are you doing here?” he asked. His tone wasn’t warm.

My heart stuttered in my chest, but I reminded myself I wasn’t doing anything wrong. “Trying to get back to the manor.”

He snorted. “Right. So you want me to believe you just happened to be walking towards my cabin purely by accident?”

“Why would I—wait. Your cabin? That building back there is where you live?”

A thrill shot through me at that thought. Knowing where Noah lived—it felt a little like seeing him undressed. Which, technically, I had never done. Onlypartof him had been unclothed, that first night.

“Don’t act innocent,” he said, his voice flat. “It’s not cute.”

I stiffened. “I’m not trying to be cute. I’m trying to get back to the manor. That’s all.”

“Well, it’s in the opposite direction.”

“Okay, well. Thanks, I guess.”

I wanted to say something more clever as I turned and walked away, but I couldn’t think of anything cutting or witty enough.

“Wait.” Noah’s voice cracked like a whip.

I looked over my shoulder.

“I’ll go with you,” he said. He didn’t sound enthusiastic about it, though.

“You don’t have to. I’m not a child.”

“I don’t care if you’re eighteen or eighty-eight, I don’t trust you walking around by yourself. For all I know, you’d manage to drown yourself in the lake.”

“Fuck off,” I muttered, but not quietly enough.

“What was that?” he asked sharply.

“Nothing.”

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