Page 391 of Hunters and Prey

Chapter 13

“We should make camp for the night,” Vesper said, breaking the two-hour silence.

We’d been walking for what felt like forever. My legs ached and my butt cheeks burned. “Camp sounds good.”

He came to a halt in a small clearing and surveyed the trees. “Gather kindling while I build a fire.”

“I can build a fire. You go find kindling.”

He arched a brow but then simply shrugged and strode off into the trees.

I grabbed some large branches and set to building the fire. Vesper returned a moment later with the kindling.

“We need a flint.”

He snorted. “No, we don’t.” He leaned in and blew onto the branches; a plume of blue flame shot out of his mouth and landed on the kindling. It caught quickly and soon the fire was crackling merrily.

He settled down and warmed his hands, which was probably a reflex because he could make the damn fire so how could he be cold? This was the moment where two companions got to know each other. They swapped stories and shared shit, but Vesper seemed perfectly content looking into the flames. My curiosity, on the other hand, was piqued.

“So, what do Dreki lords do, exactly?”

He shrugged. “Lead armies. Fight battles, rule territory. The usual.”

“Do you have another setting aside from flippant?”

He glanced across at me. “Yeah, but that’s reserved for people I actually give a shit about.”

“If I cared what you thought about me that might have hurt.”

The corner of his mouth lifted in a smile. “I can see why Dante has a hard-on for you.” The twitch morphed into a grin. “You remind him of me.”

Oh, man. Could he get any more arrogant?

My stomach made a low rumbling sound.

“Are you hungry?” Vesper asked.

My stomach grumbled again, eagerly.

He rolled his eyes. “I’ll take that as a yes.” He pulled himself up and dropped his weapons belt. Shadows whirled around his form and then I was looking at a hound-sized dragon. Stay here. His voice echoed in my head.

He vanished into the tree line, leaving me gaping. They could do that? Change size like that? How did I not know this? Leaves rustled in a gentle breeze that carried a decided chill. The flames flickered and then surged up defiantly. Man, I was so fucking tired. Off with Jezebel and the blades too. The boots would stay put to keep my feet warm. Plus, if we were attacked, boots on was better than boots off.

Vesper returned, in human form now, carrying what looked like two rabbits. My stomach rumbled in anticipation.

He placed the rabbits on the ground by the fire. “You ever skinned one of these?”

Seriously? “You do realize I live in the Outlands, right?”

Blade in hand, I picked up a rabbit and deftly skinned and gutted it. Vesper slow clapped. “Nice.”

“Would be nicer if you’d taken the time to grab a stick to use as a spit.”

He handed me a stick as if he’d plucked it out of nowhere. Rabbit skewered, I passed it over and reached for the second rabbit, but it felt wrong. Smaller. The bones were all wrong. A shriek stuck in my throat as my brain finally processed what I’d been holding—a tiny, very dead female with gossamer wings.

Vesper stared at the woman and then buried his head in his hands. “Fucking hell. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Damn fairies. Too stupid to live.” He stood up and kicked dirt onto the flames. “Sorry, love, change of plans. We’re going to have to get the heck out of the Wilds tonight.”

He’d killed a fairy, but ... but she’d been a rabbit. I’d seen it. “What the heck just happened?”

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