Page 115 of A Promise so Bold and Broken

Many of them still had friends on the streets…

And who was she to tell them what they could and could not do?

Inclining her head again, she stared into Ardow’s brown eyes. “You’re right. But they will get a choice. Bring those who want to fight back to the capital—but wait for my signal to come to the castle. If they capture and kill us… you get as far away from Havlands as you can. Do you hear me?”

When he nodded, tears glimmered in Ardow’s eyes, and she cleared her throat to quell the ones pricking her own.

When she reached out to squeeze his hand, Ardow smiled through the tears. “Also… I don’t think Merrick is the worst choice. Even if he scares me to death.”

Lessia rolled her eyes. “It’s just flirting. I think he’s trying to distract me—keep me from getting overwhelmed.”

“I doubt that.” Ardow rolled his eyes. “And I think it’s about to get quite messy once Loche is back in the game.”

Smacking his arm, Lessia responded, “Loche hates me. He’ll never care for me again.”

“I doubt that too,” Ardow said as he took the lead down the stairs into the cabin, where the others were already packing the bags they’d brought with them, preparing to get off the ship that wove through the small islands peppering the water outside Asker.

ChapterTwenty-Nine

“Tell me again why we couldn’t just have stolen those horses?” Raine groaned as he pulsed through the wet snow ahead of her, and Lessia had to slap a hand over her mouth when he let out a tirade of curses as snow tumbled from one of the pine trees towering over them and drenched him.

Once the ship had docked by a small beach, they’d quickly disembarked and made their way into the woods to stay out of sight.

Ardow and Venko had bid goodbye soon after that, but since they’d agreed they would return to the castle with those who wanted to join the fight, it hadn’t been too tear-filled.

The thought of hugging Amalise—of hugging Kalia, who Lessia was sure wouldn’t hesitate to come—had kept Lessia warm the entire time they trekked through the forest, heading directly toward the capital.

As night had fallen, they’d passed the small farm where Loche had left his stallion last time she’d been in these parts, but even though the house was dark, Lessia wasn’t able to convince herself that “borrowing” their horses was fair.

What if that was all they had?

Instead, they’d continued by foot in the soggy whiteness, and as darkness had continued to fall—the light that would come in the spring not yet breaking through the lingering winter—Lessia’s breathing had become increasingly shallow.

She tried to blame it on the challenging journey, but every time one of the Fae walked into her line of sight, she couldn’t help but shudder, remembering another darkness—another Fae—and the hurt and fear that had come with them.

Still, she hadn’t shut down.

Hadn’t given in to the tightness in her chest, nor the sounds that echoed softly in her ears.

As she pushed through another bank of snow, her muscles screamed, and Lessia let out a hissed gasp through her teeth when she stumbled, throwing out her hands to catch herself.

But she didn’t have to.

Merrick, who’d been walking behind her, caught her at the last moment, pulling her back against his warm body.

Glancing up at him, she expected a snarledWatch where you’re going!but instead Merrick searched her face, then ordered, “We’re stopping for today.”

Guiding her toward a copse of trees that stood more snugly than the rest, the ground beneath them not as wet—although it was still covered with snow—Merrick pulled out a blanket from his satchel and gestured for her to sit down.

Raine slumped next to her, and if she hadn’t learned her lesson last time, she would have taken a sip to feel some ounce of warmth when he offered her the flask.

But she couldn’t risk it.

Not out here.

And… if she was truthful with herself, she had no idea what was happening between her and Merrick, and she didn’t want to confuse it further by drinking from Raine’s never-ending supply of liquor and doing something stupid.

So after shaking her head, she rested her eyes on Merrick as he made quick work of finding any dry branch there was and lit a small fire.

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