Page 82 of Ashes of Betrayal

The coals in the brazier crackled then, sending a shower of sparks shooting up. She watched them, her thoughts turning inward.

“I’ve never been able to study a Shee so closely before,” Lara said finally. “You … glow.”

Bree glanced up. “Do I?”

“Aye … as if a candle burns beneath your skin.”

Bree’s lips quirked. “It’s the eyes that usually unnerve your kind.”

“Aye … they’re …” Lara broke off then as she struggled to find the words.

“Goat-like?” Mirren suggested. The maid had perched on a stool a few yards away and was watching their exchange intently.

Bree snorted, focusing on the lass. “Goat-like?”

Mirren stared back, her blue eyes full of questions. “I always wondered how come you didn’t know how to use salt to ward off malevolent spirits,” she murmured. “And why you didn’t know how to play ‘Liar’.”

Bree pulled a face. “I was out of my depth, I’ll admit.” She paused then, inclining her head. “You’ve developed an impressive knife throw. I don’t remember teaching you that?”

Mirren flashed her a tight smile. “You didn’t … one of the Fort Guard has been tutoring me.” She cleared her throat then—casting Lara a nervous look as if expecting to be reprimanded.

However, the princess was looking at Bree, her pine-green eyes unnervingly sharp.

Taking another sip of wine, she waited for her to speak.

“You were brave today,” Lara said eventually. “Recklessly so.”

Embarrassment prickled Bree’s skin, although she forced herself to hold the princess’s gaze. “I couldn’t let them take you.” She paused then, her chest tightening. “I wish I’d been able to save your mother. I’m sorry I failed.”

Lara’s eyes glistened. “You did your best,” she whispered. “And I will never forget it.”

36: THE CHOICE IS YOURS

CAILEAN JOLTED AWAKE. “Fuck!”

Pain speared his left side, a deep, throbbing ache that made him choke off a groan.

“I thought the rough ride might wake you. This cart is a boneshaker.”

A husky voice drew his attention, and, blinking, as pale sunlight assaulted his tender eyes, Cailean’s gaze settled on the face of a beautiful Shee female. The sky above them was the color of smoke, yet, as always, Bree’s skin glowed. Her golden eyes glistened as she stared down at him.

The wagon they were riding in lurched then as it hit a pothole, and pain knifed through Cailean’s side once more.

He cursed again, through gritted teeth this time.

Grimacing, Bree picked up a cushion and moved around to his injured side, gently pushing it under him. “Here … this might help.” She lowered herself down, sliding her legs under his in the narrow space. “I didn’t want to shift you … but we have to keep moving.”

Cailean blinked. His memories were foggy, as if he were trying to retrieve them from the bottom of a pond. “What happened?” he croaked.

Bree unstoppered a skin of ale then and held it to his lips, letting him take a few grateful gulps. Afterward, agroove appeared between her eyebrows. “How much do you remember?”

His eyes fluttered shut while he waited for his thick head to clear. The ale tasted like nectar. “Right up until after that arrow hit me,” he said after a few moments.

“About that,” Bree said, her voice sharpening. “Don’t you ever do anything so foolhardy again, mac Brochan.”

His eyes snapped open, their gazes fusing. “Just try and stop me,” he growled. And he meant it too. When he’d seen that Shee archer draw back his bowstring, his response had been involuntary.

Their stare lengthened until Cailean licked his parched lips. In response, Bree held up the skin of ale so he could take another sip. “Is the princess safe?” he asked, meeting her eye once more.

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