Page 26 of Tethered In Blood

Quinn shifted in the saddle, breaking the silence. “Whoa.” Her voice carried a note of fascination as she took in the sight. “Did something knock it over? Or has it always been like this?”

“Storm took it down a long time ago.” I pulled the reins as I guided Neryth around the obstacle.

She hummed thoughtfully. Her eyes lingered on the fallen giant as she attempted to piece together a story from the way the bark had peeled and split. Silence settled again, heavier this time, until the skeletal remains of a village emerged through the trees.

Quinn pointed. “What is that?”

“Our midpoint,” I said tersely. “Emberhollow.”

“What happened there?”

I flicked a glance at her.Was her village under a damned rock? Was she even from Aurelith?“The uprising.”

Her posture shifted, the tension in her shoulders clear, and her fingers curled. “They didn’t talk about that back home,” she murmured. “If I could even call it that now.”

The way she said that didn’t sit well with me. I narrowed my eyes. “Most have seen it while traveling.”

“I didn’t leave the village until I left for the castle.”

That disarmed me. Her words bore a peculiar weight, not only in their expression but also in what remained unspoken. “Never?” I pried.

She shook her head, her eyes still fixed on the town’s skeletal remains. The last of the sun bled across the horizon, its dying light painting the ruins in deep hues of orange and violet. The jagged remnants of rooftops jutted into the darkening sky like broken ribs, while the crumbling chimneys served as gravestones, unmoving guards of a place long lost to time.

I shouldn’t have been curious. I should have let the silence stretch between us while it lasted.

Unfortunately, I included that on the list of should-haves.

“Where are you from, then?”

The change was subtle: a slight tilt of her chin and a shift in her posture.

“It’s just a small village; you wouldn’t recognize it.”

Evasion.

I let the silence settle this time. Her fingers toyed restlessly with the edge of the saddle as if she needed to keep occupied. Naturally, she didn’t let the quiet linger with us long.

“Stop here,” she demanded.

My grip on the reins tightened. “We’re halfway to Silverfel. If we keep going, we’ll arrive by mid-morning. I’m not stopping.”

Quinn shot me a glare, and damn her, the heat of it curled straight into my gut. “If you won’t stop so I can assess the damage to your bleeding wound, at least stop because I need to piss, and my butt hurts,” she clipped.

I swept a hand across my face, inhaling sharply to stifle the growl in my throat.

Stubborn adaneth.

“Fine.” I pulled the reins and steered Neryth toward the river bordering the village’s outskirts. He huffed as I dismounted and reached up to help Quinn. She was anything but graceful about it. The moment her feet touched the ground, she stretched her legs and let out a murderous groan.

I tied Neryth’s reins to a low-hanging branch before her eyes burned into my back. When I turned, her hands gripped her hips, her chin lifted, and her eyes were full of intent. Ready for war.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” I groaned.

“You split it open while you were sparring with Garrick, didn’t you?” Her brows furrowed, and her lips pressed into a firm line. That stormy, relentless look was back. She was prepared to pry me apart piece by piece.

My brows pulled together, and my eyes narrowed while I studied her face. That was a remarkable guess. As if she could read my thoughts, she continued. “I saw you on my way to the greenhouse. As if your vanishing into the night wasn’t enough.”

Of course, she noticed.Her eyes darted around, taking in her surroundings like a trained scout, when I found her at the castle garden. I shouldn’t have expected anything less.

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