Page 32 of Thorns & Fire
‘Kipp and Dessa...’she ventured, rinsing the cloth in the river again and bringing the cold material back to Torj’s skin.‘Do you think they were caught up in all of that as well?’
‘Kipp’s probably drunk on a tavern floor somewhere.I wouldn’t be surprised if he and Dessa missed the whole damn thing,’ Torj said roughly.‘Don’t worry about it until you have to.’
Having cooled the burns and cleaned them as best she could, Wren applied the aloe vera paste with her fingers.She saw Torj’s muscles tense beneath her touch, but he made no sound of complaint.
Despite everything that had happened between them, caring for him...It felt right.That emptiness that had hollowed her out inside eased at the closeness of him, something about him calming the storm that raged within.And yet...she had fought for him, and he’d ended it.
As she wrapped linen bandages around him, protecting the burns on his back, all her suppressed feelings rose to the surface.
‘Only a fool would look at you and see anything less than perfection.’
Wren cleared her throat, wiping her hands on her apron.‘That’s the best I can do for now.’The words came out harsher than she’d intended.She thrust a canteen of fresh water at the Warsword.‘You need to stay hydrated.’
Torj accepted it without a word, and she watched him like a hawk as he drank.
‘Finish it,’ she commanded when he made to pass it back to her.
He shook his head in mild disbelief.‘Bossy as ever,’ he muttered.
‘It’s called being assertive,’ Wren corrected him with a rush of irritation.‘And you’d do well to follow instructions if you want to be healthy enough to perform your Warsword duties.’
‘Fair enough,’ he replied, draining the flask.
Wren took it from him to refill from the river.She crouched on the damp bank among the tall grass and took a deep breath as she lowered the vessel into the cool current.She filled it and two others from her saddlebags, all the while feeling the Bear Slayer snatching glances at her.
‘What?’she finally snapped.
‘You’re quiet.It’s unlike you not to have something to say,’ Torj ventured.‘It’s disconcerting.’
‘Perhaps I have nothing to say to you,’ Wren replied flatly, twisting the caps back on the flasks and tying them to her horse.
‘Since when?You’ve always got an opinion about something.’
Wren glared at him.‘What is it that you want?To exchange small talk on the road?I think we’re a little past that, don’t you, Bear Slayer?’
‘You could tell me about the prophecy Queen Reyna made in the final weeks of the war,’ he said slowly.
Wren shot him another incredulous look.‘What about it?’
‘Why didn’t you tell me that what happened to us at Thezmarr was foretold?’He tugged on his hair.‘That gold would turn to silver...’
Wren laughed darkly.‘Are you seriously sitting there lecturingme on withholding information?Did you hit your head in that alleyway as well?’
‘Not that I recall.’
‘No?’She took a step closer, folding her arms across her chest.‘Because that’s theonlyreason you might have the balls to criticize my secret-keeping.Or are you about to divulge the real reason you left?’
She hated that she was the one bringing it up again, and in anger no less.It was the last thing she wanted to talk about, but the one thing that was constant, nagging her – especially with him so close; especially as she felt him track her every move and saw the heat in his stare.
Torj stood with a wince, towering over her.‘I told you why I ended things.’
‘Right, becauseyou’re a Warsword,’ she spat.
‘Thatiswhat I am!’
‘You’ve been a Warsword for as long as I’ve known you.That never stopped your pursuit before.Wilder and Thea have proven that it doesn’t matter.’The words tumbled out of Wren before she could consider what she was saying, before she could strip away the vulnerable note of hurt in her voice.‘But I suppose I should be thanking you.It turns out one time was enough after all—’
‘It was more than one time,’ he growled.
