Page 52 of Once Upon a Midnight Clear

“I’m right behind you.”

She knew he was, but he was trying to give her courage. “I’m scared.”

“I know you are, but you’re doing great,” he reassured.

“We’re almost to the top.”

“And then we find Ingrid,” he said. “And go home.”

“Home?” Her brows drew together in question.

“Yes, home. To Rovenheim,” he said. “And when we return, you can have a long hot bath and sleep for as long as you like.”

“In your castle?”

He nodded. “In my castle. In the room next to mine.”

It sounded like a permanent invitation but she knew better than to hope for such a thing. Rovenheim was his home, not hers.

She turned back to the rock in front of her, reached for the next step and pulled herself up. Her gloves were starting to wear from constantly grabbing the rockface. Her legs burned. Her arms throbbed. Her hands ached. But somehow, she managed to keep going. Step after step. Until at last, she could see the top. Hope rose in her breast. She wanted to hurry, but she knew if she did, she could make a fatal mistake. So, she took those steps slowly until finally she reached the top of the mountain.

When she made it to the final stair, she dragged her tired body across it. She scurried away from the edge and then leaned over on her hands and knees to see if he needed help. He reached up for her. She grasped his hand and though he didn’t need the help, he accepted her assistance. He practically crawled from the last stair and then rolled to his back, laying there a long moment to catch his breath as he looked up into the night sky. As his chest rose and fell with his deep breaths, white plumes fogged around his face.

It was colder up here than on the ground. She shivered even under the thick layers of clothing. And then she recalled the velvet bag. She pulled it out from under her cloak and opened the drawstring to peer inside it. The shoes were still there and fully intact.

Relief sputtered through her.

Nicholas was probably right in that she should have left them behind at the castle for safekeeping, but she felt as though it was the wrong thing to do. That she should keep them on her person at all times. Something about them pulled at her. Noella had entrusted her with them, after all. Leaving them behind seemed dangerous.

But then, bringing them to the queen’s fortress could prove even more dangerous.

“That was…quite a climb,” he puffed out.

She closed up the drawstring bag and slid it back under her cloak. “It was.”

Now, sitting on the cold mountaintop, she glanced around but saw nothing but the shadowy shapes of more rocks and patches of snow.

How long had it taken them to climb that steep staircase?

Finally, Nicholas sat up and ran a gloved hand through his hair. Though he was closer to her, she had a difficult time making out his features in the inky blackness.

“Now what?” she asked.

“The fortress can’t be far now,” he said. He got to his feet. “Stay here.”

“Where are you going?” Fear pounded through her at the thought of being left alone on the mountaintop.

“I’m going over there.” He pointed ahead of him. “It looks like there might be a small cave on the side of the mountain. Or at least an opening. I’ll be right back.”

She drew her knees up to her chest and watched him walk away, his form turning into a shadow and blending in with the rest of the gloom. She stared in the space he had occupied only moments ago, straining her eyes as she watched for his shape to return to her. Long, cold moments passed and he didn’t return.

Her heart plummeted to her stomach. She pushed to her feet, her tired body protesting.

“Nicholas?” she called.

There was no answer.

She moved away from the edge of the mountaintop trying to ignore it and her fear of tumbling over it to her death.

---