Page 21 of Apples Dipped in Gold

“Samara!”

I whirled in the direction of Michal’s voice, but I could not yet see him through the thick brush of the forest.

Panic rose inside me as I looked for a place to hide.

“Do you want to be found?” Lore asked.

My breath seized in my throat as he once again spoke against my ear. He moved so soundlessly, I had not heard him approach. Despite my heart pounding in my chest at the thought of being discovered by my brothers, I hesitated to answer—to trust him. While he had said he had no intention of killing me, there were always worse things.

A shuddering breath escaped my mouth, and I shook my head once.

Suddenly, roots shot from the ground, twisting around us.

Magic, I realized as I craned my neck and turned, watching them close over my head to form the trunk of a tree. My feet slipped on the uneven ground, and I fell against the fae. He caught me, and I tried unsuccessfully to straighten, my hands pressed flat against his chest, but I only managed to step on the fox’s tail, and he emitted a horrifying, almost human yelp.

“Sorry,” I breathed quietly, still trying to find my footing, but then Lore’s hand came around my waist, and he pulled me against him.

I looked up at him, frustrated.

“This is easier,” he said.

I glared, though it was hard to keep his gaze, not because his eyes were strange but because he was so beautiful.

This is how mortals die, I thought.This is how I die.

He did not seem to have any issue staring at me, his eyes illuminated by a blade of light streaming in from a gap in the twisted trunk.

“Couldn’t you have made a larger tree?” I asked.

“Are you going to complain about everything I do?” he asked.

I opened my mouth to apologize, but he put a gloved finger to my lips and hushed me. I let my hands shift down his chest to his sides and held him tighter. This felt safer, though I did not know why.

I watched Lore’s face as he turned into the blade of light and eyed my brother’s approach.

“Samara!” Michal’s voice erupted again, close this time. He was right outside the tree.

I jumped, and Lore held me tighter. I wasn’t sure if he intended to comfort me or keep me close so he could silence me if needed.

“Shut up, you imbecile!” Jackal hissed.

At the sound of Jackal’s voice, I began to tremble. I curled my fingers into Lore’s tunic, trying to force myself into stillness, but it didn’t work. Lore continued to hold me, and I made no move to push him away. I thought about how often I’d wanted someone to hold me like this and the irony that it was happening while I was trapped in the trunk of a tree, hiding from my brothers.

The sound of Michal’s voice startled me again. I turned my head into a beam of light and realized there was an opening for me to see through too.

I leaned close to peer out. At first, I could only see Michal. Then a pebble flew through the air and hit the back of his head.

“Ouch!” Michal seethed and whirled to face Hans, who snickered as he also walked into view. The two were dressed for a hunt, in their darker clothes and leathers, which I found odd since Prince Henry had left them rich men.

“What?” he snapped. “She can’t have gone far.”

“Even if she didn’t, what makes you think she would come running to us?” asked Hans.

“She will if she is smart,” said Michal.

“She didn’t leave on her own, idiot!” said Hans.

“How can you tell?”

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